Is a Nurse Extern position helpful for a students?

Nursing Students Student Assist

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Hi. I am a first year nursing student, and I start Med-Surg tommorrow. I just recently applied to a hospital who is offering a Nurse Extern Program for 12 weeks, paying $15.60 an hour. This program is through the summer and I felt that it would help me develop my skills as a student nurse better. Although I have talked to some students and some say that I should focus on studying during the summer and apply later in my second year. I was wondering if I am making a good decision on going on with my choice of working as Nurse Extern in my first year of nursing?

Specializes in Geriatrics/Oncology/Psych/College Health.
Some hospitals claim to have "externships" but really, the jobs are nothing more than CNA work and they don't give you much RN training at all. They do this because they're always short on CNA's so, they basically trick students into taking "extern" jobs.

Such was the case at our hospital. I saw a series of nursing students come in thinking they were going to function in a way as described in the earlier posts, but a shortage of techs meant they were doing tech work with no exposure to other skills. Don't get me wrong - personal care and other tech functions are extraordinarily important, but the externs were led to think they were going to get to start IV's, insert caths, etc., when they were really functioning as CNA's far more often than not. None questioned it, and while I tried to advocate for them, mgt was interested in having warm bodies.

I think the thought was also that they would stay on after graduation; this rarely happened since the student had already been exposed to mgt's dishonesty.

I think the thought was also that they would stay on after graduation; this rarely happened since the student had already been exposed to mgt's dishonesty.

Yeah ... this has been a big problem at our school. Most of the programs were very misleading and turned out to be nothing more than CNA jobs.

One hospital was a little better about it ... they'd make you work as a CNA one day and an extern the next day ... where you at least got a full day of extern skills for every day you worked as a CNA.

But they made the CNA days so impossible ... I'd get up to 13 patients and a bunch of total cares ... I had to quit. They were always so short on CNA's that they'd give you these impossible runs. The CNA days were so miserable, it just wasn't worth it.

Needless to say, I won't be working for that hospital when I graduate.

:typing

Specializes in Nursing Professional Development.
Externships are for baccalaureate students and usually take place over a ten-week period between the junior and senior years. The student must meet qualifications for this experience (usually high GPA during nursing school). Not every BSN student qualifies. The student pays tuition to the sponsoring university for the experience and chooses the unit or specialty area. ...

Interships are an abbreviated form of externships.

Unfortunately for students, different hosptials sometimes use the words "externship" and "internship" to mean different things. The definitions used by Vicky in her post quoted above are particular to her particular experience. I don't think these are the most common definitions.

In many hospitals (most?) ... an externship is a job for student nurses, supposedly a job that includes an "educational" compenent that allows the extern to perform more advanced skills than nursing assistants are typically allowed to do. It usually involved having a preceptor and maybe even a few classroom experiences. A few programs are coordinated with nursing schools, involve academic credit, and payment to the school for that academic credit. However, that seems to be the minority of programs. The hospital offering the externship hires externs from a variety of different schools.

Some schools offer academic credit to their students doing externships if the students does a project, writies a paper about their experiences, etc. Two of our local schools do that. That arrangement is totally between the student and the school and has nothing to do with my hospital's running of its extern program.

The word "internship" can be used to describe many different roles by different hospitals. Some hospitals use it to describe their nursing student roles -- but many are using it to refer to their new grad orientation programs.

There is still a lot of variation out there in the ways that people use these terms. Any student interested in such programs needs to investigate the particular program indepth to find out what the details are for that program.

llg

Externships can also occur during the second year of a two year program.

Best ones that I have seen are in the ICU, where you are actually paired up with an RN and work right alongside them caring for their patient or patients, and learning along the way. This works great for someone that is interested in working in a PICU or NICU when they graduate.

Check out the program at Children's Hospital of Central California, they have one of the best programs and you can get some idea of what I think that the perfect program should be like.

As a final year student, you should have many more procedures that you are permitted to do than the CVA position. That is why it is so important to find a facility that will give you the help to get the extra experience in. And you get paid for it, as well.:)

Specializes in Gerontological, cardiac, med-surg, peds.
Unfortunately for students, different hosptials sometimes use the words "externship" and "internship" to mean different things. The definitions used by Vicky in her post quoted above are particular to her particular experience. I don't think these are the most common definitions.

In many hospitals (most?) ... an externship is a job for student nurses, supposedly a job that includes an "educational" compenent that allows the extern to perform more advanced skills than nursing assistants are typically allowed to do. It usually involved having a preceptor and maybe even a few classroom experiences. A few programs are coordinated with nursing schools, involve academic credit, and payment to the school for that academic credit. However, that seems to be the minority of programs. The hospital offering the externship hires externs from a variety of different schools.

Some schools offer academic credit to their students doing externships if the students does a project, writies a paper about their experiences, etc. Two of our local schools do that. That arrangement is totally between the student and the school and has nothing to do with my hospital's running of its extern program.

The word "internship" can be used to describe many different roles by different hospitals. Some hospitals use it to describe their nursing student roles -- but many are using it to refer to their new grad orientation programs.

There is still a lot of variation out there in the ways that people use these terms. Any student interested in such programs needs to investigate the particular program indepth to find out what the details are for that program.

llg

Thanks for the information. The head of the education department of the large teaching hospital in our vicinity had explained the differences between externship and internship as above. I wasn't aware that the definitions vary from region to region or from hospital to hospital. I have learned something new:) The NCBON has adopted the following for all nursing schools in NC (by January 1, 2008): a "focused client care experience" of a minimum of 120 hours in the final year of curriculum for all RN students; the same with a minimum of 90 hours in the final semester of curriculum for all LPN students. The original draft (if I recall correctly) had used the term "internship" instead of "focused client care experience."

