Can I find employment at my age??

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I will be graduating from the ADN program in the spring of 2006. I will be 42 at that time. Will it be difficult to find a nursing job at that age?? Are hospitals reluctant to hire someone at this age?

Most places will just care that you have a license and a pulse, hehe. Good luck with your last year of school! :D

And the pulse is debatable....with some nurses you wouldn't know if they had a pulse or not. They never move! Mel

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I sure hope so...I'll be 51 the month I graduate :chuckle

Guess I need to work on the bladder control, though :p

I feel fantastic at this age...I'll be 52 when I graduate. But Nursing school is aging me! I have one more year to go till I get my ADN. I figure I can work into my 70's..just as long as I'm a little bit healthier than my patients! We have 7 kids between us and not much savings...so I'm hoping to make some money. I've been part-time doing other things the past 25 yrs...mostly raising kids...I need to start working more!

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Did you say you need to start working more??? Working part-time, raising kids--(I'm assuming alone, for part of the time--since you said between the two of us), you've been working hard, girl! I don't know about you, but for me I've never truly regretted not getting into my career earlier, because then I wouldn't have had that time with my kids. When I'm dead and gone the people most important to me aren't going to say, "Boy, she worked alot!", or "Man, she made alot of money, we got whatever we wanted!". They're going to remember me being there--reading books to them and their friends in kindergarten, planting things in the garden together, taking walks with the dogs and Mom at sunrise/set, eating popcorn and watching a movie together in the middle of the day--you get the point. They'll also grow up to treat their kids the same, hopefully, and make the world a better place...by raising kind, caring kids (if they choose to). Well, off my soapbox, it's too early for this. Maybe I ought to change my user name to 'no regrets'....

I feel fantastic at this age...I'll be 52 when I graduate. But Nursing school is aging me! I have one more year to go till I get my ADN. I figure I can work into my 70's..just as long as I'm a little bit healthier than my patients! We have 7 kids between us and not much savings...so I'm hoping to make some money. I've been part-time doing other things the past 25 yrs...mostly raising kids...I need to start working more!
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When I went to nursing school way back when, there were two students in my class in their late 50's. They had no problems to my knowledge with being discriminated against because of their age. They brought alot of dignity, poise, and grace to their bedside practice. It was great to see them working with diverse staff and families. I really learned from them. From what I've read under other topics, the trend seems to be to hire chronologically mature nurses and immigrants to the bedside. I don't know if this is only in certain localities or not. If it's tight in your location, just have an open mind about what you're willing to do. Remember nursing is flexible. You don't even have to stay at the bedside if that is your desire. Finally, I don't consider any experience wasted in nursing as long as learning is taking place. I wish you the best.

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:balloons: So glad to hear that I'm not too old to be hired! I will be 46 next December when I graduate. I can't believe I'm no longer 30 something! :crying2: oh well......

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I will be graduating from the ADN program in the spring of 2006. I will be 42 at that time. Will it be difficult to find a nursing job at that age?? Are hospitals reluctant to hire someone at this age?

Hello,

I am 38 and graduated from nursing school in December. I would say the average age in my class was mid-30's or early 40's. In my area, it is tough for new grads to find jobs because there are so many of us. I was lucky as a mid-winter grad to get hired in my interview at the only place that called me back. However, I'm happy with how things turned out: I'm on a med-surg unit at one of my top two hospital choices. My supervisor knew from my resume that I had no healthcare background (that worried me more than the age thing). However, she appreciated that I worked full time during nursing school, and also my 17 years as a legal secretary and paralegal showed I have real world experience and can handle lots of responsibility. I also had excellent college and nursing school grades, which probably helped too. If I were you, I would do my very best in school grades-wise, get at least 2 letters of reference from nursing instructors, as well as a few from other people in responsible positions (such as your current/former employers) and do an internship if you have the time (I didn't). Good luck.

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Specializes in Sex Therapist.

I was worrying about the same thing. I'm 51 and need 5 more classes to complete my pre-reqs. It's going to be a hard row to hoe, I know. But working as a nurse's aide, I realize my experience and maturity are appreciated by the residents of the nursing home. Some of the younger aides complain right in front of the residents! It's degrading to the residents and makes some of them feel that they're being a bother. It's a real shame that politics get in the way of treatment.:rolleyes:

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I will be graduating from the ADN program in the spring of 2006. I will be 42 at that time. Will it be difficult to find a nursing job at that age?? Are hospitals reluctant to hire someone at this age?

With the nursing shortage...are you kidding? As long as you have a license and a pulse, you are good to go! :Melody: :rotfl:

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Not a problem......they make "leg bags".

All nurses need bladder control....not just the elderly ones! :rotfl:

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If I am not mistaken, the average age of a RN in the US is mid-forties. I work in occupational health and perform pre-employment physicals for the hospital I work for. By far the most interesting pre-employment physical I completed was one on a RN in her 60s. She was absolutely fascinating and inspiring.

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I will be graduating from the ADN program in the spring of 2006. I will be 42 at that time. Will it be difficult to find a nursing job at that age?? Are hospitals reluctant to hire someone at this age?

No, you will be hired instantly to most any hospital especially if you are willing to work any shift and hopefully work med/surg. Most specialty units like ER or ICU want at least 1 year of basic med/surg experience. This has been my experience. We just hired a 46 yr old woman with 2-3 yrs of med/surg into our ER. Don't worry about age. Just take care of yourself and get your rest!!

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Oh THANK YOU Mary Rose!! :thankya:

I will be 43 in October and I am just starting my Pre reqs. It seems that with such a demand for nurses that there should not be too much consideration given to age...well unless you don't ahve a pulse!!

I am SO glad to hear that I am not in this boat alone! Thanks so much everyone!!:p

Melody :Melody:

I was really worried about that too.... but have been reassured that there is a need for us "oldies" too.:chuckle

I'm 45 and in my last semester of pre-req's so I stil have a ways to go.

Congrats on your upcoming graduation!!!

Hugs!

MaryRose

:p

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