MSNrunner

I have 160 hours total PTO time to use for vacation, sick days, and continuing education

I went to a B&M school that had a lab where we practiced our skills. Then we went to a med school close by that had volunteer patients. We were checked off on a full head to toe assessment, a sick patient visit, a pelvic exam, and a DRE with a doctor watching us. They gave us feedback at the end.

I'm working in primary care. This is my first NP job

Thank you!! I am working in primary care! And I actually enjoy working 9-5 so far because I like having evenings and weekends off

Hello! I will be starting my job in a few weeks. The hours are 9-5. I currently live about an hour away, so the commute will be rough at first. I live in an area that is saturated with NPs and it was tough to find a job. I plan on moving about 20 minutes closer to make my commute a little more manageable.

Hi everyone! I am a new grad family nurse practitioner starting a job in primary care in a few weeks. I am so excited to start my journey as an NP. What are your go-to resources for primary care? What did you wish you knew as a new grad? I know that I will learn something new everyday and the first year may be rough. I just want to make sure I am providing the best care possible to my patients. I will have a month of orientation and then after that, I will be the only provider at the office. The doc will be at another office about 10 minutes away and said he is only a phone call away if I have any questions.

I just interviewed for an aesthetics position as a nurse practitioner. I do not have any background/experience in aesthetics and I am a new grad FNP. The company said they would send me to a week long training program for laser hair removal and then the staff would train me on botox etc. at the office. Not sure if this helps you at all, but maybe if you gained experience with an aesthetics company that would help you when the time comes to start your own business?

A few of my preceptors have worked in the inpatient setting as FNPs. As others have stated, it depends on the hospital

Thanks for all of the great replies! My school sets up clinical sites for me, and unfortunately none of them have been in primary care (where I really want to work). I understand that I may have to work in other areas first before landing my dream job. I have kept in contact with all of my preceptors, and they have all said that I can use them as a reference. I will definitely keep them in mind while looking for job opportunities!

When would you guys suggest starting to apply for NP jobs? I will be graduating this summer and want to get a head start if I can.

I will be graduating with my FNP in August, and I am wondering when I should start applying for jobs. I hope to take boards ASAP after I graduate and I am eager to start the job search. I know the job market can be pretty rough in my area, so I am willing to relocate if needed.

I am also in an on campus FNP program. I will graduate in August 2018 and I have been working full time 3 12's throughout the program. I worked night shift until I started clinical, then switched to straight days. I'm not sure if I would have been able to do it if I continued to work nights. I plan on continuing to work full time until I graduate! It's definitely tough, especially with all of the clinical hours and studying. But, if you're willing to put in some long hours and not many days off, it's doable! Good luck!!

I'm a mother baby nurse in FNP school and I know several other OB/ postpartum nurses who are also in FNP school í ½í¸Š

I became a mother/baby nurse about a year ago and I had a year and a half of med/surg experience. I didn't take any certification classes prior to becoming a med/surg nurse. My advice would be just to go for it! I am so much happier with my job than I was in med/surg. I love working with new moms and babies and the environment is so much happier. Good luck! :)

Thanks so much for the responses:)

I have been a med surg nurse for just over a year now, and although I work with an awesome group of nurses, med surg is not where my heart is. I want to try a new area of nursing, but I also have an end goal of becoming a FNP. There is a job opening at my hospital for Mother Infant nursing and I really want to apply, but I am just wondering if this will hurt my chances of getting into FNP school or not provide me with the experience I need throughout school and once I become a FNP. Any thoughts/ suggestions are appreciated!

I can't speak from a nurse practitioner's perspective because I'm a nurse, but I can tell you what I know. I went through a bachelor of science in nursing program full time, which takes 4 years. You can become an associates degree nurse in 2 years full time, but then the nurse practitioner schooling would be longer I believe. If you get your BSN, you can become a nurse practitioner in 2-2.5 years. I am looking into nurse practitioner programs now and the only pre-req I've seen from a few schools is a statistics class. Some NP programs require a minimum amount of RN experience, while others require no experience. I didn't work while I was in nursing school, but I know plenty of people who had a part-time job throughout the program. Also, I'm not really sure how many male NPs there are. Hope this helps

thanks for the input! I will keep that in mind while making my decision

I may be starting in October 2014... can anyone tell me how they made their decision to choose chamberlain? I'm just worried that it may be harder to find a job because its a new program and completely online

Hello all, I have been a med/surg nurse for a year now and I recently started looking into FNP programs. I applied to receive more information about Chamberlain on their website a month or two ago, and ended up applying just because the application process was so easy. The admissions counselor requested my college transcripts, asked me a few questions, and within weeks I found out I had been accepted to start on October 27th. Although I am really excited about the idea of advancing my career, I am really worried about not being able to find a job after I graduate since their FNP program is so new and may not have the same reputation as other well known programs. Also, I feel as though the admissions process was a little too easy. I talked to my manager and she told me that she didn't know much about their program, but recommended that I look into FNP programs in my area that have a good reputation with the local hospitals. Does anyone know anything about the reputation of Chamberlain's program or is there anyone currently in the program that could give me some insight? Thanks in advance!

I know I am a little late to this topic...but I graduated in May 2013 and was hired by University Hospitals in Cleveland in August. I am in their nurse residency program and know for a fact that many new grads have been hired since I started. I didn't know anyone/have any experience with UH before getting hired but it seems like most of the RNs that are hired either worked as CTAs there or had clinicals there. You just have to look at their job openings everyday because they change so quickly. Good luck!

I am about 6 months into my first nursing job. It has been pretty tough, but I found that asking as many questions as I could (even if they sounded like dumb questions) during orientation helped prepare me for being on my own. I have also found certain nurses to be very helpful to go to when I have questions. I still ask a million questions a day and have learned which nurses to go to for help. Some have been great and others, not so much. Delegation is another thing that is so important for new nurses. Sometimes it is difficult to tell an aid (especially if they have worked on the floor for 30+ years) to do something for you. I have learned the hard way that I cannot get through the day without delegating. I have also learned that keeping my paperwork organized is key to getting through the day. I write down med times, vitals, MD pager numbers, and my to do list on a chart and then staple it to the front of my patient sheets. I am still learning too, but these are some of the things that have helped me so far. I hope this helps!

I'm in Ohio and started off at $26.41/hr with a $1 night shift differential. I am up for a raise every 6 months for the first 2 years, which will be nice!

Ohio $26.41 and $1 differential for nights Acute Care of the Elderly medical floor

I really appreciate the supportive comments. It makes me feel better realizing that this is normal and things will get better with more experience!