Paying for CRNA school

Bluebolt · Jan 19, 2017

I'm in a DNP CRNA program now and have fellow classmates who are married with kids, in very similar situations as you detailed. You will make sacrifices but with a meager income from your husband and the loans, you should be able to get by. Perhaps it means you won't get to eat out often, go to the movies, take vacations, have cable tv, new clothes shopping, etc, but you can make it. When I stopped working and started school I had to take my bank statement and circle anything that wasn't necessary to survive. Once I circled it I either found a way to eliminate it or reduce it significantly. You'll do the same if you get in and be shocked at how much less you can live on than you realize.

lasvegasnurs · Jan 19, 2017

In CRNA school now and have three kids and wife can work and make pretty decent money working full time as a dental hygienist, however we have her only picking up shifts a couple days a month. It's become more advantageous to just focus on school, take out loans, apply for medicaid, food stamps and any other assistance. It all works out. Don't be afraid of taking out loans, make it through and it will be worth it. About 1/3 of my class has kids.

JEStewart · Jan 22, 2017

That's reassuring information (all of you). I'm just getting ready to start nursing school, and the goal is to go into CRNA within a couple years after graduating with my ASN.

jj224 · Jan 22, 2017

My recommendation - work a little bit longer and save as much money as possible. Loans are available but 8% interest on 100k needs to be taken into account. The extra time will make your application stronger. Plus, the more experience you have taking care of high acuity, critically ill patients will only help you when you start didactic and clinicals. I wish I would have saved more money - I know your goal is to get in and get out as quickly as possible, but I had 3 years of experience and sometimes wish I had more experience in CVICU (I was MICU). Just my 2Â¢. May be an unpopular opinion but look at the big picture - I am looking at years and years of repayment while interest is running.

guest769224 · Jan 22, 2017

sometimes wish I had more experience in CVICU (I was MICU).

Mind explaining why?

jj224 · Jan 22, 2017

Sure. As the population ages, we will encounter more people with cardiac histories. Even if we aren't providing the anesthetic for a cardiac procedure, we'll still be caring for them. A "low risk" lap hernia is now complicated and higher risk because of aortic stenosis and it's implications on your anesthetic. For my classmates that were CVICU nurses, this stuff comes like second nature to them. I'm good with basic cardiac stuff. I'll run circles around them with sepsis, crrt, mods, ards, etc (things you'll commonly see in MICU), but when it comes to vads, recovering hearts, ecmo, meds given for postop hearts, etc, I'm behind the 8 ball. I'm learning, but I'm putting in twice the work. Having at least some CVICU experience would make this particular area of anesthesia a little easier to understand. I wish I had a more diverse ICU experience besides MICU, and my cardiac ICU classmates wish they had some MICU experience. When we get to peds, we'll all wish we had some PICU experience. The only difference is, regardless of what unit you're on, one thing in common is you'll likely run into someone with some cardiac issues going on. Thats why I wish I had more cardiac experience. If I could have went back, I would have done maybe 2 years MICU and 1 year CVICU. After I was accepted, I had no desire to switch units and work CV for a year before starting school.

missnurse01, MSN, RN · Jan 29, 2017

I was the only income earner for my family. Work longer and save save before school. Yes you can do it on loans but you will pay probably at least 50 K on interest alone - or more.

lasvegasnurs · Feb 1, 2017

I guess some of it is how comfortable you are with debt. Does waiting an extra year to save 50k of additional debt at 6% interest worth postponing a 80k-150k a year raise? For some it does, for some they can't stand the idea of the debt. Work as hard and as much as possible before school to minimize amount needed. Consider going the military route which will pay for school and give you a stipend (salary) while in school. As mentioned above social service state assistance for a family of 5 can provide about 1000 a month in services. I still rent out my house after moving for school which qualifies me for a little less than others in my class but I still get about $800/month in state assistance.

In the end. Make 100% sure it is what you want to do. My class did lose 1 student already who just decided that anesthesia wasn't for them after the first semester and straight A's. Nothing would be more expensive than taking out those loans and then deciding later you do not want to do it.

It's all a numbers game in the end. ICU RN salaries highly vary throughout the country. During interviews I had people telling me they were making $23/hr and the opposite being CA RN's making 3x that. Decide what you are most comfortable with and when in your own life you have the time to commit to the program. Programs are also all transitioning to DNP ONLY programs so school will take longer and cost more if you want your DNP vs MS.

KoreanDolly · Feb 1, 2017

That's reassuring information (all of you). I'm just getting ready to start nursing school, and the goal is to go into CRNA within a couple years after graduating with my ASN.

This is the route I want to go as well. I believe you have to have at least BSN and 1 year in ICU before applying for CRNA school. But, I could be wrong also.

missnurse01, MSN, RN · Feb 1, 2017

lasvegasnurs, each state is different. Where I went to school there was no social service monies for people in grad school. We were able to get food stamps but very little, even for a family of 5. After school fees we lived on 1800 bucks a month or so. Everyone should look very closely at what is available for them in their state.

JEStewart · Mar 11, 2017

The programs I read about near me require a MSN to apply to CRNA school. It looks like it may change to require a doctorate by the time I apply. Either way, my plan is to start working, gaining experience in ICUs, and working my way up the educational ladder at the same time. Good luck to you. This is exciting and I'm anxious to get this plan moving along!