Nursing school decision

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I'm in a bit of a dilemma. I'm trying to find a solution to my problem of enrolling in nursing school. I just turned 38. I have 5 kids ages 10 and up. I work full time as a Marketing Analyst which is a job I hate. I spend my working hours crunching numbers at a computer. Have I mentioned I hate my job, lol. I have a BS in Business. Back when I was younger I had no clue what I was interested in. I honestly love working with people. I enjoy doing a variety of tasks and not the same monotonous tasks I do now. I thrive on high stress situations which most people find odd. Over the years I have become very interested in healthcare. I've realized I'm not satisfied in my career. I want to help people.

Nursing seems like a great fit for me. My dilemma is being a mother, having 5 kids, working and finding time for nursing school. I've checked at a local college that has an ASN course. I have about a semester worth of prerequisites already from obtaining my bachelors degree. I get that nursing school is a full time commitment. I want desperately to do this but taking off work is going to be very difficult financially. My husband makes what I make now and to cut our income in half would be difficult.

I can easily pay for schooling, it's supporting my family while doing so. Has anyone else done part time work while in school? Would an online college be more beneficial? I've not seen any part time nursing programs that are good for working adults. I can maybe take a year off work for clinicals but 2 years I cant. If not I may have to wait till my oldest is in college. That would make me 46. Any advice I would greatly appreciate it.

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I am 10 years older than you, with 3 kids ages 8-14. I am starting a full-time BSN program (2nd Bachelor's for me) and I will continue to work part-time. Ask me in 3 months if it's working out! I know it will be difficult, but it should be worth it in the end. Why don't you just try it out by taking a couple of prerequisites first?

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Thanks for the reply. I have all of the previous requisites but 2 classes. I'm thinking of taking those in the spring and apply for Nursing School in the fall of 2017. May I ask what type of part time work you are doing while attending school? I wish you the best of luck and yes I would like to hear the progress a few months in. Lol

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Specializes in Critical Care.

I'm a single mom currently in nursing school. I quit my job for it after saving up for a year or so and will be taking out private loans to cover my living expenses once my savings dry up. Additionally, I plan to work as a student nurse in the hospital once I pass this semester, so that will bring in some money and reduce the amount I'll need to take out in loans.

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Specializes in LTC, Rehab.

These are only my experiences & opinions, but -

* Some people I went to nursing school with worked the whole time. Some only worked the first 1-2 semesters (of nursing school, not pre-reqs). I was financially able to not work at all (due to my 'previous life'), but I was busy all the time w/school.

* I'm not much on online classes for nursing except for maybe a few subjects. I took sociology online, which was fine, but I also took pathophysiology online, which was not good enough, in my opinion, because it's the basis for (what my school called) Adult Health I (and then II), and I think in a real class I would've learned more.

* Don't worry about not getting it 'til you're 46. I was 54. Should've been maybe 52, but there were a few bumps along the road.

And finally, you can do it. Good luck.

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Something to think about: if you produce no income and are yourself in school for a few years before your kids apply to college, you will drastically improve your kids' FA packages at most universities (depending, obviously, on how much your spouse makes).

Have you considered getting a CNA, EMT-B/AEMT or other non-degree certificate/license? That can be done in as little as a month. This would allow you to switch fields soon, and is a great way to get experience. Then you could potentially go into an RN/MSN or RN/ABSN program once you're in a position with your kids to go full time.

Don't be discouraged about starting at your age... I'm hoping to start an RN/MSN program in January, and I'll be 43 by then!

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You do make a good point about my kids and getting aid for them in school. I'm going to try and do the previous requisite and an anthropology class this spring. There two other classes I need that don't have to be taken as part of the nursing program. I am going to sign up for those in the fall. I can then enroll into the nursing school. It's apparently a tough program to get into. The head of the program felt I was a strong candidate though obtaining my bachelors already. I can get all nursing courses and clinicals completed in 3 semesters and they don't attend during the summer. Hopefully I can work over summer to help compensate.

That's my hopes, but if I do that I will have my degree completed at 40. í ½í¸Š

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