Leaving federal job for nursing school

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

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I am currently a health technician at The National Institute of Health. I currently make $26 an hour and am taking pre-req 's for to apply for Nursing School, I plan to apply a year from today. I am a single mom (dad is deceased) to twin girls and my plan is to work overnight once I'm an RN so that I can take the girls to and from school and just to be more involved since they are under 6 years old. I also plan to stop at MSN but will be starting at Community college. I can make anywhere from $26-33 hourly at my current job but would have to stick to the M-F 9-5 schedule, which I hate sometimes. My question is do you think it's worth it to leave my federal job with good pay (no degree, just experience and certifications) for Nursing school? I'm open to all POV. Please help a gal out and sorry for the ramble lol

I am in a somewhat similar situation. I do not have children nor do I work a federal job so that may be the only difference. I have thought long and hard if I want to give up my cushy 7:30-4 job for nursing school. While it's hard to walk away, I think I will be happier in the long run. I love working. I have a ton of energy and I get really antsy working a desk job. I actually hate having to take holidays off and use my own PTO for that. It would be nicer to get paid the time and a half. I am not a single mother of twins though (so sorry for your loss). So it all depends on what your reasonings are and what you think you could handle. Maybe try to shadow a nurse at a hospital and see if it's for you?

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It really depends on your own personal reason. If you are looking for a change of pace then Nursing is definitely the route to go. It definitely doesn't seem like its a financial reason for you. You will basically make the same pay as a RN as you do a technician.

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On 6/24/2019 at 12:06 PM, Virginiaaaaatech said:

I am currently a health technician at The National Institute of Health. I currently make $26 an hour and am taking pre-req 's for to apply for Nursing School, I plan to apply a year from today. I am a single mom (dad is deceased) to twin girls and my plan is to work overnight once I'm an RN so that I can take the girls to and from school and just to be more involved since they are under 6 years old. I also plan to stop at MSN but will be starting at Community college. I can make anywhere from $26-33 hourly at my current job but would have to stick to the M-F 9-5 schedule, which I hate sometimes. My question is do you think it's worth it to leave my federal job with good pay (no degree, just experience and certifications) for Nursing school? I'm open to all POV. Please help a gal out and sorry for the ramble lol

Are you doing this for professional growth or income? You can eventually make 2-3x what you're making now with continued education in nursing (as an APRN). So, long-term, if you're willing to put in the work, it would be the right financial move. Does your current job offer opportunity for growth with additional education? Do you enjoy what you're doing? Do you think you'd enjoy nursing? The good thing about nursing is that once you're a nurse and working, you can eventually find your niche and avoid getting stuck in a rut or job that you despise. There are plenty of opportunities in nursing.

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I wouldn't do it. If you read enough threads in Allnurses you will see how frustrating and difficult this job is. Not necessarily the patient care, but all the bureaucratic BS. Do you have a good work environment that allows you to do your job effectively and feel respected? Do you get a 30 minute lunch break without interruptions? Do you have sufficient time to do everything? Are you made to feel guilty if you won't work extra or call in sick? Do you have tasks added to your workload on a regular basis with expectations of getting it all done by the end of your day? DO you get out on time? Do you face the possibility of violent behavior or being cussed out from "customers" and their families? This is a very small sample of the negative work environment we all face in nursing today-even at the best places. And it's not getting better. Yes, being a nurse can be fulfilling, but it's becoming less so every day. Sure, you can go into non bedside areas (after getting 1-2 years bedside experience), but you will take a pay cut and they have their own set of problems.

Also, how long do you expect it to take you to reach an MSN while still working? You will be missing a big part of your children's lives before you achieve that.

I'm not trying to bum you out, and some places are better to work at than others, but they're in the minority and at even the best you still deal with the above problems. Most people go into nursing because it pays pretty well, there is demand (although for new RNs getting their first job can be difficult), and they feel they are helping others. But you already get paid pretty well for not having a degree, have weekends and holidays off and you will find that the "helping others" ethic has to be compromised dramatically to fulfill the bureaucratic BS.

P.S: I've been a nurse since 1991. Respiratory therapist before that. If I had to do it again I would look into x-ray tech (advancing to CT and MRI credentials) or ECHO, USN tech. Although I'm not sure it's lots better in those fields.

Good luck to you and whatever you decide.

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Specializes in Cardiology.
51 minutes ago, old&improved said:

I wouldn't do it. If you read enough threads in Allnurses you will see how frustrating and difficult this job is. Not necessarily the patient care, but all the bureaucratic BS. Do you have a good work environment that allows you to do your job effectively and feel respected? Do you get a 30 minute lunch break without interruptions? Do you have sufficient time to do everything? Are you made to feel guilty if you won't work extra or call in sick? Do you have tasks added to your workload on a regular basis with expectations of getting it all done by the end of your day? DO you get out on time? Do you face the possibility of violent behavior or being cussed out from "customers" and their families? This is a very small sample of the negative work environment we all face in nursing today-even at the best places. And it's not getting better. Yes, being a nurse can be fulfilling, but it's becoming less so every day. Sure, you can go into non bedside areas (after getting 1-2 years bedside experience), but you will take a pay cut and they have their own set of problems.

Also, how long do you expect it to take you to reach an MSN while still working? You will be missing a big part of your children's lives before you achieve that.

I'm not trying to bum you out, and some places are better to work at than others, but they're in the minority and at even the best you still deal with the above problems. Most people go into nursing because it pays pretty well, there is demand (although for new RNs getting their first job can be difficult), and they feel they are helping others. But you already get paid pretty well for not having a degree, have weekends and holidays off and you will find that the "helping others" ethic has to be compromised dramatically to fulfill the bureaucratic BS.

