Graduated 10 years ago but never passed NCLEX-RN

[bethanyvu]

hello everyone new here.

i am hoping that some one could help. i have graduated from nursing school with a bs degree from san jose state university about 10 years ago.

i wanted to see is there a job for me out there that does not require the nclex-rn license?

any recommendations would greatly be appreciated.

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

Well, you cannot legally use the title of "nurse" unless you have taken and passed NCLEX, and possess some type of nursing licensure. Hence, you cannot lawfully find employment as a nurse with just your BSN degree.

See if doctors' offices and clinics will employ you as an office manager or medical assistant. You could also work for a health insurance company, or do medical research. I'm sure that there are other ways you could put your education to use. Good luck to you!

[jjjoy, LPN]

As Commuter noted, you couldn't work in a job that legally required a nursing license but there are many jobs out there where your educational background could be useful. You wouldn't be working as a nurse, but you could bring general health care knowledge that you gained in nursing school to the table. Your bachelor's degree will help you qualify for a wider range of positions.

Where to look? There are many other employees besides nurses in hospitals. Health insurance companies need employees who understand health issues. The state health department, county health services, medical publishers, health product companies, and more may have professional roles where your educational background make you competitive for a job. Seeking this type of job takes persistence and some creativity (can't just look at the pages of "RN wanted" jobs), especially to get the first job, but it can pay off.

I don't work as a nurse by choice (choosing my sanity, in this case) though I too have a BSN as well as an RN license. It took me several months of applying to a wide variety of positions to land a job with medical publishing company. I did that for several years and have recently taken a new job (after several months of applying to a wide variety of positions) working with medical records. The work suits me better than clinical nursing... too bad I didn't realize that before nursing school, but life only runs in one direction. I'm happy with my work. I hope you can find something that works for you!

Good luck!