Will My PhD Hurt My Nursing Career?

I think Nurse Beth has said it all. Please be tenacious in achieving your ultimate goal. Perhaps you'll run into a few road-blocks, but don't let them deter you.

Good luck and welcome back to nursing!

Hi, your story is almost exactly mine.

Somehow the rest of my post got deleted, don't know how. I also left nursing to pursue a PhD in microbiology/immunology. I was out 12 years, and also worked as a biomedical researcher. I took a nurse refresher course offered at a hospital in my area, and they offered me a position, although I ended up working at a small community hospital nearer to my home. They gave me a long orientation, as they needed nurses at that time. I had applied to large and university hospitals, and thought they would be interested in someone with an advanced degree, but this seemed to work against me with them. I got a lot of questions as to why I was leaving research, and I probably could never adequately explain the problems that led to my decision, as the environments are completely different. I got the feeling that they thought I had failed, and no one likes to hire a loser. I don't know why you are leaving research, many women do, but no one in the nursing field seems to be aware of this and the state of biomedical research these days. They do not know that many many smart people leave because of the general environment and the problems that you get into. One manager remarked on my good resume and stated "you would have to walk a lot on this job" and did not hire me. I only wanted a job, and have no problem with hard work. I have had a lot of managers want to hire me but I fail on the peer interviews. Most nurses are younger than me and wonder why I am not farther along in my career. I have tried to connect with the doctoral nurses at the local university hospital (I would have liked to try and incorporate more biochemical techniques into nursing research) but have gotten nowhere, even as a volunteer.

The PhD process changes the way you talk, look, act, think, and work. I have always felt the odd person out since I have returned. I would like to tell you to think carefully about the next step and other alternatives, clinical trial nursing, small companies, etc. Explore everything, and try for jobs that you do not think you might get. I do not regret going back into nursing, as many wonderful patients have helped me to regain my humanity after the cutthroat world of research, and it has also been financially stable. I have been able to save enough money to try and start my own (non health care related) business. Maybe obtaining a masters in nursing would have helped, but I did not want to sink more money into something that I did not know would help me to get a better position or not. I have just seen how little my PhD in another field means to the hospitals that I have been associated with or have tried to obtain positions in, and have not been able to mesh the two careers as I had hoped. So, think carefully and good luck!

Unfortunately, hiring managers are looking more for experience and certification than for degrees past the BSN that would make the hospital look great.

Do all Nurse Beth has recommended, spend a year on the bedside and if you have problems adjusting, look for a research nurse position in a hospital affiliated with a university.

All you need us the right manager! A job in a corporate or academic setting might be a good fit!