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Exciting!! Congratulations!

Have you had an offer from Mohawk yet? If you accept the Humber offer now, then you know you have it. Then , you also have some time to think about Mohawk and see if they do give an offer. You're probably having a hard time making a decisions because actually each offer has good points. It's only 16 months too. You should call the people responsible for placement co-ordination and see what sort of placements they give. Good luck!

I've generally been at a healthy weight most of my life but had some issues shedding weight over the year when i was struggling with stress and then pregnancies. Even though I exercised regularly and ate healthfully, it seemed like my weight was stuck at a certain number. I found, believe it or not, doing regular kundalini yoga and meditation (daily I mean) and light aerobic weight training (i.e. Jillian Michaels) and just upping my vegetable intake has helped. I've lost 25 pounds and am back at my university weight. I'm a person who always eats healthy and ran half-marathons and still I couldn't lose weight. So when I recommend kundalini yoga and meditation - I really mean it! I think these things helped me calm down and helped me lose weight. I think the cortisol surge created by stress really mucks with women's weight.

I am not a nurse yet but I would say that yes it is possible - you must make the fitness and healthful lifestyle a priority. I have worked stressful 12 hour shifts in other jobs and done 4 hour daily commutes to jobs and still found time to exercise. My DH works 10-12 hours a day, is always on his feet and has plantaf fascitis but he takes a healthy lunch most days and picks at it when he can and we eat healthy homemade meals at home - even if it's just quick sandwich and a lot of fresh vegetables and fruit. It can be done - it just has to be a priority.

:up:HI mamaonamission! :redbeathe Sounds like we're in a similar place and state of mind. I'm a year older than you but only have two kids (5 children - wow!!). I have dreams about the future but reality is a different thing. We'll see what happens. I feel the most important thing is to enjoy the journey right now. Good luck with your studies as well!

Yep, definitely. For those on this board who are older or tried a few different career paths, we know that there is no 'sure thing'. Jobs definitely come and go in many fields. I think the issue arises when people have this expectation that if they complete "X" diploma or "Y Degree", they'll be guaranteed and deserve a lifetime job with $XYZ salary. Life doesn't work that way, unfortunately. Not for most people! But if you want to be a nurse (or a teacher, or pet groomer, or a shoe sales person, or a truck driver etc etc), you'll find a way to make it work.

KB14 - thanks for the encouraging words. I'm definitely going to apply and go the RPN route as I already said. My only apprehension was that I have spent a lot of time reading threads in this website forum written by people who are LPN and RPNs and seem to wish they'd done a degree instead. It's nice to hear from people who are happy as PNs and have no lingering urge or need to upgrade. Why do I want to be a nurse? Because about 20 years, I spent 5 semesters studying to be an occupational therapist and I found medicine incredibly interesting and I loved working with people and I found the hospitals energizing and health care a great field. I just disliked what OTs did and decided to leave and get a Psych degree (with an intention of becoming a clinical child psychologist). I didn't like research and ended up working in the legal field (mergers, acquisitions, securities, etc.) for many years. I've been a SAHM now for several years. I volunteer with the VON and I want to get out with people and help them. I still find medicine and health care fascinating and I have (have always had) a strong internal urge to HEAL people. I have studied Reiki and I seem to have good healing skills and I love being with people and helping them. We have growing populations of elderly, diabetic, obese people ... all sorts of issues ... I want to help. So no, it's not because of the money. If it was about the money - I could go back to my previous job and make the same as a RPN. It's not about the money. I have decided to focus, as I said, on becoming a RPN and then becoming the best one I can be. I really want to be with people and helping them, hands on. HTH.

I'm the OP of this thread (opening post). Did you direct the question to me, bottomz ? I'm planning to start, this fall, the two subjects I need to gain admission into either the RPN or the RN program. I think I have a shot at both, from what the admissions officers have told me. I think I will go the RPN route b/c I think it would be less wear and tear on my family (DH and young children) right now.

Well, that's a HUGE positive, in my mind!!!!:)

This is exactly how I feel. I'm in my early 40s and have been through some pretty rough patches in my working life. I retreated to my home and raised my kids for 7 years. I've been hoping nursing would be a good decent job from which I could grow, help and earn a living. I don't know if it is good or bad that I discovered this board!

Sarah, I'm new to this board and just beginning to get my prerequisites and planning to take the PN 2 year diploma in Ontario, Canada. I'm likely the same age as you and this is my second career plan. I have to admit, I am disheartened and a bit frightened reading these threads. So it's good to hear positive things. I hope more people will step forward with some positive stories. I'm contrasting the negative vents to my own experience - 10 years as a legal secretary. And entirely different field but I've seen just as much bitterness, frustration and depression in that field. I left my last legal job loathing the position and my health barely intact. Yes, the field is not set in a hospital and we're not dealing with life and death (although one would have thought it, judging by lawyers' stress levels) ... but that field is filled with a lot of unhappy people. I wonder if many jobs are in general, just tough to do? Nursing and medicine is in my blood - most of the family are nurses and docs. I've worked in hospitals in the past and studied occupational therapy as well. I admit though - these war stories are scaring me.

linzz Good point! Seems quite often when we are receiving bad care or service from a miserable or depressed person - it's a person who dislikes their job. And I definitely don't want an unhappy dentist putting a drill into my teeth!

I think wherever there are jobs that pay decent wages, there will always be people applying for so-called "wrong reasons". I worked in the legal world for years and saw so many unhappy law students and lawyers - they got into the field for the money. Similarly there are doctors and dentists out there whose goals are monetary rather than altruistic. I'm sure there are a zillion people working on the lines in the automobile industry that are there just for a paycheque. If it makes it more competive for others, it's frustrating but that's life, I guess.

Just backing up to the original question ... I've been in touch with Mohawk's admission office regarding their RPN cut-off. She's telling me it's around 85-90% in the required subjects. I'm just gasping at the numbers. I was accepted into a HIGHLY COMPETITIVE occupational therapy degree program 20 years ago and those sort of marks were not required. I'm starting to take the necessary high school and college courses but I'm really intimidated by the benchmark of an A-A+. I have As in my transcripts but not necessarily in the subjects they want. It's a bit daunting.

Fiona - you said : Depending on how old you are when you finish you really have to weigh the cost of the degree vs. potential earnings & pensions. I know that if I did the degree, I'd have to work full time until I'm over 60 to pay the student loans. Then the lost wages, being low RN on the seniority list and the value of the lost pension. In reality not worth it. Although I like the sounds of acquiring my RN and who knows what the future will bring, this is a reality I'm facing as well. I'm turning 43 and I'm just starting to acquire my admissions requirements. My goal is to get into the RPN program and see what happens from that point. Another goal - which is hugely different than my approach in the past - is to enjoy this journey right now! Instead of fretting and worrying about when I get the diploma in my hand - just enjoy my studies and my life as it is right now. I'll have to bookmark this thread to make sure I stick to my word.