Should I do this?

meanmaryjean, DNP, RN · May 17, 2018

Pro tip: spend some time shadowing a nurse. 12 hours. If they don't sit / eat / pee - neither do you. Then look for an INexpensive ADN program while.you pay down some of those loans and complete.prerequisites.

Sour Lemon · May 17, 2018

Hi all. So a little background. I'm a 29 yr old with 2 small kids. I worked several years in lower level accounting, and completed my masters in accounting right after my first was born (surprise!). Being a SAHM for a few years, has been awesome. But I'm a very career driven person, and even though I do want more children, I'm contemplating going back to school for nursing.
I always wanted to work in the medical field but was told by those close to me that I was too emotional. I've since, well got a tad bit tougher. I would love to be a nurse. The pros are many for me: the 12 hr shifts, not commuting two hours both ways to work on the city for an accounting job, having a job that helps people... I feel I've missed my calling by doing accounting. But I've spent and still have considerable loans... and I also would be looking at a year worth of prerequisite work before I could do a very expensive ABSN.
What if I hated nursing? What if I can't pass the biology classes? Am I crazy?
Any advice?

Let go of the "calling" idea you have in your head. Healthcare is big business, not the hand-holding, "I'll cry with you" type of garbage you see on TV. The people who idealize nursing seem to be the most miserable nurses. You do get to help people, but that's not usually the primary focus. Soooo, not to be sour, but reality checks are good things. Now, go heal the world!

Lizliz24 · May 17, 2018

Thanks for your reply.

The Asn program at our local community college is 39 hours (8k) the ABSN is like 50 hours (26k).

id really prefer the asn because I want to get my feet wet... I don't mind working my way up but don't want to waste my time since I would be eligible for the ABSN as I already have a bachelors degree. Is there anything quicker than an ASN?

In accounting, where you go to school really matters to employers... is it like that in nursing?

Lisacar130 · May 17, 2018

No, it is not like that.

Depending on your area and demand for nurses, it could matter if you have an associates vs bachelors in getting a job (if you want to work in a hospital setting). The job is the same though... some hospitals will pay 50 cents an hour more (or something like that) for someone who has a bachelors but an RN is an RN and the job is the same.

There is a such thing as accelerated programs. I don't know if there are any by you but by me there are one year BSN programs that are for people with a bachelors in something else. They tell you not to work at all and that basically you have no life for that one year. I almost went to one. They told us someone else will have to do the cooking and cleaning because we will be too busy, etc.

Lizliz24 · May 17, 2018

I want to work in a hospital setting, is a BSN more desired for that? The accelerated BSN is a year and a half but the issue is the prerequisites.. those classes will take a year to complete too.

So maybe ASN is the way.

What did you end up doing?

guest769224 · May 17, 2018

Yes a BSN is more desired in the hospital setting. Which area of the country do you live in? Some hospitals/regions won't even hire associate degree nurses.

NurseSpeedy, ADN, LPN, RN · May 17, 2018

It depends on the job market in your area. If they hire ADN nurses I would go that route. Then do an online RN to BSN program that most hospitals offer tuition reimbursement to help pay the costs.

Two small kids will likely make an accelerated program a miserable experience since so much information is crammed into a short period of time. I did in accelerated LPN to RN program but I kind of cheated because I had most of the general ed done years earlier. I worked two 12's on the weekend and took care of a preschool child and all the housework and the husband. I was exhausted after that program was over.

12 hour shifts aren't always as great as they sound. Think about having all three (or more since sometimes the schedule can work out that the weeks run together) in a row with a group from hell that has you getting out late and you have to come back to do it all again the next day...there's no breather and your back at it after a short period off to sleep a bit. It can get old quick. I'd take an 8 hour shift in a heartbeat. 12's I have to cook for four days the evening before a three day stretch so my family will eat. It's a lot of planning when to get stuff done....and the no peeing for 12 hours that someone mentioned earlier sometimes does happen. Luckily not so many patients have catheters as there used to be as it's really hard to empty those bags while trying to hold your own.

Lizliz24 · May 17, 2018

I live in North Georgia.

ivyleaf · May 18, 2018

SHadow in the hospital setting. For more than a couple hours.

Even better, work as a CNA; even per diem, and see what you think. Particularly if you want to work hospital.

maxthecat · May 18, 2018

In the end it's your choice. But I would think long and hard about this if I were you.

You will make more money in accounting than you will as a nurse. The accountants I have known get large bonuses at Christmas on top of already strong salaries. Forget that for nursing.

12 hour shifts can easily turn into 16 hour shifts if it's a crazy day and there are crazy days more often than you might think. In most hospitals you can be mandated to stay. You can't say you have to leave to pick up your kids. This can play havoc with child care arrangements.

If you're used to spending holidays with family, don't count on it. Especially as the low person on the totem pole you will likely have to work on holidays. You can celebrate on another day, of course, but many people who went into nursing thinking they could handle this have been surprised at just how much holiday, weekend and night work bothered them when they actually started doing it.

There are ways of helping people in healthcare that do not involve being a nurse. You can volunteer. There are areas of the hospital that welcome volunteers, such as NICU, where you will be able to hold and rock babies that need extra cuddling to thrive. In ER you might be able to interact with anxious family members and serve as their liason to check on what's happening with their loved one, how long a procedure will take, etc. I don't see it on the med-surg floors these days, but used to be there were volunteers who could come in and visit with lonely people with no family, anxious patients, etc. Nurses used to be able to do this regularly, but no more, staffing just won't allow it. So you can actually be much more engaged with patients than nurses and help in that way, which is a HUGE help to people.

If it were me, I'd stay with Accounting and do volunteer work in hospitals on the side, but it's not me making the decision. Just decide with both your heart and mind, not just your heart. Good luck in whatever you decide!

BlinkyPinky · May 18, 2018

This. I've been a nurse 24 years; it's all true ^^^^^^^^