Le-Lee_FNP

Hello everyone. I am researching post-masters DNP programs and noticed that Frontier offers an option where your place of employment can be counted toward your clinical hours. I am just wondering if all of the DNP programs allow this or is this just an option for certain schools? I would think that if you are already working as an advanced practice nurse that doing additional clinical hours outside of that would be unnecessary. Anyone else currently in a DNP program that allows this?

Well people can feel that online learning is inadequate all day long, but the bottom line is if you pass ANCC or AANP then you are competent as deemed by the National certification Gods. So if people don't like that who cares thats their problem. Your license is the same as theirs and I don't see online learning going anywhere anytimes soon.

I will probably be in a similar situation when i graduate in december. I currently work in ICU and have gotten many unofficial offers from some of the MDs i work with to come join their practices. One is a pulmonologist and one is a Gastroenterologist. I'm not sure that i am that interested in either of these specialties and would prefer primary care initially, but as a new grad i feel like a begger can't be a choser. The competition is stiff where i live and i am going to have to take something if i want to work as a NP, so i will definately see whats out there but if you have a for sure job offer that sounds good and nothing else seems promising i wouldn't hold out if i were you. You can always do primary care later and i doubt that specializing first will hurt your future job prospects. Good luck.

Hi Reeya. i don't have advice, i'm sorry but i just wanted to say congrats on your first NP job. I remember you posting a lot while still in school and seeing you make it to the finish line is very inspiring. I will be done this december God willing. Good luck! I'm sure you will do great.

I am just wondering if you have a nursing backround at all? This is ALLNURSES.com not allmedicalstudents.com You have your opinion and that's fine but when you as a medical student come on a nursing message board and insult nurses by saying things like "there's a reason a lot of physicians these days are preferring PAs to NPs" it does nothing but cause tension. I agree we should stick to the original topic of the OP. OP, I will be graduating from a distance program this december. (and for those of you who are wondering I have 5 years of bedside nursing experience in critical care). I have also struggled every semester with finding a preceptor. My school for the most part requires that we find our own, however they have an affiliation agreement with two clinics and one hospital in which students can apply to every semester. It is very competetive to get into those sites and if you aren't accepted you are pretty much on your own. What i did was sent out a mass e-mail at the beginning of each semester to all of my fellow classmates in my non-clinical courses and all of my instructors asking if anyone knew of any sites, NPs, or MDs who would be willing to take a student for the following semester. One semester i lucked out ant one of my instructors volunteered to be my preceptor and i also got numerous leads from other students in my program. I also had to do the online searching, walking into clinics, and looking through the phone book. It really is just all about asking as many people as you can and exhausting your resources. Its not ideal but why complain about something that we can't change. We chose to attend distance programs and knew ahead of time that this would be the requirement of us. I could have chosen a different program that was more expensive or prestigious or whatever because i had the grades for it, however i chose the program that was more convenient for my lifestyle of being a working mom, as well as what was the most economical so i have to live with the decision i made. Sure my education and clinical experiences may not be on par with other schools, but its my responsibility to bridge the gap by supplementing my education and getting the most out of the program. It took 40 contacts before i secured my first preceptor. Also see if your school will allow you to use the same site at least twice because most of them will. Be persistent and eventually you will find someone who is willing to precept you. Also don't rule out MDs because many of them enjoy teaching and have NPs that work with them in their practice.

Sorry if this may sound like a stupid question. Just wondering for all the NPs out there if the grades you obtained during school made an impact on your marketability for jobs as a new grad? I know that grades weren't much of a factor when I graduated from RN school, the only time it mattered was for the New grad residency programs. I am just wondering if anyone even asks about your grades when you apply for NP jobs? Or do they just care that you have a license? I am freeking out because I just recently messed up my 4.0 GPA (got one B last semester). I am pretty sure I want to eventually go back to school to either pursue a doctorate, post masters ACNP, or CRNA which is why I am so psycho about my grades, but I am just wondering if grades will affect job prospects as well? Thanks!

