I am a male nursing student - What Did I Get Myself Into?!?!?

[nomadd917]

I said it. I am a male nursing student. I am scared. At times, mostly all the time, constantly ask myself: WHAT DID I JUST GET MYSELF INTO?!?!?

I am currently working on finishing my Biology courses. I just finished an 8 week A&P-1 class,  I am starting another 8 week A&P-2 course and currently taking a 16 week Microbiology class. It is a lot of work especially with working full-time, being a husband, and a father to 3 kids.  

With these 3 biology courses taken in one semester, it feels overwhelming at times but certainly doable. How would this semester's workload compare to a normal semester in nursing school with the nursing classes?

I am starting a 2nd degree BSN program this Spring that is 5 semesters long. luckily the program is a hybrid online, evenings, and weekends and I can keep my full-time job while doing the program. 

Males nurses out there, what have your experiences been as being a male in a female-dominated profession? I am already surrounded by girls at home and that doesn't bother me. I honestly prefer to sometimes work with females over males as I find they have better work ethics than most men do. 

[SpaceCowgirl, BSN]

---

---

 @Purple_Clover

[Tegridy]

Never really had any issues in nursing school, we had several guys, several in NP school, and even medical school is a majority female now. So just deal.

[FiremedicMike, RN, EMT-P]

1 thing that's been great - the mens room is NEVER busy.. LOL

 

[Sam121]

Hi....I understand the problems one may face....and it is unfortunate that one has to deal with so many things.

[Gooday]

Being a male nurse can be a blessing and a curse.   Your usually left out of the infighting, that's a blessing.  You do get a disproportionate amount of the difficult and over weight patients dumped on you.    I love it though.   Patients tend to treat you like a doctor.  I have to repeatedly tell them Im a nurse.   

[JayK, CNA]

I honestly thought I was the only one that felt that way. Initially, I was going to school for Physical Therapy. But after a few years of trying, I was unsuccessful in getting admitted into a PT school. I switched career paths to nursing now and I just started my nursing program. There are times where I ask myself, what have I gotten myself into? It is sort of reassuring that I am not alone in this. Good luck!

[ml2k1]

In psych nursing being a male nurse definitely helps with maintaining unit acuity.

[gere7404, BSN, RN]

On 10/23/2021 at 7:27 AM, FiremedicMike said:

1 thing that's been great - the mens room is NEVER busy.. LOL

 

?? we all had our own personal stalls in the mens room

[magnumGI, BSN, LPN]

Through my LPN and BSN programs, being a male was a total non-issue everywhere except during my OB clinicals. I had one patient who didn't want a male student. It didn't hurt my feelings because, honestly, I've got zero interest in OB. 

On the job (as an LPN, I haven't taken my NCLEX-RN yet), I point-blank get treated with more respect than my female coworkers 99% of the time by patients, families, physicians, and even other female coworkers. I like to think that I've earned the generally good treatment I receive by being competent, hard-working, and sociable. And that probably is a lot of it. On the other hand, I've worked with women who are far more competent than I am, work harder than I do, and are super easy to get along with. I still get more respect than them most of the time.

It isn't fair, I didn't ask for it to be that way, but it is what it is. I don't feel guilty about benefiting from it, because it doesn't make sense to feel guilty over something I can't control. I'm not going to turn down a raise or a promotion over it; I've got a family to feed and I know I worked hard to earn it. 

But I would say that, as a member of a profession that aspires to ethical principles like justice, you do have some responsibility to try to walk the talk. You don't have to wear a cape or anything. Just check your biases and do basic good human-being stuff: Make sure you're giving credit where it's due, support your team members when they need it, and don't let messed up comments or behavior go unchecked. 

 

 

 

[NorCalKid]

When I precept new grads I actually prefer the second career folks with life and work experience.

I don't really agree with the males climbing the ladder faster.  I think often it just comes down to the males working more and building experience faster.  My last 2 orientees we're out pregnant within a year and one now staying at home.  VS basically all the males working full time gaining experience.  I also see males working more OT on average.  So ya, I think males do tend to advance faster but I think it's because they build the experience faster.  

I think women advance just as fast if they gain experience at the same rate but they  often don't.  

[bsd058]

LOL. I found this thread to be very encouraging. Just finished my prereqs and am waiting on whether or not I’m going to be accepted into the Spring program for an ASN-RN program I’ve been working toward. My program only lets about 20% of applicants in, but I was advised that the points I’ve accumulated is going to be very competitive. Hoping I get in so I can join the ranks with you all. I began with a health insurance company which was also a health care provider. They offered to pay for my schooling, and I really wanted to make a difference, so here I am. Wife became disabled during the pandemic, and so I need to be able to earn a little bit more since she’s not able to work and we don’t have disability. I have been navigating the insurance side of things for the past decade. I think nursing is going to be a better use of my mind, which I felt was being wasted by the same ol same ol day in and day out. Spreadsheets, benefits, exclusions, CMS star ratings, etc. I’ve loved learning biology, micro, A&P I & II, psych courses, and diet therapy over the past year. Just finished the TEAS. Hoping my points will be good enough to get me in. I am only missing one point, 84 out of a max possible 85 for the program. You just never know until you get the letter. Should know by end of October.?

[WanderRN]

Good luck!