Vet tech to RN

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

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I am currently a Vet tech and I'm looking into schools for nursing now. Has anyone else made this change? What were the benifits from going tech to RN and what terrible habits did you have to learn to break? Also any advice on the UPMC schools would be great. I have the books to study for my PSB entrance exam but I'm not sure if I need pre req's done before I apply I'm not sure what exactly they are? Thanks!!!

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Specializes in Critical Care/MICU.

I was a vet assistant. Going to school to become a vet tech. I had wanted to be a vet when I was little so thought it would have been a cool job for me to start. I worked at Banfield for some time but found all the hard work for low pay was not worth it, so I decided human nursing and I'm glad I did.

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Specializes in L&D, infusion, urology.

One of my classmates was a vet tech. It helped her with learning IVs and some of the other skills.

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Thanks that's where I'm at I've been doing this for 3 years and feel I work to hard for this little money. I work in a shelter currently so I think my biggest plus is my coping skills

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Hi, I was a vet tech for 7 years before nursing school. It definitely was helpful. So much is the same in way of illnesses. I worked at specialty vet hospitals and moved around from er/ICU, surgery, internal medicine and many of the same meds are used. You will just find you don't get to do as much as you do as a tech...won't get to place central lines, intubate, epidurals, etc. But having the background in animals doing those things has made the transition easier. I also found working with animals we had stronger PPE protocols than they have with people at the hospital. Lol, and with animals we were wearing much of the PPE to protect other animals often more so than ourselves depending on illness. That stumps me, especially with seeing the ebola issues now. Your background will def help. I graduate in the spring. I do have bad habits and have to really rememeber to be more careful with needles, poop, etc. Also some different ways of doing things. It has been awkward for me getting used to working with people patients too and communication. I know two other vet techs I worked with now nurses and found it beneficial.

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I also have found some people in school stress about not getting enough experience with blood draws, iv cath placements and urinary cath placements or other tasks and I don't get worried about it. One reason being past experience with all the animal pokes, but I also remember when I was fresh out of vet tech school I had the book knowledge but it was that first year or so that those skills really developed and I know it will be the same in nursing. Your assessment skills will be ahead as well.

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Specializes in Hospitalist Medicine.

I was a vet nurse (before they called them techs) 20+ years ago. I used to do IVs, blood draws, take & develop x-rays (with developing fluid, no computers or digital x-ray back then!), assisted in surgery, sterilized surgical equipment, administered vaccines, etc. All for very little pay and a lot of hard work. I appreciate the skills I learned as a vet nurse that translate to human medicine. However, nursing school is completely unlike vet school (at least, vet school 20+ years ago). They don't teach the critical thinking component for vet techs that you will get in nursing school. I found vet to be more task/skill oriented vs. the critical thinking/time management that's part of being an RN.

Lots of luck with your transition! :D

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Thank you guys! What exactly made you want to do the switch? I'm feeling like I need more to live off of and also I feel like I can do so much more and that's why I want to make the switch.

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I made the switch because I could not make enough to retire! There are also more opportunities. I really needed more financial autonomy.

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Specializes in Hospitalist Medicine.

I quit being a vet nurse when I was severely bitten on my hand by a dog. I almost lost the use of my thumb and ring finger on my right hand from where the dog bit me near my tendons. I had to re-learn to use my fingers again. I left the vet field and went in to the financial industry for 17 years. I really hated working in the corporate world. Wanted to pursue human medicine since vet pays so little. Took the plunge after I was laid off in 2012. I really *love* what I'm doing and, if all goes well, I'll graduate in May :D

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Specializes in Nursery.

Any vet techs who became human nurses on here now that could chat to me? Thank you!

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