kmreid

Thank you so much to everyone for the insight! I just wish that things would work out so I could just get my BSN and be finished with the whole decision. If things can not work out any better, then I may just put it on the back burner for a while and see how things work out in a year or so. Maybe I can work and save a little extra money to help with some of the financial strain of going back to school? Regardless, each of you have offered up some good advice. I appreciate it!

I am currently a stay-at-home mom (my youngest will be starting school this year), but I have already have a bachelors in Graphic Design. I have been wanting to go back to college to pursue nursing, but things have not been in my favor. I live just a few miles from a college that offers a fairly competitive BSN program and originally my husband was on board with me going back to try my hand at it, but then he thought about the tuition and how I struggle with math and thought that it was too much of a gamble. So, he is no longer for me getting a BSN even though I already have one degree through this college. I mentioned becoming a LPN at a community college, which would be nearly $14,000 cheaper than getting my BSN and he would have been okay with that if I didn't have to drive either 30 minutes for one community college, or nearly an hour away to my hometown college's other campus. I am exhausted and confused as to how I can live next to a college that offers nursing, but not be able to pursue a LPN on a campus that is just a few minutes away instead of being forced to drive an hour + every weekday for classes. This isn't really feasible for me since my husband is the primary source of income (his job doesn't let him miss much work) and I need to be close by in case of small emergencies (we don't have anyone to really help with the kids if we need them). Has anyone else had this problem? Is there anything that I can do to bypass any of this so I could get my LPN at my local college? Someone told me that after completing specific coursework that I could submit paperwork to get my LPN while I am working on my BSN. Would I be able to do that and just drop out after I finished my NCLEX and got my LPN? I want to make this work, but I can't see how it makes sense to make students travel when they have a campus where they live. I can't say that I fully understand any of this. Any advice or experiences would be most appreciated!

Our closest community college is nearly 40 minutes away. I am the primary care giver of my two children, so I need to be close to home if something comes up. My husband can't easily leave his job, so it's easier for me to be close at hand. I did consider it though, and in a perfect world, if someplace close by offered sonography, I would go that route, but all of those colleges are well over an hour away from where I live and I just can't do that much traveling right now. I shadowed a nurse recently at a clinic that I go to, and I really enjoyed it. I am not sure what volunteers at our hospital really do. I think they mainly wheel patients out to cars and deliver flowers to rooms, or at least that is what I have seen at our local hospital. I may look into it regardless. Thanks for the tips!

Thank you so much for the responses! I suppose that you are both right in that there isn't really a way to know for sure. You both gave me some sound advice and I will definitely keep that in mind. I appreciate you taking the time to give me your thoughts!

I will start out by saying that I have been fascinated by the medical field for a very long time. While my original interest as a child was to be a Veterinarian, I found that anything pertaining to living beings and how they functioned, was just amazing! I've watched part of the delivery of my daughter when she was born, I had my orthopedic surgeon pause long enough during surgery to let me see my open finger during an FDP tendon repair, and I even watched my husband's vasectomy. I find it all incredible, and I take every chance I can to be involved or to observe when I can. That being said, I am facing the chance at a 2nd career (graphic design being my first) but I am not sure if I should even try nursing. I feel completely incompetent in the simplest of things, primarily math related subjects, but I also find that I struggle to understand many things after reading them over and over. I am not sure if there is some other underlying issue there, but I know that remembering things has been a problem my entire life. I am terrified that if I pass the three pre-reqs that I need to get accepted into the nursing program that I will not do well enough to graduate (they require a 3.4-3.5 GPA just for entry). I feel like my brain works against me all the time, so even if I did make it through college and the NCLEX what if I unintentionally hurt a patient? It doesn't help that I suffer from some anxiety issues. I would like to do this, but I am worried that I am setting myself up for failure and risking putting my family in a lot of debt for nothing. Between my anxiety and trouble retaining things that I learn, I am not sure how well this would work out. Those of you who have a form of learning disability, how did you manage to get through college? Are there any steps that can be taken to prevent any mishaps on the job because I feel like an airhead...like I can't concentrate sometimes, and that scares me. I would be so grateful for any advice because this is a major decision for myself and my family!

Ideally, I would love to work at our local OB/GYN clinic, but I am open to a couple of different specialties. The biggest thing that worries me is the thought of having to work for the hospital in my area. It isn't known for treating its employees very well, and it is just generally a crappy hospital (anyone in the area will scoff when you mention it). I am hoping that I can get my time in anywhere else but there. I would even drive to a couple of other hospitals that are 30-45 minutes away if I had to. Of course, things can change, and hopefully they do between now and then! Thank you very much for your insight and good luck at the urology clinic! :-)

Thank you so much for the response! That's completely understandable.

I am contemplating getting a BSN, but before I devote the time and money in it, I was wondering if there is high competition in a clinic setting as far as jobs go? I realize that many grads have to start out in less than desirable positions (which is expected in many jobs), but I suppose that some of those positions may be in reference to hospital related jobs? How many of you have had interest in going into a clinic to work, and is it something that will take years to achieve? I am trying to make sure that I am being realistic about things before I go back to college for a 2nd degree. From what I have read on here recently, there is a greater number of nurses than what the general public is led to believe, and since there seems to be an overabundance of nurses according to some of you, I don't want to add to the problem.