Is it realistic to work full time and attend ADN school?

Nursing Students Male Students

Published

I am very happy to be accepted to my schools ADN program. It is competitive and I worked hard to get in.

My problem is, I also have a full time job which provides me with health benefits. I am young but it is still important to me to be medically covered.

My program is a hybrid 2-day per week. One day is classroom and one day is a 12 hour clinical.

I want to be in a position where I can really learn, not just cram for tests. I feel like working full time makes me manage my acedemic time unwisely, leading to cramming.

My job will give me off the two days I need, but cannot promise me any extra days off, 4x10 shifts, 32 hours a week, or anything like that which would allow me to stay fulltime but have more personal/study time.

1. Is it realistic to work 5 days a week while in a hybrid nursing program?

2. Are there any other opportunities for health insurance if I need to drop full time? This is Florida/USA. I'm assuming I could go on the ACA marketplace and get something subsidized but I've heard the plans are expensive and high deductable. (This is only hearsay, please correct if i'm wrong)

Thanks

Up Vote Up Vote ×

I worked full time while going through my ADN program. So..it is feasible. But let me make it very clear that it was NOT easy at all. In fact, those 2 years were probably the most difficult of my life (so far). You have to be willing to make nursing school your top priority and that is not always an easy thing to do, especially while trying to juggle a full time job (let alone a family, significant other, etc).

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Critical Care, Education.

Most schools have some type of group health insurance for students - usually not the best, but it is an option.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation.

Full time is doable, but don't expect your nursing program class or clinical schedules to cater to your work and definitely EXPECT to get a clinical schedule that you do not and cannot do because of work and hope that your work is willing to work around this.

As for health insurance, that is a really good question. I don't recall my ADN program offering health insurance unfortunately. I did have several classmates that did not have health insurance at that time and did everything out of pocket (such as drug screenings, physical check-ups, etc). Fortunately none of them got really sick during school.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in ICU, Military.
Most schools have some type of group health insurance for students - usually not the best, but it is an option.

I agree with the above. If the only reason you are wanting to continue working full time is for health insurance (financially stable otherwise), you look into your school's student insurance. Most all offer it now, and should meet the obamacare requirement for having health coverage. If you can afford to go part-time i'd recommend it. I didnt do an ADN Program, but I did do an Accelerated BSN program and it was ALOT of work studying, being up at 4am to drive an hour to clinicals and not getting home til 2000, etc. Plenty of dedicated folks make it through nursing school working full time, however so i'm sure you can do it too if you put your mind to it :)

Up Vote Up Vote ×

I went to a night program, so most of the students were older. There were plenty of students who had careers (not just a "job") as well as a spouse and children. Most already had bachelors degrees and probably a third or more had graduate degrees. These folks were smart and dedicated.

In my first semester, nearly everyone was employed full time. In my second semester, most dropped to part-time. By the third semester, most had quit and devoted themselves to school. Can it be done? Yup. I kept my full time job (not career, and it was somewhat more flexible than most) throughout my ADN program. It's just extremely hard to keep up that pace for that long. There's no time to rest; you are always in go mode.

Theres no no obligation to buy from the ACA marketplace if you go and check it out. Without a job, you might qualify for pretty cheap health care. However, I'm not sure if you'd be able to actually afford to use that insurance (due to deductibles).

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in GENERAL.

Lots of things come with risk. But the risk should not outway the payout.

So the conventional wisdom is that you might consider cutting back on work and see how it goes. Or you might not. It depends on your stress tolerance.

As far as health insuance is concerned, if you are healthy a high deductable plan is doable.Again your playing the odds but so are most students or people for that matter.

You might be surprised to know how many working nurses have high deductable plans through their work venues. So much for the myth that nurse=hospital=equals great afforfable health plan.

But not to worry. The commander in hair promises to dismantle Obama care and replace it something so much better.

By the way, who offers this "hybrid" program?

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Emergency Department.

I worked full-time and went to school full-time. It was far from easy though my work did allow me to study there IF it didn't impact my work duties at all. Also, quite fortunately, my work schedule worked generally well with my school schedule with the exception of 1 semester (that I ended up doing twice) where I had to arrange for a schedule swap to make it work. Those 6 weeks were HORRIBLE (twice). If it wasn't for the schedules meshing so well, I wouldn't have been able to get through school at all. Sure, I had some support for supplies/books (tuition was waived thankfully) but that was it. I had to work, so I did.

Just don't ever expect school to be flexible at all. They usually have some very set clinical days that they must adhere to so that "collisions" between program clinical schedules do not occur. Generally only one set of students is allowed on a given floor at a time when doing patient care. Be prepared to push for a schedule change (even if temporary) with work so that you can get through your program.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

My program was very similar.i had class Monday Tuesday and Wednesday. Sometimes on Thursday. I had to work full time. 2x12hr and a double. All on Fri sat and Sun. I needed insurance for myself and wife who was in school also. I was the hardest thing I have ever done, but I got through it. I had to spend breaks studying. I studied on the toilet, in bed, while helping cook dinner. I never went out to do anything. But hey, I got through it. you can too. Its only 2 years.....lol

You could also not work, take out a bunch of loans to live off of and get state insurance while in school. You could talk to your school or contact your local HHR to see if you qualify. I had a friend that had to do that. She felt bad for taking government handouts, but her life was 10x easier. She just has a crazy amount of debt.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

I'm finishing up an evening nursing program. Nearly everyone in my class works full time. Just to let you know we started with 29 and we'll probably end with 12, so lots of people didn't make it. But it can be done.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Psychiatrist.

Anything is possible. I completed my BSN program while working full time as LVN and home health assignments.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Emergency Room, CEN, TCRN.

I'm working 3-4 nights a week as a psych tech in a VA residential unit. Most nights things are pretty quiet so I get time to study -- in fact, it's a more conducive environment than trying to study at home with my kids running around.

Suppose it depends on the hours of your program and what job you are doing.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Add a Comment