She doesn't have a clue!

Thank you! That's reassuring that you're making good money right out of nursing school. Yes, first year pay is 25,000, and that is in Olathe, one of the best paying places around. I do think I'll stick to my plan, now that I've heard from someone around here that pay is optimistic. I just hope I get in to school!

I was torn between teaching and nursing. Parents pushed for nursing because it "pays more and is a frendlier enviroment". I'm still not sure where they got their info. I do not regret nursing, nor have any desire to teach. I have great respect for teachers. I can't imagine being cooped in a room with twenty WELL kids for 7 hours a day. I know as our patients become well, we often say "it's time for him/her to go home". This is with parental supervision. I can't imagine being the only adult with twenty of them.

As for the better benefits of teaching, they ARE unionized and government affiliated. This is why their retirement is so good. I don't believe our quarrel is with teachers. I feel they, like us are underappreciated. As long as we point and say "they have it better than us", we move the focus from nursing problems to teaching benefits. Beauticians make more than either of us, are female dominated, far less educated and at most, their liability is ruining someone's hair. Think maybe it's not so much a female issue as it is the sad state of society? Society places more emphasis on vanity than on health and education. Sad, eh?

Take it from a licensed cosmetologist.....I definately make more now than I did as a beautician. You also could not guarantee your income week by week. If it snowed, or your clients were busy that week, too bad....you just didn't make any money. And benefits, HAH!!! Usually the only way to get those was to work for a corporate owned salon.
Although, I still keep up my license to shop at the beauty supply store.... I think what I make now, as a nurse, overshadows wholesale priced shampoo.

Buffalo is a Sh&* Hole, the bowels of hell, i wouldn't recomend moving here for any amount of money

To h*** with 10 weeks off! I think any type of work done by women or men for that fact needs at least a year off! What do ya say?

On a more serious note, I am thankful for the teachers who provide my children's education. I'm sure as with any profession, if we only looked for money and benefits in what we do, we would have all become investment bankers or computer software company owners, or talk show hosts, or oil tycoons! As for nursing, well I am one and proud of it. I have been through the stress of several different job situations and agree that any job can be stressful. It's not how stressful the job is but how we cope with the stress.

Good luck to all nurses and maybe we should unite together and fight for better pay, benefits and hours. Although, the pay isn't so bad when you think of not having any at all!

Remember this: "I used to complain about having no shoes, until I met a man with no feet!"

Tell that to your neighbor.