Job you had or wish you had before or during psych NP school?

[crazycassie]

I am applying to a direct entry MSN program to become a psych NP. I've been working in the mental health/substance abuse field since I got my first bachelors two and half years ago. I am currently a line staff in two residential alcohol and drug abuse treatment centers for youth and love it and desire to transition to the medical end of things. I've worked in a chiropractors office as a certified assistant and then went right into the recovery field with youth. I am wondering what the next best job could be while I spend my year doing my application and prerequisites and continue into school. I have good psych and counseling experience but nothing super medical. I could likely easily advance to being a youth case manager for those in custody and needing treatment and medical care and the pay would be good for me in my case... in any case what would you suggest would be good experience to gain before and during a psych np program and beforehand?

[Jules A, MSN]

Inpatient acute, adult locked psychiatric unit. You will see so many different medication doses, responses and adverse reactions.

[Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN]

Another suggestion is psych ER, either a freestanding one or a psych section of a regular ER. You will get to see patients in crisis from the moment they enter the facility. You will also learn how to manage patients in a non-psych setting until they are transferred to the psych unit proper.

[PG2018]

I'd go to work at Lowe's or something honestly. If you're not already in a job with accommodating shift work then you need to pick something grossly lacking in stress. I became a RN to go to NP school and while in NP school (my 3 lost years) I worked as a RN. Never liked it but did it. Urgent care was ok. Correctional management wasn't bad. I did too much and aged negatively as a result of it. I don't know what I would do if I had it to do all over again, but I would do something vastly different.

Of note, I just graduated with my master's and have contacted with a clinic to start in three weeks. I quit my most recent RN job and will be on vacation until the next position starts. We'll do some traveling and relaxing, and I'll start studying for the national board exam. I'm getting a temp lic from my state, and I don't expect any problems with the national exam. I'm going to be taking it easy for the next few weeks. Fortunately, we can afford it. I have health issues now that I need to work on, and they're all attributed to doing too much and most of it in that time (other than Psych NP training) was nothing I wanted to do.

ETA: Nursing wasn't my first career and NP school wasn't my first exposure to grad school.