new male nurse needs advice...

[hixonr28]

Hey nursing community, my name is Rob. I have been a RN for approximately 2 years. Of that time most of it has been spent at my current job at a community health center. I really enjoy the relationships I have formed with my patients as well as working in different areas. I get to work In multiple departments such as; internal medicine, ob-gyn , urgent care, PEDs etc. I have an associates degree in nursing from a local community college. I really am enjoying nursing. My interest are preventative medicine, teaching, outreach and public health. I wish to continue my education and have aspirations of an advanced degree\practice. I am thinking Of getting my bsn and then maybe masters but in what I'm not sure. My dilemma is how best to proceed??? It is near impossible in my area of NY to get a job in a hospital without my BSN. So I am married with 4 kids, so I need something affordable, and flexible. However I am worried about some of the online Rn To bsn programs I want to make sure I can use that bsn to get into a masters program with a reputable accredited program. I have looked at the nearby Sumy Delhi which will probably take me two years to complete and western govners and Grand Canyon university. However they both have pros and con's. Anyways given my interest I was hoping some of you could kind of give some counsel on the type of Nursing Jobs and tracks I would take for them. Is it okay to not work in a hospital and get a masters to nurse practitionar or public health degree or is that weak? This kind of info. Or is rn to bsn from Grand canyon university legit and accepted into fnp programs? So stressed and I want to move on in nursing. Should I work on my BSN while at this current community health cemter which is flexible with time off? Please help, thanks so Much, I really look forward to what everyone has to say.

[Lev, MSN, RN, NP]

Public Health nurse practitioner sounds like something that may be of interest to you. Another more practical option would be Family Nurse Practitioner. I can't advise you about the different schools, but I can say that working and going to school part time for your BSN is entirely doable.