Those of you in school or have finished

Nursing Students LPN/LVN Students

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Those of you in school or have finished...what do you feel you have gained throughout your program and what do you feel you have lost.

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I would say I've gained a lot of patience, time management. I would say I've lost my social life (because I'm still in school).

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I gained a better understanding of myself being in school thought me how strong I am...being able to juggle classes, work, exams, clinical, etc made me a better person I am able to appreciate the smaller things in life...I lost some friendships due to my lack of availability but I believe I gained from that as well because no matter what true friends would want you to succeed and understand...

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I planned on making a lot of sacrifices when I enrolled in the LPN program. what I learned that it is one thing to talk about sacrificing and another thing to experience it. I missed out on a year of being fully available to my family, I never saw my husband, who worked 2 full time jobs so that I could concentrate on school. I had to put my son in full time daycare ( which he really loved) but by the time I picked him up i had about 3 hrs with him and he was in bed. I gained a knowledge of nursing theory and discovered a love for succeeding in school which I never knew existed before then. I learned what kind of nurse I wanted to be, and gained a ton of personal insight. Everything I took away with me from school was well worth the time I sacrificed. I graduated at the end of June, took my Nclex yesterday and today my name is showing on the BON with an active license.... Best feeling in the world....Good Luck to you

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Congratulations, Skye614. I hope to feel the same way when I finish.

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Thank you for your response. I take my last final Monday :) I'm prepping for my speech at our pinning ceremony.

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I've gained enhancements to my critical thinking skills, I've become a lot more determined. My study habits have sharpened. Case and point, I am at home, nose deep in my Fundamentals of Nursing text that we will be using in the first semester of the program (albeit with a migraine :banghead:) on lovely Saturday night. What a setting for an attractive 24 year old woman but success first!

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The biggest asset I have while being in this program is my independence. I don't have any children, bills, or other obligations so my studies get the bulk of my attention while still having time for :hug:my immediate family (my mom, FaceTime with my sister and my niece and nephew) and :heartbeatweekly visits to grandma's house to powwow :hrnsmlys:with the rest of my family and update them on my tremendous journey lol (:uhoh21:as my nose is buried in text and pen to paper.) lol Such measures must be taken!!!

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Specializes in Pediatrics.

I gained the ability to hunker down and work hard to get something I want. My whole life, I've never finished anything, especially if it required tremendous effort (my mom calls me motivationally challenged). I'm incredibly lazy and always quit academically once it got intensive or I didn't grasp it right away, so it's a huge accomplishment to work two jobs, go full time, pull great grades and actually DO something. It's definitely molded me into someone who can succeed further up the educational ladder.

What did I lose? Well, I went for a quick 10-11 month LPN program because I wanted the instant gratification of being in the field and working ($$$). Now, I realize all the limitations in hiring, and it will be difficult to find anything outside of LTC or home health, since the local hospitals have recently stopped hiring LPNs and there are many RNs around willing to work for less pay. I'm confident that I can still find work upon graduation, but it won't be the kind of work I wanted to do initially. If I could do it all over again, I would have just gone the RN route. I thought after finishing the LPN program, I'd suddenly be gifted with everything I wanted career-wise, but I'll be in school for a very, very long time now.

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Yeah that's the reality of it. Most people do not go through LPN programs as a their main career option anymore. Most of us want to be RNs and advanced practice nurses. But that's the thing, most people WANT TO BE NURSES, so programs are full to capacity every academic year and you can be on a waiting list for two years for a program that it will take THREE years to finish. WITH a full-time course load. That is why we choose to be LPNs because we can work as nurses while we finish up our undergraduate degree and you receive advanced placement in some programs just for being an LPN. Transition to an RN in one year and then boom, you've just leveled the playing field (Hello hospital!) After that, all you have to do is finish up your baccalaureate degree. You don't even have to take the NCLEX-RN again (assuming you've taken it upon completing your ASN). Just attach BSN to your title. It's a long road but it will be regardless of what direction you come from.

Don't let working in home health or Skilled Nursing Facilities (LTC, Short Term Rehab, TBI) deter you. LPNs can make great money in SNF. The facility I work start their nurses out at $23 - $26 per hour.

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