Actioncatt

All the state universities in my area are also like 40k, so I would kind of be in the same boat in the end.

Is that the case even if I don't worry for a hospital right away?

Hi all, I could really use some advice! A little background. I have a bachelor's degree in Psych. I was also doing premed, so I finished all of the pre rec classes you need for nursing school (A+P, micro, etc). I want to eventually get my masters in nursing to be an psychiatric np but for now I'm just worried about getting my rn so I can make decent livable money and set up other parts of my life like moving out and such. I live in MA but I want to move to philidelphia once I get my rn. Once I've done that I can go to school part time for my masters. Originally I was going to do one of those accelerated second degree programs and get my BSN. I applied to a few. But then I was thinking, maybe I should just get my adn at a community College. It'll be way cheaper (and my work will help pay for most of it) and because I already have a Bachelor's degree I would only have to do the nursing classes. Hopefully, this means I'd be able to work full time so I can help pay my current bills and save for moving when I graduate. But it'll be a lesser degree and it'll take me two years (and I have to wait until fall 2019 to take it) instead of the 18 months starting in spring 2019 with the accelerated BSN. But then I got accepted in the MGH school in Boston. And they gave me a $34,000 scholarship. However, that still means taking out a ~$40,000 loan on top of my $50,000 in school debt. And I most likely wouldn't be able to work or would only get to work part time because of the added work load. I live with my boyfriend and he's willing to help me though but it'll be a really tough time with student loans and my other bills. But, that would be good networking. And because I'll be saving a year by doing the BSN, I could maybe work for a year after my degree and get some experience before moving to Philly. So, long story short, I'm looking for advice. Is it worth it to get the BSN at MGH? I know it's a great hospital but I've heard some iffy things about the school. Or should I just go and get my adn at a community College and save the money?

Oh, see I was thinking you had to have some sort of certification to work in psychology as a nurse. Okay, so this is what I'm picturing, tell me if I'm correct. Id get my BSN and then work in psych nursing, like taking care of patients at a hospital making sure they take their medication and their ADLs are assisted and such. And then is the certification so I can become almost like a psychiatrist? Because that's sort of how I understood a psychiatric nurse to be. Like a counselor who works under a psychiatrist.

Hi all! I'll try to keep this short, but what I'm looking at is this: I was originally planning on going to medical school but I really think I don't have the time or the financial stability to pursue that career. So, I've been eyeing psychiatric nursing for some time as a really promising alternative. I currently have a bachelor's in Psych and a bunch of pre med classes under my belt. I have about a year at a drug rehab clinic and some time as a physician scribe as well as a bunch of other irrelevant volunteer work, too. I looks like I'll have to get a BSN and have two years as an RN under my belt before I can become a Psychiatric Nurse, but I'm not sure what "minimum of 2,000 hours of clinical practice in a mental health setting and 30 hours of continuing education in mental health within the three years prior" exactly means. Does my bachelor's in Psych count as some of this? What sort of work exactly would this fall under? I guess I'm just trying to build a clear mental road map of where I need to go from here to becoming a psychiatric nurse. If anyone could help me out I'd really appreciate it!