Go into nursing for the money?

Nurses General Nursing

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Lets face it, the economy is bad. I barely got into my studio apartment on my measely hourly wage retail job --- and life basically sucks. I got laid off twice as a teacher and never found a living wage job since. So much for retirement.

At age 50 I am barely making ends meet. I am college educated and can do better in life.

I saved some money so I could pay cash to get LPN license and make $18-20 after graduation in one year.

I am choosing nursing because of the money and stability. I used to be a CNA a long time ago and it was an ok” job. It paid the bills. I can do nursing, even though its not my passion.

I have applied and sent out tons of resumes in sales, teaching, management positions, HR – you name it. The clock keeps ticking with loss of income and at my age its harder to land a job.

Anyone go into nursing for the money? Be honest. You would be surprised what people do when they need a living wage.

Going to do it.

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Specializes in LTC and Pediatrics.

I have been a CNA and am now an LPN. I much prefer the nursing part of things than the CNA part. Yes, I help my CNAs and answer call lights. I do get to educate my residents and I use my critical thinking skills in decided what prn med should be given or if I need to call a provider for something.

I love my job as an LPN and would not go back to being a CNA.

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Lets face it, the economy is bad. I barely got into my studio apartment on my measely hourly wage retail job --- and life basically sucks. I got laid off twice as a teacher and never found a living wage job since. So much for retirement.

At age 50 I am barely making ends meet. I am college educated and can do better in life.

I saved some money so I could pay cash to get LPN license and make $18-20 after graduation in one year.

I am choosing nursing because of the money and stability. I used to be a CNA a long time ago and it was an ok” job. It paid the bills. I can do nursing, even though its not my passion.

I have applied and sent out tons of resumes in sales, teaching, management positions, HR – you name it. The clock keeps ticking with loss of income and at my age its harder to land a job.

Anyone go into nursing for the money? Be honest. You would be surprised what people do when they need a living wage.

If you have a bachelor's, how come you are not considering an accelerated BSN program? More options and more money as a BSN.

I'm going into nursing because I have a serious commitment issue when it comes to jobs. I like how I can do pretty much anything I want when it comes to nursing. My goal is to be a Peds ER travel nurse or a PICU travel nurse. Lots of $$$ in traveling. And they don't care abt age.

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I thought of accelerated BSN. The problem is I don't have many science or math classes since I was social science major. How long would it take me to complete?

LPN I can do it in a year and start making 35k a year.

I'm in Columbus, OH.

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I believe that everyone does what they do because of the money. Without money, it would be difficult to survive.

Some people claim to get into nursing because it is their "calling." But if those people weren't paid to do it, would they still choose nursing? And how would they support themselves?

I think that anyone who is able to admit that they do something for the money is an honest and realistic person. I don't look down on anyone who earns a living going on MFC or doing P4P. In fact, those people probably bring in more money than nurses. I would rather see honesty become a societal norm. Sadly, it is still frowned upon if you are "in it for the money."

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I became an LVN then went on to get my RN. That is because I love nursing and helping others in their time of need. This profession, TO ME, is one that you must/need to love or you won't receive the awesome rewards it brings to you. The money is a great benefit of your service to others. There are so many different fields of nursing and that's another wonderful benefit. If one doesn't fit, try another. We need good, compassionate and caring nurses. Good luck and find the nursing job that "just fits!"

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Specializes in burn ICU, SICU, ER, Trauma Rapid Response.

I don't care at all about a person's motivation are for being a nurse. I only care about how they do the job. That said if I discover someone went into it for the money I will lose some respect for them, and very likely make fun of them for being fools. If I were going to go into something for the money it would be something that paid well.

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Specializes in Outpatient Psychiatry.

Yeah, you know one of the initial attractions to my field was the money. I didn't know I'd be making as much as I do, but I knew I'd be making more than I would as a RN or my previous profession. To that end, I only became a RN to become a NP.

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Specializes in Care Coordination, Care Management.

I make about 21.50 an hour, I am definitely not in this for the money...though, I could make more in a different setting. Right now I am basically a glorified social worker...I'm betting that licensure exam was a hell of a lot easier than the NCLEX, too. 😂

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Yeah, I did it for the money. I loved being a CNA, but $8/hr wasn't cutting it. A year of pre-req's and 18 months of school later, I was making $19.23/hr. Definitely worth it from a financial standpoint.

However, I already loved caring for patients. If I could go back to being a CNA for an RN's wages, I would be gone in half a minute.

Being a nurse is stressful. You get squeezed by the people you are supposed to delegate to and by the people who are supposed to support you. And docs, well, are mainly A-holes. Maybe 10% don't have superiority complexes. Probably only 30% are competent. And the statistics rarely overlap. There are maybe 2-3% who aren't A-holes and who practice safely. Just know that a large part of your job will be to chart for the government, and an even larger part to keep the docs from killing your patients. The most stressful part of your job, in my opinion, is not being able to change any of the crappy parts. Oh, and remember, the "customer is king" now. Most nurses have learned to deal with that, and some thrive.

If you can handle all that, then go for it.

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Specializes in 15 years in ICU, 22 years in PACU.
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Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.

I chose nursing for several reasons:

1) I had a reality shock when I left high school (where I never studies and still made all As) and started college (where I ended up on academic probation after my first semester). I started out as a premed major, realized I didn't want to spend all of that time in school, and switched to nursing since it was still health care related

2) Flexibility and money. Decent pay (or at least it was when I started), multiple different specialties to choose from, etc.

3) I do have an interest in health care.

I think those whose sole reason for going into nursing is money will likely burn out. Those whose sole reason for going into nursing because it's "their calling" will likely burn out. There has to be a balance between an interest and willingness to do the job and recognizing that people need money to live.

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