I am hoping for a little advice as I am new to nursing.
I have a Bachelor's degree in art, and little surprise, I can't find work. I am hoping to get into nursing because it interests me and I know there is great demand for it.
I would like to avoid going back to school for 3 or more years and would like to start working sooner rather than later.
It doesn't look like Nurse Assistants do so well financially, so I'm looking at LPN programs. Is this the best way to go for someone who wants to earn a decent wage without going back to school for as long as the 2-3 year RN programs?
Also, does anyone know of an LPN program in the Twin Cities (Minneapolis/ St Paul) that offers a 1 or 1.5 year program? I am moving in a year and a half and would like to finish classes before that.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR ADVICE, I AM A LITTLE OVERWHELMED!
I keep hearing the demand for nurses is at an all time high, hospitals have to turn people away due to lack of nurses, the baby boomers entering their retirement and needing health care over the next few decades, so you all are telling me that this is false? Perhaps hospitals/ doctor's offices don't have the means to support a full nursing staff?
Sorry to those of you who may feel I'm only interested in it b/c it's in demand. I don't know how to go about learning about different health-care professions because recruiters at schools just tell you what you want to hear, and the internet is full of false info. I really do want to do something philanthropic but at the same time earn a salary that I can support a family on. If anyone has advice on how to go about finding which job is a good fit, please let me know, I'd really appreciate the advice.
I think it's a stretch to say that hospitals are turning people away due to the lack of nurses. If they are lacking nurses it's because they've instituted a hiring freeze not because there are no nurses applying. It is true that baby boomer nurses are expected to be retiring in large numbers in the next 10 years. The average age of nuses is 47.
Personally, I don't think your motives are wrong. I never had a burning desire to wipe butts a draw blood. Back in the 70s there were limited jobs open to women which could support a family.For a poor kid in south Alabama, nursing, teaching, and secretary was pretty much it, unless you had a rich daddy who could get you into law school or medical school. I couldn't type or do shorthand(that tells you how old I am!) and I didn't want to be in a classroom, so nursing was the only reasonable option. I went into nursing because I knew I'd have job security and a decent salary. Fortunately, I also fell in love with about a year into nursing school.
All I can say is, try it. And if you don't like being a nurse, well, you move on to something else. Education is never wasted.
Have you looked into Art Therapy? I went on indeed.com (did not plug in a city) but I found Art Therapists are employed at LTC facilities and children's hospitals. Good luck on whatever you decide!
Have you looked into Art Therapy? I went on indeed.com (did not plug in a city) but I found Art Therapists are employed at LTC facilities and children's hospitals. Good luck on whatever you decide!
Art therapists are also frequently employed in psychiatric facilities/programs, also. I've worked with a number of great art therapists over the years (my specialty is psych), and they've really enjoyed their jobs/careers (more so than most of the nurses I know enjoy being nurses :)).
Julie- Your comment of "I understand the theory that if CNA stuff is ok with you, you'll probably be ok to move on, but I don't think anyone should give up if they hate being a CNA. My best friend and I both HATED it, and we're both very happy nurses now," made me smile. that was one of the reasons I took so long to decide to go to school and become an RN. Many years ago, I was offered a stint in a nursing home in TX, with free training as a CNA. My very first day, I was horrified (I was quite young and naive). I thought it would be romantic music in the background while I ran around saving those poor old people from boredom and loneliness. The reality of an old woman hissing and spitting, as well as lunging and attacking me, while we tried to pick her up and treat bed sores was not exactly what I had envisioned. Plus, I had absolutely no idea how strong those "old people" could be! Now that I've spent many years experiencing more and worse of that scenario, I can confront those images, as well as situations and have much more faith in my ability and more realistic expectations! Just made me chuckle remembering that day and what I had thought, etc.....
OK so I'm seeing that it's worth the extra time to get an RN degree than LPN.
I can't enter a 2 year program however if I'm hearing that the field is in a hiring freeze nationwide. Should I go ahead and start the program and hope the economy will be better in 2 years and I can get a job, or should I look at other options, such as massage therapy or Physical Therapy Assistant or Operations tech
OK so I'm seeing that it's worth the extra time to get an RN degree than LPN.
I can't enter a 2 year program however if I'm hearing that the field is in a hiring freeze nationwide. Should I go ahead and start the program and hope the economy will be better in 2 years and I can get a job, or should I look at other options, such as massage therapy or Physical Therapy Assistant or Operations tech
That's up to you. The economy is recovering and I believe that hospitals will start hiring again. It's a cycle that has happened before. When I graduated in 1977 the economy was awful. Mortgage rates were 15-18%~And it was HARD to get a job because so many men had lost their positions, forcing their nurse-wives back into the workforce. Anybody who had a job fought tooth & nail to keep it. Just like today.
Incidently, there *are* places that are hiring if you're willing to move to another part of the country.
I do agree that there is still a high demand for RNs. Here in St Louis, there a hundreds of job openings. Alot of people here prefer BSNs. I work at one of the largest hospitals in the area and currently at the moment they are looking for about 80 new RNs. I just think different parts of the country are demanding and others are not. It all depends were you are at. I do not agree with LPN demands though. Alot of hospitals are cutting LPNs out. There are alot of accellerated RN programs that only require a bachelors degree in anything an then you can do a 1 yr RN program
If you think RN is the direction you want to go...
