Show me the Money

[Browndog]

Folks, I need some advice.

A little back ground. I am a forty-two year old, husband and father of two that has been employed as a sales engineer for the past 20 years. Several life experiences, including an exposure to flight nursing via my service as a first responder and volunteer firefighter, have led me to the conviction that my calling is to serve others as a nurse. I am close to completing my pre-requisites for nursing school and have been accepted to a local accelerated BSN program (16 months) which begins this fall.

I am posting on this forum because I need input from all of the other (please tell me there are other) "older" dads out there who are pursuing a mid-life change into nursing while having to support a family. Specifically:

* How are you financing your career change?

* How much is this costing you (tuition and living expenses while in school)?

* How much of a pay cut are you taking to pursue this calling?

* Have I lost my ever-loving mind?

I am sincerely looking for input as I am currently riding the roller coaster of excitement for finally finding my calling and the feelings of quilt/fear for what this may mean financially to the family that I love. Some input to consider as I seek your advice:

1) The BSN program that I am pursuing will cost over $30K and I expect to spend another $45K in basic living expenses for the family. (There are no local public school programs that offer an accelerated format and time is money with a family of four.)

2) My current income is approximately $90K.

3) Upon completion of my BSN, my goal is to immediately enroll in an ACNP program while working at night at a local Level 1 Trauma Center. I would ultimately like to work as a Nurse Practitioner in an ER with a PRN position with a flight program.

4) My wife supports me on this 100%. She is great.

Am I crazy for giving up so much financially to pursue this goal. Will this financial sacrifice be forever or can I expect to get reasonably close eventually. Has anyone else done this? Should I "punt" and resign myself to an empty (but profitable) career?

Sorry for the long post. I really need to get all of this out. Thanks for the sounding board.

Browndog

[ABC'S DAD]

Do you already have a degree in something else? You could try one of the many accelerated BSN programs in the Philadelphia area. RN salary for new grads around there is about $25/hr plus differentials.

-S

Thank you for the response. O.K., here goes. I have a B.A. degree in Journalism, and a law degree. (I have been a lawyer since '93, but I'm ready for a change.) I have heard that pay scales are not different between RN's with ADN degrees versus BSN degrees. Do you know if that is true? I am also wondering, if there are jobs where a BSN is required or prefereed, do you think it is possible that they would consider my having an ADN with a BA to be the equivalent of a BSN? I know this may be a lot to ask you. I have reviewed the required courses for the ADN program and some BSN programs, and although it would still take two years for the ADN, due to the clinical program set-up, I am fairly certain that I would not have to take about 1/2 of the required courses due to my prior college credits. This would save some expenses and hopefully free me up to still work full-time in the evening (if I can find an evening job).

Also, do you know what kind of benefits (medical, 401-K) one could expect as a hospital RN, and how much contribution is required from the employee? I have a million questions -- sorry. How easy/hard is it to land a full-time hospital RN job with full benefits (vs. prn). Thanks.

[piper_for_hire]

Okay - here are some answers.

1. ADN + BA do not equal BSN. As far as I know there is no "equivalent" for this. Let us know if you hear of anything like that.

2. I have not heard of a pay differential for a BSN around the Philadelphia area.

3. You'll find 401K and 403B. The hospitals I've talked two have 5% matching.

4. All of the other benefits are similar to what I had in corporate america, except I start out with six weeks vacation.

5. Philadelphia hospitals definitely express an interest in BSNs, but they really hire ASNs just the same.

6. It is extremely easy to get a job as a full time RN around here. I've had two interviews for the ICU and got two offers.

Hope that helps,

-S

[nursenary57]

Browndog,

You are right about Nashville pay ranges. I work at Vandy and Baptist. If you want to chat more about it you can get me at [email protected]

I've got to work tonight but if you send me your email I will try to answer any questions you have got when I get home in the AM. Pyke

Thanks guys for the input. It is reassuring to hear that I am still awake, alert and oriented enough to realize that I HAVE indeed lost my mind. So far both replies to my post have indicated a salary of 60K. I would not be that concerned if I felt certain that I could achieve that level of income. Seems that the Nashville area hospitals are paying closer to $18-23hr ($36-46K) for nurses. Am I missing something?

Thanks for your comments.

Browndog (Soon to be in the doghouse.)

[tamar2007]

:melody: :melody: i went through the same dilemma as you, and it appears that at least around here the two are treated and paid the same. the logic is that an rn is an rn, both passed the same nclex, and the only difference is in the long run if you want to get your masters.

here they pay a lot less - annual is about $37 k before overtime, so your figures from the east should sound really encouraging!!

i too am "downgrading" if it's fair to say that, from a higher paying job (advertising, mba) to nursing, but if thats what your calling is, thats what counts, it's not about the money.

wish you the best of luck!

tami :melody:

[caroladybelle, BSN, RN]

So far both replies to my post have indicated a salary of 60K. I would not be that concerned if I felt certain that I could achieve that level of income. Seems that the Nashville area hospitals are paying closer to $18-23hr ($36-46K) for nurses. Am I missing something?

