I am almost 29 and have a 2-year-old daughter and one on the way (due 11/17!) I have a few college credits, mostly social sciences, psych, and English and work in medical transcription right now as an editor. I've been doing it for about 10 years. :uhoh21:
I really want to be a nurse and have so much respect for what they do. I'm really not the best in math (at least not algebra!) and need all of my science prereqs before I could even begin... not to mention it would be awhile because of the new baby... am I too old to be considering this? I was going to school online to complete my RHIT and get into medical coding but blah! It's not what I want to do!
Any advice? I could do some prereqs while I'm pregnant and laid up this summer. I've taken the NET twice to get into a 2-yr program but failed the reading part both times so I'd probably just get my 4-yr since I have a ton of general ed credits anyway.
Ditto what everyone else has said....you're not too old. I'm 43 and finished the first of 4 blocks of NS. Age has its benefits...like experience. I wouldn't want to have been doing this when I was 18, although I would have had better legs for it then
My only recommendation is to find a balance between NS and spending time with your kids while they're small. You don't want to miss it. See if your local community college has a part-time option or weekend or even on-line option. It might be a little slower but you would be able to take your classes in a non-traditional way and perhaps be home when your kids are home (or awake as the newborn may be).
GO FOR IT! If you already have gen-ed classes, go for the 4 year degree becuase those classes will go towards a four year degree vs a two year. Depending upon what you already have, most likely either way you go it will be two to three years anyway. So go for it. I am a Senior in a BSN in Missouri and I love it (well, as much as one could love nursing school-funny). I have two kids (6 & 2) and it is hard because for some reason I think I have to make straight A's and in nursing school that is almost impossible. In the long run, it will be worth it, especially if you have interest in it. A woman in my class is 56 years old. She has a couple of other degrees, but she is a lot older, but it shouldn't matter how old you are because education is priceless and the effects of this is also priceless. Go for it. It will be hard, but you can do it! Good luck to you...
I am 29 and have four children ages 9, 7, 3, and 1. My seven year old has autism and my one year old has a kidney defect that requires a lot of drs appointments. After Christmas I started to feel old and that my time was running out. I started to go after this dream of nursing and I have more energy now than I did at 18 and I know in my heart that I will be happier and feel younger at 30 than I did at 20.
I think going to school after having children and with a full plate puts us at obvious disadvantages but also gives us advantages such as we don't have to worry about who our current boyfriend is, where we're spending our saturday nights, or what our hair looks like for that cute guy in class lol.
If this is what you want then jump on board and go with it.
I am a Senior in a BSN in Missouri and I love it (well, as much as one could love nursing school-funny).
Steph RN: Where in MO are you going to school? I will be starting St. Louis Community College in the fall for my ASN. I already have a BS in Information Systems, so I am hoping someday to mesh up the two toward a higher degree.
I am 29 and have four children ages 9, 7, 3, and 1. My seven year old has autism and my one year old has a kidney defect that requires a lot of drs appointments. After Christmas I started to feel old and that my time was running out. I started to go after this dream of nursing and I have more energy now than I did at 18 and I know in my heart that I will be happier and feel younger at 30 than I did at 20.
I think going to school after having children and with a full plate puts us at obvious disadvantages but also gives us advantages such as we don't have to worry about who our current boyfriend is, where we're spending our saturday nights, or what our hair looks like for that cute guy in class lol.
If this is what you want then jump on board and go with it.
Not so sure about the hair and the cute guys......
I Am 38 With A 9 YEar Old And Went Back Last Year To Finish My Pre Req. I Just Got Through With My Last 2 This Past Semester And Waiting To See If I Get In The Nursing Program. Good Luck And Congratulations On Your Little One.:)
Thanks everyone for the warm words and support! Woohoo! I feel really motivated. I did use the NET study guide and studied my BUTT off... but at the time I took the test, my mom and little sister had just died, so I think my mind was in other places. I could try again just to see but I definitely think that taking the science prereqs online this summer and then applying maybe next fall for the actual clinicals would work well for me.
Thanks everyone for the warm support! I'll be posting here often! :)
I am starting lpn school this fall and will bridge over to the rn program after that. This was the fastest way for me to get in. Wait list not so long for the lpn. Wait list was horrible for the RN. If you are too old, then I am ancient history! I also have 3 kids. My youngest is 7. I was talking to a friend yesterday and her mother just retired from nursing at 73. If 29 is too old, what do you plan to do with the next 45 or so years?
NO WAY!! I am 34 and just starting out on my RN studies this summer. I can tell you that you already have a leg-up with the benefits/experience of being a mother. You also have maturity and focus. I think all of us older students have doubts and reluctantcy with any changes in our lives. Its easy when you are a kid, you live at home and your parents are always going to be there... not so for us, at least me. I have a mortgage and bills to pay and I am quitting my full-time job to go to full time studies. I am terrified but I am confident that I can do this and get thru it financially.
I would suggest you may want to think about what exactly you choose to carry over to your RN school as far as pre-reqs go. I have several pre-reqs that almost knocked me out of the "full time student" status with financial aid. You may want to check out some schools first and take a good look at their curriculums. But if money is no obstacle then take as many non nursing courses as you can.
you are not too old! I will not be done with nursing school until I am 38 in 2008. It is not your age that counts but the fact that you really found what you want to do with your life.
I also hope I am not too old. I am starting with lpn school this fall. I would like to be a NP eventually. Maybe even a geriatric np. I guess I would not be old, I would just be one of them LOL!!! I would have done this years ago, but had a great marketing job and was fearful to leave as the position paid well and was very stable. Fear is not a good thing.
And to what does age bring one? But wisdom, indeed.
boomerfriend
369 Posts
Ditto what everyone else has said....you're not too old. I'm 43 and finished the first of 4 blocks of NS. Age has its benefits...like experience. I wouldn't want to have been doing this when I was 18, although I would have had better legs for it then
My only recommendation is to find a balance between NS and spending time with your kids while they're small. You don't want to miss it. See if your local community college has a part-time option or weekend or even on-line option. It might be a little slower but you would be able to take your classes in a non-traditional way and perhaps be home when your kids are home (or awake as the newborn may be).
Good luck and go for it.