Hello everyone, I am just wondering if anyone could give me their opionions regarding certifications and if they are useful or not for NPs who are new graduates looking for jobs. Do certifications still look good on your resume as an APRN and hold the same weight as they do for RNs? For example if I were to obtain my CCRN would that help me in applying for jobs as an NP? I know this may be a tricky question considering that I am going for my FNP instead of my acute care NP (I am currently an ICU RN), but I am just wondering if any other certifications would help improve job prospects such as the CCRN, CEN, OCN, etc. Obviously I am aware that I would need experience in other areas to sit for their specific certification exam. Thanks for any input!

There are one year MSN NP programs for BSNs. Vanderbilt offers them in many specialties. If he is an accountant I assume he already has a Bachelors of some sort. An ADN only takes 2 years to get. so if he got a bsn after that it probably would only have been a semester to 1 year max. Then if he did a one year MSN theres your four years. definately doable!

If the school that you want to attend does not offer a psych specialty for FNP then I would look into checking the requirements for where you want to work. I know some adult NPs and FNPs that work in the psych/mental health specialty even though they are not "certified" in psych. It really depends on your employer's preference. The NPs I am speaking of did have RN experience in psych. You could also look into doing a distance online program as many of them offer more of a variety of specialties. As far as the RN to BSN to MSN thing, the programs vary from school to school. Some award the BSN along the way, others offer a bridge option with just the MSN. This option however is usually for ADNs who also have a bachelors in a non-nursing field. I'm not sure what your situation is but I would do whichever is quicker and more cost efficient if I were you. If your ultimate goal is NP, no use in getting a BSN if you don't have to.

does anyone know how much average starting pay is for FNP in TN?

I agree with the above poster that your child will be less likely to remember you being in school when she is so young. however if you were to wait til she is older, you'd be likely to miss more of her life such as school activities etc. You may be the one that feels like you missed out on moments of when she was a baby because that time flies. If you can get over your own guilt, I think you will be fine and your child wont be affected at all. I am going into my second semester of full time FNP program. I have an 8 year old and a 5 year old. I work part-time however I do have a very supportive husband that is our primary bread winner and my mom also lives with us which is a big help! I went to nursing school after I had both my kids. My daughter was a baby and my son was 3. Nursing school was more time consuming to me than NP school. Then again maybe I will feel differently once I start clinicals. Good luck. I definately say get school out of the way as quick as you can so you can reap the benefits sooner and move on with your life!

I will PM you the name of the school I am attending. My Undergrad GPA was a 3.3 which I don't think is very competitive at all for graduate school. I am however an excellent writer and think I may have won them over with my goal statement. Either way, I feel that my school was relatively easy to get into.

Women's health is covered in FNP education. I imagine that it isn't covered as in depth as it would be in a WHNP program, however it is covered to the point where a FNP could comfortably enter into practice and care for women's health issues (pregnancy, birth control, STDs, etc.) We do complete an entire women's health rotation in which we learn to complete pap smears, pelvic exams, breast exams, etc.). so to answer your question I really wouldn't see the need for a FNP to go back and complete an additional cert as a WHNP.

Thank you for answering my question. I was wondering if this post would spur another MSN vs DNP debate which is not what I intended. Nurses are pretty passionate about their opinions of whether they are for or against the DNP and the pros and cons both politically and in practice. I personally am undecided on the issue of what I "think" about the DNP, but I would pursue it regardless if it would enhance my employment opportunities.

Just to clarify, I am well aware that experience supersedes education and that if a new grad DNP had to compete with a MSN with 10 plus years experience, their would be no comparison. However I am fairly young and anticipate over 30 years of practicing as a NP after I graduate (end of next year). So I really wanted to know everyone's "opinion" about whether or not new grad DNP NPs will be chosen over new grad MSN NPs within the next five years or so. If I need to go back for a doctorate degree I'd much rather just keep going rather than stop and figure out that I'm competing with more DNPs. I am only asking because when I graduated from nursing school originally with my ASN, there were many jobs that had an overwhelming amount of applicants and they had to narrow it down by selecting BSNs over ASNs. I just don't want to be in a situation where I am competing with other applicants for a job as a new grad and I am ruled out because I have an MSN and the other applicant(s) have DNPs.