sf7126

Thanks to everyone. This thread has been inspiring.

Thanks. I didn't know there was one....

Wow, thanks so much everyone. I've had some pretty cracked ideas in my time (just ask my wife...lol), so it's great to get so much confirmation with what I'm thinking so far. I've had success in studying the sciences before, so I'm not worried about that. What I've mostly been wanting, other than a fairly comfortable living, is a job where I could feel like I'm making a difference to other people. Being cynical, I thought that was a pipe dream, but I've now read so many stories here and elsewhere about people getting satisfaction from their work that I'm now allowing myself to get my hopes about the possibility of having such a career myself. I've researched a lot of other careers in my time and something always comes up that makes it clear that it's not for me. The more research I do on nursing, however, the more it becomes clear that I can start taking the next step. Thanks again, everyone. I really appreciate the input. sf

I'm hoping I'm in the right place for this; this site is so huge I may have missed the appropriate forum... Here's where I'm at: changing careers in my late 30s (this probably isn't the first time you've heard this story, I know). My wife works at a hospital (she's not a nurse) and came up with the idea the other day of trying to get me a job there in some capacity (I've been working on commission and the market for it has gone south; plus, I've always hated it). So this got me to thinking (dangerous, I know) and I started doing some research about various possibilities in health care. Nursing jumped out, as I think I'm too old to consider medical school (combined with the fact that I have less than no interest in becoming a doctor), yet I want more of a challenge (academically, at first, anyway) than a tech position (no offense against techs of any kind meant at all; just not a direction that initially appeals to me personally), and I'd like something that has room to grow. I'd never thought of it before, but as I began to look into the curriculum, I thought, hey, I can do this and, what's more, I think I might actually enjoy it. (Plus, my mother's a nurse; I have no idea how she'll react if I decide to do this. lol) I've gotten as far as discovering that the local state university has a nursing program (I'm just a bit too far out to commute to some of the larger universities in the general area) and plotted out the prereqs at the local JC (I can get them done in a year). What I'm hoping to get from some of you fine people is perspective, advice, encouragement or discouragement, etc. Just general thoughts from people with experience for someone looking to get into nursing. Anything you think is useful that you're willing to share would be most appreciated. Thanks very much for your time. sf