Am I crazy or is this doable?

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Hi everyone!

I'm about to enter my final year of nursing school next month, and I just accepted a 28 hrs/week night shift float pool CNA position at a nearby hospital.

I'm a good student, but I am a little worried about finding time to sleep. My school is prone to creating unpredictable clinical schedules, and I don't know how flexible my manager will be. If I have to, I would quit the job to stay afloat in classes, but I really want the experience the job offers (and would love to work there as an RN when I graduate in the spring) and need to pay for school.

Am I insane to try to work that much right now? Any tips on finding time to sleep on a crazy schedule?

Any advice you guys can offer would be so appreciated.

Thanks!!

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Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
Hi everyone!

I'm about to enter my final year of nursing school next month, and I just accepted a 28 hrs/week night shift float pool CNA position at a nearby hospital.

I'm a good student, but I am a little worried about finding time to sleep. My school is prone to creating unpredictable clinical schedules, and I don't know how flexible my manager will be. If I have to, I would quit the job to stay afloat in classes, but I really want the experience the job offers (and would love to work there as an RN when I graduate in the spring) and need to pay for school.

Am I insane to try to work that much right now? Any tips on finding time to sleep on a crazy schedule?

Any advice you guys can offer would be so appreciated.

Thanks!!

I made it through working 24-48 hours a week at a local bar & grill. Staying up late for bar closing (getting off at 3am) and having to be at clinical by 6:30 am was tough. I skipped sleeping a LOT. But I was young, and the young body bounces back. I managed to graduate magna cum laude. It's doable. But it's not ideal.

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It's very doable. I worked 40 hours during nursing school. I also had a toddler.

Oh, and I gave birth during nursing school, too. Not ideal, but stuff happens. Just keep your eye on the prize.

Best of luck!!

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I can't speak from experience because I was a full-time student. However, I had several friends who worked a lot of hours to pay for school, and they all graduated. It can DEFINITELY be done. I think the most important thing is to remember to leave some time for some self-care. It's the only way to avoid burnout.

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I'm currently working full time 3 12s a week going into my second semester and I have been for the last 3 years of prerequisites. I worked the first year Nocs full time and had to switch to days once I got into my program, honestly I could not do Nocs and nursing school, but im also a dad and husband so its very busy for me and I would literally go crazy with the lack of sleep.

Best of luck!

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I, too, have been in similar shoes. In my view, an important consideration is how many nights those 28 hours make up. I would talk with the manager about working primarily on Friday and Saturdays (assuming your school doesn't do a lot of Saturday clinicals) if at all possible. And plan to sleep a lot on school breaks like Thanksgiving and Christmas!! Best of luck in both school and your future work!!

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Thats definitely doable.

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Specializes in Cardiac Telemetry, ICU.

It's definitely doable but also very possible your grades will take a hit.

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Thanks for the encouragement, guys!

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