RN wants to become substance abuse counselor

[KristieRae71]

I have been a Registered Nurse for 13 years with an assoiciates degree. I am very interested in becoming a substance abuse counselor and would like to go back to school to get my BA in psychology. I am looking for any suggestions on this matter. I am considering using an online university but am a little nervous about that too! I am having a difficult time finding what Georgia's requirements are for their substance abuse counselors so if anyone has any info for me I would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks!

Love this site.

Rae

[CoachBarbara]

Hi Rae:

I am wondering in what area of nursing were your 13 years of experience? I don't have any leads for you, I regret. In my opinion, you may want to check out programs in counseling before starting a general psych major course. I have friends who were psych majors and found getting a job to be difficult without a Masters Degree or beyond.

You might want to call some Ga treatment facilities and talk to someone in the Nursing AND Counseling Departments to learn more. Ridgeview Institute is one name that comes to mind, and I'm sure there are others.

Best of luck in your pursuit.

Barbara

[KristieRae71]

Thanks for the suggestions. I have previously worked in CCU, PACU, pain management, endoscopy and LTC. I have always wanted to work in psych and decided it is way past time to pursue that. I've thought about the online programs, but am wary of them and definitely don't want to wast my time or money on something that will not pan out in the end.

I will try your suggestions and see what I come up with!

Many thanks,

Kristie

[Deargceann]

In addition to getting your Master's, many substance abuse facilities require an additional certification as an addictions counselor. Have you researched the pay difference? You will be taking a huge pay cut.

[Zookeeper44, RN]

I am going in the opposite direction...I have a Master's degree in counseling, and I am going to nursing school this fall. I can tell you that in my area anyway...the jobs are few and far between unless you work in a big city (nothing like RN jobs...), and then you will really need a Master's degree and a license, all told it will take you 2 year more of undergrad, 2 years grad school, plus several years of working full-time to get enough hours to take your licensing exam.

Without a license, my highest salary was $17/hour, no benefits whatsoever (PRN), and with a license I could have made a *little* more than that. If I had wanted to work full-time rather than PRN, I would have worked approximately 80 hours a week for $35,000 a year and benefits.