Nashville is in the wrong state/region. Some regions pay substantially more than others. As well, as pay depends on specility/experience/position/shift.

I wrork as an onco certified night shift traveler and make over over 55,000 plus housing and the usual perks of traveling. But I also travel to many other places and have to maintain a home in my home state.

[MadzDAD]

I am just finding this site, and it could not be more relevant for me at this time. I am making $70K at present. I am a 46 y.o. married father of 3 small children. My wife has been an LPN in a retirement home for several years. I worked in hospitals for several years while younger, but not on the medical side. After all this time, and being dissatisfied with my present, second career of 12 years, I am suddenly excited about the possibility of working in a hospital as an RN. Of course, I would have to figure out how to get through a local 2-year ADN program (there is one) and still support my wonderful wife and kids. I guess I need to know if it will pay off if I can stick it out for 2 years. I have done the salary wizard thing, and seen various other websites, which seem to indicate "average" salaries for my locale, which is just outside Philadelphia. I have seen numbers ranging anywhere from about $55K to $80K. Of course, I need to find out what an entry-level salary would be, and what kind of benefits could I expect. And how easy or difficult is it to get a hospital RN position with an ADN?

Any help would be GREATLY appreciated!! Thanks.

One thing to keep in mind...Most schools for RN are severly impacted not enough instructors = Long wait lists = More than 2 years. May take you, all total 3 -5 years. Big consideration if you need to provide for your family.

Difficult, but not impossible if you plan ahead.

[MadzDAD]

YES! You are out of your mind. But so am I. I'm doing what you're about to do. I was really unhappy about where I was in a career in aerospace (I don't know how I even ended up there). Point is, I'm now in first semester of an ADN program and it is very challenging, more so that I imagined. It's very hard, but fun. I'm married myself, and have a 2yo little girl. My wife was very supportive, but the sacrifices we've made have put a strain on us. Things are tight and sometimes its hard to see that light at the end of the tunnel. What's odd is that while I've never had this amount of stress before, I've never been this happy. I'm doin' it.

Try going to a community college to an ADN program. It's a hell of a lot cheaper. In CA some hospitals have programs to where you can earn your BSN and even your MSN once you're employed their and is payed for. Usually they just require you agree to work their for an amount of time afterwards.

[ABC'S DAD]

Okay - here are some answers.

1. ADN + BA do not equal BSN. As far as I know there is no "equivalent" for this. Let us know if you hear of anything like that.

2. I have not heard of a pay differential for a BSN around the Philadelphia area.

3. You'll find 401K and 403B. The hospitals I've talked two have 5% matching.

4. All of the other benefits are similar to what I had in corporate america, except I start out with six weeks vacation.

5. Philadelphia hospitals definitely express an interest in BSNs, but they really hire ASNs just the same.

6. It is extremely easy to get a job as a full time RN around here. I've had two interviews for the ICU and got two offers.

Hope that helps,

-S

Thank you so much. By the way, best of luck at your new position/calling. Are you saying that you will get 6 weeks of paid vacation your first year?

Does anyone out there know how much contribution toward medical a hospital might require for an employee with a family. In my present calling, I have paid as little as $100/mo and as much as $550/mo -- without vision or dental.

[agent]

:melody: :melody: i went through the same dilemma as you, and it appears that at least around here the two are treated and paid the same. the logic is that an rn is an rn, both passed the same nclex, and the only difference is in the long run if you want to get your masters.

here they pay a lot less - annual is about $37 k before overtime, so your figures from the east should sound really encouraging!!

i too am "downgrading" if it's fair to say that, from a higher paying job (advertising, mba) to nursing, but if thats what your calling is, thats what counts, it's not about the money.

wish you the best of luck!

tami :melody:

interesting.. one of my classmates has a mba as well.

[ABC'S DAD]

:melody: :melody: i went through the same dilemma as you, and it appears that at least around here the two are treated and paid the same. the logic is that an rn is an rn, both passed the same nclex, and the only difference is in the long run if you want to get your masters.

here they pay a lot less - annual is about $37 k before overtime, so your figures from the east should sound really encouraging!!

i too am "downgrading" if it's fair to say that, from a higher paying job (advertising, mba) to nursing, but if thats what your calling is, thats what counts, it's not about the money.

wish you the best of luck!

tami :melody:

thanks for your encouragement. so are you working now as an rn? if so, what type of position do you have, and are you enjoying it?

[Kabin]

If one wants to lower nursing school costs, one should check with local hospitals for tuition payback programs.

[tamar2007]

since nursing shortages hit the headlines, it's drawing in people from a lot of different backgrounds and professions. although a lawyer i have not met yet, i guess their personality is so different they would never be attracted to nursing (unless their choice of law was a mistake to begin with :melody: ...)