The externship program at this large regional hospital is coordinated through various baccalaureate programs and is truly an outstanding program. It is very competitive and the student must apply through the sponsoring university, before being placed in a clinical setting. I had the pleasure of meeting several BSN student externs (from two different universities) on the pediatrics floor, while I had a group of ADN students in clinical. These students seemed to be having very positive learning experiences and were not treated as CNAs. They each were assigned to one RN preceptor whose schedule was followed, and they were learning a wealth of skills under close supervision. It is so sad that some externship programs are being abused in some hospitals in that the students are simply functioning as CNAs. :o

Specializes in NICU.

I have a choice of receiving an externship or remaining at my current job and I need some help! My current job allows me to study, which I doubt the extership will allow. The extership however will give me some experience and also look great on a resume since I want to work in a NICU when I graduate. What would you do?

1. Take the externship and have a less study time.

2. Keep the current job and have time to study.

I would definitely do the extern position. I was like you & had no medical experience when I got a extern position in the ED. I was only in block 2 & now I am in block 4 & the cofidence that I have gained is just amazing! I feel like I am the nurse.

Specializes in ED, ICU, MS/MT, PCU, CM, House Sup, Frontline mgr.
Externships are for baccalaureate students and usually take place over a ten-week period between the junior and senior years.

I think this depends on the hospitals you have noted in your later posts (I originally missed your other posts). I am an ADN student and I am an Extern (not an Intern). The BSN students who are Extern's in my program have no more or less responsibilities then the ADN or MSN students. In fact, since I am so ambitious I do more then any Extern on my floor.

I agree that it is sad that there are Extern programs out there that treat students as CNAs. My program does not allow the Externs to function as CNAs. In fact, if we are treated as CNAs we are to report the behavior to our Director, who is not the floor Director.

I also think it is unfortunate that the programs in your region only allow ADN students to function in an internship capacity. We all have to take and pass the NCLEX AND once we do, we also must be able to function well clinically as Registered Nurses (A BSN is no more then a Registered Nurse) so it does not logically make sense. Besides, some of the Externs (ADNs and BSNs) in my program are outstanding academically but are absolutely LAZY clinically!! Given the same opportunities I have to learn and display clinical skills, the lazy ones choose to sit around for 12 hours (and yes we have Preceptors). Thus, if a student like me is not allowed to compete for an Externship because of the program he/she is attending, then it is a great loss to both the student and hospital.

In fact, given what I know of being an Extern in a good program, I would discourage any ADN students from applying to an internship or to work for a hospital that would deprive ADN students of the externship program. Clearly such places are not particularly respectful of RNs without BSNs and are not places for RNs without BSNs to flourish as New Grads.

I am in an Associate of Applied Science at a CC for my RN and the major Healthcare company that owns about 7 hospitals and rehabs near me does a Summer Extern program that we are allowed to participate in between 1st and 2nd year for pay. There are teachers on the floor on all shifts, so it is like clinicals...with pay! We work 3 12's but we can do them around our schedules,for instance, I have 3 kids so I will have to work evenings and weekends. It will be some CNA work i.e. beds/baths, but mostly opportunities to hone our skills, we all know from clinicals so far that they aren't long enough for everybody to get to do everything! This gives you another chance to be in the right place at the right time and the money will be nice, I haven't worked since I got accepted to the nursing program and sometimes my family really misses my check!:o;)

Specializes in Labor and Delivery.

Do it, do it , do it!! It is a wonderful learning experience/tool, you will further your clinical skills and be more comfortable in the clinical environment. And............it sets you apart from the students that didn't do it, and looks really nice on a new grad resume

I also want to add that I'm in a Diploma program and externships are NOT just for BSN student nurses. My hospital takes students from all programs provided they have the right gpa, references, and work history.

so does anyone know of great externship programs in or around houston, texas? id like to work in sicu or cvicu

Specializes in ER, progressive care.

If you have the opportunity to apply for an externship, by all means please do so! I used to work at a hospital where they had nurse externs (called Nurse Associates there) and some of my friends were NA's, too - they loved it and the experience was invaluable. A majority of them got jobs at that hospital upon graduation. You had to complete the program - either the 8-week summer course or the 15-week course in the fall or spring, just like a semester, and you had to work a minimum of 20hrs/week while completing the program. After completing the program, you could work full, part-time or PRN.

I work at a different hospital now as a nurse tech - sort of like an externship. They only hire nursing students and in addition to basic duties that can be delegated to nursing assistants, we can do anything the RN's can do except assess and pass meds, but of course there is always that gray area in-between because I have done sterile dressing changes before and that requires assessing the wound bed. But anyway, I love my job and the experience is invaluable. It allows me to apply what I learn in school on a daily basis to patients and it also gives me more experience with skills - I have done sooooo many dressing changes, blood draws and IV starts since I started working here - nursing school alone didn't give me enough experience because it's almost like a "luck of the draw" during clinical and that was only once/week for us. My "home" floor is a med-surg floor (renal/plastics) but we're allowed to pick up shifts on other floors. I have floated all over the hospital I work at and that gives me even more experience because you will see different things on different units.

I am so much more comfortable in the clinical setting since I have been working as a nursing assistant and now a nurse tech (and I better be, I just graduated on Saturday with my BSN! lol!). I can only say good things about doing this. It's more experience AND extra cash in your pocket, too!

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