to be a nurse or not to be a nurse

kjwarren · Mar 22, 2009

thirdtime- I thought that was what may have happened!

With this job, am doing what I went to school for, but of course it isn't the type of photography I would prefer. I am ok with that, but it's definitely no dream job. The biggest issue I have with it is that it is 100% commission and we have been horribly underbooked. For example, a couple of weeks ago I was scheduled for three days of work. The first day I made $75, the second I made $25, and the third I made $115. This is not a reliable source of income. I have student loans and bills to pay and I am making $215 a week? I can't live on that. Some weeks I work 5 days while the next I don't work at all.

The type of photography I do is also very boring, it's for church directories. We do get to be somewhat creative, but the people coming in to be photographed are usually only there for the free 8x10 we give them for showing up. Most of them don't even want to give me a chance to sell anything to them. Then when I do make a sale, I feel good for making money, and bad for the techniques I have been taught to make the sale. At the end of the day I feel like I am tricking people into spending their hard-earned money on things that they could get for much cheaper. But I do it anyway because I need to pay my bills.

I want to work in a job where I don't feel like I am swindling people just to make a decent day's pay. I want to come home from work and think, "hey, i had a positive impact on someone's day."

My biggest concern is going back to school only to come out and not be able to find a job. I have been reading everywhere about new grads not finding work. Nursing, or some form of it, does interest me quite a bit, but if there is no job market for anyone to get their foot in the door then why should I bother? Just because I might enjoy underwater-basket-weaving doesn't mean I should go to school for it. We all know there is no market for underwater-basket-weaving.

This is something I have thought about doing for a long time, and something I have wished I had given a chance. But if I am going to come out of nursing school and be rejected at every turn, then what's the point?

I don't want to spend the time and money on something that may not have a future, and to have wasted all that time and money.

thirdtime · Mar 23, 2009

Yeah, I agree that's not enough money to be making. You feel bad for the techniques you've been taught to make the sale? What, are you torturing people to buy stuff? If what you're selling is so easy, let them try to do it themselves. I actually found a little fulfillment in doing desktop publishing because I knew that I did a good job (on most of it), and a lot of people actually appreciated it; they knew I had spent time on it to make it look good.

Did you envision doing something in photography where you could feel like you were making a difference? I had a friend who graduated from the Art Institute (photography) only to feel like she couldn't get a job and promptly went back to school to specialize in photojournalism. Have you considered that route? Also... there are probably jobs with photography where you wouldn't feel like you had to con people to spend money, right? I don't want to dissuade you from nursing if you are really interested, but I'd hate for you to leave photography as a job if you love it. When I left desktop publishing and the world of computers, I didn't love it; I was hoping nursing would be my passion. You, on the other hand, have something that you say you really like. Life is much more enjoyable if you have a job where you do something you truly enjoy. Have you heard of that book, "Do What You Love, the Money Will Follow?"

As for the concerns about not finding a job in nursing... Practically speaking, it will take a minimum of three years to graduate from nursing school. Maybe I'm too optimistic, but perhaps the economy will be a little better by then. Have you looked at local hospital websites to see if they're hiring any new graduates at all? I initially had a little trouble finding a job because I didn't yet have my license, and some hospitals want you to have that certification first. Some places will hire you before you get it and call you a Nurse Extern. It's different in different states. New grads now might not have as many choices as a couple of years ago, and I'm sure many places have a hiring freeze, but it can't stay like that forever. (Can it?!)

kjwarren · Mar 23, 2009

The thing about this job is, the only fulfillment I get from it is when I do make a sale. The work is very dull. I don't want to learn to hate photography because of this job. If there are other jobs out there for photographers, they sure are hiding. And photojournalists have been suffering too. I've been hearing from some of the people I photograph about their relatives who have been losing their jobs in photojournalism because of the economy and the fact that newspapers are becoming extinct.

I have the same thought about the economy, I just fear that it might not get better.

When I graduated, I planned on doing graphic design work. Turn out though, the skills I need to find a job (for the few that are out there), I was not taught in school. 4 years of education and no use for the damn degree. I didn't really ever plan on doing photography because I knew it wasn't exactly a high-demand job.

I also considered doing something else in the medical realm if not nursing. I know there are a lot of options. I would probably even be happy doing something in administration, or radiology. I don't really know.

I suppose I should go and talk to the recruiters at the school I am looking at and see what they think would be a good fit for me.

At the end of the day, I probably would like something in administration more, but nursing isn't something that is out of the question. Do you think maybe I should steer myself more in that direction? Thanks again.

thirdtime · Mar 23, 2009

Hmm. I've thought about administration type stuff because there's less (if any) patient interaction. :) I don't know how to get into more "office" type work in nursing apart from having some experience at clinical (patient) nursing, then working up into administration. I'm sure there are people on this forum who can provide more info than I can. But do consider, will you feel fulfilled? You said you wanted to feel like you made a difference to people at the end of the day. I'm not sure if you'd feel that as much in administration. I guess case management may allow that, or possibly legal nursing, but I think with both of those you'd still have to have some experience in bedside-type nursing.

