A nurse should have at least 5 years exp before NP school

[MikeyBSN]

I know several great NP's, all of whom have a strong background in clinical nursing. I also no some not-so-great NP's, all of whom have no background in clinical nursing. I don't think this is a coincidence. What is worse is that I have "worked" with NP students who went straight form nursing school to NP school. Sometimes I wonder if some of tthese NP's are even nurses! Every NP program I have seen is built to expand a clinical nurse's expertise and allow them to become practioners. Do you agree, or do you think this is too harsh of a view?

[CaseManager1947]

My NP program required at least 2 years of clinical experience IN THE CHOSEN SPECIALIZATION. For the CRNA program, it MUST be in critical care, no exceptions. I think that is wise.

[April, RN, BSN, RN]

I have given myself the 5 year rule before becoming an advanced clinician for two main reasons. 1) I want to be prepared with a strong clinical background before moving on to an advanced practice. 2) Patients trust that their "advanced practice nurse" has advanced knowledge and experience. I know that is my expectation of the healthcare provider who will be diagnosing my symptoms, ordering my medications, or referring me to the proper specialist.

[Mexarican]

I am a PNP and worked as a PNP for 5 years before going back to school. In my class, we had 2 students who were right out of nursing school. Both were working while they were in grad school so they were getting clinical experience while in school.

I have several concerns with this. While these 2 where very bright and did well in school, they had a lot harder time than the rest of us who had clinical experience. A lot of the hands on, practical knowledge that you can only get by working they did not have so things that were intuitive for some of us weren't for them. Also, the RN role and the APN role are very different roles. For these 2, they were learning both at the same time and that had to be difficult for them. Finally, the hospital where I work, required 5 years of nursing experience (either as RN or APN) to be hired as an APN. My director of my program did express concern for the direct entry students and their ability to get a job because a lot of employers want some nursing experiance.

The 2 students I had in class with my ended doing fine, but I always wondered if it would have been easier for them if they had just worked for a year or so then went back to school. I think it is a personal decision that everyone needs to make for themselves. Personally, I did not care how much experience they had and it did not affect me at all (I know PP had mentioned that some people expressed some jealousy). My viewpoint comes more from practicality.

So it seems to me that they took the "tougher" road and were rewarded for it! Kudos to them!

Mex

[stellina615]

MikeyBSN, thank you for this post. I tend to agree with you and most of the other posters that someone seeking to enter an NP program should have previous experience as an RN to hone their assessment and prioritization capabilities, as well as to perfect those clinical tasks like taking a patient's BP without having to delegate it to someone else. :) I do think that I will eventually enter an NP program. The standard I have set for myself is not a time frame per se, but more like a skills checklist. Once I am able to assess a patient as accurately, thoroughly, and as timely as some of the NPs I respect, AND if I can correctly anticipate all of the diagnostics, treatments, and meds before s/he orders them, THEN I will feel like I may be ready to start filling out some NP program applications! :dancgrp: