SCARED TO DEATH to start accelerated BSN - questions please help me

SDMFamily · Jan 6, 2014

I am trying so hard to make a decision one way or the other to either stay in my full time office job (that isn't terrible, but bores me to tears and leaves me feeling REALLY unfulfilled) or take on the opportunity of starting the Accelerated BSN program that I was accepted to.

Any advice is appreciated....

A couple of specific questions that I have though:

1) Are there any decent paying flexible jobs good for Nursing students in Albany, NY area? I can't afford to not work during school, I had to work full time and go to school full time and raise a baby on my own when I got my first bachelors - thankfully I only need part time hours if I go for the Accelerated BSN as I have some help now.

2) I am scared to death... I wanted to be a nurse since watching a baby cousin born with serious problems endure some pretty traumatic stuff - all I focused on was how awesome it was that those nurses got to do what they were doing for the families and the babies, I was able to look past the babies dying and families depressed.. I just wanted to help when and how I could... BUT that being said... I have NOOOOO idea if I will like nursing now or how I will handle it.. I am so scared to make such a huge change from my full time job at an office to a Nursing Degree and job as a nurse.. but something is there because I have applied to different programs every year for the last 9 years, and I get accepted and always back out due to financial obligations...

3) Is nursing actually a family friendly career? I have two kids now and I don't miss out on much and I can leave if one of them is sick and I need to pick them up... I am blessed in this regard with my current job.... does that exist in nursing???

Alright - tear me apart - or lift my spirits and tell me fulfilling my lifelong dream will be worth it... Thanks!!!!

SL2014 · Jan 6, 2014

1.) I live in Phoenix, from what I have heard nursing is over saturated everywhere.

2.) Not sure I understand the question...

3.) It depends on where you work. Some hospitals require you to work weekends or rotate shifts.

cjcaet · Jan 7, 2014

Do it! I'm going into an absn program too and I have three little kids who will be 7, 4 and almost 2 when I start.

Is it going to be easy? No. But for 18 months (the duration of my program) I can do it. The time will pass anyways and if I decide to further pursue a msn or other degree I will be that much closer. I had the option of a hospital adn program but in the end if I also got a bsn after (most of the hospitals in my area are going that way) it would be the same cost but 3-4 yrs vs 18 months. I'd rather go and go hard, than string it out over 2 yrs for an adn and another 2 for a bachelors and another 2 for an msn. I'm only going to be 31 when I start my program so not old by any means but I'd like to get as much education done Before I reach a certain age just for my own personal reasons.

Also, my program has the option of working as a student nurse after so many credit hrs and I've heard about testing out to become an LPN too.

My plan is to work nights/wknds for a few years while my kids are younger so that I can be there for their school stuff. Plus I think a f/t nurse is 36 hrs (please correct me if I'm wrong) so that's 3 12 hr shifts. Totally doable with a family IMO.

My program is also a night/wknd program so that way I will still be home during the day for sick kids/days off of school and my dh will be home with them when I'm in school.

What program are you going into in Albany?

Pediatric Critical Care Columnist · Jan 7, 2014

Threads merged as are identical and both have replies.

melc0305 · Jan 9, 2014

I left a full time corporate job to enter an ABSN program. It can be done, but you need to plan. First, since you are not positive this is the career for you, see if any local hospitals offer a shadowing program where you can shadow a nurse for a few hours. This might give you an idea of what you will be doing on a daily basis.

You will need to have all of your finances in order. Can you get loans if you need to? You cannot get any grants with a second degree.

Personally, I've found it very difficult to find a job, even part time, in my program. Our schedule changes every 8 weeks. We have clinicals every weekend. Not saying it can't be done, but you'll need to know your school schedule first. I am in Chicago so I can't specifically comment on jobs in your area.

It's a big decision! Ultimately, only you can decide your path. Get all the information you can and go from there. Do you see yourself sitting in a cubicle for another 20-30 years?

Guests · Jan 9, 2014

I am trying so hard to make a decision one way or the other to either stay in my full time office job (that isn't terrible, but bores me to tears and leaves me feeling REALLY unfulfilled)

Here's the voice of the mid-century ♪♫ in my ♥ speaking: A job is not for excitement nor fulfillment... a job is to provide the financial means to live the life that you want to live.

If your job is stable and provides decent compensation, I'd be reluctant to give it up to pursue the "maybe" that is nursing.

Are there any decent paying flexible jobs good for Nursing students in Albany, NY area? I can't afford to not work during school

Decent-paying and flexible? They're probably few and far between... and probably occupied or competitive as all get-out. Some nursing students become CNAs but I don't think those jobs particularly qualify as decent-paying and certainly not as flexible.

I wanted to be a nurse since watching a baby cousin born with serious problems endure some pretty traumatic stuff - all I focused on was how awesome it was that those nurses got to do what they were doing for the families and the babies

You had one of those mountain-top experiences... keep in mind that (a) that's what it was, (b) those nurses may or may not actually like where they work, and © the OB and NICU paths are tough to get in to... obviously some do but you need to be prepared that it could take years... and may never come to pass.

I have applied to different programs every year for the last 9 years, and I get accepted and always back out due to financial obligations...

Well, what's different this time? Have you made a realistic budget that you could live with for the time it takes to go through nursing school and possibly many months after if you (as many do) have trouble finding work?

3) Is nursing actually a family friendly career? I have two kids now and I don't miss out on much and I can leave if one of them is sick and I need to pick them up... I am blessed in this regard with my current job.... does that exist in nursing???

