Air89

With your background maybe an Infection Control Nurse. The federal government usually hires for this specialty. This is such important work and I believe pays well. Good luck! You have many options!

My husband died five years ago. I had to support and take care of my four children on my own. I was at that time to start an Lpn to RN program. I had to withdraw from school and was probably a wise decision. I think you are smart in looking to scale back and look for a lower stress job in your field or another field. The grief you will go through is real and hits you in waves. It will get get better, or should I say you will get better in coping. One thing I would suggest is possibly looking into support groups if available and/or part-time work. Good luck to you.

You hate being a nurse. Life can be too long to be miserable. It's never too late to try something new.

I did get the email, thanks. I may re-take it as a refresher.

Good to know. My CPR/AED is still valid, I took a class last year. I'll bring my card too.

Wow, your a step or two ahead of me. I was waiting for orientation before ordering a stethoscope; it doesn't hurt to be prepared. Yes. Reality is starting to sink in. I can't believe we start class next week. Other than the supplemental books that ordered I haven't bought anything else yet. I've been doing some reading, that's all. Youtube is a great tool.

I was recently told that Nurse.com is a good resource for nursing information and continuing education.

Great point. Thanks, I'm going to give this some more thought.

I ordered Anatomy and Physiology and Microbiology books for Dummies. Ha! Bought them used online. I was feeling the same way about being unprepared until last semester I took Intro to Organic and Biochemistry at the 'Harvard on the Hill' and pulled off a good grade, which gave me a huge confidence boost. (I have been out of school for a long time). I'm not sure how much of that will be helpful for LPN studies though. I have not purchased anything except some white sneakers that I found on sale. Hopefully they will provide what books we need. As for a specialty, it is so hard to predict. I would like to work at the hospital if I eventually become an RN. I am open minded about trying any specialty. I think I would also enjoy home health. I am not sure if LPN's are being hired at the hospital. It must depend on the hospital and city you live in. From reading posts it sounds like the bigger city hospitals hire RN's only. As an LPN, I would like to work at an urgent care clinic or similar setting to get experience with all kinds of situations. It seems a lot of LPN's work in the doctor's office or LTC. Kids are great, I have worked with kids in the social work field.

I am also going to the Coopers Campus, I applied to the RN program at CCC but was placed on the waiting list. I had to complete the chemistry prerequisite last spring so my application to CCC was late. I feel the same, excited and nervous.

I will be attending Boces next month too, and hopefully bridge to the RN at CCC.

I am in upstate NY. So far, I am going with plan B, the LPN program, since I am still on the waiting list for the RN program. I am still holding out hope to get into the RN program but as each day goes by, it looks less likely to happen. Either way I am not disappointed as it seems that their are also benefits to attending an LPN program first. Thanks for all your responses.

I am seeking advise or other's experience on the best path to Nursing to take. I was accepted to a community college, Associate Degree program for RN and was just placed on a waiting list. It looks highly unlikely that I will get in as I believe the cap was already reached and seems more likely that I will have to re-submit my Nursing Packet again for the following Fall 2015. I have all my pre-reqs completed but will need some more science. The other option I have is that I also was accepted into the LPN program to begin this August. Would there be an added benefit to getting an LPN and then going to the Advanced Placement to RN (basically skipping one semester)? I am thinking that this would be good experience to get in the mean time; or is this just wasting time and money? I would add that this will be a second career for me. Any advice or experience would be so gratefully appreciated.

You can look at it from an economic point of view - do the math- your cost of education against what you will make and how many more years you want to work to see if it is worth it to you. Or, maybe this does not matter to you and you would still enjoy pursuing this career. Sometimes you can not put a price on your happiness.

Yes, completely understand your frustration. I'm also waiting to get into the Nursing program here. I was hoping to get in Fall 2014 but I had to complete a prerequisite and like you worked really hard only to find out that I am going to have to wait a year. I'm also older too, 43, married with 4 kids. It's kind of funny actually, because I already have a Bachelors Degree, so now I'm going back to get an Associate Degree at the Community College.