A potential nursing student seeks realistic advice/outlook

[Markman122]

Hi,

I'm looking into applying this spring for a 16 month accelerated BSN program and i'm looking for some honest feedback.

I have my BS in interdisciplinary science (neuro) and a M.Ed in secondary science curriculum. I taught HS bio and physics for 4 years before becoming sick of admin and parents and appeasing their idea of how special their student was.

So I took a career advising class to figure out what I could do next that gave me a personality assessment/interest inventory. Nursing came up in the top 3.

When I was in college I worked p/t at a Physical therapy outpatient office. I loved working one on one with the patients and helping them improve. It gave my day purpose.

I thought loving that experience was a good indicator for being a good fit for nursing. I want to help people get well. I didn't have the grades for Med school so I've kinda been scrambling lately trying to figure out what to do now that Teaching fell through.

Right now i'm working as a pharmacy tech, I thought it would give me some insight into meds and how they work but it's mostly just calling insurance companies and dealing with hurried customers.

So I was wondering if i could get some feedback about about my fit for nursing.

I've read some not so flattering forum threads around the web about how terrible/disgruntled some nurses are and that this "nursing shortage" is really just a mirage. I'm hoping that's not how a lot of people feel but it reminds me a lot of how I felt at the end of my last year of teaching. This program is going to own my life for 16 months and cost me ballpark $35k. I don't want to waste the time and money only to find out that things have gotten worse, I won't be able to get a job and then I'll be even more in debt.

Thanks for your Honest input,

Potential future nurse

[Luckyyou, BSN, RN]

What about physical therapy assistant?

[mmc51264, BSN, MSN, RN]

I think a little over educated for that. I too have a BS (Biology) in another field and a Masters in teaching. I think Nursing would be a good fit. YOu will be able to manage time after being a teacher and there is a lot if educating in nursing. Your background will help you get through ABSN because of understanding a lot of the science.

I entered nursing at age 47 and I love it. I think the disgruntled part is partially expectations. I know that where I am, they value education and would see your education and experience as a plus.

I'd say go for it!!!

[icuRNmaggie, BSN, RN]

A BSN in the Baltimore Washington Metro area is very employable. The wages and working conditions can be less than ideal the further south that you go. Fairfax and Richmond will be tolerable. I have some friends who love VCU. The ES and Norfolk/Sentara/Riverside Health System area and on down not so much. It can vary greatly depending on where you are employed. Though I have not been down that way for a quite a while, it would be smart for you, or any prospective nursing student, to look into the employment rates- or unemployment rate - for graduate nurses in your region. Best wishes.

[Libby1987]

I love my job but your reasons for not liking teaching may also be the same you run into in nursing. If this were a different time and you could simply choose the area of nursing you want to get into there could be some good fits but that will depend strongly on your location or willingness to go where the jobs are.

[lovin]

I entered nursing with a similar background - I used to teach 7-12 grade Science and I have a BS and MS in other fields. I did a 12 month accelerated program and LOVED it. The great thing about accelerated RN programs is that most of the people there are motivated to succeed. We want to work hard, get out and get a job. My accelerated class was full of interesting and fun people who I enjoyed seeing everyday. All 30 of us passed the NCLEX and found jobs within 12 months - most had jobs at graduation.

I have been working as a med/surg tele RN for the past few years and it is great. Yes, there is administrative BS, but I get paid better than I did as a teacher and, honestly, I like not ever having to worry about grading and lesson planning in my free time. Now, my free time is my own to spend as I see fit.

P.S. THere were 2 other teachers in my RN class and they LOVE nursing - one went into Peds and one is a Psych RN.

[777RN, BSN, RN]

Hello there, Markman122!

You have received quite positive comments from the other posters. While I am generally a positive person (I've been called a Pollyanna by many people over my lifetime), I am going to play devil's advocate and give you the flip side of embarking upon a career in nursing.

To provide some background to my perspective, I entered nursing as a 4th career, after enjoyable stints in hospitality, accounting/IT, and publishing/technical writing—the latter of which gave me the opportunity to freelance and own/run a very small business for a while. I am a perpetual student and career changer because I love learning and because no job working for someone else will ever fully "satisfy" my requirements. My stint in publishing spoiled me and, one day, I intend to return to self-employment.

That being said, for me, becoming an RN was a matter of coming full circle. I started nursing school at 18 and changed majors to accounting after my father died when I was 19. I have always enjoyed caring for people, especially the elderly and dying, which is why I currently work as a dementia and hospice nurse. Incidentally, hospice nursing is generally the lowest paid specialty around. I mention this lest anyone accuse me of going into nursing for the money. (Incidentally, I made more money in publishing/technical writing than I did as a new nurse.)

So, starting with money, regardless of specialty, nursing is likely the most underpaid profession in the world! Really! While I am in no way afraid of hard work, nurses work for every penny they earn. Quite frankly, for the level of responsibility we are given, no amount of money would be adequate compensation, in my opinion.

Are you considering nursing because you enjoy caring for people? Unfortunately, the realities of working as a floor nurse are not compatible with caregiving because, in almost every venue, nurses are chronically overworked. Long hours and limited resources are the realities of almost every nursing setting. Most healthcare employers are only interested in the financial bottom line, so high patient-to-nurse ratios are the norm.

