Can an FNP work with just pediatrics?

[mads197]

Hi there! I'm getting ready to graduate with my BSN in hopes of landing a job in pediatrics and am looking at grad schools to get my DNP. If I were to go to school to be an FNP, is it a thing to only work with pediatrics? Like if I were to try and get a job after school in a pediatric clinic, how common would that be?

[djmatte, ADN, MSN, RN, NP]

3 hours ago, mads197 said:

Hi there! I'm getting ready to graduate with my BSN in hopes of landing a job in pediatrics and am looking at grad schools to get my DNP. If I were to go to school to be an FNP, is it a thing to only work with pediatrics? Like if I were to try and get a job after school in a pediatric clinic, how common would that be?

You can. One of my preceptors was fnp who worked with a pediatrician. She loved the job. Probably won’t command a high salary as most PNPs are Lower on the pay spectrum. But that’s all person and situation dependent.

[adventure_rn, MSN, NP]

I could see working in a peds primary care setting, but you probably won’t have any luck working in a specialty practice type setting without going back for your PNP (unless you have extensive peds experience as an RN and very good connections). Many peds disease processes are radically different from adult disease disease processes, so I don’t think you’d have much luck finding specialty clinic peds jobs (even if they’re strictly outpatient), especially if you’re competing against PNPs. Having several years of peds experience while you complete your FNP would definitely strengthen your application.

I have to ask—if you want to work with peds, why not just become a PNP? I have worked with peds nurses who got an FNP instead of a PNP, and they found that it did limit their peds-specific job prospects...

In addition, if you’re between a peds inpatient vs peds clinic jobs, I think that inpatient would be far more valuable for the NP track (even if you want to work outpatient as an NP). Inpatient exposes you to abnormal assessment findings so you recognize them when you see them (vs outpatient, where you primarily see normal assessments).

[Neuro Guy NP, DNP, PhD, APRN]

10 hours ago, adventure_rn said:

.

I have to ask—if you want to work with peds, why not just become a PNP? I have worked with peds nurses who got an FNP instead of a PNP, and they found that it did limit their peds-specific job prospects...

Cuz FNP can do anything, of course! ?

[jayjaybsnrn, MSN, APRN]

I am an FNP too. If I could just take back time I would have done AGNP since I don't want to see peds anyway. I could have save time and money.