Career-changers from Biology?

[BlackSkimmer]

Are there any NPs out there whose first career was biology, environmental conservation, ecology, or something similar? I'm making the change and have some questions for those who already have.

- How long ago did you change careers? From what to what?

- Why did you make the change?

- Are you glad you did? Why or why not?

- What do you miss?

- What has been most challenging about changing careers? How have you dealt with it?

- How do you make space in your current life for the things you love(d) about biology/ecology/etc.?

Thanks!

[Wrench Party]

Plenty of nurses have previous careers in research and industry. I'm one of them. Many of my former colleagues in science have asked me how I made the transition, or at least how they would approach the medical field. With the slashing of funding to the NIH and NSF, the glut of life science PhDs currently on the market, and the often antiquated teaching curriculums of the sciences, academia is near collapse.

To answer your questions:

1) First off, I'm an RN. Direct-entry NP programs are extremely rare to find, and hard to get into. You'd be best off getting your

BSN then transitioning to an NP program.

I was a research tech in academia up until a few years ago. I did my year stint in hospital nursing, and now work in a women's

health/family planning clinic.

2) I made the change to health care because I saw the writing on the wall about 6 years ago. I also wasn't interested in throwing

away about 6-7 years of my life on a PhD program. I was only making about $30,000 full time with benefits.

3) So glad I became a nurse! It's been challenging and ridiculous at times, but very rewarding. At the base of it, I like to help people

get better, I like to educate my patients, and I like the diversity of the profession.

4) I miss my labmates and the flexible work schedule. My research was on yeast, so I could conveniently stick my cultures and plates

into the fridge or freezer and miss a few days. No tissue culture lines to babysit, no flies to flip, no mice colonies to take care of.

5) Challenging: I had to manage a lab on part time hours and go to school full time. Sometimes I would leave home at 5 am for clinicals and not get home until 10 or 11 pm. My husband was very supportive.

6) There are plenty of opportunities in nursing to indulge your inner science nerd. Evidence-based research, the purpose of antibiotics for certain microoorganisms, infection control, explaining lab values, blood chemistry, being pulled for clinical practice and nursing research. You will probably find yourself questioning the rationale of nursing judgment often, and finding better practices.

Also, personally, I'm a hobby farmer, so I have plenty of time to be outside, raise livestock, and garden to get my organism fix.

A smart manager won't let your research background go to waste,