Is it worth it?

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Hello! I am a sophomore in college and I am looking into becoming a BSN. So far, my plan is to work as a bedside nurse for a year, become a travel nurse until I get tired of it, and then move on to becoming a NP. Two of our family friends are travel nurses, another is an NP, and one is a bedside nurse who is just starting out and they all say they enjoy their jobs. After doing some research of being an RN, I’ve noticed a common trend of everything being a bit... Negative. Everywhere I go it seems everyone is miserable being an RN and regrets every single second of it. I would love to have a job that I enjoy while making a somewhat decent wage. I am a bit discouraged after seeing all of this and was wondering is being an RN is really that bad?

On 5/25/2019 at 6:53 PM, hayleyb44 said:

Thanks for all the replies! I ran into another nurse my family knows & she told me to run for the hills when it comes to nursing. To me, happiness in a career is something I always put first with the money, perks, and everything else behind it. Rather than go through nursing, I’ve decided to just push through and be a PA as I would rather suffer through all those chem and bio classes than have to suffer through all those stressful situations as a nurse.

I haven’t shadowed any nurses yet, but I have been given several opportunities to do so

I would advise you to go into any other field rather than nursing. It is not what it used to be in any shape, form, or fashion.

When my daughters were your age and considering careers, I told them, pick any career you would like. However, I would not support them going into nursing. I suggested they look into medical school and they said , OK.

Today, they are board certified, fellowship trained physicians. They also graduated with no debt.

Getting into PA school is very difficult. I believe it would be worth it . I would not recommend trying to become an NP. This is all MY personal opinion from 40 years of personal and professional experience.

If you enjoy science, becoming an epidemiologist might be a consideration for you. You get a Master of Public Health. I wish I had known of that route when I was your age.

Best of luck to you!

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On 5/25/2019 at 4:53 PM, hayleyb44 said:

Rather than go through nursing, I’ve decided to just push through and be a PA

IMO A better option if you can get into a program. I have two daughters who are PA's. They do well financially and the older one has had several interesting and varied positions (the younger is a fresh grad in first job- hospitalist mid-level).

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@2Ask

What did your daughters do for the 2000 hour healthcare experience to apply for pA school? I considered becoming a home-aid CNA for a summer in between semesters just to get those hours.

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CNA is a good idea. Actually have a daughter in law who went to PA school after college and that is what she did. My daughters did a direct entry from high school program so the bar of experience beforehand was not as high and they fulfilled the requirements during the BS phase.

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Unfortunately, the most negative voices seem to be the loudest. A nursing career offers flexibility that is not found in many other places - look at the specialty list on this forum to see many possibilities. I have friends in admin, home health, community health & school nursing that love their jobs.

Don't rule it out before seeing it yourself, at least as a CNA. Yes, it's stressful, and some employers/units just suck. But there are a lot of people that are satisfied with their careers.

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Specializes in Cardiology.

Yes and no. I worked as an aid on a step-down and was like "Im never going to work the floor" and yet here I am as a RN working on a step-down lol. I enjoy it most of the time. I really enjoy cardiology, I enjoy helping/teaching the patients. I have more good times than bad. Management is really good (finally).

Some on here have had bad experiences and are bitter. However, they usually have experience and they bring up some valid points. Like I said I have had mostly good experiences. Does nursing have its faults? Yes. Every job does. I think the biggest issues nurses have is with upper management (and sometimes their managers), the lack of respect from some doctors, patients and families, upper management (the suits).

If you go the PA route be aware that getting in is extremely difficult. You cannot rely on just GPA now. Becoming a PA doesn't eliminate any stress either. I also agree with the one poster.....dont become a NP. Just my personal opinion as well.

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I won’t be ruling out nursing just yet. I got a few calls back and I’ve been set up to shadow a few nurses in different units just to get a feel for it.

@OUxPhys

what do you believe is bad about being an NP? If I go the nursing route I’ll probably go straight for NP as I prefer the more ‘doctor’ setting without four years of med school, thought I’m aware that NPs and physicians are different in their own aspects. I will be talking to our family NP friend about this as well.

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Specializes in Cardiology.
2 hours ago, hayleyb44 said:

I won’t be ruling out nursing just yet. I got a few calls back and I’ve been set up to shadow a few nurses in different units just to get a feel for it.

@OUxPhys

what do you believe is bad about being an NP? If I go the nursing route I’ll probably go straight for NP as I prefer the more ‘doctor’ setting without four years of med school, thought I’m aware that NPs and physicians are different in their own aspects. I will be talking to our family NP friend about this as well.

