Residency or externship

[Ktas12]

Hello everyone!

I'm sure this question has been asked in some form or another, but I haven't quite figured out how to work the site yet, so I apologize. Can someone clarify for me the difference between nurse externship and residency? Also, do you get paid for it? A classmate said you do, and I realize I may sound greedy, but student loans are going to want to be repaid pretty soon. Does anyone recommend just going straight to work instead of a residency or externship? Would I still be able to perform the same skills as another nurse who did complete the residency? They don't tell us this stuff in school.

Also, I may have a psych residency; I'm waiting for the call back this week. While it's the area I'm most interested in, I'm worried it may be a mistake to do right out of school. Should I try and get more experience in another area, whether in practice or residency/externship, so I don't lose clinical skills? I feel like there is an expiration date on when I can get in to a residency, and I'm concerned that Psych May become too much for me as a new nurse, and it'd be too late to catch up on foleys, IVs, etc if too much time passes. Any guidance would be helpful.

Thanks for reading!

[llg, PhD, RN]

Different employers use terms like "residency, internship, externship, etc" a little differently sometimes. So you need to check with the particular employer to be sure you are using the terms the same way.

For most places, the term "residency" is used to refer to extended orientations for new graduates and sometimes, for nurses new to a particular specialty. They are paid positions, though some hospitals may pay a little less than they would for someone not in the residency program. Such programs provide additional education and support for new nurses to help them get their careers off to a good start and are generally a good idea as most new grads need that additional education and support.

"Externships" are usually for students, not new grads. The are work opportunities for nursing students and the details vary greatly from program to program. But they are paid positions for students.

"Internship" is a term that has the most variation. Some employers use that term for their new grad residency program ... others use the term for the jobs they have available for students. So you really need to be extra sure you read the information on the intern program carefully to know what type of program it is.

[Ktas12]

Thank you very much, llg!