Nursing Shortage vs. Too many nurses

[cn2007rn]

Hello,

I am a senior nursing student, I was talking to an experienced nurse the other day who thinks that in about 5 years there will be too many nurses and not enough jobs for everyone. She thinks there will be too many nurses because so many people are going into the field because of all of the talks of shortages, many acclerated programs, and all of the advertising.

She does have a point in a way because my nursing program takes about 100 people per semester but over 800 apply for the spots. I was a little worried when she said that because one reason I went into the field was for job stability and all of the options nursing has to offer. I always hear that they do not have enough nursing teachers and nursing is not for everyone, and I have read that the nursing shortage will just get worse over the next 20 yrs or so.

What does everyone think about the subject??

[HappyPants]

Hello,

I am a senior nursing student, I was talking to an experienced nurse the other day who thinks that in about 5 years there will be too many nurses and not enough jobs for everyone. She thinks there will be too many nurses because so many people are going into the field because of all of the talks of shortages, many acclerated programs, and all of the advertising.

She does have a point in a way because my nursing program takes about 100 people per semester but over 800 apply for the spots. I was a little worried when she said that because one reason I went into the field was for job stability and all of the options nursing has to offer. I always hear that they do not have enough nursing teachers and nursing is not for everyone, and I have read that the nursing shortage will just get worse over the next 20 yrs or so.

What does everyone think about the subject??

It is going to get worse.

[RN_student2006]

I've heard that the shortage will get worse in the next 20 years...there will be new hospitals and long-term care centers popping up all over the place because of all the aging Baby Boomers. Then, when they all pass away, we will have too many medical facilities and too many caregivers. Then we might be in trouble! We'll just have to see what happens, I guess...

[RNsRWe, ASN, RN]

The average age of a new nurse just entering the profession keeps rising. The median age of graduates from my school was mid-thirties. The average student in pre-reqs at same school is now 35, not yet graduating. It's not an unusual school; I read that this is the trend across the country.

Starting later in life also means less time on the workforce overall. And we still don't have enough 20-somethings getting in and staying in school to compensate for the "older" losses.

[MrsMommaRN]

not everyone that gets into the nursing program stays into the program. you have to take into account all of the nurses that will be retiring in the near future as well as nurses that are instructor retiring. i think its safe to say you are going to be secure in your job for awhile.