New, Young and dont know where to start!

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hi everyone..i am new on this site and have never posted before. i am 20 years old and wanting to begin my nursing career. it's something i've always wanted to do, that and ultrasound (i've been torn recently) i was informed once at the er (daughter had pneumonia) that i could go for my rn and then get a certificate in ultrasound to make myself more marketable and also expect higher pay.

however, that certificate in ultrasound is the least of my worries because i dont even know where to start!!!!

i have no idea what kind of school to go to (jc, university, trade school) i have no clue how long it takes (2-3 years for the associates ? 3-4 for bachelors) i dont know if you have to have an associates or bachelors to sit for the registration to become a rn...

i'm a single mother and my daughter is 15 months old. already, i know it will be difficult for me but i want to provide the best life i can for her. nusing is something i feel is within me, it's a part of who i am to help and take of people and to have a job that i love and pays well would make me ecstatic and in turn, help me be the best possible mother i can be.

right now i am working full-time as a recpetionist, abosultely nothing to do with healthcare. although i dont necessarily mind my job, i know it is not what i want and nursing continues to tug at me.

i have no friends or famiy in this field and am stuck on where to start. i am so young and want to begin my journey now, why not? i feel that currently all i'm doing is wasting my time sitting in neutral.

i live in southern california and because of my job and status (single mom) i dont really think there is a logical way for me to expect to go to school full-time and continue to work full-time. i cannot afford to work-part time and live on my own, it wont happen. i am considering moving out of state to go to school and return when i am done as i am a cali girl and love it here. i think that perhaps moving may give me a better chance (financially) to go to school and still provide a life for myself and my daughter as i dont have much help in the financial department. i'm most worried about how that will work out.

if anyone can give me any advice or help guide me, i would really appreciate that. my e-mail is *****

thank you all so much!!

janel:d

please note email address shouldn't be in main body of post.

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Hello Janel and welcome to allnurses.com forum!

You come to the right place where everybody helps one another by sharing our resources and knowledge.

If you are really interested to become a nurse this website is a good place to start getting basic information on this highly rewarding profession. Click here to follow the link : http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos083.htm

Wish you all the best and don't forget to comeback here to let us know your plan.

Take care and regards to your daughter

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Hi Janel : )

Well to start you off with some information about nursing school I will tell you that it is doable with children and working...you CAN get through it, especially if you have a genuine love for it!

Also, you can sit for the boards with EITHER an associates degree OR bachelors degree...both degrees quailify you for the same exact test and your RN license. So, what I would do is see which option is more in your favor financially (which schools are more affordable for you).

It sounds like you know where your heart is. I hope everything works out for you.

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Specializes in Case Management.

If you are a resident of California, don't you get free tuition or whatever? I think that you should stay right where you are and go to school there. It would make the most sense.

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
If you are a resident of California, don't you get free tuition or whatever?
This is totally inaccurate. I lived in California from birth up until November 2005 and attended California schools, so I know whereof I speak.

California residents pay in-state resident tuition fees for their classes, which are cheaper than the non-resident fees.

To Janel: register at your local community college and start taking general education classes. Take classes such as psychology, growth & development, English 101, algebra, anatomy & physiology, chemistry, and microbiology. Try to maintain an 'A'-grade point average (4.0) on these classes, because nursing schools closely look at your grade point average when making the decision to admit you. Good luck.

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Specializes in Adult Critical Care.

HI Janel!

First of all let me say it is admirable of you to be focused on your and your daughter's future at a young age! And yes...you can do nursing school!!! I am faculty at a diploma program with a collaboration with a major university for our student to get their BSN therafter, (22 months for the Diploma, and another 26 credits for the BSN). If available to you, perhaps seek out a diploma program, and YES you can also sit for the boards....(The path I also took, and now have 2 Master's degrees, a certification in :redpinkhe Critical Care, and am now a ceritfied legal nurse consultant, in addition to my faculty position...all also done as a single mother.) :typing

The best advice I can give you is to rely on friends and family (and us here!) for support to get you through. Your daughter will be marveled at the mentor you will become for her in the future!:flowersfo

Keep in touch and let us know how you are!!

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Hi Yannie!

Good luck to you with your plans ! Your daughter has a terrific

Mom!

Here is a website that may be helpful for you-

http://www.discovernursing.com/

Check with your State Board-some States have offered tuition

assistance in exchange for working in that State for a specific

amount of time.

Check with some of the Nursing schools in your area to see what is

available for student loans and scholarships...

Best Wishes!

Jahra

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hi everyone and thanks for your help/advice.

here in california most of the community colleges offer rn programs without having to take general ed first. although some require certain math/science classes most actually will enroll you with an orientation required and they are on a first come-first serve basis. some ask you take a certain entrance type of exam and if you pass, it sort of overrides the need for other general ed courses.

as for tuition, no it isnt free. i qualify for financial aid and loans and i suppose i qualify for more $ or extra terms because of my daughter but overall, it is not free 100%.

thank you for answering my questions, especially on what degree i could sit for my registration with, as i wasnt sure and heard on several different websites that you had to have a bachelors now to even qualify for a rn position. i was shocked because i always thought rn started with an associates. i am not sure on one thing though:

for those who have done either, would it be more practical to start off as a cna and work and then go to school part-time and take the extra year or two of schooling or just suck it up and go striaght through for the rn? i guess it all depends on my situation...

also, for those who are single parents and worked and went to school...please tell me how you did it because it seems i've weighed every option and it doesnt seem realistic. i cant not work (although my mom thinks i can just live off student loans for 2 years ? i dont know if youre allowed to do that) but it seems going to school part-time would put me in there for 3-4 years! when it should only take 2...or just going to school full-time and being sort of broke for a while but know that it will all pay off shortly?

go to school part-time and work part-time? where does my daughter go during the night if i have to work? (currently she goes to kindercare in the day while i work) but at night i've got nobody to watch her....

please tell me how you did it. i dont have help from family, financially or otherwise. my mom; but she suffered a brain anuerysm a few years ago so her help is limited to supervised play-time and short alone visits...i'm worried about her ability to care for her during the night (not hearing her, dropping her or hurting herself!) also, she's gone through so much and i dont think this is something she should take on. my mom works and drives and functions rather normal (she had to have her anuerysm coiled off and then required brain surgery to place a shunt, so we almost lost her twice as she suffered the worrisome vasal spasm after the initial surgery) but my moms memory isnt so well, her balance isnt too good and her sense of rational thinking seems to have deteriorated.

thats pretty much the only person who could help but to a certain extent, so other than her ocassional babysitting moments, i'm alone.

please feel free to e-mail me *****or im me on yahoo: yannie018 *****or on msn...my screen name is janel but i'm sure if you need an e-mail also?

try *****i believe the hotmail one is the correct one actually.

again, thank you so much!!!!

~~janel~~

please note email address shouldn't be in body of thext.

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