FNP or Nursing Education?

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Hello fellow nurses, I am a 25 year old RN, BSN with three years of experience in critical care. One of the three years involved travel nursing. Thus I have worked in CT-ICU's, trauma ICU, MICU, CCU and SICU. I also just passed the CCRN. Unfortunately, I was diagnosed with mitochondrial disease, and my disability has forced me to consider leaving bedside nursing, due to the long hours and physical stress on my body. Prior to my diagnosis, I would describe myself as motivated, energetic and one who thrived on the chaos and complexity of critical care.

I am considering going back to school full time and feel torn between taking the Education route (MSN in Nsg Education) and the Family Nurse Practitioner route. I feel the role of an NP appeals to me more. I enjoy problem solving, patient education, and the autonomy involved. However, I understand certain NP positions involve long stressful hours at the office. On the other hand, part of me has always wanted to teach, but my nursing background is rather limited when I compare myself to nursing professors I have encountered. I also realize both fields will eventually require PhD's, which I am not wild about, considering the fact that I am still in debt from undergrad loans. Ultimately, I need to pursue a career that is flexible, does not involve 12 hour shifts, and involves lots of sitting. Luckily, I live in the Boston area, where both professions are in great need.

Any advice would be much appreciated! Whether you have experience in either field, or have a disability and was forced to leave the bedside, I truly welcome any insight you may have.

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Specializes in Trauma 4yr Flight 8mn.

If physical work is going to be a concern id go the education route. Most fnp programs have 500_700 clinical hours for their programs. And unless you find a sit down job as an fnp your still going to be physical in your job. Your young with time for the schooling..

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I completely forgot about that. Thanks for the input!

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You may want to look into the educational requirements for faculty in your state. Many community college programs require a Masters in nursing and a FNP will meet that requirement and allow for other options later, if you choose to do something different. Most universities require that you have a doctoral degree or be in process of one. Be aware that you may need to work a certain amount of hours to maintain your FNP for licensure so you will need to keep that in mind if you get your FNP and teach. You are right regarding long hours and stress as a practicing FNP, but that will depend on where you work. In education, if you have to do a clinical component, that can be physically taxing as well. I am an educator in a community college setting with a CNS and am planning on PhD soon, so I've either experienced what you are going thru or worked with someone in the same boat. Hope this helps and good luck!

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Specializes in Pediatric/Adolescent, Med-Surg.

I am a current FNP student that is still unsure about what I want to do with my degree, and am still torn over the possibility of going into nursing education. With my FNP I will be qualified to teach most undergrad clinicals or even teach nursing theory in associate or diploma programs. With an FNP I will have more clinical schooling background than a nursing education degree, which I think will be useful. However, I know that some states (MD for one) require you to have at least 6 credits in nursing education classes in order to teach.

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thanks so much for the feedback!

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