P.S: I've been a nurse since 1991. Respiratory therapist before that. If I had to do it again I would look into x-ray tech (advancing to CT and MRI credentials) or ECHO, USN tech. Although I'm not sure it's lots better in those fields.

Good luck to you and whatever you decide.

Spot on. If I had to do it over again I would have went into a trade or different medical specialty (XR tech or CT/MRI, echo etc). A girl I know is an EEG tech and she makes more than a new grad nurse at her hospital. It took her a few years but she doesnt have to deal with patients and she gets holidays and weekends off. Plus no student loan debt.

Nursing isnt all bad and it also depends where you work but at the same time no one will tell you what its really like (except us here on AN).

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I got sidetracked by your thread, and felt compelled to reply. I do not think it is wise to leave the job you have, UNLESS you feel that you are not happy, and will not be happy in life unless you are nurse. Even then, I nearly promise you will even less happy.

I am not sure about the cost of living/pay scales in the area you live in, so all of my opinion is based on default assumptions. If you are making $26-33 per hour, that is more than most patient involved RN's make, in my area at least. I have been a RN for over 6 years, BSN, won awards for patient care, I still work on the same floor(PCU) I started, and I make 28$ base pay. Yes, I could leave for more money, but I have the exactly schedule I need for my child, and I am not sure anyone else would give that to me.

My point is, unless you want to travel, (With a child would be hard) I feel like the golden days of nursing are behind us. If I could restart my career when I as younger, it would NOT be nursing.

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15 minutes ago, OUxPhys said:

Spot on. If I had to do it over again I would have went into a trade or different medical specialty (XR tech or CT/MRI, echo etc). A girl I know is an EEG tech and she makes more than a new grad nurse at her hospital. It took her a few years but she doesnt have to deal with patients and she gets holidays and weekends off. Plus no student loan debt.

Nursing isnt all bad and it also depends where you work but at the same time no one will tell you what its really like (except us here on AN).

Exactly. Nearly everyone I work with sleep techs, CT, MRI, US, RT, PT etc makes more than nurses, bosses the hell out of us, and can just dump the patient off in the room and walk away, never having to deal with them for the next 12 hours. Do any of these, just not nursing.

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Specializes in Psychiatric and Mental Health NP (PMHNP).

If you're making $26 an hour at NIH, that's roughly $52,000 per year (2,0000 hours per year approximately for a full time employee). If you are in the DC Metro area, that is not a lot of money. Is there are career path for a health tech or is this pretty much it?

RNs can make up to $120,000 or more in the DC Metro area with experience, specialization, or getting into supervisory roles. NPs can potentally make even more and have the option of setting up their own practice in Maryland and this will probably extend to all 50 states in the future.

If you are currently a federal employee, check into tuition benefits, as the government may pay for part of all of your nursing education, especially if you continue working and go to school part-time.

There are also a lot of federal opportunities for nurses, such as working in the VA or as a civilian in military hospitals. State and local governments also employ nurses and some of them have even better benefits than the feds.

One the great things about nursing is that it is a very flexible career with many different career paths. If you don't like bedside nursing, there's management, public health, school nursing, teaching, research, consulting to tech companies and on and on and on.

There is a lot of negativity on this forum. In general, when it comes to forums, a lot of unhappy people will post, more than people who are happy. There are plenty of RNs who love their job!

Good luck!

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Specializes in Psych, Corrections, Med-Surg, Ambulatory.
1 minute ago, FullGlass said:

There is a lot of negativity on this forum. In general, when it comes to forums, a lot of unhappy people will post, more than people who are happy. There are plenty of RNs who love their job!

I have thoroughly enjoyed being a nurse but that doesn't mean it didn't take it out of me. Even though I loved my work, it was still crappy to work shifts, holidays, weekends, mandatory overtime and not get breaks. I went to school back in the stone age, when tuition was a lot less so I didn't have hideous debt. And I wasn't a single parent.

I think the OP needs to understand just what she's letting herself in for, if she decides to pursue this path, vs waiting until her children are older. Loving our profession doesn't mean blowing smoke up anyone's skirt. It's easier to make the right decision when you know up front the good, the bad and the ugly.

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If I had it to do over again, and knew what I know now, I would get my ADN at a Community College, part time if necessary, start working, and take one or two classes a semester toward the BSN. Get a little experience and go for the MSN the same way.

If you currently have zero college credits, there is no way to make this a quick process.

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Specializes in Cardiology.
1 hour ago, FullGlass said:

There is a lot of negativity on this forum. In general, when it comes to forums, a lot of unhappy people will post, more than people who are happy. There are plenty of RNs who love their job!

Good luck!

Nah. I like the place where I work. I like my managers. I love my co-workers. I like most of the patients. However, I wont hold back telling people who are interested in going into nursing the realities as to what we as nurses are expected to do nowadays and what upper management makes us do. I can tell you it has little to do with patient care.

All Im saying is the grass isn't always greener.

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Specializes in Psychiatric and Mental Health NP (PMHNP).
55 minutes ago, TriciaJ said:

I have thoroughly enjoyed being a nurse but that doesn't mean it didn't take it out of me. Even though I loved my work, it was still crappy to work shifts, holidays, weekends, mandatory overtime and not get breaks. I went to school back in the stone age, when tuition was a lot less so I didn't have hideous debt. And I wasn't a single parent.

I think the OP needs to understand just what she's letting herself in for, if she decides to pursue this path, vs waiting until her children are older. Loving our profession doesn't mean blowing smoke up anyone's skirt. It's easier to make the right decision when you know up front the good, the bad and the ugly.

I know RNs who recently worked their way through nursing school and have zero debt. It is still possible to do so.

Yes, it is important to be realistic, but also means acknowledging that nursing can be a great career, even it if is not for everyone.

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