Do you think there would be less RN students if the economy was better?

[kalevra]

I noticed this while talking to a group of people from my class. Many of them are on their second career after it ended around 2007 and up. They then began to work towards entering the RN program as a way to get into a filed that was "recession proof" and that " there would always be a demand". I got the felling that if the recession did not happen then there may be less RN students or at the very least fewer people trying to be an RN student.

[OCNRN63, RN]

Just for kicks, I went over to J&J's "Discover Nursing" site to see if they'd modified their rosy portrayal of nursing, given the number of graduates who are still looking for work. Not only had they not done so, they have a "Myths" section and guess what their number one myth is? Graduates having a hard time getting jobs. Not only that, they are still talking about sign-on bonuses of up to $14,000. When I read that, I realized that these are people who are either clearly not in touch with reality, or are in cahoots with someone to benefit financially from schools churning out more students.

[boushie87]

Perhaps but I know that isn't the case for me. I went to school for Biotechnology and then started a graduate program for genetic counseling and after a year the program had changed, it was more towards research vs patient care and clinicals, etc. Plus, my then husband couldn't find a job where I was going to grad school. So I ended that and got a job for a bit where he had a job. Then started looking into what I could do with my biotech degree.. which is research.. not my interest and of course no jobs for new grads. So I looked into nursing. Not because I had heard anything about money or job status, really. I maybe foolishly didn't really think about how much I would make when thinking of a career haha So now I am in another BS program for nursing. There were no prereqs if you were to start as a freshman for the BSN but of course I had a million science credits from my other degrees Unfortunately there is no accelerated BSN in the area, so I have to take 5 semesters of classes lol oh well :) But anyways, the point to my story was that not everyone goes to nursing because of the supposed shortage/the pay/the hipe.

[GraceNotes]

Good question. I saw nursing as a recession-proof profession. Work has been steady since I graduated three years ago. It's hard, and not always as satisfying as I'd hoped. At the end of the workday, I still dream of doing something that I love. I recently saw a neon sign along the interstate advertising nursing degrees from a small private college. Cheap. School's tough. The breadth of what nurses are expected to know is vast. Yet, if you toss a stone in any direction you're bound to hit a nurse or an aspiring nurse. Programs of varying lengths are springing up everywhere. How (why) are these schools obtaining accreditation? There most certainly is no shortage. The surplus of nurses has resulted in a general lack of respect, lower wages, and job security. We are a dispensable lot.

[tazmom]

MI don't think so for me, I have always wanted to be a RN. After spending my entire childhood in the hospital. I do think that people think it is easy job, not. I am a cna, medical assistant(horrible mistake no jobs there) and a anesthesia technician(love this job) . I eventually want to be a CRNA, love anestehsia.

[Bruce_Wayne, ASN, RN]

My class started out with like 55 people, and half of them were idiots. Now we're down to less than half that amount, 22, and while I think a few of them won't make it, I think that most of them will make great nurses.

I was recently reflecting on what a huge money maker level 1 of nursing school must be. Especially when you consider that some people will retake the same level a few times before ultimately giving up.

[midwesternmomoftwo]

It is not a bad thing that people are coming to nursing due to the economy. I'm one of those economic refugees! My career field is dying and after a lot of consideration, I decided to become a nurse. It has been a solid decision. I would not have considered nursing at age 20, but seem to have the disposition for it now.... The current economy is bringing the nursing profession some well-rounded people. There is nothing wrong with that.

[Nurse SMS, MSN, RN]

I guess I am in the minority. The economy had nothing to do with my changing careers. My original career was going just fine. I just want to be a nurse and am not getting any younger.

[Felec]

I think there is more then a little truth in that. My class started out with 56/57 students. Over half were there for the money only. Only 32 of us made it through. I went because I wanted to help others and there are many differnt ways to do so in Healthcare. I was not sure what type of nurse I wanted to be. I am certain of one thing now, I am so disappointed in what I have found. I know most nurses are not in it for the $$$ but it seems like money is all that matters and not the pts. I feel for the poor souls that went into nursing because of tricks and false ideals.

[Caffeine_IV]

I think there would be less working RNs if the economy was better AND less students.

[sunnycalifRN]

I saw it occur in the Bay area . . . during the "dot-com" boom, when many folks were quitting their "day jobs" . . . the local nursing program I attended only had a dozen students enrolled.

[Rose_Queen, BSN, MSN, RN]

I think there would be fewer nursing students if the schools were honest. Too many people are being told that nursing is "recession-proof." It's definitely not. Just like every other job out there, it's cyclical. I doubt we'll ever see the $10,000 sign on bonuses again, but I'm sure that years (and years, and even more years) into the future we'll see the need for nurses rise again.

My OR lost 3 nurses recently, and they are not going to be replaced. There are many nursing students employed in other roles by the hospital, and the hospital has scholarships/tuition reimbursement that require those students to work for the hospital for 2 years or they have to pay it all back at once. There are about 45 nursing students graduating this semester with that obligation, but there are only 2 full time positions available and a small handful of part time positions. These students may be stuck with student loans without a nursing job because none of them have the resources to pay back the hospital and find a job elsewhere.

[Perpetual Student]

A 20 yo lady told me that ALL of her friends want to become nurses. Fortunately she did say that the adviser at the college informed potential candidates that there is indeed difficulty in finding placement for new grads. The poor economy is driving people toward nursing, hopefully some can get a dose of reality prior to jumping in. That's not to say that nursing is a bad career, nor that people shouldn't still consider it. However, it is important that people have realistic expectations and ideally become nurses because they WANT TO BE NURSES; not because they want an easy, secure job.

Nursing shortage my fat behind. The two biggest systems in my county (which account for all of the acute care hospitals) are either laying people off already, or are starting to. Granted, it sounds like not a whole lot of RNs are actually going to get let go (though they may be reallocated within the hospitals), but there will be little to no hiring to fill vacancies and people will be encouraged to take early retirement. These two systems (both are quite large) account(ed?) for a lot of the new graduate hires in the region.

To put it into perspective, these down-sizing systems were the only ones that interviewed me a couple of years ago when I was a new RN w/ years of LPN experience. I applied with several other facilities that wanted nothing to do with a newbie. Hopefully things will pick up, but I fear that in the next 6 months the picture for new grads (and experienced RNs) in my state is going to get much, much bleaker.

And how will it ever improve with the anticipated reimbursement cuts?