Lost On My Educational Track

[CostantinoA]

Hello everyone: I am so lost on my educational track. Please help! I am completing my Associate of Applied Science in Medical Assisting right now at Kaplan University. I thought my dream goal was to ultimately complete my Doctor of Nursing Practice and work as Nurse Practitioner. I honestly only had interest in the medical field for the money. Many people I have talked to say that if I did not have a true desire to help patients and I was only in it for the money, I would get burned out and not like it. So with that being said, I am trying to figure out which program I should go into next. I do want to obtain my doctoral in some health care related field. I currenly live in North Las Vegas, Nevada and I am relocating to La Jolla, California (San Diego) soon. My question is, after my assoicate is completed, which bacherlors program should I start. I am looking for the highest paying job and the degree that would pretty much is in demand in San Diego, CA. Thanks.

Ideas of program routes I thought about... Ideas.....????

1. Associate of Applied Science in Medical Assisting, Bachelor of Science in Health Science, Master of Public Health
   
2. Associate of Applied Science in Medical Assisting , Bachelor of Science in Psychology, Master of Science in Psychology
   
3. Associate of Applied Science in Medical Assisting, Bacherlor of Science in Allied Health
   

Please help me. Thanks

[mintygirl]

I understand what everyone is saying. I know 2 nurses that are in it for the money and do just fine. One of them has been RN for 15 years and the other 4. It is like any job, you can have the skills and training to complete the tasts but don't have to like it. The school I am attending talked me into the MA program before taking nursing. I have high honors and GPA 4.0. I am completed in October. What I need help in is deciding which Bachelors program I want to start. I know I should be looking into a BSN/MSN but I want to enter the nursing school with a completed Bacherlos degree and then just take the core nursing classes. There is a program at University of San Diego that offers current bacherlor degree holding students that are not RN's, a MSN program. If I decided nursing was not for me, which other health science degree could I obtain to make good enough money to live in SD?

Medical assisting pays next to nothing and what you call is a school is still a place of business. Medical Assisting is close to an entry-level job, that would have been cheaper to take at an adult school for less w/ no loans. You made a mistake in assuming they were out there to help you before knowing your real career goal. As for your "2 nurses" of course one of them is doing fine, 15 years in any field qualifies as experience w/pay raises, even with 4.

You might just be money hungry enough to finish your degrees, but like other posters said it won't account for nothing. You are better off applying what you learn toward administration and out of the actual skills portion.