nursing as a career?!

bet0326 · Dec 30, 2002

Yes it is, but if you really love it don't make the same mistake I did. When I was a senior I wanted to be a nurse and everyone told me that I was crazy and I decided to study finance. I'm 25 now and starting nursing school all over again. Amyh03, it never hurts to try and your very young and if it doesn't work out THEN you can try something else. I think you will do wonderful and I wish you all the best. Besides the first couple years of college are all pre req's, you still have time to figure things out.

Good Luck and I hope this helped

Yvette

renerian, BSN, RN · Dec 30, 2002

Maybe you should shadow with a nurse before you decide. My son did that and took a CNA course and worked at a hospital before he decided to do what he did which is going into nursing school. He was over a year in college on computer engineering and said he did not think he could do it his whole life.

renerian

llg, PhD, RN · Dec 30, 2002

Whether nursing school is excruciating or not depends on what school you go to and what types of things you enjoy and hate. What one person finds excruciating, another finds fascinating. Classes that some people find difficult, others find easy, etc.

While it was a long time ago that I went to nursing school, I work with a lot of current nursing students who are very happy with their schools and their choice of a career. My recommendation is to look closely at the school you have chosen; talk with upper classmen; and find out the details about the nursing program at that school. Only then, can you make an informed decision about that school.

And remember ... people who are unhappy are usually much more vocal about it than people who are happy. As a general rule, people complain much more loudly than they pay compliments.

llg

JohnnyGage · Dec 30, 2002

I don't think nursing school was all that bad in retrospect. Let's be realistic for a minute ... what areas in college aren't hard work? Business? Mathematics? Teaching? All have their own forms of long nights studying, hard projects, etc. Some of the things that make nursing (and nursing school) so hard are also the things that make the field so interesting ... chemistry, medical histories, pharmacology ... even being the shoulder that a family member cries on.

I think the idea to shadow a nurse for a while is a great idea. Better yet, shadow a couple of nurses in different fields. This will give you an idea of what's out there and what might be expected of you as you choose your career path. Contact a local hospital or your state Nurse's union. Either one of those sources might be helpful in setting up a shadow experience.