Aspiring Male Nurse - Expectations?

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Hello Everybody!

Let me start of by saying, its great to be a part of this community (this forum, all of you). I have been lurking around reading a lot of your experiences, incidents, journey and hardships. Let me say that, most of you should be given medal, awards and non-stop appreciation on your hard work. It's amazing how most of you have families, kids, full-time jobs and still manage to get certs, diplomas, degrees and even masters in this challenging field. Kudos!! :geek:

So let me quickly tell a little about myself. 21 years old, male, diploma in Computer Networking and currently working in the field. It is not challenging (for me, as of yet) but I just don't feel its my cup of tea. Very good money if I stay and work my way up, but I can't see myself doing this for 40+ years.

That said, let me start asking all of you a little question of my own. I do apologize if this was answered else where.

I come from a family of doctors (mom, sister in-law), never been the A+ student (or even B+) but finished my IT diploma somehow. My questions is: Knowing that nursing is a competitive and by the sounds of it (from what I have read here on countless threads) quite a challenging career choice. Do you think, I can manage it? I don't want to be C/B student again. I want to be A+ all the way. Furthermore, is there anything I will encounter being a male that may hinder or change the learning experience of Nursing?

I know its a dumb question. Only I know how committed I am which will determine my success, but I guess I am just looking for some encouragement. My mom is all for it, being that she is a doctor and understands the field. Dad and older brother on the other hand have the "Old school mentality", where they think all I will be doing is literally moping the floor and cleaning poop. :yuck: I know I will be doing it, probably on a regular note but there is also more to it than just that. Plus, they think its not a respectable profession (damn them! :madface:) I am going for BscN (first Practical Nursing > Bridge program > BscN)... thoughts?

Also, thank you :) :up:

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no one will be able to tell you if YOU can handle it, or if you are "cut out" for nursing. A lot of us male nurses never saw the field as a "calling". Just something we decided was a good fit based on a number of factors (wage, flexibility, stability). Basically, we decided, we can work the hours, deal with the abuse, and still feel satisfied with what we've done at the end of the day so why not. Career switching to medicine isn't uncommon. Most people don't know if theyre cut out for it until theyve tried it. Id suggest maybe starting as an emt ? That was the route i picked when trying to dabble into medicine, and i felt i didnt learn enough so i went through paramedic school and obtained a wealth of medicinal knowledge. and i fell in love with everything dealing with sedation and intubation so my ultimate goal is crna.

Point is, if you're willing to apply yourself, go all in and give 100% then theres no reason not to get into nursing. Just make sure you give it your all and don't look back.

As far as being a male nurse, theres a handful of pros and cons. You'll get a few raised eyebrows from oldschool folks like your dad and brother for example. You'll hear never ending questions as to why you're "just a nurse" and why aren't you going to medschool. But there are some pros. Colleges often have demographics to meet, so you'll be a minority which will go a long way when it comes to applying and scholarships. You may face some animosity from female preceptors and higher-ups, but everyones going to face the whole "eating the young" battle in this field, but its quite favorable when it comes to employment, and ladies love a male nurse ;) (just kidding...kind of). The answers all in you though. Its your life, personal experience may vary. Enjoy the ride.

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haha. Right. Thanks for your reply! I was kind of thinking the same thing and really just need to get that encouragement to finally do it. I was accepted previously in a Practical Nursing (that's what its called here in Canada anyways, not sure about US) and I just let the offer expire because my Dad and bro kind of strong armed me into working a job in IT (that was back when I was a fresh graduate and had no working experience). So, I kind of missed out because I could have probably finished a semester or two by now !!:no:

But its okay, I just need to get rid of this self doubt I have that I am somehow going to get stuck and not make it to the finishing line. This doubt only multiplies when I get made fun of on a daily basis by the family, lol. But, now that I have found this forum and read so so many inspirational stories, I am kind of committed. Although, just have to get accepted again. Going to talk to the program coordinator tomorrow..hopefully something works out (fingers crossed!!) :rolleyes:

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Hey friend, if you are really determined to take up this as your career, I advice you to step forward. But, since you have already tried your luck in another field, make sure what you really want to do. No doubt, Nursing is a very good profession. There is a high requirement for nurses all over the world and especially for male nurses as there are very few males taking up such a career. It will be great if you decide to contribute this way. But the reason I am telling you to think over is that after completing your further courses in nursing, you should not feel that your earlier choice was better. This way, you will be wasting all your time and energy.

