New Pre-Nursing Student Here.....

[Buster70]

Hello all! Just wanted to post and say hello. I'm a new pre-nursing student (started this spring). Here's a little about myself...

I'm a 38yr old married father of 3 boys (OMG....shhhhhh, don't tell anyone a man is here!! LOL). I've got a bachelors degree in Information Systems. I've been in the IT field for about 12 years now and it hasn't been very rewarding. Medical has always been a secret love of mine. So....here I am.

Needless to say, I've got all my pre-reqs with exception to my sciences...so that's where I am. Now I'm trying to figure out if I want to go for an LPN and get to work as I bridge to an RN, or just go for the BSN right off the bat. I have all the typical issues it seems....how much will it cost, what to do with the kids, how much time will it require, what will I make, how can I survive this madness???????????

Anyway....I'm in my first Biology class along with an online Psych class. I'm already feeling stressed with the amount of info you have to absorb. I haven't been in a classroom in 10 years!!

Helpful, encouraging words are definitely needed...along with a dose of reality.

Happy to be here and looking foreward to the future.

Oh...after eating chinese today, I got a fortune that I thought was fitting....."Use your abilities at this time to stay focused on your goal. You will succeed!"

Brett

[marilynmom, LPN, NP]

The news, paper and tv, keep running stories about the male population, in nursing, increasing. But I've also heard stories of people finishing school, getting the degree, getting a job, and then moving on to something else because the job wasn't what they expected. Seems like a huge waste of everyone's time to me.

I would say for a lot of nurses your statement is true I would encourage ANYONE thinking about nursing or the medical field to work in the hospital in some capacity (CNA, nurse tech, etc) to see what it's really like. It's not for everyone and you won't know it's for you or not until your actually working in the field (even clinicals don't count). Most of the medical residents I have worked with want out, but they are in too much debt to have much choice--so it's not just RNs.

I am very lucky to have gotten out of the hospital and I love my current job, but jobs like this are few and far between. I won't work in the hospital again if I have a choice. There are good jobs out there for RNs, you just have to know how to find them!

[jersygirl]

Hi Buster. I met a lot of people from my school who are full time parent and employee. I am amazed that they were able to juggle everything. I know you could do it too. Just stay focus and manage your time wisely. Good luck to you.

[travis73]

You can take an LPN exam after taking two semesters of the nursing program? Is that true?

[Buster70]

yes, i've heard that you can sit for the LPN exam after the first year of nursing school. Although, I'm sure there would be some study time required for the NCLEX.

[Ciale]

Buster,

How did your biology class go?

[Buster70]

It went GREAT! Ended up with an A for Biology and a B for my online Psychology class (one test killed my A).

I'm looking into the program at RSU. Fewer pre-requisites to get in. Heard its a good program.

[Ciale]

Awesome! Way to go. What is RSU?

[Buster70]

RSU....Rogers State University

[motherofgirls]

hi to marilynmom, can you tell me why you wont work in a hospital anymore?

[grap3slurpee]

Where did you take this online course at? I'm currently looking for an online general/intro psych class. Thanks!

[LilRedRidinHood]

I am taking Developmental Psych. online from OCCC and have taken three other online classes there and have been very happy with all of them. You might check them out for an online Intro. to Psych. class.

[Buster70]

Where did you take this online course at? I'm currently looking for an online general/intro psych class. Thanks!

I took my online class at Tulsa Community College. They use Blackboard, which is an online student / class resource so you can have a class email, discussion boards, etc. The instructor posts notes, discussion forums, exams, quizzes, paper assigments, etc. It was pretty easy to navigate through.

Good Luck!