Also consider that you should enjoy the work you're doing - work becomes old pretty quickly if you're only in it to help others. I mean, it feels good to witness a difference you make in someone's life, but if that's *all* you get out of it, well, it's not enough. I found that I kind of enjoy being organized with my paperwork, and although I despise the amount we have to do (no computerized charting at our hospital - about 85% of my time is engaged in paperwork), I get a sense of accomplishment when I get it done. I think I should have been a secretary. Not to make this all about me (too late!), but I took a lot of personality tests and career exploration tests. One in particular - the Holland Codes - was helpful in categorizing my interests. Breaks job environments down into 6 categories: Realistic, Conventional, Social, Investigative, Enterprising, and Artistic. One of my categories that I leaned to was Conventional, which emphasizes "organizing, detail-oriented, clerical." Well, I thought to myself, "I'm not going to be a secretary." So I kind of ignored that information, although I knew I was detail-oriented... But now I see that it was right; I don't need to be a secretary, but those "conventional" aspects of the job are part of what I enjoy. I'd suggest looking into these career test things - you can look online at the Strong Interest Inventory, Holland Codes, and General Occupational Themes. A lot of it is free online, or your school (usually you can go back to your school and utilize career development stuff) may have the actual tests to take. It may help you solidify your areas of interest, and then you can research what types of jobs within the medical field may suit you more. Also, there's stuff out there on career values, and what you desire/prioritize: money, security, power, etc.

I still think you should try and pursue the graphic arts thing, and maybe that's just my guilt at not doing it myself talking. I ultimately wanted to do PR/graphic communications for a cultural organization or the Humane Society or something like that, but I wasn't willing to "sell my soul" in the beginning by working at a big agency promoting something like tools or automotive parts. In retrospect, I realize I needed that type of experience, or a 3 month internship... Again, I ramble. :)

jjjoy, LPN · Mar 23, 2009

I thought to myself, "it's perfect. I want to help people and do something meaningful, I'm attentive to details, I liked biology in school..." So I decided to become a nurse.... I didn't really like being around people that much.

Kinda like me. Same thing about the career testing as well! I do enjoy working with people, just not almost constantly for a full 8-12 hours 3-5 days a week, with no end in sight! I love biology and medical issues but I more enjoy learning about them than the hands-on application of them; especially since as a regular floor, you've got so many competing demands that's there little time to really see the big picture of any one patient - just running from one task to another trying to keep up with the non-stop demands and constant interruptions! Prioritize! Is everyone breathing alright? Vitals okay? Good color? Pain controlled? Skin intact? Dressings clean? Eating, peeing, pooing? Labs normal? Meds passed? IV patent? New orders? Procedures to prep for? Non-stop for 12 straight hours and then again the next day. Who has the time or mental space to see how the pathophys and symptoms and interventions and responses all fit together?

OP - I might suggest putting priority on getting a job with your current experience that is more suitable to you. Having a college degree in any subject opens more doors to entry level jobs in a variety of fields if you're willing to learn and start in a low level position. It may take several months and lots of persistance to land a job that doesn't pay very well or have a great future. But once you have job that you're more comfortable with, you might discover a new avenue you'd like to pursue. Or you might continue to find out more about nursing and other health care jobs (do some volunteering, take a few intro classes, interview people working in the field, etc) and then decide whether to take the plunge and go to nursing school. The alternative is going to back to school immediately for another couple of years and taking on loans for something that you're not sure about.

Best wishes!

ronib · Mar 23, 2009

There's no easy way around it...Nursing school is hard! It's time consuming and hard to balance a job and school. If you are going to do it, do it all the way... nothing less than 100%. I would maybe spend some time shadowing or maybe find a job in a health care setting. Depending on where you live and what type of hospital you are working in, not everything will be rainbows and sunshine. You will see some things that you didnt expect and you need to be able to handle them.

I've always wanted to be a nurse and I'm even having trouble staying focused!

GOOD LUCK!

cleback · Apr 2, 2010

Just some words of warning: nursing isn't recession-proof. I'm graduating in May and having a heck of a time trying to find a job. In fact, I'm probably going to have to work in a nursing home for at least a year, which, for a bachelor's prepared nurse, is very disappointing. I'm probably in no different situation than you.

There are many reasons for this. First, hospitals lose a lot of money in a recession. Since nursing staff is a general expense and not typicall billed for separately, hospitals often cut their nursing staff to improve the bottom line. Secondly, nursing is mostly a female profession and most nurses (like 70%) are married. When husbands lose their jobs in a weak economy, already employed nurses often pick up extra hours, or experienced/semi-retired nurses return to the workplace. As a result, we actually have the highest nursing employment (number of nurses working) that we've had in 40 years. Finally, the nursing shortage actually won't start to happen until 2018 or later.

So, for new grads or inexperienced nurses, the market is bad. Hospitals in my area are either in a hiring freeze or cannot spend the money to train new grads. Keeping in mind, too, that a lot of areas in nursing require experience (a lot of ERs, ICUs, correctional facilities, public health, detox centers... the list goes on) or additional education (school nursing, etc... but even before you go back to school for additional education, you need 1-2 years experience).

In short, you should do what you love. Don't go into a job just because you think it's recession proof. Nursing's not. You might feel really limited in the beginning (i.e. the "crap" job). You might not have as bad of luck, since it will be a while before you graduate nursing school. The economy might pick up by then. But it might not. You might be better off just getting the supplemental education in the arts, if that's what you love.