being a full time college student & CNA

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hello! i have decided to become a CNA and i am going to be training in september. but i am also working (desk job) and a full time college student. (Psychology major) i want to get my feet wet in the medical field since my career goal is to be a marriage & family therapist (gotta start somewhere right?)

i want to know if there is anyone on here are full time college students and CNA students at the same time. how did you handle all the homework?! lol

seriously, i would really like you experiences and how you handled working, and being a student in college and a CNA program.

much thanks!

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Specializes in PACU, LTC, Med-Surg, Telemetry, Psych.

Do not let CNA (A low paying field with zero respect) mess up your school and income flow!

That said, you do know CNAs do work in Behavioral Health Units? It can help quite a bit if you are in Psychology for the counseling or medical aspects of it. If you are in psych to set up for another path, probably not worth it.

But... you can probably get a Mental Health Tech job without CNA, just by saying you are a student in most places except state run facilities . Your major from a somewhat decent school will help if if you interview well. Guys tend to be favored over gals.

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Do not let CNA (A low paying field with zero respect) mess up your school and income flow!

That said, you do know CNAs do work in Behavioral Health Units and it can help quite a bit if you are in Psychology for the counseling or medical aspects of it. If you are in psych to set up for another path, probably not worth it.

But... you can probably get a Mental Health Tech job without CNA, just by saying you are a student in most places except state run facilities on just your major if you interview well. Guys tend to be favored over gals.

im in northwest indiana. so my desk job dosent pay much because im a student worker. (only $3000 a year!) so i think being a CNA will definetly step up my income and i get to work in the healthcare field and gain expierence dealing with patients. im hoping to land a job that is part time anyway so i dont think it will mess with my schooling much. i never thought of being a mental health tech. thats a good idea. i also want to use the cna course as a stepping stone to be a OB tech (they get paid more-and less mess) :)

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There really isn't much to the CNA class. You should have no problem getting everything done. Time management is the key.

If you are used to college-level work, then CNA class will be a piece of cake. Most of our "homework" was matching/fill-in-the-blank, and the reading was very simple. There's just some stuff that requires a little more effort and memorization, such as normal ranges of vital signs and simple metric conversions.

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i also want to use the cna course as a stepping stone to be a OB tech (they get paid more-and less mess) :)

Why, if you are a psychology major, do you want to work in OB?

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Why, if you are a psychology major, do you want to work in OB?

its not a career goal. im a psych major to be a marriage and family therapist. OB is a field im interested in working in (other than cna) because it pays more and i can save more money for graduate school! :)

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There really isn't much to the CNA class. You should have no problem getting everything done. Time management is the key.

If you are used to college-level work, then CNA class will be a piece of cake. Most of our "homework" was matching/fill-in-the-blank, and the reading was very simple. There's just some stuff that requires a little more effort and memorization, such as normal ranges of vital signs and simple metric conversions.

that is reasurring to hear. i am a pharmacy tech also (no jobs out here at all) so if it was like that class - thank god! thanks! :D

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Specializes in PACU, LTC, Med-Surg, Telemetry, Psych.

The class is an easy class. They are teaching this in high school some places.

If you can read on an 8th grade level and follow actions according to a common sense list, it is no big deal except for having to be in class or clinicals.

Do not understand how this will increase pay. Starting pay for a CNA with no experience is lower than Taco Bell in some areas. No lie.

You may also want to consider that your desk job allows you to study. Most admins and charge nurses at most of these places are going to raise hell if you are caught trying to study on the job!

CNA also only lasts 2 years in most states, and if you do not continue doing it, you lose the cert.

I am not trying to be negative. I am just trying to say what you are trying to accomplish you can do already with what you already have. Psych wants CPI (Crisis Prevention Intervention) cert over CNA anyways and most give that cert to you during employment.

Do go adult psych or a drug rehab if you do decide to. They call them MHTs.

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The class is an easy class. They are teaching this in high school some places.

If you can read on an 8th grade level and follow actions according to a common sense list, it is no big deal except for having to be in class or clinicals.

Do not understand how this will increase pay. Starting pay for a CNA with no experience is lower than Taco Bell in some areas. No lie.

You may also want to consider that your desk job allows you to study. Most admins and charge nurses at most of these places are going to raise hell if you are caught trying to study on the job!

CNA also only lasts 2 years in most states, and if you do not continue doing it, you lose the cert.

I am not trying to be negative. I am just trying to say what you are trying to accomplish you can do already with what you already have. Psych wants CPI (Crisis Prevention Intervention) cert over CNA anyways and most give that cert to you during employment.

Do go adult psych or a drug rehab if you do decide to. They call them MHTs.

besides making more than i do now (i only get $3000 a year because im a student worker) and i know i cant study on the job; but im hoping to work 3-4 days a week while going to school. i cant do anything with $1500 per semester which is about 3-4 months long. so i really do need something else job wise for right now. i graduate in 2 years then im off to graduate school.

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I say anything can be possible. Go for it! I myself am in the same boat, as far as working, and pursuing a degree and CNA certification. And as far as people on here saying "why be a CNA, it doesn't pay well" as human beings we are entitled to do whatever we may choose, and as far as pay goes...it REALLY depends and where you live and where you work (hospital vs nursing home,ect.). Unless your in the back woods somewhere...CNA's get paid at least $9-13/hr and up. Is that a low wage for the job duties you will do, yes. Is it better than sitting on your butt collecting no pay check worrying about debt adding up, yes. Follow your dreams, and no one elses.

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Specializes in ICU.

I work 40-60 hours a week and am a full-time student (even over the summer!). I don't have any trouble at all balancing it all. Everyone's different though, and if you have a lot of family/social obligations it will be tougher.

And something else to consider if you're wanting to be an OB tech: my hospital does not allow CNAs to work as OB techs. Our OB techs are required to have a Scrub Tech certification so they can assist with deliveries/c-sections. It's a different skill set and many facilities have different requirements. Make sure you look into it!

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I had 4 classes last semester and I was also taking a CNA class at a private school. I went to my CNA class 3 times a week for 4 hours a day and had an 8 hour clinical on Sunday.

CNA class is common sense and the class is not very difficult.

You can do it.

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