Should I go into Nursing or Public Admin?

[misyan]

Hi, I will be graduating from my undergrad this year and was accepted to a public admin program and a really well established 2nd entry nursing program (2 yrs). While my undergrad is in health science, I am not sure if I will enjoy some of the routine tasks of nursing or the long hours associated with it. I do enjoy some opportunities that nurses can get into (ie health educator, public health etc) but these usually don't come until I got some yrs of exps. There are also some specialties where I can see myself enjoying. On the other hand, I was also accepted into a public admin program (which I like the courses structure and it offered co-op, although its a new program) but I just heard that the Canadian gov't is cutting over 30,000 jobs over the next few yrs so I am not sure which path to take, I def. would like the job security. The other thing is that the public admin is at graduate school level but the nursing program is another undergrad, which might not be a big deal for some people but I am not sure how I am feeling about this. I appreciate your input. Thanks!

[Good Morning, Gil]

I wouldn't ask for advice on this forum, namely because the responses given will largely depend on the nurses' most recent shifts or whether or not their job is a good one lol. And, only you can really know what you want to do with your career.

I will tell you that you will work undesirable hours, weird shifts (your nights may not even be 3 in a row), and expect to work night shift as a new nurse. Most new nurses work night shift, and the whole weekends/holidays thing. If you don't want to do that for at least 2 years, then don't become a nurse.

I will tell you that I really love my job, it's very rewarding working with critical patients, and the team is great, but the hours are rough. I have been a nurse for only 1.5 years, and it's hard balancing a marriage with someone who works days. (Prior to that, we worked opposite schedules, as well, so it's really getting old lol). We're very happy together, but it's hard finding enough time to spend together, and I find that I'm tired all of the time if I don't just keep a consistent nights schedule (even on my days off); I'm not tired at work, but I can't flip flop, so working nights kind of drains my free time, so because of that: would I do it all over again? I'm not sure.

It has provided for us, and I'm not so sure I could have found a job that was fulfilling in this economy that paid similarly to nursing, and a fulfilling/rewarding job was a must for me. When I have kids, I will most definitely cut my hours back to part-time or PRN, and I look forward to being able to spend more time with both my husband and family when that happens (which is also a plus in nursing; I have the flexibility to cut my hours back; many jobs would just give you the boot if you didn't work for "the man" for 40 plus hours a week). Best of luck to you! Hope that gave you some perspective!