School teacher wanting a career change - Is nursing for me?

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Specializes in Tele, ICU, Staff Development.

Dear Nurse Beth,

I am a Elementary school teacher wanting to make a career change, disheartened by the pay for what I do. I am asking for some suggestions,...I have a BA in Education, will need to do this with my own means, (no husband or partner to help). I thought I would go the ADN route first being as that seemed the fastest and most economical, but will need to find a hospital that would pay for it, unless there are hospitals that will pay for the BSN, (even better). I am willing to become a CNA or a Phlebotomist, or other to work in the hospital to make this plan work. Your thoughts.....and thank you kindly.

Dear School Teacher,

If your primary reason to become a nurse is because it pays more than teaching, you may want to find out more about what a nurse's job entails before making the leap.

Regarding your belief that nursing pays more than teaching- it may. I agree that teachers are underpaid for the important work they do. But in some areas, nurses are underpaid as well. Be sure and fact-check the prevailing wages in your area.

Also consider that if you plan to work in a hospital, you will be working nights, weekends, holidays and summers. And there is no nursing pension at the end of your career.

Paying for Nursing School

For the most part, hospitals do not fully pay for nursing education, although many offer tuition reimbursement for full-time employees and prorated tuition reimbursement for part-time employees. Tuition reimbursement generally does not cover all costs.

Some hospitals have collaborative arrangements with local colleges to sponsor nursing students, and your nursing college and/or local hospitals will have information on collaborative programs. Call the HR of the hospital, and the nursing program admissions of the college for information.

Another option is to apply for student loans.

Working as a CNA is a good idea because 1) you are a hospital employee and therefore eligible for benefits and 2) it will help you to land a job once you graduate nursing school.

ADN vs BSN

If you are in an area where your college offers an accelerated program this would help you because you already have a BA. An accelerated nursing program benefits people like yourself who hold a non-nursing degree. You graduate with your BSN.

Sometimes getting your ADN only to go right back and get your BSN takes longer than just going for your BSN in the first place. But that all depends on your circumstances and how soon you need to start working.

You will want to do some research into your local job market. Do the hospitals hire new grads? If so, do they prefer BSNs over ADNs?

Just want to make sure you're fully prepared for the journey ahead.

Best wishes,

Nurse Beth

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Specializes in LAD.

Teaching does not pay well yes, but would you be happier you think as a nurse? I left the classroom for nursing 3 yrs ago. I was full of enthusiasm for both careers in teaching and nursing, but I wanted to take the time in my mid twenties to explore another career field before settling down with teaching forever. Now after JUST a year at my nursing job I find myself wanting to return to the education system. Nursing is a great career but so is teaching. Nursing allowed me to meet my now best friends, grow as an individual, and learn, but I personally feel my calling was teaching small children. It's who I am and I cannot change the fact that I love kids and teaching them. I use to complain about grading papers and writing lesson plans but I find myself missing it bc I was in control of what I did everyday. I knew exactly what my year would look like and how my Monday would go. I miss that. Really think about this before jumping into it.

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My husband and I are good friends with a couple, the wife's a nurse. The Army paid for her nursing education. Something to think about, if cost is a factor for you.

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Specializes in School nurse.

I am a school nurse (after years of experience in the hospital) and so I have an insiders view of what nursing and teaching are both really like. If you are disheartened by the pay for what you do as a teacher then you will REALLY be disheartened by the pay for what nurses do. You really have no idea what nursing is like (please don't take that as an insult - the vast majority of people just really don't know).

Keep in mind that a big reason why nurses (generally) do get paid more than teachers is because they work all year round and nights and weekends and holidays. Working for a large urban school district I get paid significantly less than I did in the hospital and significantly less than teachers with my same years of experience do. I still find it a fair trade because I have every weekend off, every holiday off and 9 weeks in the summer. Holy cow! You just can't beat that schedule. A very significant part of your compensation is the teacher pension. Nurses are completely on their own. In my opinion this makes nurses an even more underpaid group than teachers. (Now that I am with the school district I also qualify for the teacher pension. Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!)

As someone else pointed out a teacher's day is more or less ordered and within reasonable control. Yes, of course, unplanned things can and do happen but it nothing on the level that it is in a hospital. In the hospital you literally never know what each day will be like, what you are going to get hit with. You have to think on your feet ALL the time. Many people do not realize the physical exertion that is required for nursing. It is a physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually stressful job.

