NP Career Questions

meanmaryjean, DNP, RN · Oct 12, 2017

Wow- you are asking a LOT. To expect someone here (who may or may not be a nurse) to write the complete answers to the extreme number of questions you've posted is not realistic.

Why not talk to an NP in person over coffee? Why not use the SEARCH feature (upper right hand corner of the page) and look for some of the answers yourself?

CareerSwitch1 · Oct 13, 2017

Hi Meanmaryjean,

The questions are more of just prompts/probes. Any amount of information, regardless of if all the questions are answered, would be appreciated :)

Thanks for these suggestions. I have been reaching out to personal contacts who work in nursing, as well as asking DNP program coordinators to put me in touch with current and former DNP students. I am also applying to a nursing volunteer/shadowing program at a large hospital in my area.

Trauma Columnist · Oct 13, 2017

I'll try to help you: I'm a nephrology APRN (11+ years now) and have been a nurse for 25 years total)

Day-to-day work:

How do you spend a typical day/week? Seeing pts in dialysis units

What hours do you normally work? 50-60

Do you spend most of your time at your desk, sitting, standing, walking? Standing/walking

What kinds of problems do you deal with? HTN, DM, ESRD

What kinds of decisions do you make? Unsure what you mean about this ?

What are the positive/negative aspects of working as a NP? Positives: autonomy, ability to make a difference, pay, benefits. Negatives: extreme responsibility

Do you feel that patients and other medical staff respect NPs? Yes

If you could do it all over again, would you choose the same path for yourself? If not, what would you change? Would go for FNP/ACNP combined with MBA

Future of the career:

What career paths are generally available? Multiple paths

How is the current demand? High

What trends and developments do you see affecting career opportunities? Insurance reimbursement, independent practice

Shadowing and â€‹graduate programs:

What is the best way to find a shadowing or volunteer opportunity? Because of privacy laws doubt you could shadow (our practice doesn't allow it), Volunteer at hospital?

What is your opinion on graduate entry NP programs (i.e., programs for individuals with a bachelor's degree in a non-nursing discipline)? They are fine as long as the student understands there is a huge learning curve

Do you think it's important to work as an RN before gâ€‹oing for a DNP? If so, can you find work with an AS degree, or is a BSN necessary? I think its important to work as an RN first but many people disagree with me. DNP is worthless IMHO unless you want to teach.

â€‹Can you start as a Family NP and then add certifications to specialize? I'm interested in women's health and mental health, but I want to keep my options openâ€‹. You sure can but be prepared to complete 500+ clinical hours when you "add" certs

twozer0, NP · Oct 13, 2017

I want to start out by saying this is a big career move and I want to point out some of the little things that often go overlooked. I assume you have no nursing degree or healthcare background as you state marketing and educational research? Now I am not trying to dissuade you from choosing NP as a career path but only mention the thought process I would go through if I were in your shoes.

1. Is this the right decision for me? This is a big change. I know big changes can happen but when thinking of this keep in mind the practicality and the proposed benefits of what this type of change would bring. Think of the cost and time it would take to get you to where you think you want to be. Is it worth that to you? Do an opportunity cost with this. Perhaps there is something related to your field that is better suited to your talents? By no means am I discouraging you, just offering some practical questions. If you do decide to go past this, think of the following.

2. How long will this degree take? With no health background the road to NP would be 5-6 years of full time school if you go straight through (which I don't recommend as you should get at minimum a few years of experience as a nurse). Given your circumstance (if it is true) it would be much easier to take classes for PA and enter into a PA program that it would be to run the nursing gamut.

3. Cost. Do you still owe loans on your current degree? If so, how long have paid on them and when do you feel you will likely pay them off? Going the full way to NP I would assume on the cheap end would cost upwards of 60k (and this is a conservative figure). Add that to your current loan pile if you still have them.

4. Can you afford school? As in, will you be able to go to school full time and still make ends meet? What are your outlying debts such as a mortgage, car payment, etc.? They still need paid even if you are in school so is there a means to pay for them while you go? I would advise against taking out loans of live off of as the amount you are likely to borrow will not typically equal out to your starting salary.

A lot of these things are often overshadowed by the end result of which we learn to find out that the journey is just as important as the goal. Best of luck on whatever you decide.

jeanbeth, MSN, DNP, RN · Oct 14, 2017

"DNP is worthless IMHO unless you want to teach." Define worthless. It's certainly worth it to me, and has been a valuable educational and collaborative experience. Maybe you mean $$, not my end goal, although the job postings here lead me to believe I'll recoup my tuition pretty quickly.

