Nurse Practitioners

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Hello,

Do any of you know what degree(s) I would need to become a pediatric practitioner? I've been doing some research on careers in the medical field and I've always been kind of interested in becoming a nurse practitioner for pediatrics but so far the books I'm reading only tell you about what you would be doing as a nurse practitioner and absolutely nothing about how to get there. I know that after I get my associates degree in medical assisting which my advisor said would be the best program for me at this time in my life I would have to get my B.S. in R.N right? After that I know I'm going to need more education for the APN for the NP program. My aunt who is a R.N is just now going for her master's degree to become a nurse practitioner. I just wanted to make sure I had it right. After my Associates degree in medical assisting, A B.S in R.N and then atleast a masters degree in the APN program for NP's? Sorry I keep asking so many questions but there's a lot to learn about the medical field and it's careers. Are there any books or websites on NP's that would be a good idea for me to look at? Thanks.

~Amber~

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Specializes in Education, FP, LNC, Forensics, ED, OB.
Hello,

Do any of you know what degree(s) I would need to become a pediatric practitioner? I've been doing some research on careers in the medical field and I've always been kind of interested in becoming a nurse practitioner for pediatrics but so far the books I'm reading only tell you about what you would be doing as a nurse practitioner and absolutely nothing about how to get there. I know that after I get my associates degree in medical assisting which my advisor said would be the best program for me at this time in my life I would have to get my B.S. in R.N right? After that I know I'm going to need more education for the APN for the NP program. My aunt who is a R.N is just now going for her master's degree to become a nurse practitioner. I just wanted to make sure I had it right. After my Associates degree in medical assisting, A B.S in R.N and then atleast a masters degree in the APN program for NP's? Sorry I keep asking so many questions but there's a lot to learn about the medical field and it's careers. Are there any books or websites on NP's that would be a good idea for me to look at? Thanks.

~Amber~

Hello, Amber,:balloons:

You will need to apply to an PNP program. You can go straight to this when you obtain your RN. I suggest getting some experience as an RN working in that specialty area before you go to the NP program. You will complete your NP program with an MSN and sit for certification.

Good luck.

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Specializes in Infection Preventionist/ Occ Health.

An associate's degree in medical assisting might be helpful, but it's not necessary to become an NP. You will need a BSN (bachelor of science in nursing) or an ADN (associate's degree in nursing) plus a few extra classes to be eligible to sit for the RN licensing exam. Most pediatric nurse practitioner programs I've investigated require 2 years of nursing experience to apply to the program.

Your timeline might look something like this:

BSN (4 years)

Work as RN in pediatric setting (2 years)

MSN with PNP specialty (2 years)

Hope this helps and good luck!

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I know it's very obvious that I have no idea what I'm going to do after I graduate from Ecpi for Medical assisting and I keep debating on whether I'd be better to take health administration classes or R.N. classes. There's just so many careers in the medical field and I'm interested in quite a few of them. Still it helped to know what I would have to go through to get to be a NP. So thank you very much.

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Specializes in Education, FP, LNC, Forensics, ED, OB.
I know it's very obvious that I have no idea what I'm going to do after I graduate from Ecpi for Medical assisting and I keep debating on whether I'd be better to take health administration classes or R.N. classes. There's just so many careers in the medical field and I'm interested in quite a few of them. Still it helped to know what I would have to go through to get to be a NP. So thank you very much.

No problem at all, poetryeclipse. This is the only way you can learn; ask questions, gather information and you can make a better choice for you!

Keep on asking!:)

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