I want to be a nurse when I finish college. I'm currently a senior in high school. I have 5 more years until I graduate college/ become a nurse. I already have 4 piercings on my ears. I want 3 more (second lobes and 1 more cartilage (helix)). Is it frown upon that I will have 7 piercings or should I stop? I also want a tattoo on my finger (not sure about it, but the size will be smaller than a quarter). But is it acceptable tho?
Get as many piercings and tats as you want. Just don't wear the earrings at work or in a classroom or clinical setting. Don't get tats that show whilst in a work or school uniform and don't be surprised if people don't share your expressions of individuality. You're going into a conservative occupation, not one that celebrates creativity. Good luck.
Sometimes the things we do when we are young come back to bite us in the butt as we get older. I'm not much for body art (and some of the tattoos my friends have are definitely works of art) but to each their own.
I live in California which is pretty liberal but I have yet to work in a hospital even psych that didn't have very strict rules about no visible tats. Also no nostril lip or brow piercings. I have seen people with multiple ear piercings. You have to remember that a large part of your patient base is much older and may be uncomfortable with a nurse with multiple piercings or tattoos unless they are military or say "Mother."
The nursing school I went to allowed only 1 pair of post ear rings, no jewelry except a wedding band and absolutely no visible tattoos.
I would wait on the tats and cartilage piercings until I finished school and get the job then you can get the lay of the land and go from there.
Good luck with your ambitions and in my opinion go straight for the BSN as the LVN and ADN appear to be going the way of the DoDo.
Hppy
Please. LPN's aren't going anywhere. ADN is debatable.
Specializes in Complex pedi to LTC/SA & now a manager.
I have accepted in to a university and the nursing program. Thank you for the idea of reading the handbook. The handbook states that "The only jewelry permitted with the uniform is a wedding ring and small post-type earrings. No hoopearrings are acceptable. No visible body piercing with the exception of small post earrings in ears arepermitted. Gauge style earrings need to be removed and lobes need to be secured during clinical hours." To my understanding, there's seems to be no limit of ear piercings, and I will definitely not wear hoops, gauge, or dangling. I'll be wear studs only. And if I pierced them early, after my ears healed, I can always remove them before clinical and my co op. Thank you for this important tip. And the tattoo is out.
That implies a single pair of stud earrings in the lobe, I suggest you clarify first. We were not permitted to even wear stones due to the infection control risk. Buffed nails only if they suspected pale or clear polish you were given acetone and cotton swabs to clean it off, especially in oncology, nursery, pediatrics due to more stringent infection control.
My experience as a twenty-something just finishing a nursing program: Hold off on the cartilage piercings and the tat until later. Really, I'd hold off on all of them til later. Most nursing schools will not let you have any more than one earring per ear, two at most. Extras were overlooked by some of my clinical instructors, but that number was small. Tattoos had to be covered at all times during clinical rotations.
In the real world, nobody at my rural hospital seems to care much about tattoos and piercings as long as nothing looks trashy. But I gave up a few cartilage piercings for nursing school, and now my left ear (where they were) is noticeably weaker due to the scarring from a lobe piercing that closed up and the cartilage that never grows back. Repiercing them now would be more painful and probably not successful due to scar tissue.
So yeah, it's up to you, but all it takes is one overly-staunch clinical instructor making hell for you to make you regret not waiting to do your piercings.
Nobody is going to care about the earrings as long as they are small. Visible tattoos are a different story. It will depend on your facility's policy and how much it is actually enforced, which you don't know until you're hired. Hired as in past that human resources person who maybe doesn't think it looks very professional. People have their own opinions. Honestly, I've got tattoos and plenty of earrings, so I say do you, but if you're not really invested in the idea of the finger tattoo, I'd wait on it. 2¢.
I would suggest getting a tattoo in a place that can be covered up. I have 2 and none of my coworkers know I have them. I also have 5 piercings in my ears but only wear one set of earrings. Plus who knows after 23 years of having a tattoo (speaking about my own tattoos) you may not want them anymore.
