iteachob

Yes, I teach full-time in an academic setting. I won't say it's been the easiest schedule, but it will allow me to take a year-long sabbatical next year to devote time to completing my dissertation.

Before writing yourself off as "too old" or PhD as "too expensive", look into what financial aid (scholarships/fellowships) is available. You might be very surprised. I'm 54, just about to finish my classwork in a PhD program at a large research university. I've been able to obtain scholarships without too much trouble, and even a fellowship (I didn't even have to apply for that one) that pays my tuition plus a stipend and health insurance. Realize also that there is this little thing called the Nursing Faculty Loan Program (NFLP) that will loan you money to attend school and forgives 85% (over 4 years) after you graduate, as long as you stay in a full-time faculty position. I took that loan out for my first semester only. I don't know how old you are, but like I said, I'm 54. I'm not even the oldest one in my cohort......remember, nurses tend to have a different trajectory toward PhD than other professions, so even if you're older than the "average" PhD student, chances are you'll fit right in with nursing PhD students. Good luck with whatever you decide.

Absolutely! All summer....plus a month at Christmas-time as well. Like the posters said above, it does depend on what type of school you teach at. I'm at a 4-year private University.

Hopping in on this thread....I am a current PhD student with 28 hours (2 years, part-time) of my program complete. I'm just wondering if anyone has ever got to the point in their program where they think "what have I gotten myself into"? Because, I'm there. My grades are fine, I've bonded with my cohort, but......ugghh. I'm just hoping that some time to myself this summer revives some of my motivation. Please share your stories.

I feel your pain. I'm in a PhD program, and all of my professors (all of them), prefer we not cite in APA. To quote, "it takes up too much room". And, it does actually. Thank GOD for the reference manager program End Note. Do you use it? If not, you should. It is life-changing. One click and it will reformat your paper in a number of styles, depending on the journal requirements. It also libraries all your references (with PDF attachment if you like), for future use. 30 day trial here.... 30-Day Trial | EndNote | Thomson Reuters

I'm currently a PhD student at a non-online program. If you are sure you want to stay in education, you ought to look into the Nurse Faculty Loan Program. It offers an 85% loan repayment after graduation as long as you remain full time faculty at a accredited school of nursing. 20% is forgiven each of the first 3 years of full-time employment after graduation, and 25% is forgiven the 4th year. Also, you may be eligible for graduate fellowships which may offer things like tuition, health insurance, and stipend.....I currently am going to school on a fellowship and scholarship. I received these after demonstrating very successful grades in my 1st year of classes. I'm actually ahead financially this year! My stipend is more than enough to pay for books, supplies, and travel. Definitely look into your options...you might be surprised! :)

Finished BSN at 23, MSN at 43. Now I'm working on a PhD (2nd year at it) and I'm 53... Never too old to be a student!

I'm a full-time faculty member at one university in my state and a part-time PhD student (7 hours...full time is 9 hrs per semester) at another. I do not get tuition reimbursement from my job, but I do have a non-service fellowship and a scholarship at the University where I am a student. It pays everything, plus a stipend. :) It is a ROUGH schedule (I travel 280 miles round trip once a week for classes) and I am tempted to go part-time at my job.

I understand your concern. Here is how I look at it.....I had a great childhood, have never been abused, neglected, beaten. But, this is not true for everyone. Many women who have had very rough or abusive childhoods or current situations will turn to drugs as an escape. In fact, most women who do abuse drugs do have history of abuse (physical, sexual, emotional). It doesn't make it okay, but I do find it easier to have compassion. Remember, also, that addiction is a phenomenon of great power. Too, many of these women have a great deal of guilt about their drug use during pregnancy and they fear judgement from health care professionals. In addition, they may fear loss of custody. It is the nurse's responsibility to make possible a therapeutic, trusting relationship. We can't help a mom with substance abuse problems in any way if she doesn't feel she is able to trust.

Gosh, it's been years ago, but I used a prep book that had a lot of practice tests in it. This was in the paper and pencil days, so I'm not sure of what is available now, but I would recommend giving yourself around 4-6 weeks with a little studying each day (especially weak areas), and doing several practice tests. The one's I had could be scored so that you could see your progress (or lack of...). Ultimately, I did quite well on the GRE. I did not take a prep class, but I know that they can be very useful as well (I used to teach NCLEX prep for Kaplan). Good luck in your endeavors.

Hi, I am currently in a PhD program (large state university). I completed my qualitative methods class in April. LOVED it. Lots of reading, practicing some of the methods (non-participant observation, lifeline interview method, etc). My professor was awesome....from Great Britain (bonus: very cool accent). I take quantitative methods in the Fall. As for statistics, the class in general statistical methods was not bad at all. I had seen a lot of it before. Right now (literally, right now) I am taking Regression & Analysis. The assignments consist mostly of problems/data that you have to run through minitab and then analyze the output. Other than the moments when I think my head might actually explode, it has not been too bad. A helpful professor and a good cohort to go through it with are highly recommended.

Take a look at Murray & McKinney. It is a Saunders/Elsevier text. It is neither too simple or too complex. There are case studies in the on-line student resources. I've used it for several years.

Highly recommend preparing for it. I spent several months (not every day) preparing and did very well the first time. If you are good at math, you won't have to prepare much for that section....it's not much more than high school level, if that. Your vocabulary needs to be VERY good. That is where I spent the most time studying.

I have done the staff nurse thing. Loved working nights and didn't really care about working weekends and holidays. Of course, I was much younger, single, and childless then. Now, I'm a Nurse Educator in an academic setting. Other than my teaching duties (class and clinical), plus required office hours (5 per week)....I make my own schedule. Off for a month between semesters and since I don't teach a summer session....well, let's just say I have a prolonged break before the start of a new school year. The downside: I did have to go to school for a long time (still am) to get this job.

Have you looked at the Nursing Faculty Loan Program (NFLP)? If you are interested in staying employed as nurse faculty, it is definitely something worth looking into. I'm currently a part-time PhD student in KY, and full-time faculty (at a different university) and get all my tuition covered by this loan. The loan is forgiven at a rate of 20%/year for the first 3 years post graduation, and 25% for the 4th year that you remain employed full-time as faculty in a school of nursing. That's 85% loan forgiveness. You are required to take extra classes in education, but that's a good thing if you are committed to teaching. Look into here: Nurse Faculty Loan Program Funding Opportunity