new career...pilot to nurse

Thunderwolf, MSN, RN · Feb 5, 2006

You are in good company, my friend. And 32...you're still young...so go for it! Many men have chucked away their other career and entered nursing. I've been a RN for 20 years. Since becoming one, there are now 6 times the amount of men in this field than when I first started. My friend, you are most welcome to enter...many men are.

clee1 · Feb 6, 2006

Go for it!

I'm 38, and in LPN school now as my second career.

Best of luck!

Corvette Guy · Feb 17, 2006

This is my first post here. I'm looking at going to nursing school. I've been a pilot for the last ten years. I'm really sick of aviation, and looking for a career change. I have to take some pre-reqs, then try for nursing school. I'm 32 years old and a little leary of such a big change. Have any of you made such a change? Am I too old to do this? My sister, mother, and grandmother are/were nurses and think it's great. They are really encouraging, but I would like some other guy's opinion's who have made such a change. Any incite would really be appriciated. Please let me know what you think.

Too old at 32 yrs old? ... not hardly. :rolleyes:

I did not start college until I was 32 yrs old. Now, I have AAS in Surgical Technology, AAS in Nursing [ADN], and BSN [RN-BSN program]. BTW, my first career was an aircraft electrician & com/nav techincian on F-4 Phantoms in the USMC, plus did similar for 3 yrs as a civilian.

IMHO, a lot of guys go into the nursing profession as there second, or third career.

Go for it, and good luck!

Roy Fokker, BSN, RN · Feb 17, 2006

Too old at 32 yrs old? ... not hardly.

I concur! A very nice, excellent, awesome male in out class has two grandkids and just recently celebrated his 30th wedding anniversary at 60 years of age!

If the chips were down, I would NOT MIND having him at my side - he's fantastic! :)

Hind12 · Feb 22, 2006

I think that its awesome that you were a pilot, I am a pilot as well. only vfr but still, the time I have done in my training and my expirence so far in the aviation world has been kind of stressful. I love planes, wanted to be a commerical pilot since i was 1 month old; Even though it is my dream job, it isnt my dream life. It seems to be a tough life espically as airline pilot, never know if you show up that day to be laid off. I see nursing as a way to do pretty much what I want, where I want. I am still in pre-req's, but determined to suceed. Got the cocky pilot attitude to be better than the rest.. haha. Good luck to you. Keep the pointy side foward, and stay out of the trees!

bluestar · Feb 22, 2006

No, you're not too old. There were a couple of students in their 50s in my nursing class. You'll do fine. Welcome aboard and Godspeed.

Gin Gin · Feb 22, 2006

Hey Bell47, Welcome! I'm a 45-year old guy just left my first career as a State civil-servant after 22 years, and am now into my ADN program (and loving it!). You're as old as you make yourself...Though it can be a little awkward in some situations, but I've found that being the only guy (or oldest person in my classes) is a bad as YOU make it...I firmly believe that nursing is a calling though (like being a teacher/clergyperson/cop/military/ etc...) Do it for the right reasons and not just because the $ and hours can be good...Welcome!

CSLee3, ASN, BSN, LVN, EMT-P · Mar 3, 2006

PILOT>>>>wow...dejavue...I was in Nursing school several years back (us 7 men huddled in our group,) the dude next to me was a 747 pilot, laid off from a major carrier. He turned out to be a fine nurse and is rocking on! I too, as it turns out was a private pilot...210 Centurion, 182's and such. Go for it!

Chuck

misternurseman · Mar 3, 2006

I'm in my late 30's I just got into my clinical ADN program and I love it! I hope to keep going to NP one day. This is my 5th career change! I'm looking forward to putting a good 20 years in! Best of luck to ya!

Raymond CA · Apr 8, 2006

Welcome! Just wondering, why are you sick of aviation? What advice would you give to someone considering a pilot's career?

tntrn, ASN, RN · Apr 8, 2006

Welcome! Just wondering, why are you sick of aviation? What advice would you give to someone considering a pilot's career?

As the wife of a senior airline captain (548 days to retirement: mandatory at age 60 and praying the retirement he's worked for for nearly 40 years will still be there because after 60 and until 62, there's no social security benefits!) and an RN, also looking forward to retirement, maybe I can shed some light on that question.

Management teams, most of them it seems, all go to the same school. And so many of them are temporary: they come in to a company, rape the employees, work their own system and line their own pockets, then head on to greener pastures in about 5 or 6 years. In aviation, it's especially nasty: not too many other business I can think of where bad management teams are rewarded for disastrous management decisions with large salaries, guaranteed golden parachute clauses, stock options AND go to the employee groups demanding "concessions" to keep the company afloat. That happens on a regular basis in the airline world. Concessions can be a give back of a negotiated pay raise, changes in work rules where you give up negotiated items such as formulas as to how vacation, sick leave, and others are calculated, so that you have to work more to accrue less, punitive measures such as having a nurse call you every other day when you are out sick for anything, having the company tell you you have to fly when your head is so stuffy you can't breathe (even though FAA regs clearly give the pilot the obligation of deciding is he/she is "fit to fly.") I could go on and on.

The general public thinks pilots and their families "fly for free." And that's not true either; I can fly for free, but only on the airline my DH flies for and that's only if there's an empty seat, which is rare these days. When we fly on another airline, there's a fare to pay and it's usually more than an internet deal. In addition, there's a dress code and you can pick us out of the crowd because we're dressed up and not wearing our pajamas.

Now to nursing: when I start nursing, I loved it. The hands on patient care and bedside time far outweighed the clerical part of it. The scale is tipping these days and clerical and computer and housekeeping chores seem to be chipping away at the actual nursing time. That's not really what I signed on for, and honestly, I will not be sad to walk away from it. I am quite concerned about the direction health care is going. In addition, I find our management teams nickel and diming in how we are stocked with necessary supplies like emesis basins, all the while posting record profits. They went to the same school, I guess. So far, they haven't demanded we give up our wage increases with the threat that the hospital will have to close its doors if we don't.

When my DH began flying nearly 40 years ago, he loved it. Now being away from home more than he is home is a real drag. And he's the most senior pilot at his company. What that gets him is first drack at the crummy schedules. His layover time is 24 wasted hours twice a week in place he can barely stand. Quality of life is not what a lot of people think. And certainly not guaranteed any more once a pilot retires.

We're looking forward to our retirements, but have some worries about whether the retirement funds we've been promised for so long will be there.