You are salaried, long hours (at least in acute care). If you work in an outpatient setting or for a minute clinic the hours (and pay regarding the minute clinic) are better. I dunno, just wasnt my thing. I would caution about going right into a NP program right after nursing school. I would get a couple of years experience before venturing down that road.

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Look over on the NP forum. It is just as expensive as PA and takes just as long but some of the schools don't set up clinicals and I've met nurses who could not pass the boards after graduating NP school. You cannot practice without passing boards. Their whole cohort was taking an extra and expensive board prep class in hopes to learn what their expensive and exhausting years in school never taught them. When I asked what they learned in the NP program, it sounded an awful lot like the online RN-BSN program I took which was mainly useless busywork IMO.

Nurse Practitioner Boards Pass Rate- LOL how the nurse is thrown under the bus, not the schools' deficient curriculum and lack of assistance with clinical placement

Quote

https://www.boardvitals.com/blog/ancc-aanp-fnp-exam/

ANCC: In 2015, the average pass rate for the FNP exam was 75%. AANP: In 2015, the average pass rate for the FNP exam was 81.4%. Key Takeaway: Many examinees make the mistake of not adequately preparing for the difficulty found in these exams as demonstrated by the pass rates. Nov 5, 2018

PA boards pass rate

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https://www.thepalife.com/pance-failure-and-pass-rate-physician-assistant-certification-exam/

What is the pass rate for the Pance?

93%

In most years the number of those taking the PANCE has risen. In 2016 there were 8,025 test takers (first time and repeat) with an overall pass rate of 93%.

Quote

https://www.aafp.org/fpm/2017/0300/p19.html

Education. PAs are educated in the medical model, which includes curricula in medical science and behavioral and mental health, with a focus on critical thinking and decision making. Their master's level programs require approximately 1,000 didactic hours and 2,000 clinical hours of training.3 There are no online PA programs in the United States.

NPs are educated in the nursing model, which includes a focus on disease prevention and health education as well as assessment, diagnosis, and treatment. Their programs require approximately 500 didactic hours and 700 clinical hours of training (or more if the NP is pursuing independent practice in an allowed state). Master's and doctoral degree programs are available, and 105 programs are offered online.3,4

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Specializes in Cardiology.
8 minutes ago, 2Ask said:

Look over on the NP forum. It is just as expensive as PA and takes just as long but some of the schools don't set up clinicals and I've met nurses who could not pass the boards after graduating NP school. You cannot practice without passing boards. Their whole cohort was taking an extra and expensive board prep class in hopes to learn what their expensive and exhausting years in school never taught them. When I asked what they learned in the NP program, it sounded an awful lot like the online RN-BSN program I took which was mainly useless busywork IMO.

Nurse Practitioner Boards Pass Rate- LOL how the nurse is thrown under the bus, not the schools' deficient curriculum and lack of assistance with clinical placement

PA boards pass rate

And therein lies the problem....105 programs are offered online and none for PA.

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8 hours ago, hayleyb44 said:

I won’t be ruling out nursing just yet. I got a few calls back and I’ve been set up to shadow a few nurses in different units just to get a feel for it.

@OUxPhys

what do you believe is bad about being an NP? If I go the nursing route I’ll probably go straight for NP as I prefer the more ‘doctor’ setting without four years of med school, thought I’m aware that NPs and physicians are different in their own aspects. I will be talking to our family NP friend about this as well.

I know you didn't ask my opinion FWIW. I worked at the Board of Nursing in my state. The NPs that came before the board for infractions of the regulations, seemed to be "script" happy. For example, " OMG, now I can write for my friends" Their words, not mine. Not a good idea especially done without actually seeing the patient. etc.

I personally choose not to see NPs, but I did in one case at a Vanderbilt walk in. I knew I had acute bronchitis that had gone on for 2 weeks and she treated me well. I was very impressed with her infection prevention choices and the treatment regime. I was feeling better hours later.

This is my personal preference coming from an MD family. The nursing profession was very different 40 years ago when I entered it. Nurses do not get the respect we deserve. Even with a Master Degree, we are often seen as JAN.

Wishing the best for you and your personal choices.

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6 minutes ago, OUxPhys said:

And therein lies the problem....105 programs are offered online and none for PA.

So true. How in the world does a person learn to be a provider ONLINE.

And, I have seen so many NP students get their hours by hanging out at their friends offices and " submitting hours " which just left me wondering....

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