Help, Need Advice on Getting Started!

[Butterfly23]

I am very interested in becoming a nurse. I want to get my ADN, RN at the local Community College(pre reqs and all) or go through the general hospital for my diploma (after pre reqs are done at the CC) and then be able to sit and write the N-CLEX for the RN. (I am not interested in being an LPN, CNA, or full time volunteer work)The hospital I would get my diploma from would be the same hospital I would be interested in working with after I pass the N-CLEX. The niche I'm interested in is L&D. First, I need to make the decision on which route to take as far as schooling. Which would you do and why?

But before that....I would like to job shadow, volunteer or spend sometime(does not have to be lengthy) in a hospital preferably on an L&D. How do I go about doing this? Do I ask the nursing school director about this? I guess I just want to make sure that I want to do this for my career. I have not spent hardly any time in a nurse's setting at all, nor have I had any children, or major illness. How did you know that you had to be a nurse? What were your first steps in making that decision?

Thank you so much for taking the time to read and answer this post. Any help is greatly appreciated!

[TazziRN, RN]

Job shadow: call the manager of the unit you want to shadow in and arrange it.

Volunteer: call the hospital volunteer league but you may not get the unit you want.

ADN vs diploma: one is a college degree, one is not. Depends on which is more important to you.