Hello to everyone,

This is the first time I am posting here in allnurses.com and I do so as I have found sound advice from other members on the threads that I have read. Thus, am looking forward to some insightful perspectives that anyone can volunteer my way.

About me, I am a Non-EU trained nurse incapable of registering with NMC as I do not have the prerequisite 12 months of registered practice from the Philippines, my country of origin. However, I can attest that I am a capable nurse finishing on top of my BSc in Nursing class with the most number of awards/citations including the highest of them all - The Florence Nightingale Award. However, even with all this potential I possess after 4 years of hard work in nursing school, I cannot practice the profession here in London as I do not have an NMC pin. I found it very sad and depressing for a while.

Now that I have accepted this fact and willing to move on, I am considering a career change and in need of advice.

I still do prefer a career within the health care field as I already have the foundation and experiences to draw on. As I see it, I may not practice nursing but I can build my new career on my nursing knowledge and skill. It is also in my understanding that after 3 years of residency here, I am then qualified to undergo university education as a home student, instead of paying relatively insane amount of fees. To save up for those university fees, I am now applying for jobs in the lines of health care assistant, medical secretary, and the likes, to just keep my skill and knowledge relevant.

I do plan to study further and now trying to decide which field I will go in. My current interests include training to become a doctor or dentist, biomedical scientist, clinical researcher and I am even open to suggestions. I have to factor in finances, when will my husband and I have children, how long will it take to study/finish, how demanding the workload will be, and how much my starting pay will be after I qualify or will all that effort be worth it in terms of monetary renumeration. I did consider to study nursing again also however, my husband said that if I am going to study again, it should not be something I already know.

I know that I may be in the wrong forum, but I really would appreciate any comments or links that will give me any additional information so I can make... well, an informed decision regarding career decisions. I just don't know who else to ask so I chose to ask those who are in the health care profession. The sooner I can decide what field i will train for when I qualify for home fees, the more geared the working experience I can gain during the wait. Like if I decide to pursue becoming a doctor, putting on hold having children after I finish, I will then try secure a job as a medical secretary so I can have that exposure to that field. likewise if I decide to become a clinical researcher, I can try find a job being a research assistant or along those lines to gain some exposure and experience in my future career.

Once you qualify to study why don't you apply for nurse training and work in the profession you originally wanted to?

That has also crossed my mind and the first response my inner voice tells me is, it was really not nursing that I always wanted to do, it was my mum who pushed me to study it. I don't regret it nor do I say my mum is wrong, I enjoyed it thoroughly, but now I have the chance to study what is more interesting to me...

An I'm not going to lie, money is an issue as well, I want to train for a post that pays better, and I am not sure if nursing does compensate well for the hard work nurses put in especially with the weekends and the night hours. So my dear respected colleagues, is it worth it? shed some light on this opinion of mine as I am open to being proven otherwise. Thanks

Not if your heart is not in it.

IMO nurses pay in the UK is rubbish, especially if you are living in areas such as London, where the cost of living is really high.