52 yr old Wants to be a CRNA

[Nurse Beth, MSN]

Dear Nurse Beth,

I am a 52 years old RN-BSN with over 25 years of experience in various nursing specialties, but have been working as a Mental Health Nurse for the past ten years.

I would love to return back to school to become a CRNA which requires at least a minimum of 1-2 years of Critical care experience. Currently, I reside in the New York Metropolitan, and would love to gradually ease back into a regular hospital for the appropriate experience in Med Surg /Critical care. Please kindly advise on how to achieve this goal.

Dear 52 Yr Old Wants to Be a CRNA,

Like you said, to achieve your goal of being a CRNA you will need about 2 years of ICU experience. CRNA programs require iCU experience for eligibility.

To get from outpatient mental health to ICU, your best bet is to first land a job in acute care just to get your foot in the hospital door. From there you can plan to apply and transfer to ICU.

After one year experience, you can start applying to CRNA programs. Once in a program, you will not be able to work and may need to take out loans to fund your tuition.

An optimistic estimate in terms of time would be about 7-8 years to complete your goal.

Best wishes,

Nurse Beth

Author, "Your Last Nursing Class: How to Land Your First Nursing Job"...and your next!

[CrunchRN, ADN, RN]

With the length of time it will take to achieve your goal and the cost it might not be a very good investment. I only say this because ageism is rampant and I think it will be very hard for 1 60 year old new grad CRNA to find a job.

[Workitinurfava, BSN, RN]

You can always go back to mental health. I say go for it. Many older people are still working. Not all places will have a problem with your age especially if you are good at what you do. Think of it this way. You know what you don't want. Can you imagine doing what you are doing for another 15-20 years?

[Bethenurse68]

Hi! I say go for it! I am a 49 year old LPN, going to night school to achieve my RN-BSN! When deciding to go back to school, I wondered out loud to my friend....am I too old to go back and finish my education? I mean, I won't graduate for two years! And she looked me right in the eye and said, "How old will you be, in two years, if you don't go back?"

Best of luck to you!

[Nurse Beth, MSN]

Hi! I say go for it! I am a 49 year old LPN, going to night school to achieve my RN-BSN! When deciding to go back to school, I wondered out loud to my friend....am I too old to go back and finish my education? I mean, I won't graduate for two years! And she looked me right in the eye and said, "How old will you be, in two years, if you don't go back?"

Best of luck to you!

Beautiful!

[lifeatthebluffs, BSN, RN]

Don't forget to check for time limits on prerequisites. Good luck!

[idpRN]

If it's something you really want, don't let age hold you back. I am 55 and just finished the BSN that I never had the time or money for while raising a family. I graduate in May and I already landed a BSN required position with a copy of my transcripts.