questions on if im making the right career choices with nursing?

[Nurseintraining712]

I want to be a pediatric nurse. here are my questions

-I'm going to get my stna so i can get my foot in the door to see if that interests me and gain some experience dealing with patients. the problem is I want to work with children, not the elderly. i know that may sound harsh but I've just always been better suited around children. is it possible to get a job at a children's hospital with just my stna? or should i just suck it up and work at a retirement home for awhile?

-Once i get a job as an stna i plan on continuing my education for either rn or lpn. Can a lpn get a job at a children's hospital?

-I heard that in order to get a job at a hospital now a days you most likely have to have a bachelors in nursing. is that true? its not an associates anymore?

-once i get my rn or lpn and cant get a job at a childrens hospital i plan on taking the cpn exam so im certified specifically for children so i can work in the childrens wing of hospitals.

-Any advice? how does my plan sound? help me.

[SoldierNurse22, BSN, RN]

First off, getting a job in healthcare nowadays is rough, regardless of your level of licensure. You may want to work in peds, but realistically, that may not happen. The elderly comprise the great majority of healthcare, so please don't fool yourself into thinking you'll sail into your STNA, land your dream job and head for your nursing degree. Chances are good that you'll end up working with adults before you reach your goal.

With regards to whether or not LPNs are hired into peds and if hospitals require BSNs for hire, that greatly depends on the area you're working and where you're willing to work. Many urban areas and Magnet hospitals like to hire BSNs. Either way, a BSN gives you an edge into hiring that you'll probably want in this economy. It does not, however, guarantee that you'll get hired right out of school as many, many BSN-prepared grads are struggling right along with the rest of their colleagues to find work.