Getting everything in order

[EcliftonRN]

I am a new grad RN-BSN and just started my first real nursing job. I live in Ohio and employment was very difficult to find, so now I am working in a long term care facility. I would much rather be getting hospital experience, but I had to take what I can get to start paying my bills and getting experience. After I get some work experience as an RN (6 months to a year) I plan to start applying to some hospital jobs again to see how the response is.

I am planning on going back to school and am really leaning toward doing a Family Nurse Practitioner program. My questions are: 1) How many years of work experience as an RN should I accumulate before going back to school. 2) What are the best specialty areas for me to get experience in? 3) How do current FNPs like your jobs?!?!

Thanks for taking the time to answer!

[butterfly journey]

Well as far as what you "need" as experience vs. what is required those are two different things. I am not an NP, not even a nurse yet, but I am already planning my graduate program and how work will figure into it. What you probably want to do is decide where you want to do your FNP and find out what experience they require. Where I want to go they require at least a year's worth of experience in a clinical setting, but another school I've looked into requires two years. Also different programs may require different settings, i.e. if you were to go on to Nurse Anesthesia school you would need to have at least one year in an ICU setting for the school that I've looked at. So it may not be a decision you need to make, but more one made by where you want to continue your education.

Good luck.