RNmedic92

Sorry for my delay in responding, busy week of OT. I appreciate such a detailed analysis! Do you believe that the NP market will stabilize in the next 10 years? Everything I have read on this forum and others suggest that the NP market is heading for a huge crash. I understand that forums generally attract people who are unsatisfied and that the best NP's will usually head to the top, but there are so many different types of "best." You have the best clinicians, the best networkers, and the best at being just plain lucky. Not to mention the multitude of factors at play such as area, specialization and school selection. If I enter the NP profession I plan to select a good school, to be prepared to move and to work in more rural locations. Hopefully I can attend a residency. My fear is that one day, that might not be enough to secure a good job. To be specific a job that pays 95k plus and is not abusive. You seem to be a huge advocate for the profession and you also seem to be well informed about things related to the NP profession. With what you know, do you think FNP or AGACNP is more likely to have job security in the future? I also was wondering if schools like Texas Tech, while reputable by name, but don't provide clinicals for the student are good choices for education?

I appreciate the response, that has been a thought of mine. I fear that NP's will become so replaceable that I would have no job security in the future. I feel like eventually even all of the rural areas will become saturated.

I know this is a topic that has been brought up many times on allnurses, but I am hoping this thread will give me additional insight. I am a 30-year-old male who has 10 years of Paramedic experience in a busy 911 system and 6 months of experience as an RN in a rural surgical ICU. I live in a rural area around San Antonio, Texas. I transitioned from paramedic to RN so that I could better provide for my family and still work in healthcare. I have found my RN experience enjoyable so far but have found myself contemplating the next step in my career. I entered nursing with the idea that I would work in the field to pay my dues and learn the nursing role; then transition to an advanced practice role such as NP, or CRNA. Truth be told I had a preference for either working as an NP in the ED or Urgent Care setting, however after looking at the current saturation in the job market as well as the estimate that the job market will worsen over the next decade, I have become concerned with pursuing this route. I learned about the CRNA role more recently and I am investigating it currently, but it does have a big barrier of entry for me as I am the sole income earner for my family and do not live near a CRNA program (the huge debt burden scares me a lot.) I am hoping to gain wisdom and insight from people who currently work as advanced practice nurses and know better than I do searching through info on the internet. If you are willing and able to answer I want to know if it is still worth pursuing an FNP, or AGACNP degree? Do you believe that this career is one that will sustain my family to retirement, or is the saturation heading to a point where I would be better off staying an RN, or pursuing CRNA? I want to make career moves now, so that I am the most prepared I can be for my career. Thank you in advance for your time!