I would not hire you but I would not tell you that was the reason.
Could you explain further on the reason you would not hire? What would the piercings say to you that would make you not want to hire that person, of course cosidering that they were otherwise friendly, engaging, competent, professional in behavior, etc? Just curious.
Specializes in Psych, Addictions, SOL (Student of Life).
Judging a book by its cover....
Because you are in high school and seem sincere I will try to say this in the kindest way possible. People in the world judge others all the time on first impressions (judging books by their covers). It may be unfair and even discriminatory in some cases but the world at large has never been fair and most likely never will be. THat's why us oldster's give the same advice over and over - we've beed there and done that and learned. Today's younger generation (which may or may not include you) are extremely entitled and seem to fel that they can do anything they want without any consequences or fall out in the name of freedom and individuality. It's just not so. If I were hiring and trying to mantain a professional work place and had two candidates one with and one without visible tattoos (The ear piercings wouldn't bother me) both with equal qualifications I would most likely pick the person without the tat's. I wouldn't necessarily that was the reason. The fact is employers can hire anyone they want or choose to hire someone as long as it's not based on ethnicity, sex, religion or orientation. That's why I said to wait on the body art and get a job first then see what the other staff are doing - If everybody has tattoos then by all means get one.
Piercings are fine but, you may have to remove them so, I would think twice about getting gauges. Plenty of nurses have piercings and tattoos for that matter.
HOWEVER, I'm not going to lie....in the corporate world in general it is important to be strategic in placement with piercings (and tattoos) because unfortunately everyone will not reserve judgement. It sucks but, it's true.
That implies a single pair of stud earrings in the lobe, I suggest you clarify first. We were not permitted to even wear stones due to the infection control risk. Buffed nails only if they suspected pale or clear polish you were given acetone and cotton swabs to clean it off, especially in oncology, nursery, pediatrics due to more stringent infection control.
I agree, you should clarify first. As I mentioned in my earlier post, we are only allowed to wear one earring per ear and it must be in the lobe and it must be a stud. Our handbook doesn't mention the stud part but our clinical instructors have made it clear that is anything else would be unacceptable.
Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
Tbh I m already accepted into Drexel Univeristy and its nursing program. I still will get my ear piercings, but no hoops, danglings, or stretching. They are going to be small studs. The tattoo, I m going to hold off of. There are posts on here I felt that it was pretty harsh. I mean reality is harsh, but there is no need to be harsh on here. Thank you for your responses. Btw I m actually pretty consercative (actually very). Piercings are like a way for me to express myself and that's why I m getting the ear piercings.
Excuse me? If you thought we were harsh on here, you need to toughen your skin a bit because it's much harsher out there!
"Judging a book by its cover" is not only reasonable, but it is smart.
The way someone dresses, the way they cut/style/color their hair, whether and what tats they have, whether and what piercings they have are all ways the person tells others who they are.
When someone walks in for an interview wearing a dark suit, light colored shirt, and conservatively styled hair they are making a statement. When another person walks into an interview with a nose piercing and full sleeve tats, they are also making a statement.
If these 2 individuals were equally qualified, I'd hire the person dressed conservatively. I wouldn't even have to think about it. The conservatively dressed individual will not offend any of my customers guaranteed. The person with tats and piercings will offend some of my customers. The conservatively dressed individual knows the importance of a professional appearance. The other values self expression. In my employees I want professionalism not self expression.
I've never known of a person losing a job opportunity because they did NOT have tats or piercings. I have heard of people losing a job opportunity because they DID have tats or piercings.
You will never go wrong going to an interview dressed MORE professionally than is required or expected. You will lose out if you go dressed LESS professionally than expected.
If there are more jobs than people to fill them, then you have more room for self expression. If there are more people than jobs, then employers can be very picky.
66h123
9 Posts
Get as many piercings and tats as you want. Just don't wear the earrings at work or in a classroom or clinical setting. Don't get tats that show whilst in a work or school uniform and don't be surprised if people don't share your expressions of individuality. You're going into a conservative occupation, not one that celebrates creativity. Good luck.