Doula Certification/Wanting to be a Midwife

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Specializes in ICU Stepdown.

Hello All,

I am currently enrolled at OSU Fisher College of Business. I am in my second year and I know I want to be a CNM. I plan on switching my major to Human Development and Family Sciences, finishing that then applying for a second degree BSN at Mount Carmel, thennnn getting my masters of midwifery at OSU. In the meantime, I'm trying to get doula certified by Spring of next year. I have a couple of questions if anyone can answer any of them:

I didn't do so well my first year at OSU. I graduated high school as a valedictorian, and was automatically admitted into my major. Actually, I did HORRIBLE my first year. Not transitioning very well mixed with huge life changes and losses makes for a bad year. Mount Carmel says they take into account every grade from every college when applying for the second degree program and I received a 3.8 overall with Hocking College and Franklin University while in high school. I'm going to come out and say I have a 1.4 at OSU. Don't judge me please. But if I do well, and get between a 3.8-4.0 from now until I graduate, do you think I have a chance? I know I can do better. This summer has gotten me highly motivated.

Second question. I've been emailing birthing centers and OB GYNs looking for any type of experience in that type of environment but nobody has gotten back to me. I am volunteering at a hospital starting next month but I really want to be more proactive. If I get doula certified, will that help at all? I'm choosing that over an STNA and I emailed the woman hosting the doula workshop in October and she said that her organization refers people to new doulas and that since I was going to school for business it would help me be an independent contractor. What are ways to get experience? I'm also intimidated because people might see me as young and naive.

I know this was long winded but if anyone can help me out, that would be greatly appreciated, I wish I knew people who were as into midwifery and child birth as me! Pretty much everyone I know thinks it's gross...

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Specializes in ICU Stepdown.

Oh yeah, I neglected to say that Mount Carmel requires a 3.0 for second degree admissions.

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Getting doula training is always beneficial if you want to be a Midwife but it probably won't help much in getting experience. I did the same over a year ago and I ended up working at a birthing center as an office /non clinical setting. But most birth centers are small so I still learned a great deal. I even got to attend a precipitous birth on a Saturday when the birth assistants couldn't get there in time and I was the only other person in the office

Practicing as a doula and nursing school are probably incompatible because of the on call lifestyle required. However maybe you could reach out to homebirth midwives and doulas and see if any will let you attend births as an observer /helper (getting food and supplies, taking pictures) and letting them know when you would be available to do so.

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Specializes in ICU Stepdown.

Thank you for the reply!

How were you able to get the chance to work at a birthing center? I've been emailing around, even to just shadow but I've gotten no responses or reject responses.

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Specializes in Reproductive & Public Health.

I would really encourage you to keep searching for out-of-hospital birth experience. I think a big problem with CNM programs is there is little to no education that is specific to home birth, and it is easy to fall into the "medical model" when all of your training takes place at a hospital. I am in CNM school, but I have been a CPM since 2006 and have years of experience in birth centers and home birth. I see a lot of my classmates falling into the standard obstetric model of care, and I am really grateful for the balanced perspective that I am able to maintain due to my background.

I don't know anything about your area, but I would try to get in contact with some home birth midwives and see if they have any opportunities for you. The obstetric system in our country is woefully out of whack. Home birth in the US has some problems (I could go ON and ON about this topic), but I strongly encourage any hopeful midwives to actively seek out non-hospital experience.

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Specializes in ICU Stepdown.

Thank you so much for replying. I really don't want to get hospital experience, I was aiming for birth center experience but nobody really allows students to shadow, because of the intimacy and privacy. I'm hoping when I become a doula I'll be able to find opportunities but it's kind of disheartening. Hopefully something comes around.

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In the homebirth world it's a lot about who you know, get in touch with local doulas and local homebirth midwives and aside from shadowing (which is going to be difficult to get a a homebirth perhaps ask to be trained as a midwives assistant. If you have the time & money I would also recommend the midwives assistant course at The Farm in Tennessee... This would give you something to offer the midwives and a much better chance to shadow /assist

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I think your biggest hurdle is your GPA. That SHOULD be your focus now.

It's not reasonable to bank on getting a 3.8, no one can guarantee that--life happens and some classes are going to be challenging no matter what your major is. You should consider spending an extra 2 semesters (or so) or summer semesters (you can take 2 classes in the AM and work in the afternoon) taking easy electives to boost your GPA. Or retake the classes you failed if you can apply them to your new major. I'm assuming your first year you were taking English, Math, etc. Don't you have to retake those anyway? GPAs are all about numbers. Do you know why you didn't do well? Were you sick? Dealing with family issues? Whatever it was, you have to make sure it's resolved.

Do NOT focus on becoming a doula or anything that may derail you from getting into nursing school.

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Honestly becoming a doula is not much of a derailment.... it doesnt really take much..... read a few books, attend a weekend workshop and your training is complete..... with a organization like DONA you have 2 years to become certified if you choose to be..... trying to become an ESTABLISHED doula will probably distract you from school. That is something I would reserve for school breaks and summer vacations only. Same thing with becoming a MW assistant .... its about $1200 for the workshop and books plus accommodations and food for about 5 days. You could take the workshop during say winter break and offer to assist midwives during the summer. But your priority really should be doing well in school........ If in the end you decide not to pursue nursing at all, you could always become a CM or even a CPM depending on whether or not you do or dont want to work in hospitals.

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Specializes in ICU Stepdown.
In the homebirth world it's a lot about who you know, get in touch with local doulas and local homebirth midwives and aside from shadowing (which is going to be difficult to get a a homebirth perhaps ask to be trained as a midwives assistant. If you have the time & money I would also recommend the midwives assistant course at The Farm in Tennessee... This would give you something to offer the midwives and a much better chance to shadow /assist

Researching that now, thank you!

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Specializes in ICU Stepdown.
I think your biggest hurdle is your GPA. That SHOULD be your focus now.

It's not reasonable to bank on getting a 3.8, no one can guarantee that--life happens and some classes are going to be challenging no matter what your major is. You should consider spending an extra 2 semesters (or so) or summer semesters (you can take 2 classes in the AM and work in the afternoon) taking easy electives to boost your GPA. Or retake the classes you failed if you can apply them to your new major. I'm assuming your first year you were taking English, Math, etc. Don't you have to retake those anyway? GPAs are all about numbers. Do you know why you didn't do well? Were you sick? Dealing with family issues? Whatever it was, you have to make sure it's resolved.

Do NOT focus on becoming a doula or anything that may derail you from getting into nursing school.

This is good advice but I'm taking classes with my community college and am probably going to getting my ADN from there then try to get into an RN>BSN program. The stress is out of my life, literally, and a lot of the other problems just dissipated. If I intended to stay at OSU my next step would have been to take all of my minor classes since they appeared to be easy electives, but in the long run that would've been a waste of time and money.

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