SLP or NP?

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I feel I am in a crossroad. I am currently in a RN program. I'm almost done with my first year, but I have come to realize that the health care field isn't what I pictured it to be. I always thought that the majority of nurses and other health care workers were compassionate and kind individuals, but I am just learning the opposite. It's very disappointing because all my life I've always wanted to work in health care and help patients.

Anyway, I have a BA in another field. I have heard about speech language pathologist for some time, and I feel it would be a less stressful career than nursing. If I become an RN....I would only want to work with babies like a nursery RN and maybe Peds. I am not interested in other nursing specialties other than that. So it would still be limited in my case since I am not interested in becoming an ER, ICU, or Med Surge nurse.

Anyway, the reason why I would like to become a NP is because I really like learning about diseases, learning how to diagnose, and educate others about taking good care of themselves or preventing illnesses. I really love the whole lecture part of nursing school. I don't know if Nurse practitioners are less stress than RN or if they are equally stress. I have been around RNs lately and most of them just look burnt out and frustrated. I would not like to work in that type of negative environment. I would like to hear from any NP's out there about your current experiences working as a nurse practitioner and the level of stress there is in that position.

Right now I am leaning a bit towards SLP than nursing because of my observations and experiences I am getting from nursing school.

I would appreciate others feedback about either position...RN, SLP, or NPs.

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I have a B.S. in speech pathology. I switched to nursing, because I really wanted to work with the whole person, not just speech and language. Also, I really needed more excitement. If you are looking for less stress, speech path might be for you, especially if you like kids. You can work in schools, hospitals, nursing homes, or private therapy clinics. There are lots of options. Education wise, you will need to get a masters for either of them, but both are rewarding careers. If you have any questions just let me know.

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I recommend the SLP route personally. If you can get into the grad program then do it.

If you want to do SLP you could easily to an NP program in a field of your interest later. There are so many online programs out there that your options are unlimited. You may not choose to work as one, but at least you'll learn a little about diagnosis and so forth since that interests you (and me) more than actually getting out and doing it.

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Thank you both for your feedback. Its a tough decision basically because I have to start all over if I go the SLP route. I would need to take 36 units of communication courses before applying to the masters program since my BA is not in communications.

Kah5209, how much do SLPs make as a new grad? I heard the SLPs at the school sites do not make that much, but I'm not sure if that's true.

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I am finishing my masters this year in SLP and to be honest, I can tell you I still don't really know what speech pathologists really do. Its a VERY easy job, very low stress, and can be very boring. RNs have such a wide scope of practice and can do SO much! I say do both. Thats what I'm doing. You'll get the respect and excellent medical foundation that comes from being a Nurse, and the advantage of the low stress, relatively slow pace work that come with being an SLP. I agree with doing SLP first. Its very long 6 to 7 years. An RN will be much quicker and easier to do later in life. Also if you work for a hospital, they may pay for it.

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I could have written this post word for word!

Please tell me what you decided to do and how it turned out.

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