M.P.A. or any Master Degree in other area of study

[stepaukob]

I am trying to figure out whether a Masters Degree in another field will help me to move when I decide to look for another job outside of the "floors". I like what I'm doing now but want to have more options later in life.

There is a school near where I live that's small, friendly, and inexpensive and offers a Masters Degree in Public Administration (M.P.A.).

And if I were to go that way, would I be able to pick up a Post-Masters certificate in nursing later or would that limit my options there? Any help would be appreciated.

[llg, PhD, RN]

A lot depends on what you really want to be when you grow up and how you want to market yourself. If you want to market yourself as an expert nurse for advanced practice nursing roles, then getting your Master's in Nursing is the preferred degree. However, if you want to market yourself as a solid, experienced nurse at the staff nurse level who has additional education in another field, then getting that Master's in another field makes sense.

Most advanced practice nurses will be hesitant to accept you as an "expert nurse" properly prepared for advanced "nursing" positions unless you have an advanced education in nursing. As long as you highest education in nursing is a BSN, there will always be something missing IF you try to market yourself as an expert nurse prepared for an advanced nursing role in which nursing expertise is the key factor.

However ... if you are more interested in roles that rely on a knowledge base outside of nursing, then getting your degree in that other field makes a lot of sense. For example, some nurses get 2nd degrees in business or administration or informatics or couseling or adult education etc.

There is no one right answer for everyone. It really depends on what direction you would like your career to take.

[elkpark]

I doubt that you would be able to complete a post-Master's certificate in an advanced practice nursing specialty, as the post-Master's certificate programs are designed for people who already have an MS in nursing and are looking to change (or add) specialties -- the certificate program curricula assume that you have already taken the "core" MSN courses, which you would not have done (if you take the MPA), and include only the specialty courses for the "new" specialty or concentration.

However, as llg notes, there are many paths within nursing, and different paths are right for different people. If you put the time and effort into it, you can figure out which is the best path for you. Best wishes --

[stepaukob]

Thanks for the input, it's really hard to figure out where I want to be 10 years from now. As mentioned, I like direct patient care but since I am 42 y/o I don't want to be figuring this out too late in life. Maybe an MSN would be most beneficial in the long run............but who knows.