Such ratios are projected to become worse—universally—with our new "Affordable" Healthcare Act. I can attest to this firsthand with one of my employers, a Catholic, not-for-profit facility that likely had the best ratios in my state—until recently. Our patient-to-caregiver ratio just increased by 50 percent due to recent changes in Medicare/Medicaid reimbursements.

Dealing with patients and their families is not for the faint of heart. You will discover that your experience dealing with parents as an educator is similar to dealing with patients and their families. However, as a nurse, such interactions are more likely to lead to lawsuits, when things go wrong, in our litigious society.

While I considered several local ABSN programs for my prelicensure education, I ruled them out due to expense. Instead, I went to a very competitive community college program that was less than a third of the cost. I would think long and hard about investing $35K in a prelicensure program if you are not 110% sure nursing is what you want to do, especially since you will be taking on debt, as you mentioned.

I only recommend nursing as a profession if it is truly what you want to do above every other possibility. For the time, money, and effort spent to enter the nursing field, you could start a profitable business, if you are so inclined, affording you more freedom with greater earning potential—and almost certainly less stress. This is the advice I give my younger sister, who is considering nursing as a 2nd career.

Also, given your background in physical therapy, have you considered becoming a physical or occupational therapist? At my other employer (a rehab facility with a dementia unit), the therapy department seems to be closely knit and less stressed than the nursing department. They come in early, work out on the exercise equipment, and eat breakfast and drink coffee—all before starting their day. Whereas the nursing department is, generally speaking, a disgruntled group, the therapy department seems to be a happy bunch!

Of course, only you can decide what is right for you and if that is nursing, go for it! However, if you are unsure, perhaps try shadowing some nurses in as many venues as possible to see if an area piques your interest.

Best wishes whatever you decide!

[middleagednurse]

Most nurses have a love-hate relationship with their careers; probably like teachers. It's really hard work, and usually underpaid. The job market depends on where you live. Some areas of the country are saturated with nurses, other areas aren't. Research the job market where you live, or want to live.

[brandy1017, ASN, RN]

If you liked working with PT then I would suggest going for PT not nursing. It allows you to work one and one with your patients and you have a variety of choices of settings such as clinics instead of the hospital. Better pay and better quality of life. Nursing is not one on one you are juggling many patients, unless you work in ICU and even then you may be juggling 2-3 patients and some places push the envelope and triple up the critical care patients. You will be doing physically demanding aide work in addition to just "nursing" which involves cleaning and turning patients. As a nurse you are expected to do everyone elses job on top of your own plus management runs a tight ship. Lots of micromanagement especially now with the computer med pass they can check your scanning percentages and if your meds are late, not to mention the time clock, God forbid if you have overtime! You clock in and with Kronos they can check if you are late by even 1 minute. They use that for your yearly eval! By us one minute late is 1/2 a sick day, no grace period, it is disrespectful and ridiculous!

I don't think you will be happy with nursing for these reasons and many more. You will still be dealing with management there is no getting away from that! Management is desperate to raise the Press Ganey scores and they twist you like a pretzel with any gimmick they can think of to do it! Plus you will be exchanging unhappy parents for unhappy patients and families. There are a lot of psyche issues and family dysfunction in nursing too!

I would advise PT, OT or even ultra sound tech. Ultra Sound tech is another job that pays as well or better than nursing, lets you work one on one with defined job duties and can work in office settings with regular hours! You can specialize in echo's (heart) or OB, etc. There are programs offered by your local public tech college or sometimes hospitals offer it. My hospital offers it and now requires a bachelors preferably in the health sciences. With your science background I'm sure you would be a shoe in for such a program! I even know of one college that offers a BS, although that is not necessary and I would choose a quicker option! Check into it!

[mommy2anangel]

Okay, I will give light from a different perspective. I have been in the nursing field for 20 years and started teaching high school science and health careers 3 years ago. I can't wait until June comes because I have already put my notice in. From my view, I have worked harder, longer hours with less pay than I ever did as a nurse. People always say "Well you get the summer, holidays, and weekends off". Nope, not quite. I am too busy writing lesson plans and grading papers. There is never any "me" time. It is nothing for me to be at the office from 7am until 7pm 5 days a week and then still take work home with me. I personally can't wait to go back to nursing. The only reason I am waiting until June is because I truly love my students. I may try teaching higher education one day, but not high-school. Good luck to you.

[klone, MSN, RN]

I enjoy nursing, I like my job, I think I'm well-paid, and I have no regrets. So from that perspective, I would recommend nursing to anyone. HOWEVER, my concern for anyone considering entering the field now is the job market. There is no guarantee that you will get a job as a new grad RN. And $35K is a lot of money to spend on a degree in which you can't find work. So buyer beware - know your local nursing job market.

[wannabecnl]

I would suggest one thing above all else: SHADOW. Go shadow a few nurses in different units in the hospital or in other environments (home care, clinic, whatever you can get). The day to day job of nursing varies widely, and you need to be really sure you want to be a nurse before you go through nursing school. Then shadow in PT or other areas that interest you, and learn the differences.

I went into nursing as a second career, and there are a lot of challenges (though I LOVE it). What I have found most difficult is that it is weird and hard to be the newbie at my age. Patients look at me and assume I have 20+ years of experience, but I don't, and my colleagues know it. I keep a very open, teachable attitude (again, I love what I do!), but seeing people younger than me doing "bigger" things in nursing and healthcare is so hard when I'm still getting my feet under me. You've already paid your teaching dues; if you go into nursing, get ready to start over again at the bottom (financially as well as professionally).