suzies

Hi, congrats on the acceptance! I suppose it might depend on where you live. That said, there is a nursing shortage just about everywhere. My experience was that people were very eager to hire my classmates and I as staff nurses once we finished the RN portion of my direct-entry master's program. None of my classmates had any trouble finding part-time RN jobs during the remainder of our NP programs. Many chose to continue as staff nurses after they got their masters degrees. Some just found they loved it and saw no need to change jobs. Others wanted more staff nurse experience before putting their NP skills to use. Finally, I think some some had a hard time finding jobs. There is a lot of talk on these boards about how such programs, much of it negative. I understand arguments for and againts these programs. All I know is that I did it, enjoyed it, and I LOVE being an NP. I have to admit that being a staff nurse was so very different from what I do as an NP that I am not sure how much that experience informs my practice as an NP. I do recommend that you work as a staff nurse, mainly so that you can say you did it, and to foster a nursing identity. (And if you ever choose to work in an inpatient setting, you'll write orders, etc. with the nurses in mind, which is nice.)