Nursing vs. Teaching for Major

classicdame, MSN, EdD · Feb 1, 2010

I had the same reservations. Nursing IS teaching. Nurses teach patients, families, each other, general public---

LeavingTeaching4RN · Feb 1, 2010

I worked as a teacher before returning to nursing school and becoming an RN. Both have their pros and cons. In most states, you can teach without a degree in education. However, you can't be a nurse without a degree in nursing. So, if you get a BSN, you can easily get a teaching certificate and become a teacher. You may want to check with the Board of Education in your state and see what the requirements are.

aura_of_laura · Feb 1, 2010

Honestly, you could be happy in both jobs. Maybe you should look at practicalities.

With teaching, you usually have to anchor yourself in a school district, and most teachers stay in one place until they retire. Is flexibility important? You won't find that teaching in a primary/secondary education environment.

Also, what jobs are available in your area? I know that some hospitals are laying off nurses or not hiring new grads - are you willing to move for work?

Whispera, MSN, RN · Feb 1, 2010

I have degrees in both teaching and nursing, and have done both jobs. I feel I've made a difference in both jobs. I've found that nursing is less stressful than teaching elementary school was for me. I taught in an inner city school and the discipline problems were very difficult. Getting into a nursing field you love and/or feel you do well will make it more joyful than working in one that you don't find interesting and at-least somewhat challenging. Now I teach nursing, as one of my jobs. That seems to work!

In teaching you'll have to take science courses, and don't assume the curriculum will be less difficult than what's required to get a nursing degree. It's just different.

In my state you can't get a teaching license just because you have a degree. There's a test on topic-area to be taken. It reminded me of the NCLEX in its difficulty.

Another thing to consider is that nurses generally make more money than teachers do, at least in the early years of working...

Bobbkat · Feb 1, 2010

My first degree is in El. Ed. It's hard to advise you on this, because ultimately you are the person that is responsible for deciding which path is right for you. I come from a family full of teachers and nurses. I always felt drawn towards being a nurse, but being terrified of needles and sticking people with things when I was making initial career decisions when I was younger, I chose to get my teaching degree. There are similarities in the two, especially the teaching aspect, and dealing with difficult (and the occasional wonderful) child/parent/administrator or patient/parent/administrator, but enough differences that I wasn't happy in teaching. I realized that teaching wasn't for me during my student teaching semester. I finished my degree, got over my problem with sticking people with things, and enrolled in a nursing program. I'm one of the freaks that really LOVED nursing school, especially the clinicals. I'm so glad that I chose nursing in the end.

As for the science and math required, you never know if you can handle it until you try, and to be honest, I feel that none of it is outside the reachable realm of someone who is determined to learn it. You will find a way, whether through just studying or seeking a tutor if you need one. LOL....that's the teacher in me speaking now, btw

mmoton · Apr 12, 2010

I am currently a teacher and want to get out of teaching and become a nurse. I have been teaching for six years now and cring at the thought of doing this for 24 more years (my plan is to retire after 30 years). I have read many good and bad things about nuring but the bad doesn't seem to out weigh the good when compaired to teaching. The reason I went into teaching is because my mother wanted to be a teacher but never became one. My mother "drilled" my and my sister with great things about being a teacher but never talked about the bad because she was never one. So because me and my sister was brain washed into being teachers we both became teachers not knowing anything else to be:confused:. I hate to change careers at 30 but after reading some of the post about people changing careers at 50 I don't feel so bad.

But to each it's own, some people love teaching I'm just not one of them!

Nuring field here I come!!!! :nurse:

sklutman · Apr 16, 2010

I've been a teacher in the public schools for about ten years before going back for my nursing degree. In order to be a teacher you need many, many undergrad credits. With schools always on eternal budget cuts the only way you can keep from having your job axed is by being able to to teach computers one year, English the next and try to get in as much of the classes you actually enjoy teaching. Teaching pay is typically bad. It always seemed for me that either the child was bad or the parents were bad. The administrators that I have had are all bad. They (administrators) all seem to be the teachers that only went into teaching so they could make a quick switch to administration, so they would not need to do anything all day long.

The last year that I taught, I actually got in trouble for trying to get the kids to learn 10 polyatomic ions for their chemistry test. Then the students on the next test were incapable of passing a test on periodic table trends. There were four trends I wanted them to know, two went to Florine as the highest and two went to the oppisite end of the periodic table. I spent two weeks going over this with them. The majority failed. The Principal called me into his office because one of the parents had a daughter that got a B on the test and was not happy. The Principal admitted the student was a B student anyhow, then proceeded to write me up because I was not teaching the students. I explained to him in 5 minutes what I had spent 2 weeks explaining to the kids, then had him(a former history teacher) take the test. He said he never took chemistry, but could not understand why the kids failed. (I still got written up)

One nice thing that I discovered after leaving teaching. The evening are a great time to relax and enjoy the family. My son does not need to fight to get my attention at night. I don't have stacks of papers to correct and I no longer need to plan whats going to happen tomorrow to several weeks from now.

Summers off for teachers is never the truth. 95% of the teachers I new always had to work over the summer to have any spending money. The bulk of their teaching salary goes to student loans and living expenses(none left over for play). For those times in the summer when your not working your second job you will need to be paying for classes, out of your own pocket, so you can keep your teaching certificate.

