USSTusk

I obtained my RN when I was 35. Once I began working in my field, I enjoyed it so much, I just kept going to school part-time and NEVER noticed my age again. I am now 54 and have a doctoral degree, and am a family nurse practitioner. You will bring a particular set of skills to where you choose to work. Especially with so many elderly out there. Believe me, they will appreciate you so much! You will still remember what it was like before the technology boom began! You are only too old if you keep saying that. One of my favorite motto's "You can eat an entire elephant, one spoon at a time." Fear is a good motivator anyway. Use your fear as a focus factor. When you find yourself nervous, say, "OK, I need to really concentrate now." THEN CONCENTRATE! You will do this! Live in the moments.

Those are not hypothetical quotes. I have heard everyone one of those comments from nurses on the hospital units. Think of other career choices that have uniforms. How do they look? I had a nurse mentor in one hospital who was so good at her job, but she wore bright red g-string underwear under a white uniform (TRUE!!). She got away with it for 2 reasons. The hospital allowed it. She was EXCELLENT and already had proven herself as a skilled provider. As a student, you follow the rules. The email is actually calm compared to some I have read. Let it go and be a team player who encourages your classmates to look good. It shows you care about yourself and others.

I have been a registered nurse since 1995. I now hold a Doctorate of Nursing. I was, am and always will be a student. Everyone should look at life in that way. NOT ONCE, have I ever been asked my GPA by a patient. I have had doctors, nurses, attorneys, nursing professors ALL as patients and they only wanted health care. I did graduate with honors in each program;however, I don't think I received a 100% on ANY test. To this day, I still ask my patients for pointers about their healthcare so I can teach others. The patients love it, I learns lots of easy healthy tricks and pass them along.

As a former ER nurse, I knew many doctors and NP's from a variety of specialties. Because of this, I specifically chose an NP program that allowed me to choose my own preceptor. While planning which NP program to choose, costs, time involved, etc; I also spoke with NP's and physicians I encountered that I thought would be great preceptors. So while interviewing NP programs, I also interviewed potential preceptors as well. By the time I was ready for clinical I had my preceptors lined up already. I worried if the school 'pre-picked' or 'pre-designated' preceptors I would be stuck, especially, if there was any type of conflict. (I had some horrible preceptors in my RN program). I would consider speaking with the university counselors for health prior to protesting anything. I went on and obtained a doctorate of nursing degree as well. I was also able to choose my own mentor for that and am happy with my choices.