I am a new RN in a bridge program to become an ACNP. I am a part-time student, and seeking part-time employment as an RN in a hospital setting- preferably in critical or emergency care. As you already know, finding part time employment as a new RN in a hospital setting is very challenging!
I really want to get my foot in the door, but my applications are being immediately rejected by the recruitment teams due to the combination of being a new nurse + needing part time employment around my school schedule.
I am thinking my best shot is to become a nurse extern to get oriented, and get some support from the nurses on the unit for becoming a part-time RN.
Does anyone have any experience or thoughts on this?
Thanks in advance for anyone who takes the time to respond. You guys are the best.
I am becoming more reluctant to accept a NP as my own provider once my own sage NP retires soon.
The whole prospect behind a NP as a provider was that sharp seasoned RNs with additional education could reasonably diagnose and prescribe. Knowingthat both that step or Med school is now allowed to be skipped on the path to becoming a provider is very unsettling. The standards are not good enough.
It very much is a thing now and no offense to the OP but I am completely against it. One of my classmates went straight to NP school after we graduated from our BSN program. It wasn't a for profit school, either but rather a well respected state university. If NPs are going to be taken seriously as knowledgeable clinicians, they need to have strong clinical experience as an RN first.
In fact a couple of years ago I heard directly from a faculty member of a well known, highly respected brick and mortar school in the Baltimore area that their goal was nothing more than retention. They found if students were not pushed to remain in school from undergrad through graduate programs the school risks tuition loss. There will be a percentage who don't return to school and a percentage who decide to go to another school if they do return for graduate studies and apparently the school wasn't in favor of taking a hit to their bottom line. The latter was probably as much of a concern as the former for this particular institution with tuition rates as high as its lofty self image although worth noting their rate of pay for all levels of nurses is historically awful. Years ago as a RN I made about $10 an hour more than they paid RNs with comparable experience and now I literally make double what they pay their NPs. Gotta love a good pedigree thought, right? rofl
I am becoming more reluctant to accept a NP as my own provider once my own sage NP retires soon.
The whole prospect behind a NP as a provider was that sharp seasoned RNs with additional education could reasonably diagnose and prescribe. Knowingthat both that step or Med school is now allowed to be skipped on the path to becoming a provider is very unsettling. The standards are not good enough.
...What about the medical school students who never worked before becoming physicians?
RN experience is valuable to have, but it is not guarantee that a NP with RN experience is better than one without it.
Though, don't get me wrong -
If the OP has the time get experience, then she should. Though, she should be careful as to where she works, and not pick a place that could put her license at risk.
...What about the medical school students that never worked before becoming physicians?
Do you have any idea how many hours of residency and fellowships MDs have before they graduate and are cut loose? How about NPs? I'm not being snarky just asking. Its a huge difference.
Specializes in Med Surg/ICU/Psych/Emergency/CEN/retired.
I find it quite alarming that new grad RNs are accepted into NP programs with no experience. That is not true everywhere, but I do see a trend, and I believe it is often financially driven, as a previous poster stated. The university where I received my MS used to receive more 80% funding form the state. Not it is 4%. (My program does not accept new grads for most of their programs without experience.) It is alarming to me that BSN students are not getting the preparation they need to begin practice. So hospitals have to pay for new grad residencies, an excellent solution but expensive. So it's all about money...sigh.
The comparison to physicians needs some clarification. Physicians who receive their MD all do at least an internship, which is required. Everyone (most) else does a residency, and also doing a Fellowship after years of residency is the norm today. I interpret this as physicians seeing that they need more education, not less. Why nursing has not followed suit is troubling to me. Nursing is its own worst enemy.
I frequently see posts here asking how to get into nursing school and receive an RN the easiest, quickest and cheapest way. How did some of these attitudes get promoted?
Do you have any idea how many hours of residency and fellowships MDs have before they graduate and are cut loose? How about NPs? I'm not being snarky just asking. Its a huge difference.
It depends on the school. There are medical students that do more clinical hours than NP students, and vice versa. Plus, NPs can not just work solo once they graduate. They, too, have to work under a physician for a certain number of years for a certain number of hours - in some states, this is for life.
At the end of the day, clinical experience (i.e. work done under someone else's license) =/= real world experience.
So, let's say that a medical school student done, say, 1000 hours more than a NP student...Does that mean that the medical school student is better prepared to handle patients than the NP student?
...What about the medical school students who never worked before becoming physicians?
RN experience is valuable to have, but it is not guarantee that a NP with RN experience is better than one without it.
Though, don't get me wrong -
If the OP has the time get experience, then she should. Though, she should be careful as to where she works, and not pick a place that could put her license at risk.
Dtwriter- can you expand on the part about being careful where I work so as not to put my license at risk? Thanks
Specializes in Med Surg/ICU/Psych/Emergency/CEN/retired.
It depends on the school. There are medical students that do more clinical hours than NP students, and vice versa. Plus, NPs can not just work solo once they graduate. They, too, have to work under a physician for a certain number of years for a certain number of hours - in some states, this is for life.
At the end of the day, clinical experience (i.e. work done under someone else's license) =/= real world experience.
So, let's say that a medical school student done, say, 1000 hours more than a NP student...Does that mean that the medical school student is better prepared to handle patients than the NP student?
Plus, NPs can not just work solo once they graduate. They, too, have to work under a physician for a certain number of years for a certain number of hours - in some states, this is for life.
This is not true everywhere. NPs who have graduated and passed their Boards can practice independently in some places. I know some states have different requirements. Physician and nursing education is (are?) apples and oranges.
OP, the beef with pushing inexperienced RNs through NP school isn't that you won't "respect" nurses, it's that you've never really been a nurse. An advanced practice nurse should not have to consult with ASN/BSN RNs to figure out how to do things.
You're only willing to work part-time for a maximum of two years because your degree is more important than actual nursing right now. I was JUST getting comfortable as a nurse after two years acute care experience - and that was after a year of LTC/SAR. You will find a very difficult time obtaining good part-time work as a new grad with your eyes on another prize. Part-time work mean fewer hours learning and growing and more hours with that knowledge fading into the background.
Libby1987
3,726 Posts
These threads hurt my head.
I am becoming more reluctant to accept a NP as my own provider once my own sage NP retires soon.
The whole prospect behind a NP as a provider was that sharp seasoned RNs with additional education could reasonably diagnose and prescribe. Knowingthat both that step or Med school is now allowed to be skipped on the path to becoming a provider is very unsettling. The standards are not good enough.