I still have 3 semesters till I am done with my nursing degree. I think having time off to relax is the greatest joy of leaving teaching.

Oh.. If you were thinking about becoming an elementary teacher, I've over heard Principals talking, they say "Elementary teachers are a dime a dozen." It sounds like that is true in most states.

llg, PhD, RN · Apr 16, 2010

Obviously, the people you will find on this website are the people who are nurses (not teachers) ... or people who didn't like teaching and switched to nursing. So you are not really going to get an unbiased view of teaching compared to teaching.

I don't doubt that teaching has it's bad side -- every career does. But I will say something good about teaching:

My sister is only slightly older that I am. She became a 2nd grade teacher and I became a nurse. She taught 2nd grade for 30 years in a small town public school system and retired at the age of 52 -- with a pension paid by the taxpayers that pays her 60% of her maximum salary per year for the rest of her life, adjusted annually for inflation. She now substitutes very part time to make up the salary difference. When she turns 62, she will start receiving Social Security in addition to her 60% pension. Had she waited until age 57 to retire, her pension would have paid 80% of her maximum salary for the rest of her life.

As a nurse, I have no pension -- only the money I have saved out of my paychecks which have been a little higher than hers. But then, I never had the summer's off like she has always had. Also, the taxpayers paid for her 100% of her graduate school. I did win some scholarships and got some government help ... but paid for much of my grad school out of my pocket.

So ... here I am at age 55, working full time and planning to continue working full time for another 7-10 years. She semi-retired at 52 and spends the winters on Florida golf courses and summers on Pennsylavania ones. Yes, my paychecks are a little bigger than hers ... but her retirement benefits (and other benefits more generous than mine ever were) more than make up for it.

Of course, not all teachers work for the public school system and are part of a collective bargaining unit. Some work for private schools that pay less and have worse benefits. Some work in high schools and are afraid for their physical safety. Some work in terrible neighborhoods. She worked in a nice little town and taught 2nd grade. Neither the school nor the town is luxurious ... but she has done very well for herself as a teacher.

tencat · Apr 16, 2010

Teaching does not pay as well as nursing, hands down. However, you get way fewer breaks with nursing. I did not spend my summers working when I was a teacher, but I didn't have two kids then, either (just one). Public school teaching is really stressful and teachers have very little power or influence to change anything. College teaching is MUCH better. My husband has done both and is very happy with college. I'm considering going into college teaching as a nursing instructor because I miss working with students, and I miss all those vacations, quite frankly. I also hate being on call. However I will be taking a very significant pay cut if I go that route. But I'm looking to retirement down the road, and I would have a pension with teaching. I'll be working until I die if I stay in nursing.....crappy retirement and benefits. Retirement and benefits are MUCH better in teaching. Both jobs have their good and bad points.

sklutman · Apr 23, 2010

I wouldn't agree with getting more breaks as a teacher. As a teacher there are very few breaks. If you do not spend your prep period with all the prep and replying to emails that are called for in the job, you will be spending the bulk of your night working on this material. I will admit, I am a bit biased because I did not like what I saw going on in the schools and could do very little to change it. I know of several former nurses that have become teachers and enjoy themselves immensely. One thing to say about breaks, as a nurse you at least get a half hour, as a teacher the longest lunch I got was 20 minutes and I had to chase students out of the room as soon as the bell rang to get that.

I had to pay for my MA classes and all the other classes that I had to take in order to remain certified. So don't count on the school paying for that.

Teaching pros. Possibly getting summers off, if you are able to find a teaching job that pays well enough and you don't have to take certification classes. Those ah...ha.. moments that you get from students when they learn something new. Working with Kids, and possibly help them through difficult times in there lives. Having a student thank you for showing them, they could do more than they ever imagined. Being in charge of what you do everyday. Having every holiday off that your kids get off. Every weekend off.

Teaching Cons. Low pay. Summers taking classes. Unsafe work environments(Several teachers have tried suing their school districts for unsafe work environments, the courts threw them out). Unable to voice your opinion about anything. Being stuck working with an administrator that has vastly different ideas of what is good for the school depending on if he is talking to parents or teachers. 20 minutes or less for lunch. Long hours correcting papers and preparing for the following days. Tedious record keeping of each child's behavior and grade keeping. Never having time to truly connect to students. People tend to have no respect for the importance of education.

Nursing pros. You get to work with people, and possibly help them through the most difficult times in their lives. Three day work week. Higher pay. Once you get off work, you are off of work. You could save someones life. People tend to show respect.

Nursing cons. Long hours on your feet. Knowing that you are very likely to hurt your back while working with patients. Highest sexual harassment rate of any profession. Never having time to connect with patients. Work with other people's urine and feces and vomit. Day can become routine or very challenging(positive or negative). Working weekends and holidays.

The things I have noticed is the reason that people get into either profession is to help other people and make a difference in those people's lives. That is the reason I have chosen each as a profession. I enjoyed my time as a teacher, but I did not like what went on in many of the schools I saw. I chose to change careers. I have not started nursing but have enjoyed my classes and enjoy the thought that I will have my nights and days off again.

Good luck, let us know what you choose.

lostneedhelp · Nov 20, 2013

can I ask what were the things you did not like about teaching?