Runner84

This makes sense! Thank you for that input! I appreciate it so much! I will certainly look into that more as well to help guide my next moves! :)

Thank you so much for your response! I have been in special education for so long and have always wanted to get into healthcare. I have been fortunate in education, but I am ready for a change. I just have no idea where to begin. I am excited, but I know the road will come with challenges! I would love to somehow be able to work still, even if part time, and pay for classes without taking out any more loans. I have enough debt already lol.

Hi everyone! I apologize if this post is one that has been seen before, but I was hoping I could gain a little insight or feedback. I am looking to change careers from special education to nursing. I have been a special education teacher for 11 years. Initially, I wanted to become an Occupational Therapist a few years ago, so I began taking all of my prereqs, which seem to parallel nursing pre-reqs. I chose not to follow through with OT for the primary reason being that I could not afford to go to school full time and ultimately leave my job completely since I supported myself. Things have changed since then, and I have done a bit more research on going back to school and I do feel that nursing would be a better fit for me. I am actually very excited for this change, but I am just unsure which would be the best route for me. I already have my BS, so my question is: ----Which type of program would be better for me? I know some community colleges offer programs, or should I start with a BSN? Or an accelerated BSN? ---- Are there any other former educators who went into nursing? I am nervous being in my mid-thirties and basically starting over, but I am ready for this shift in my career. Thank you for your time in reading this! :)

Good evening all! I apologize if this is a redundant post within the forum, but I was hoping to gain a little insight and feedback. I have been a special education teacher for almost 8 years now. Initially, I was in the process of applying to graduate school for Occupational Therapy after working with the OT's and my population of students who needed those specific services. I am finishing up my pre-requisites now and have shadowed/volunteered in various rehab settings. While I am genuinely excited about this change into healthcare, I can't help but also feel a pull towards nursing. It has always been something I truly loved and I admire nurses so much,but special education was something I also believed in so when I was in college ( forever ago) I followed the teaching route. I have started doing some more research and after comparing both professions, OT and nursing, I feel on my heart that nursing may be what I want to pursue. Also while researching, I have noticed so many opportunities for different pathways and specializations in nursing.That in itself, is appealing tor as well. Anyway, I have a few questions: 1. If I were to go back to school for nursing- would it be better for me to get a second bachelor's or apply to a graduate level direct entry msn program? I know that in teaching/ having a master's wasn't always necessarily better at first because it meant a higher salary- so I don't want to put myself in a position where this could place difficulty on me getting a job in the future. I appreciate any advice. 2. I am nervous about a career change. I'm in my thirties and I depend solely on myself. I would love to do a full time program, but wondering if anyone out there still finds it feasible to work part time such as weekends? 3. Has anyone else ever been on the fence between OT ( or PT, etc) and nursing? What was the decider my factor for you? I appreciate any advice and feedback. While I am eager to begin this next chapter, I can't help but feel a little worried about this change too. thanks for taking the time to read!