"But nurses are in demand, how can it be hard to get into nursing school"?

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

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Anyone else getting this response from out-of-the-know relatives/co-workers/neighbors? I feel like they think I'm lying when I say the program I applied to has almost 450 applications for 25 spots. They look at me like I'm making it up!:eek:

On the flip side, how can finding Nursing instructors be any different from finding Chemistry and Physics professors at schools? I have never heard of a school that had to cut back on their Chemistry majors because they couldn't find professors that were willing to work for less money than they would make out in the field.

My Chemistry Professor is a PhD and a Chemical Engineer by trade. The President of our college is the same.

The same goes for instructors of computer courses. I have never heard of a college cutting back those programs either.

I can imagine that there are enough instructors that might be disabled, just tired of working in a hospital, or cannot keep up with the physical demands of bedside nursing, etc, that can teach at a college level where it doesn't require scaling back of the program. I have met so many instructors over the years that left their fields of service to teach...for the love of teaching...can Nursing be so different?

I mean, don't get me wrong. I am sort of glad of the shortage, because in the end, that keeps us ALL employed and working at decent salaries. But I do think that the shortage is an artificial one.

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Specializes in Developmental Disabilities, LTC.
On the flip side, how can finding Nursing instructors be any different from finding Chemistry and Physics professors at schools? I have never heard of a school that had to cut back on their Chemistry majors because they couldn't find professors that were willing to work for less money than they would make out in the field.

I'm just guessing, but I think it's because there aren't a flood of people rushing out to become chemists & physicists...it's like this repeating pattern; everybody wants to be a nurse because we're in such demand, this creates a shortage of instructors because there just aren't enough to accommodate all the students, the demand keeps getting higher because of wait-lists, with the growing demand, even more people want to be nurses, creating even less instructors per student, etc. ,etc

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On the flip side, how can finding Nursing instructors be any different from finding Chemistry and Physics professors at schools? I have never heard of a school that had to cut back on their Chemistry majors because they couldn't find professors that were willing to work for less money than they would make out in the field.

My Chemistry Professor is a PhD and a Chemical Engineer by trade. The President of our college is the same.

The same goes for instructors of computer courses. I have never heard of a college cutting back those programs either.

I can imagine that there are enough instructors that might be disabled, just tired of working in a hospital, or cannot keep up with the physical demands of bedside nursing, etc, that can teach at a college level where it doesn't require scaling back of the program. I have met so many instructors over the years that left their fields of service to teach...for the love of teaching...can Nursing be so different?

I mean, don't get me wrong. I am sort of glad of the shortage, because in the end, that keeps us ALL employed and working at decent salaries. But I do think that the shortage is an artificial one.

I agree with you to some extent but on the flip side, what is the job market for a chem prof? physics? yes their are many jobs out there but as many and as diverse as nursing? by the time one is qualified to be a nursing instructor (Masters atleast, and 3 years in a speciality field) they are so much in demand by many other venues that they can write their own ticket they get flexibility hours that they can make great money, and many that have gone that far in their education is because they LOVE nursing and may not want to teach.

Interesting topic.

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For the OP, get a thick skin, because these will be the same folks who will have NO CLUE about what you're doing once you're in school...it is not the same as taking a history or English course, or even an A & P class...you won't find a lot of understanding except among classmates and folks on these boards!! It's almost like an "inside joke" where you have to be there...:roll

I had a pretty intense test last week and my husband was rolling his eyes at the amount of studying and stressing I was doing over the weekend....he said, "You always get good grades"...but he wasn't connecting the dots -- perhaps there is some correlation between the amount of studying I do AND the fact that I get decent grades? It's not a gimme.....

Hang in there and don't let those that can't understand get to you....just enjoy the ride!!

NOW THAT IS MY BIGGEST PET PEEVE!

I tell you nothing makes me madder then that, my friends and family members always say this too, you put too much pressure on yourself you worry and stress and study all day and then you get an A. Ya I am STUDYING exactly I am not a non studier I work extremely hard I am 39 years old I want this bad and I don't want it in 5 years!! I want it now so I work for it. oyieee don't even get me started hehehe.

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On the flip side, how can finding Nursing instructors be any different from finding Chemistry and Physics professors at schools? I have never heard of a school that had to cut back on their Chemistry majors because they couldn't find professors that were willing to work for less money than they would make out in the field.

I

have met so many instructors over the years that left their fields of service to teach...for the love of teaching...can Nursing be so different?

