PhD (non-nursing) to RN?

[BeesKnees84]

Hello everyone!

I'm seriously considering a BScN after I finish my current degree, I'm in the last year of my PhD in the social sciences. Already have a bachelors in Social Sci (honours) and my MA. I'm currently working part time (4 days/week) as a research analyst for the Fed gov't (in Canada), though it is only on contract there is a 'maybe' that I'll get full-time after I finish. While I'm good at what I do and preform well at work, I don't feel like I'm really contributing to the grand scheme of things all that much. Maybe it's just the policy area that I'm in right now and my view would change if I went into health policy or something. Though, if I did make such a move, I think it would be helpful to have some 'on the ground experience' of being a nurse before getting into the policy side of things.

If I'm honest with myself, I probably should have taken the nursing (or med school) track loooooong ago. I feel like I'm finally 'old enough' to know what I want to do when I grow up

I'm good at the critical and abstract thinking/connecting the dots of academics and research, but I'm at my most happy when I'm helping and doing something more 'hands on'. In co-op I worked at an animal hospital (originally wanted to be a Vet), rocked the heck out of biology in HS and surprised myself in how well I 'can do' in math if I apply myself (for the loges time I was convinced that I was 'just never good at it', without really ever trying harder). Of course, it's been awhile and I'd need to do some pre-nursing school, I would imagine. I've already been in contact (waiting to hear back) with a few local schools to see what the process is for someone who has a degree already.

Anyway, I guess what I'm getting at is: anyone come from a similar background/made such a big career changing move? Any thoughts in general from folks going through pre-nursing? For what it's worth, I'm early 30's, married, no plans to have kids.

Sorry if this was one big ramble! Thank you in advance for your thoughts

[llg, PhD, RN]

I have known a couple of people with graduate degrees in other fields (including a PhD) who went into nursing. All of them had specific career goals in mind when they made the switch and most (but not all) were enrolled in programs that would give them a graduate level degree upon graduation. (entry-level MSN's, ND's, etc.) I am not saying that you need to go that route, but it seems to me that it might help if you had a clear sense of what type of nurse you want to be and plan a specific route to get there. A lot of entry-level programs are so general and unfocused that you might get 3/4 of the way through and start to question where you are going, why you are making such a big investment, where is it all leading, etc.

I am saying that from a US perspective, though. Canadian nursing school culture might be a little different in that respect. I just think it would help you along that long (and often rocky) road to have a clear goal and path. And be sure to choose a school consistent with your chosen path.

Good luck to you.

[BeesKnees84]

Thank you for your insight! I certainly see the value in having a clear goal/path in order to get through a difficult period of schooling, it has certainly been the case over the course of my PhD - when being a prof seemed quite unlikely, and not sure what else I would 'do with it', it made things more difficult. But, that's a whole other story!

As for what type of nurse, I don't have plans to do an advanced degree in nursing (i.e. more grad school!) though, I'm open to it (When I was 19 I didn't plan on getting my PhD, but here I am!). I think my ideal would be to eventually become an NP. I would prefer to work in rural areas or smaller cities (I grew up in a rural area) in either a hospital or health/wellness clinic setting - I see value in both. Nurses are often the first point of contact for a patient, and the one they may spend the post time with, so it can really set the tone for how everything else goes. I've had two fairly recent experiences with nurses (one good, one bad) that really exemplified that. I suppose I'll always be a bit of a researcher, so I'm also interested in the social elements (and barriers) to seeking healthcare, so I'd certainly be open/interested in the research and policy elements later on - but I would like practical experience first.

Thank you again for your thoughts, good questions that have me thinking! Never a bad thing :)