how hard really is School and Work ?

MN-Nurse, ASN, RN · Jun 5, 2011

hello, i work 40 hours a week as a telephone operator, and am one year shy of being able to apply for the registered nurse program, can you give me tips on how to manage both?

you'll want to work less than that. depending on what you want to do when you graduate nursing school, you also might want to consider getting a job in the healthcare field while you are in school.

prettypiedra · Jun 5, 2011

@ MN Nurse, I dont have the option to work less unfortunately what jobs can i do at a hospital while in nursing school with out being certified in anything?

suern2b · Jun 6, 2011

I had to drop from 40+ to 20 hours (my job is in healthcare) I also have a supportive husband to help with the kids (4) and I can tell you flat out... find a way to do it without working, or find some kind of work that is SUPER flexible. Nursing school is NO joke. I am carrying 3 classes and clinicals this semester and its a struggle. I have the best bosses in the world, and I am blessed to be able to come and go as I need to at work but that is not the usual especially in healthcare. As for school, it is not uncommon to have several journals, a care plan (that takes several hours to complete), a research report, various powerpoints and podcasts to review and 15+(complex) chapters of reading to do in one week. Day before clinicals you have to go research your patient too (couple hours there) Oh and you have to remember all of this because you have a test next week. Add that to work responsibilities and various kid stuff (doc appts, projects, homework) and well.. something has to give. If you do plan on doing it, relax your academic standards now. No way to get a 4.0 with that much going on.

Clip coupons, eat beans and rice, cancel the cable, do what you gotta do to keep from working if at all possible. Heck even if you have to max out student loans to get money to live on its better than flunking out due to overextending yourself.

prettypiedra · Jun 6, 2011

@ suern2b, WOW, thanks so much !! this is very helpful, now i am REALLY scared not by the school load BUT by this what I am about to write, I have a well paying job now i make $23 an hour . SO 5 years ago my husband and I had our dream home built, and well if i quit that job to go through 2 years of the RN program we will lose our home. Due to such a high mortgage Is it worth losing our dream home to pursue my dream job, knowing that in nursing i will make about what i make now, the reason I want to become a Nurse is becuase i know that is my calling, i love to help people and I am a very caring person. OMG, now the hard decisions have to be made huh?:crying2::crying2:

theantichick · Jun 6, 2011

Everyone's experience is different. I'm a computer geek working 40 hrs and doing an ASN program (in my 2nd semester now). I'm doing fine... A's and B's. It's nowhere near easy, but I'm managing. I wouldn't be able to do it if I couldn't flex my time around school, so I'm luckier than most that my boss is very understanding and I can set my own hours and even work from home. I also have a high reading & comprehension rate, so I don't have to go over the material over and over and over. Several people in my class are also working FT jobs (with flex time) and doing ok.

That being said, if I had ANY option to cut my hours or even quit, I'd jump at them. It's NOT easy, and only YOU know how your study/learning habits are.

suern2b · Jun 6, 2011

@ suern2b, WOW, thanks so much !! this is very helpful, now i am REALLY scared not by the school load BUT by this what I am about to write, I have a well paying job now i make $23 an hour . SO 5 years ago my husband and I had our dream home built, and well if i quit that job to go through 2 years of the RN program we will lose our home. Due to such a high mortgage Is it worth losing our dream home to pursue my dream job, knowing that in nursing i will make about what i make now, the reason I want to become a Nurse is becuase i know that is my calling, i love to help people and I am a very caring person. OMG, now the hard decisions have to be made huh?:crying2::crying2:

Oh dear! sorry that post does sound awful scary. I'm not tryng to scare you.. and I think it's more that being a mom makes this all super stressful, not because the kids need to be taken care of but more the guilt that I can't be with them as much because I am going to school AND working= even less time with the kiddos. I can certainly understand not wanting to give your dream home up. It can be done.. YOU can do it. 2 years flies by. Just want you to go in with eyes wide open. I am no slacker either btw.. this is my 3rd degree always 4.0 gpa. I have to have a strict study schedule and a good bedtime so mommy can study. I have been known to study in my car for some quiet. I also have to schedule down time for playing with the kids and to remind myself why I am doing this :) Needless to say I have seen alot of sunrises this year. :)

Is there any room to rent a room to a fellow student? that helps with the mortgage, gives you a study buddy, and helps out a student. just an idea. I know alot of students were looking for better housing than the dorms. Especially experienced students which are great roommates not party animals.

Jobs at a hospital that don't require certification generally don't pay well, but given your experience check for switchboard or dispatch work. We have answering service for our docs.. that would also give you some experience with the terminology and get to know the physicians in your area.

Turd Ferguson · Jun 6, 2011

i know we have 12 hour a day clinicals, for that i will be able to take vacation days off from work
:)

i can almost guarantee you they'll have more clinical days than you have vacation, unless you've accrued an obscene amount over the years.

we averaged 2-3 days/week in clinical with summer's off.

elkpark · Jun 6, 2011

You can expect the nursing program to be at least the equivalent of a full-time job (so, working full-time while you're in school will be roughly the equivalent of holding down two full-time jobs). Also, I guarantee you that, whatever is printed in the student handbook or course descriptions is only the tip of the iceberg. There will be plenty of other scheduled time you have to put in that won't show up anywhere on the printed schedule/curriculum. Many (not all) nursing programs require you to go to the clinical facility the evening before your scheduled clinical day(s) to pick up your assignment and gather info on your assigned client(s). Also, there will be practice time and skills "check-offs" in the skills lab which typically do not show up on a schedule. You can also expect your school schedule to change from semester to semester, and, sometimes, change on v. short notice within a single semester due to a change in clinical sites, etc. Unless you have an extremely flexible work schedule and/or an extremely understanding boss, it will be challenging to continue a full-time job while in nursing school (some people do manage to do it, though).

Best wishes for your journey!

FLmomof5 · Jun 6, 2011

I entered the EVE/WE ASN class so that I could continue working. *I* was the income! I didn't have the option of not working so I worked 40 + hrs per week the whole time I was in NS and it was never a problem. I only had to take 3 days off to deal with certain 12 hr clinicals that were required to complete Role Transformation.

I really didn't study more than an hour or two before each test. I also did only the NCLEX flashcards to study for the NCLEX and passed it first time.

Can you do it? Sure, it's possible. It also is determined by your learning style and the speed in which you learn. For those like me, it was not that big a deal. For others, it nearly "killed" them. Some quit working when it was feasible.

In the end, you do what you have to do.

Scalico · Jun 6, 2011

I work as a CNA at a health care facility and average about 20-32 hrs a week while in my 2nd semester of nursing school, and to be honest with you, I needed more time off than that. I've maintained a 3.5 gpa, but it has been extremely tough to do so. I used to have a good paying job too, but they weren't very flexible once I started the NUR program, so I had to quit. We have cut a lot of extras out, down to basic cable, low as possible on cell phones, eating out, etc....anything extra really, just to swing my lower pay rate. We even dipped into the IRA to pay off a car loan to have that extra money as well. I'm a little scared of what the next 2 semesters may bring, because many friends that are in 3rd and 4th sem tell me i'll need more time off....but you do what you have to do to make it. I can't be this far vested and NOT go on with it! Good luck to you, follow your heart.....

Despareux · Jun 6, 2011

Depends on your school, too. Some require more work than others. Nursing school is very much equivalent to a full-time job. If you're working, have kids, AND attending a nursing program--that is serious business. But support is paramount to successfully completing a nursing program. I'm sure it can be done.