I mean, don't get me wrong. I am sort of glad of the shortage, because in the end, that keeps us ALL employed and working at decent salaries. But I do think that the shortage is an artificial one.

The problem with the nursing instructor shortage is not merely one of salaries keeping pace with market levels. You've got to consider the student-teacher ratio as well.

Odds are that your nursing instructor cannot legally teach more than 8 to 10 students in a clinical setting at any given time, whereas there is no legal limit on the number of students your chemistry teacher can have in his or her class. Schools need more nursing instructors than chem teachers because of legally imposed ratios.

If you're at a public school, has your state legislature factored that into your school's allocation? Probably not, and that's exacerbated the instructor shortage.

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On the flip side, how can finding Nursing instructors be any different from finding Chemistry and Physics professors at schools? I have never heard of a school that had to cut back on their Chemistry majors because they couldn't find professors that were willing to work for less money than they would make out in the field.

My Chemistry Professor is a PhD and a Chemical Engineer by trade. The President of our college is the same.

The same goes for instructors of computer courses. I have never heard of a college cutting back those programs either.

I can imagine that there are enough instructors that might be disabled, just tired of working in a hospital, or cannot keep up with the physical demands of bedside nursing, etc, that can teach at a college level where it doesn't require scaling back of the program. I have met so many instructors over the years that left their fields of service to teach...for the love of teaching...can Nursing be so different?

I mean, don't get me wrong. I am sort of glad of the shortage, because in the end, that keeps us ALL employed and working at decent salaries. But I do think that the shortage is an artificial one.

In a word - money.

Money, money, money. Becoming an instructor requires, occasionally, a cut in pay and benefits. And also - schools have to have money to pay instructors. They also have to have the resources to get more clinical site agreements to support the instructors they need to hire and the students they can now admit.

It's basically down to money. At least, that's how I understand it.

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I think it's a combination of things.

For one, most nurses do not get a PhD. In most universities, for a tenure-track position, a PhD is required. Hence the lack of tenure-track faculty. Most instructors are just that - instructors. Not publishing, not on the tenure track.

Nursing is also an expensive program to support, from a university standpoint. Insurance alone is $$$.

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I completely understand and i get the same reaction from people wondering what it is soooo competetive to get into a nursing program. I came to the top nursing school in my state to find out that acceptance to the college does not mean you will be in the program. Are you going for your adn? i am in my second year at a university and thinking about trying for an adn program.

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In a word - money.

Money, money, money. Becoming an instructor requires, occasionally, a cut in pay and benefits. And also - schools have to have money to pay instructors. They also have to have the resources to get more clinical site agreements to support the instructors they need to hire and the students they can now admit.

It's basically down to money. At least, that's how I understand it.

I totally agree with you. It's all about the money. My Chem professor said he made 6x his current salary as an instructor, as a Chemical Engineer. He retired from his company and just teaching school to supplement his income. He told me there would be no way you could have got him to teach school when he was younger b/c of the $$$$$$.

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I think it's a combination of things.

For one, most nurses do not get a PhD. In most universities, for a tenure-track position, a PhD is required. Hence the lack of tenure-track faculty. Most instructors are just that - instructors. Not publishing, not on the tenure track.

Nursing is also an expensive program to support, from a university standpoint. Insurance alone is $$$.

Our dean here told us that, technically, nursing school tuition does not cover the cost of our education. I'm sure that's true everywhere. Grants from companies like Glaxo and medical research institutions help, and we do have a fat endowment here, with investment profits that we share with the other health professions schools (PT, PA, and of course MD). And God knows I've written some whopping checks - but I don't doubt her words a bit. She said that typically schools spend good money on their development personnel, because they need talented folks that can go out and FIND, BEG, and GET the dough to keep places going.

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Pls tell your family to believe you. Sometimes you even pass the entrance test - NET, TEAS but you still dont get in.

However, at your entrance interview, presentation and your need to get into the school shows in the way you answer questions etc. Show the admissions director that you really need it.

I went for the interview sort of like you go when going for a job interview - no jeans, etc. Just gave me some confidence...... Do it your way though. Good LUCK:up:

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In CA Bay Area news today, nurse shortage is no longer an issue. California is putting out enough nurses that the shortage problem is no longer an issue. The problem was in 2003, and so 2005 programs were implemented to address the shortage. The seem to have worked, because of the 2 year programs, there are enough nurses who have graduated to fill in the void.

I feel for those people who are leaving their jobs chasing $$$, only to find out that upon graduating from nursing school, securing employment may become a major issue.

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