Trauma Columnist · Oct 14, 2017

"DNP is worthless IMHO unless you want to teach." Define worthless. It's certainly worth it to me, and has been a valuable educational and collaborative experience. Maybe you mean $$, not my end goal, although the job postings here lead me to believe I'll recoup my tuition pretty quickly.

I qualified this statement with this is my opinion and I stand behind it - DNP is worthless to ME as it would not provide me with any additional clinical expertise

CareerSwitch1 · Oct 15, 2017

Hi traumaRUs,

Thanks so much for all this info! You said if you could do it over again, you would go for FNP/ACNP combined with MBA. What's the reasoning behind this? So you could open your own private practice?

Are 50-60 hour work weeks the norm? I've read other posts on this forum about NP work hours and they seem to vary a lot, with some people working 60 hours/wk and some working 36 hours/wk.

CareerSwitch1 · Oct 15, 2017

I want to start out by saying this is a big career move and I want to point out some of the little things that often go overlooked. I assume you have no nursing degree or healthcare background as you state marketing and educational research? Now I am not trying to dissuade you from choosing NP as a career path but only mention the thought process I would go through if I were in your shoes.

Thanks â€“ these are all very important things to consider. I'm still in the exploratory stages â€“ trying to gather as much information as I can about the career. I think seeing the day-to-day work through volunteering/shadowing will be the most useful in determining if this is a career I see myself enjoying and really wanting to pursue. I have considered other careers more aligned with my education and work experience, but it seems like the jobs I am qualified to do involves sitting at a desk all day staring at a computer screen

As you mention, cost is a big consideration. I haven't done much research into loan repayment programs yet, but it looks like there are a few options available. Is this a common route?

twozer0, NP · Oct 19, 2017

Thanks â€“ these are all very important things to consider. I'm still in the exploratory stages â€“ trying to gather as much information as I can about the career. I think seeing the day-to-day work through volunteering/shadowing will be the most useful in determining if this is a career I see myself enjoying and really wanting to pursue. I have considered other careers more aligned with my education and work experience, but it seems like the jobs I am qualified to do involves sitting at a desk all day staring at a computer screen
As you mention, cost is a big consideration. I haven't done much research into loan repayment programs yet, but it looks like there are a few options available. Is this a common route?

There are options for loan repayment like the nurse corps but I cannot offer much information about them. Have you done any research on bedside nursing? Its a good starting point before wanting to make the jump and responsibility to practitioner. Nursing would be more hands on and less office type setting (if you do hospital). Its were most of use decided to take the next step. Have you looked into the military for health care careers?

Trauma Columnist · Oct 20, 2017

Hi traumaRUs,
Thanks so much for all this info! You said if you could do it over again, you would go for FNP/ACNP combined with MBA. What's the reasoning behind this? So you could open your own private practice?
Are 50-60 hour work weeks the norm? I've read other posts on this forum about NP work hours and they seem to vary a lot, with some people working 60 hours/wk and some working 36 hours/wk.

My reasoning for FNP/ACNP is that I would have both acute and primary care clinicals - I would be more employable. The MBA because, lets face it, healthcare is a business and we, as APNs need to know the score.

Malenurse12345 · Oct 24, 2017

Not all NP programs are created equal. Do some throughout research on available programs. Compare and contrast, and pick the one you think is most rigorous. I am in a DNP program at a major state university, and I would call it a NP mill. Meaning you pay, you pass. Teachers refuse to lecture. You pay for a reading list. Sometimes they make the publishers ppt slides available. Without lectures the vast amout of text is meaningless. I would think a non-online NP school would be a little higher quality because teachers have to show up and lecture.

I have read alot of concerns about direct entry NP programs, which is what you are looking for. I am not sure if the concern is the nurses lack rn experence or the quality of instruction. I can say the very limited research on the role of prior rn experence is not conclusive, but tends to support less rn experence is prefered. However, it is possible individuals with less rn experence are younger and thus have less things competing for study time, need to work (morgage/car payment), family, children spouse etc. Another possability is less experenced RNs more recently graduated and thus require less time to reestablish successful study habits.

You can add multiple certifications (FNP ACGNP/PMHNP) if you want, but you are spreading your focus, which will limit how in depth your understanding of each foci will be. Generally, CRNA and PMHNP pay the best, but you need ICU RN experence to be a CRNA. I would recommend picking one and give it a year or two. If you hate it and have tried a few employers, go back for another certification.

DNP will not make you a better practitioner. It trains you to do quality improvements. Dont believe the hype. If doing that is interesting to you, get the DNP. Dont expect to be called Dr. So-n-so in the majority of healthcare envirements. There are a few exceptions, but usually not.

If I were to start again, Id get my MSN and then get a PhD afterwards. But that is only because I wish to do research.