University of Colorado Denver offers an Accelerated BSN program that appears to be 5 semesters long, going year-round. If you have a good gpa from your BA and can complete the necessary pre-reqs before you move out there, you could ideally be working with your BSN in 3, maybe 4 years. Chances are the economy will have recovered by then and jobs for new grads will be easier to come by.
I don't know if you'd like nursing if you have an artistic temperament. It's not at all creative.
If I had to do it over I would have gone to plumbing school. Seriously. I like working with my hands and I like jobs that have a beginning, a middle and an end. And you don't get rich working for someone else. A vocational training could allow you to open your own business and be your own boss.
I've been trying to talk my daughter (now getting a generic business degree with mediocre grades - let's see where that gets her) into going into plumbing school with me. Then we could open our own female owned business and cater to women who are intimidated by big burly guys. I've even named my imaginary company - "Two Chicks Who Fix Drips" - isn't that great?
If I had to do it over I would have gone to plumbing school. Seriously. I like working with my hands and I like jobs that have a beginning, a middle and an end. And you don't get rich working for someone else. A vocational training could allow you to open your own business and be your own boss.
I've been trying to talk my daughter (now getting a generic business degree with mediocre grades - let's see where that gets her) into going into plumbing school with me. Then we could open our own female owned business and cater to women who are intimidated by big burly guys. I've even named my imaginary company - "Two Chicks Who Fix Drips" - isn't that great?
Actually, I think that's a great idea! I would totally hire an all-female work team to work in my house when my hubby's not home. There is a small company near me called Computer Chicks, run by two young women who do nothing but fix computers.
OK so I'm seeing that it's worth the extra time to get an RN degree than LPN.
I can't enter a 2 year program however if I'm hearing that the field is in a hiring freeze nationwide. Should I go ahead and start the program and hope the economy will be better in 2 years and I can get a job, or should I look at other options, such as massage therapy or Physical Therapy Assistant or Operations tech
I would strongly encourage you, given your background, to look into the requirements and job market for art therapy before you make a decision to go into nursing -- there are literally millions of RNs in the US, with thousands and thousands more being cranked out every year. Art therapists, on the other hand, are a limited and valuable commodity. It's a much neater, cleaner job, with lots of positions with no nights/weekends/holidays (although I can't guarantee no weekends or holidays, it's a pretty safe bet that you would never be asked to work night shift :)). In my experience, art therapists get treated much better (as respected professionals) than nurses do by employers. The art therapists I've known over the years have all been v. happy with their career choice and particular professional situation, which I certainly can't say for many of the RNs I've known.
Wow, there are a lot of discouraging posts on here!!!
First of all, congrats on your interest in nursing!! :yeah:I, too, have a BA in an unrelated field and decided during my last class of my undergrad career that I wanted to go into nursing. I just got accepted into my top choice school-- an RN certificate program with a 15 month accelerated option.
I understand that there are hiring freezes at many hospitals, but not all hospitals. I know a few nurses in my area and I have been told by each and every one of them that they are still hiring, though they may not be hiring as readily. Everyone has been hit in this economy and nursing no exception. However, the demand does remain with nursing (ie, sick people) so, in my opinion, your odds of job placement are still better with nursing than with many other careers.
That said, I really don't know much about hospital policies in hiring LPNs and you may been some higher level of training to get placement.
It might be a good idea to research whatever LPN programs are in your area and then see what LPN-RN bridge programs are like. If very few of the courses transfer to a higher degree, it might be in your best interest to skip the LPN and go right for an RN. For instance, it would have taken me an extra year of training to become an LPN before an RN because of the requirements for each program, near me.
I agree that you should look into accelerated (second degree) RN programs. Some of them are as short as 12 months! Also, look into master's entry options, which admit students with a non-nursing degree and and offer them 2-3 years of schooling with the outcome of an MS degree, so they're able to become APRN's. Also, just for the heck of it, you might want to look into physician's assistant programs and see which might suit your goals the best.
The CNA thing: take it or leave it. If you're sure you want to be a nurse and can find a higher paying job than working as a CNA, so be it. I, for one, cannot take the 50% paycut from being a bartender in order to obtain said experience, though I did take a CNA course and I do think it was a good experience.
mustlovepoodles, RN
1,041 Posts
I think it's a stretch to say that hospitals are turning people away due to the lack of nurses. If they are lacking nurses it's because they've instituted a hiring freeze not because there are no nurses applying. It is true that baby boomer nurses are expected to be retiring in large numbers in the next 10 years. The average age of nuses is 47.
Personally, I don't think your motives are wrong. I never had a burning desire to wipe butts a draw blood. Back in the 70s there were limited jobs open to women which could support a family.For a poor kid in south Alabama, nursing, teaching, and secretary was pretty much it, unless you had a rich daddy who could get you into law school or medical school. I couldn't type or do shorthand(that tells you how old I am!) and I didn't want to be in a classroom, so nursing was the only reasonable option. I went into nursing because I knew I'd have job security and a decent salary. Fortunately, I also fell in love with about a year into nursing school.
All I can say is, try it. And if you don't like being a nurse, well, you move on to something else. Education is never wasted.