Nursing school and full time job

Nurses General Nursing

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I have a question. I work full time and am finishing up my pre-reqs for nursing. When I get into nursing school will I be able to handle the school full time and work part time or should I just quit? How hard was it for you guys?:confused:

I only worked part time. School required a great amount of my time and I couldn't work more!

The hardest part was being behind and getting more behind in bills til graduation.

My credit is now shot, but that's ok, I can repay now that I am a nurse~:)

Best of luck to ya!

Julie:)

Specializes in ER, ICU, L&D, OR.

howdy yall

from deep in the heart of texas

Well lunakat, It all breaks down to where you put your priorities. I managed an EMS system in rural Oklahoma. Only 2 ambulances, but it kept me busy. I worked 60 hrs a week, and was on call basically 24/7/52.Sometimes I actually had to take the ambulance to class with me. But even with all that I still found time for a little fishing and hunting and even a little golf. Even managed to help some with 2 newborns that somehow occurred while in school. They werent twins either. I remember bottle feeding with one kid in hand while reading my Nursing Books with the other. Generally out loud to the baby, who didnt seem to mind atall.

Basically before you do it, you just need to decide whst snd where your priorities lay, and then proceed to achieve your goals.

By the way I did graduate at the top of my class, even it was in oklahoma.

You asked, did I find it hard. The answer is no. Did I work hard yes, Was it worth it yes. Now I have raised almost 7 kids now. And as I am typing this my 5 month old grandaughter is sitting on my lap.

So good luck to you whatever you decide,

The Democrats will rise again

doo wah ditty

Specializes in Med-Surg.

teeitupmom, there is no way I could have done what you did! I don't know how you managed all that.

I worked full-time during my pre-reqs and during my first clinical semester. I quit before this semester started. There was no way to balance the amount of paperwork required, the amount of study required, the amount of classtime required, the amount of time my family required AND a job. Just no way. However, after this semester (if I pass) I plan to work as an extern in the hospital. They are extremely flexible when it comes to scheduling, and you work what you can--even if it's just 8-10 hours/week.

for me i worked from 80 hours to 64 when i did my nursing classes and still manage to complete my prereques for the rn program. i ask this question and one nursing instructor told me you must have good time management. i find when i write down a schedule of my daily routine i find i have time to study and work. it can be done if you can afford to cut hours then do so. either way nursing school is quite demanding but not unobtainable.

Specializes in Med-Surg, Trauma, Ortho, Neuro, Cardiac.

teeituptom, did you sleep? You must not need much sleep.

I worked full time during prereqs and nearly full time during nursing school.

The question to ask is your job flexible? Can you get required days off for clinicals, studying for finals, etc.? Also, how much sleep do you require. The person who works 80 hours, plus goes to school full time must not need sleep. LOL. Me, I need at minimum 7 hours sleep.

If you don't have to work full time, I would so no, don't do it. Nursing school is quite time consuming. But if you have your prereqs all done, then working part time is not a big deal.

Anyway, as was said depends on your priorities.

When I went to school, I was very driven and had no life other than work and school. I managed to get out a time or two. Plus, I was adamant about physical fitness and made sure I got a good jog in every other day.

Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

I worked fulltime while in LPN school, RN school and now I'm doing ADN to MSN online. My husband was very supportive as our sons were quite young. But...you do what you have to do. It can be done.

Good luck...

Specializes in CVOR,CNOR,NEURO,TRAUMA,TRANSPLANTS.

Well I worked full time at the hospital during the week after school and then part time on the weekends with Hospice with call 48 hrs with Hospice as well during the week. I can tell you it was HARD but worth every minute of the time and experienced I gathered. I studied as much as I could at the school and when I was at work during my breaks I would have my nose shoved so far up a book I could taste the binding glue. I researched my clinical patients also on my breaks (thank god my patients for clinicals were at my hospital) so I could grab a chart and research while I had a half second at work and also pull all my clinical information from the hospital library and with other nurses I worked with. Its hard to say the least and there were times where I didnt know if I was coming or going but I learned something that school couldnt teach me TIME MANAGEMENT beyond belief. I was so stretched on all ends and thankfully I was a person who could survive on a few hours of sleep, and little debbie cakes and pepsi. I graduated within the top of my class and to be honest the only casualty of this experience was my marriage at the time. Looking back would I change anything , No not really I found that I had to push myself to the limit to get what I wanted in the end. Good Luck to you and you will know what to do ...

Zoe

Specializes in Nursing Professional Development.

As some of the other posts in this thread have said, it CAN be done IF you work really hard, your job is flexible, etc. However, as others have said, I would not recommend it for most people. Having watched people doing that over the years, I have seen that most (but not all) people who do that sort of thing end up not doing their best at either school or their job and/or their family life suffers.

When you make that many committments and stretch yourself so thin, something usually suffers.

llg

Specializes in Specializes in L/D, newborn, GYN, LTC, Dialysis.

I I personally did not do it; my first committment was to my family...2nd to school....learned to live w/o a lot of "nice" things.....we need to determine what is "necessary" versus what is "wanted"....sometimes they are quite different animals. That said, if you are primary income-earner in your family, you have a challenge. I am not here to judge anyone's personal situation.......

Still, though, the same applies.....determine what must be paid for...versus what is "nice to have" and go from there. Be honest. I wish you well!

I worked part time as a cna ( Fri., Sat., Sun.) while in school. as my kids refused to give up things like eating...rude of them !....But, had much help from those same 2 kids.While I was in school, they did almost all the housework, cooking, and all the laundry....Then were rude enough to expect Mom to Do it all after I finished.....:eek: Love those 2....:D They were 6th, and 10th graders when I started....i think that if they had been younger it wouldn`t have worked as well.

Family committment is fine but poverty sucks. Some of us do not have any choice but to work and go to school. I still maintained a A-B average while in nursing school because I was focused on what had to be done. Everyone is different and to say what someone may or may not do is irrevelent it is up to that person. I do not go by what other people can't do I am not them and they are not me. So that statement is heresay! Everyone's situation is different and you can't base what you observe from other people. You know yourself and you know what your capabilities are.

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