Nope, not really. Bedside nursing is shift-work and you need to be there for your scheduled shifts and you can't just leave... there needs to be somebody to replace you. That's true even if your kids are sick or what have you.

Some employers have sufficient float staff available to cover for the *rare* times this might happen but, for the most part, you need to be there for your scheduled shifts... the whole shift.

Nursing can be family-friendly in that you can work off-shifts, weekends, etc but the flip side is that you may HAVE to work weekends, holidays, nights... and then who watches the kiddos.

I'd encourage to really think this through and come up with answers to tough questions. If you're a single parent without someone to reliably and consistently watch the kids, it might be unwise to pursue nursing, especially at this time.

Getting a nursing job is no sure thing... especially if you're unwilling to relocate and/or unwilling to work off shifts.

alindberg · Jan 11, 2014

Personally, I DO believe that nursing CAN be very family friendly...Being an RN opens the door to many different paths and opportunities. If you want to work in a doc office and have bankers hours, then that's possible. If you want to be home with your kids during the day then you can work nights and weekends in a hospital. You can work PRN (as needed or filling in where there isn't staff coverage) and make more money picking up shifts that are convenient for you and your family - but you won't get the benefits of health insurance, paid time off, etc.

Not to mention if you get bored or burnt out in one area, there's many many more you can transfer to. ER, Labor & Delivery, ICU, OR, Peds, Doc office (different types of medicine - family, maternity, urology, gastroenterology, gynecology, ENT, etc.) If you want to further your education and do administrative work, you can. If you want to do consulting for law firms (usually with a bit of experience), you can. If you get tired after 20 years of working on the clinical side of things and want an office job, it's possible. IMO, Nursing is one of the most flexible careers you could have! The options are truly endless!

I worked for almost 5 years in a very busy ER doing patient registration/financial counseling but worked the same 12 hour shifts the RNs worked. I was able to work 7p-7a (72 hrs per pay period) and be home with my two little ones during the day and did not have to pay for child care or be away from my kids and worry about the care they were receiving. Granted, I didn't get much more than 3 hours of sleep a day but that was a trade off I was willing to make. Working that shift and being able to be home with my kids only did more to solidify my choice of nursing as a career!

NOW - Once you're at work, you're an extremely vital part of the health care team and can't just run out when it's convenient for you. So when you're scheduled for work, you're there for the shift unless you have a true and dire emergency and/or can find your own coverage to take time off!

I agree with the previous poster that you should find a way to shadow or speak to nurses who are currently working and get a feel for the true nursing experience. It's not all rainbows and babies and smiles and "saving lives" isn't always that simple and great. You hold people's hands while they're dying and then put them in a body bag when they've passed on (toe tag & all), clean poop, pee, and puke frequently including the millions of smells that can come with that, endure demanding attitudes from people who are feeling their worst, comfort patients & family members who are scared, crying, yelling, begging, and bargaining for their lives. You can be laughing with a family one minute and doing CPR on an infant the next. You can take care of patients that are more than grateful for your help and are receptive and willing to make changes and then take care of people who can't or won't change their lifestyle to promote their own health even if their life depends on it and it can leave you feeling like you're working on a lost cause. Some days are really, really great and fulfilling and others are more than depressing and frustrating. In my experience in the health care setting, your days can be the most loopy, bumpy roller coaster you can imagine or the smoothest sailing trip on a beautiful open sea. I can't wait for that to be my working life!! I embrace all of it with open arms knowing I will have horrible days and the best days ever. Whew! That gives me goose bumps!

Your personality will determine how you can handle all of the changing emotions. Only you can know if you can handle that. It's happened before that a person experiences one life-changing experience with a family member and they decide they're going to be an RN or MD and do it and love it and never look back. But if you have had no other experience in a clinical setting besides the one you have had, I personally would not make a drastic, career/life changing decision based on just that one experience. That's just me. When you're the one up to your elbows in blood, it may not be what you thought it would. =)

Also as the previous poster said, what has changed so much in your finances after doing the applying and backing out for 9 years, has you prepared to move forward this time? Do you have a really good support system for your kids and other family obligations? You really have got to make sure that you have all of your ducks in a row before giving up your security in your current job to move forward. Nursing school is fun and stressful and much like nursing - so you have to be flexible and willing to give up whatever you need to in order to meet the demands of school. Of course within reason, but school will likely need to come first and you and your family will need to sacrifice some things in order for you to be successful! And that's okay and can make that "Registered Nurse" title taste so much sweeter when you get it!

All of that being said, I don't think anyone who has started nursing school hasn't had some sort of reservation or fear of what's to come, how hard it's going to be (or maybe it won't be that hard for you!), how much time it will take up, etc. What kind of student are you? In your pre-nursing classes did you have to devote a ton of study time or were you able to make great grades with very little effort? That may or may not give you an idea of what kind of study time you will need to put forth. It will likely be quite different than what you've experienced before. Only you can make the decision based on all of the things we've all brought up and then some! But until you have a pretty good idea of all of those things and can feel confident in yourself about the decision you've made, I would not walk away from my long time job/career that you already possess.

I wish you the best of luck! Thousands of people walk in your shoes every year and make that leap of faith to do it. Some stick with it and others find out it's not for them. And either way is okay as long as you have a back up plan if it doesn't pan out the way you thought it would. I'm sure you'll make the right decision!