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Hello, Louis!

Thanks for your response. Yeah I think I am going to do it!!!

I just hope everything works out, I got wait-listed for September :( ... there is little hope. But maybe come January. Until then, I have to stay strong

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In terms of money and lifestyle, I'd say stick with IT. I worked IT for a few years prior to becoming a nurse. I still keep in touch with a few people I knew through my interest in computers and IT stuff. Honestly, there are days where I wish I had stuck with IT. Unless you work help desk, or something to that effect, the opportunity to move up the ladder I feel is much greater in IT. Being a male, in a male dominated field, you generally have not run into problems. In nursing, you will have to prove yourself as a *male* in the profession, and this can and most likely will cause some problems. Ultimately, I chose nursing because I always felt that something was missing in IT, and ultimately the ability to help people recover in some fashion is valuable and noble.

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Specializes in Critical Care, Education.

(full disclosure) Crusty ol' Bat here

Agree with PP ^^^^^ re: financial & lifestyle rewards of IT. Nursing may start out at a decent salary, but tends to top out very early... and subsequent increases are only available via additional education/certification & promotions. One of my offspring is a software engineer - achieved 6 figure salary in her early 30's despite hving to cope with ongoing (sometimes very blatant) discrimination in her male dominated field.

Have you considered advancing your IT education?

Also - have to add. It's great that you have family support, but Physicians do NOT know much about nursing unless they were nurses prior to becoming physicians. They have very little awareness of the education process, scope of practice issues, etc. They only know about the part that involves them - LOL. I use the term 'physician' because MDs are not the only profession with "doctors" - a lot of us are doctors also. :yes:

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Hmmm, Interesting.

You guys are correct as far as the money is concerned. However, most of the money in IT is towards the software/programming side, I am more on the Network/QualityAssurance side of things. I absolutely LOATHE programming. I could advance as network administrator in a few years and be making 70-90K ... whether that will fulfilling, I am not so sure.

I am still more or less on studying nursing, but I won't deny that the above replies have shook my my confidence levels a bit and made me think if I am making the right decision.

Honestly, I don't know. Can you guys suggest what I can do to get in-depth look at what nurses/x-ray Tech(long-term goal) do? I mean, I am not sure if hospitals would just let anyone volunteer without any knowledge or credentails?

I am in Canada, if someone has any idea how it works here???

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couldn't tell you how canada works, might wanna switch over to the internation forum for that. But i can tell you that you can spend "a couple years" working your way up the corporate ladder trying to earn 70-90k, but you can spend equally that much time getting a higher education with advanced nursing (Nurse practitioners/Anesthetists) and easily make that money starting salary in a very comfortable setting depending on your specialty.

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Male nursing student, graduating in 2 months. Nursing is horrible, its mentally tough, the older female nurses will use you for nearly every lifting job, you will probably go insane with all the estrogen hanging around you... But, male nurses are surprising more compassionate than females, my past patient even brought a cake to my nursing class because she didn't see me in clinical. You are more likely to meet a girl that is not dumb, broke, or illogical. 3-4 days work weeks is amazing, you can get the male physicians' attention easier cause you're a guy. You are more likely to get along with your male patients because we men are very easy to get along with each other. There are a lot of cons when you're a male in nursing but there are a lot more pros. Just FYI, being a nurse is actually a great conversation starter. Good luck brother

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Specializes in Medical Surgical/Addiction/Mental Health.

It’s a great career. You will clean up shat, but mainly you will be putting up with a lot of shat. You will be wearing many hats. You will be a nurse, a tech, a server, a housekeeper, a counselor, and a mediator to name a few. I think anyone can be good at anything so as long he/she is passionate about it. I like bedside, but my niche is education and management. I do still work the floor PRN with agency. I want to remain humble and continue to experience some of the struggles floor nurses face daily.

Good luck.

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