When & how to tell my boss I'll be continuing my education

Nurses Professionalism

Published

Hello everyone,

I've been working at my current employer for about a year and a half, and I was just accepted into a DNP psych program. I don't plan on working full-time, since I want to finish the program asap, but I do want to stay part-time or on-call; the reason being is that I want to continue being employed by them, and they do have a couple of nurse practitioner positions open, but who knows if those positions will be open in 2 years. By the time I begin my program, I will have been with this organization for 2 years.

When I first accepted this job, in my interview I told my boss (who is the director) that I plan on pursuing my DNP, and it's common knowledge throughout the facility that I'm pursuing the DNP, and I had 3 supervisors write me letters of recommendation, so this will not be a surprise to them. In fact, the director did ask me to keep her posted on what happens.

I start the program first week in September, and I've put down my deposit. The reality is that once I graduate, I won't be working for my current supervisors, since I'll be a NP and they report to different supervisors. And while my supervisor might say she's happy for me, deep down I know they want me to stay at my current position. They've been struggling to find nurses and, quite frankly, they (and my co-workers) love that I work on their unit.

My ideal scenario would be to work a few shifts a month in my current role as a RN, and if a position is available, apply to them for a NP position.

So, when should I tell them that I've been accepted, and how should I go about this moving forward?

Specializes in Ortho.

Just ask for a time to meet and tell them. Does your floor have those pt/prn positions? Mine doesn't so I will have to stay fulltime.

Specializes in Critical Care, Education.

You may be making decisions based upon a faulty assumption. Organizations all over the country are not only waking up the realization that advanced nurses can make a HUGE difference in patient care, they are creating new positions for APRNs. Just because your employer does not have any AP positions right now doesn't mean that they won't have one by the time you graduate. My advice? Convince them to create a job for you.

In the meantime, begin thinking like a leader - it will give you a jump on your educational preparation for that advanced role. Volunteer to help create some solutions for the 'struggling to find nurses' problem. Create a training program. Help identify what is driving the turnover. There's nothing more satisfying than being a successful change agent.

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