How do you become a NICU nurse?

ginger58, ASN, RN · Feb 19, 2007

See if you can get into a nursery or NICU as part of your schooling. Most units I've worked in have their own curriculum for nurses wanting to work in NICU. This is after your hospital orientation if you are new to the hospital. There is usually some didactic and clinical with a preceptor. It's always good to have an understanding of a normal newborn.

anniesong · Feb 19, 2007

My nursing education did not include any specific NICU oriented education beyond what was covered as part of my maternity classes and clinicals. The vast majority of my NICU education came from the orientation and classes I received (and continue to receive!) at work.

That being said, you can try to expose yourself as much as possible to experiences that can help you with your future goal of working in a NICU. Some possibilities may be: volunteering or applying for a job as an aide, job shadowing, and applying for clinical experiences in the NICU (if offered) or maternal/newborn areas (to get well-newborn experience - this is extremely valuable! Knowing what is "normal" gives you a better appreciation for the times when something is not). Another possibility is finding out if any of your professors are involved in research studies involvinf newborns or neonates, and finding out is they need an assistant. It's amazing what can pique your interest when you are doing exhaustive searches for journal articles or performing data entry.

ksauce20 · Feb 20, 2007

Thank you for the advice! It helps A LOT!!!