If you are still strongly considering it I have a suggestion: get your CNA certification and spend one summer working in the hospital. This will give you a good perspective about what it is really like. Then you can make your decision with more confidence.

Good luck to you.

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I have to agree with bluebonnet...spend a summer as a nursing assistant. I got my CNA cert before going to nursing school, and worked in a nursing home. I thought that working as a CNA at a hospital would be different (thought it would be not as much work), but hospital was MORE work for even worse staffing ratios...so I thought things would change when I was an RN. Still doing "dirty" work, along with everything else my job entails. I truly enjoy caring for others, and the skills I am learning. I can see myself being fine doing this for several years, but then I would like to teach! I had a Bachelors in English, and went for my ADN thinking that was the cheaper route. Nope. Spent about $2200 for five semesters at the community college (best nursing program in the area) for my ADN. Now I am going through paying 1500 a semester for five semesters to get my BSN part-time online through a public state university. Totally wish I had just done the BSN right off the bat at the "lesser respected" local public university, as the hospital I work for seems to employ from that school a lot too although I was told different when applying to the community college. My hospital really wants everyone to get their BSN, although it is not mandatory...but you are eligible for a clinical ladder if you have a BSN. So. All this work for two bachelors degrees. If I could teach and do nursing PRN, I'd be set!

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Specializes in LAD.
You really have no idea what nursing is like (please don't take that as an insult - the vast majority of people just really don't know).

...

This is wonderful advise! I wish I would have shadowed someone before jumping into nursing, but then again I would have lived my whole life wondering what it would have been like. To me, I'd rather try it out and be disappointed than to never try it. Everyone is made differently! You have to do what is best for you.

I am personally a type A person who loves planning and organizing... yep I was that teacher who had the whole week or month in order. As a floor nurse, I feel like I have no control over what is happening during the shift and I'm constantly rushed trying to take care of multiple patients. It makes me nervous all the time and I don't like feeling this way on a daily basis. I never ever felt this way before I started at my nursing job. Just something to think about if you are "that teacher".

There is no shame in wanting to explore another career and by no means should anyone make you feel this way! Just really think about it and try to get some shadowing days at a local hospital. Good luck with your decision!

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Specializes in retired LTC.

Not sure if this was discussed, but as a newbie nurse, your wages will be at base level. Past experience in teaching has no real value in nursing as your nursing skill set is that of all other new nurses. Nursing's entry level wages vary much depending on locale and the available labor pool.

And teachers are usually Civil Service with a union contract. Not so with much of nursing. That union contract offers a lot of benefits that nsg can only dream about.

Also, about the student loan ... had OP taken out any student loans for her first bachelor degree? Does that limit her eligibility for more loans?

So to expand on the original post's answer, there's quite a great deal of decisions to ponder before taking the big leap.

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You maybe paid a little bit more than a teacher but you will earn every penny because nursing is not easy. Also keep in mind that, as a teacher you are in the drivers seat; if you become a nurse that will be gone FOREVER, you are giving up you entire working day to someone else's whim. You will not have any control over your day and you will be on your feet all day with little time for eating, going to the batroom, etc. You will also lose your pension, your weekends, nights summers and holidays. Where else can you get all that time off and still get paid plus retire at 62 and get a nice pension? Me? I will be working well into my 70s with my broken back and bad knees. Good luck to you.

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Specializes in ICU.

Sorry, OP, your expectations are not realistic. No hospital is going to pay for someone who is not employed currently by the hospital and is in an entirely different career for them to go back to school. I've never even heard of that. I've heard of tuition assistance for current employees, but those programs are falling by the wayside.

Nobody ever thinks they get paid enough for what they do. That won't change with nursing. Nursing is an extremely, physically demanding job. Yes, they get paid more, but the job they do is much harder. You are still dealing with crappy people. You think parents can be hard? Deal with grandmas family for a few days. They all know how to better to take of her than you or the doctor.

At this point, I'm going to recommend maybe getting your masters in teaching. It may up the amount of money you will get paid. Or shadow a nurse like others have suggested. This sounds like an impulse decision based off of some current frustrations you have with your current career.

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