Career decision after completing nursing school

Nurses General Nursing

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I am currently a nursing student (BSN) and I have a previous degree in psychology and have work as a nursing assistant (nursing home) and clinical assistant (psych hospital). I decided to go back to school for nursing because I enjoy working with people and there's more employment opportunities in nursing.

Initially when I started school my plan was to attend grad school and become a nurse anesthetist however, I'm not sure if that's the direction that I want to go in. Nurse anesthetist program are not part-time and the idea of working for a year+ just to get into a program and then taking two years to complete that program is not going to really work with my other life goals. I've looked into a masters in public health, administration, nursing informatics, and health care informatics.

I'm not sure what the best choice is. My motivation for graduate school is furthering my education and making more money. I want a masters in something that will guarantee me a change in financial brackets. Anyone have any advice?

Thanks!!!:)

I'm curious...are you planning on working as an actual nurse for a while to determine if you actually want to be a nurse, and to further explore and see what areas actually interest you..which may lead you in a career path decision?

Specializes in L&D; GI; Fam Med; Home H; Case mgmt.

After one of our patients crashed in the endo unit where I work, just after a scope, I've never been so happy that CRNAs are required to work critical care for a year (or whatever their program requires). Our CRNAs jumped into action and brought that patient back to life. It was a thing of beauty, and although I have ACLS certification, I have never had any exposure to that, so I was absolutely thrilled they were there. They knew exactly what to do, and exactly what to tell ME to do. I know this is isn't exactly following your point but I thought I'd share that bit of info.

Specializes in Critical Care, Med-Surg.

I would suggest trying to figure out what YOU like, and what you want to do.

It's great to choose a career that pays well, but why would you dive headfirst into a career you don't know if you'll enjoy at all -- especially if you have to devote a significant amount of time and money into school for it?

If your only goal is to make a lot of money, then out of your listed choices, CRNA is probably the highest, but it's a lot of work, and it's not an easy job. An MPH isn't going to earn nearly as much, and there's next to no chance of getting a job in administration right out of school with no experience.

But I would say you should take some time and get some experience before jumping right back into school.

Specializes in Nursing Professional Development.

I agree with those who say you need to figure out what you like to do and what you are good at before you invest much in a specific specialty or career path.

People who follow a career path based on what they like and what they are good at tend to succeed and be happy in their jobs. They do very well and opportunities for higher paying jobs in that specialty come their way.

People who follow a career path that is NOT consistent with their true interests and natural talents tend to be less happy and less successful in their work. They don't perform as well, may not be as cheerful in their work, may not "go the extra mile" to be outstanding, and may simply not be "not very good at it." They are less likely to excel and less likely to have the same opportunities for career advancement.

Think about that. It makes sense ... and I have seen it happen to people time and time again. The "superstars" who get the best jobs tend to be the people who enjoy the actual work of the job, have at least a little passion about it, AND have some natural abilities in that area. The best way to find out what your talents and preferences are involves trying a few things and paying attention to what "fits" for you and what doesn't. That requires some experience with the real world of nursing outside the school setting.

Specializes in Emergency, Trauma, Critical Care.

A lot of people state they want to be a CRNA, prior to any exposure working in a hospital and typically, it's because of the money, they are paid very well. I had thought about it, though I knew nothing about them. I finally got to see a CRNA work, and it seemed like sort of a boring job. I like to move around a lot, be in different places, they're stuck there right at the bedside for however long the procedure or surgery takes monitoring the patient. I think they earn every penny because a lot of things can go wrong and there's a lot of information they have to know. I would definitely just focus on getting through nursing first and working as a floor nurse.

I haven't decided either yet what would suit me. And I've worked critical care for a year, and prior to that was an LVN for several years. I had the chance to get a masters degree, but went back for my bachelors instead because it's general, and I don't yet have to commit to a specialization I'm not sure that I want.

There's no reason to feel bad for being uncertain of your ultimate goals. Goals can change as you find things you are passionate about.

I agree with the other posters who have recommended getting some experience to find out what you may really enjoy doing. We read all the time about future RN's who say that their goal is CRNA, largely based on income (nothing wrong with that), but without really knowing what the job entails. There are many, many different venues of nursing and many that pay well, some very "hands on", like CRNA, while others are more "behind a desk", like nursing informatics. Get some experience, find out what you enjoy . . . good luck!

Specializes in Psych.

Here's a link to the highest paid nursing specialties: http://nursinglink.monster.com/benefits/articles/2626-top-ten-highest-paying-nursing-specialties . Hope this helps!

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