Any advice on becoming a nurse?

[mumsy]

Hi everyone! I'm new here and I was wondering if anyone had any advice to offer.:) My husband and I live on Long Island with our four kids (ages 7 to almost 1). I'm currently a SAHM, and have come to the conclusion that in order for us to stay here, I'm going to need to go back to work eventually. I think that nursing may be the right path for me.

I have a BA in psychology and am interested in becoming an RN so I would obviously need to go back to school. It's just so overwhelming, all of the programs out there. Anybody care to share how they went about this? Especially somebody with little ones. Did you go full time? Part time? Do an accelerated program? I see that Stony Brook offers a 12 month program but I can't seem to find any others in the area.

Any advice/words of encouragement would be appreciated. I really want to do this. I think it's going to be in the best interest of our family in the future, but it's also going to be quite challenging getting there as my husband works so many hours/week and we're on a budget. The daycare/money situation is stressing me out!

[1lollipop]

I'm not a parent, but I am a f/t nursing student. I had a previous BA in English when I applied to nursing school and had to quit my job as a substitute teacher b/c I was so overwhelmed by all the reading (esp. chemistry) after I was accepted into nursing school. I took out loans to cover about $30,000/yr in tuition costs, so I did not want to risk failing for a $8-10/hr job. That's my view. There's going to be a major time & financial investment for at least 3 yrs full-time if you're applying for a BSN program. An associate program isn't that much shorter (but def. more than 2 years depending on if you have some pre-reqs done already). U would have to arrange for family or friends to agree to babysit (perhaps at a negotiated price if necessary to convince them). My academic advisor told me that 1/3 of students either drop out or flunk out of the nursing program. Ur basically forced to cram a year's worth of material into a few month's time (textbooks are typically 1,000 pgs long and the entire books are covered in 1 semester). It's not for the faint of heart, but it's doable if you're willing to give it your all. I'm single & live @ home, so I can handle it w/o too much trouble. Since you have a family, you'll need to talk this thru with your family & make sure that they understand that your time would be severely limited as well as finances. Also, you might ask your husband to clean/cook most days of the week b/c you'd be busy studying. Take your time in deciding; only you can make the choice what's best for you & your situation. If you decide to go to a cheaper city (CUNY) nursing program, it's a lot tougher both to get into and to finish since everyone wants in & to save money. Perhaps you may want to consider a LPN program? It may take you 1.5 years, and many employers offer you some money towards getting your RN later down the road (that's what I'd do if I was in your situation). Good luck!