So I might be going to China...

[aithril]

I am a graduate nurse at the moment, waiting impatiently for my ATT. I can't wait to start working as a nurse! My plan for the next year is to work my butt off and pay down student loans, accumulate savings, etc.

The only concern on my mind is my fiancé. He is an amazingly talented violinist who wants to start his own music school in China. It sounds crazy on the surface, but he is the perfect person to do this (being Taiwanese, speaks perfect mandarin and English without an accent), already has financial backing, and already has a talented business partner with both experience and connections. I back him 110 percent on this plan. Not only that, but I want to go with him!

That would about a year from now. After one year for me as an RN. What will happen to my career after I come back after a year abroad?

I really want to do something while I'm in China that has to do with healthcare. I doubt I could work as a Chinese nurse (I don't speak more than 5 words), but what would you guys suggest? Volunteer work? I also eventually want to get my masters and doctorate, but I know that even most online programs make you come on campus once per semester for various reasons.

Summary: Most likely going to China for at least a year after I have worked as an RN for a year. What should I do to better myself as a nurse and person?

[240zRN]

Lots of new graduates don't find a job for a year, on average, after graduation. You'd have a year of paid experience already, so with a year of off-time you're still in better shape, haha. Honestly, I would go and try and work as an RN in China, or at least volunteer using your nursing skills. I think that would look so awesome on your resume; I think it would show that you TRULY are not afraid of learning and welcome challenging environments. You could also take some online-based competency CEU courses. A year of off-time is nothing, in my opinion.

[aabbccdd]

this a difficult decision but it seems you are too readily considering only your fiances side of the story. if nursing is your passion and after you invested so much time to get there, why do you need to leave the country to readily support your partner's dreams? your dreams and career wishes are just as valid. why can't he have his music school in this country? if you are ready to go to china, that's fine, but don't give up your own dreams because you feel obligated (or love has blinded you).

[tigerlogic]

Option 1, work with ex-pats:

Imagine you were an ex-pat with out great language skills, where would you look for healthcare? Where ever that is, they probably have English speaking staff. Look for English speaking doctors and resources for ex-pats. There might even be potential for something like starting an English "call an RN hotline." Look for opportunities through/at your embassy or if there is any foreign military base nearby. Look for international schools and see if they need a school nurse who could try her hand at teaching health/bio/??

Option 2, volunteer with locals:

You don't have great language skills and the local wages aren't high, so likely this option won't make you lots of money. But, who knows...

Look for long term volunteer stuff, not just online searches but also maybe through local hostels, travel agencies, language schools or couchsurfing.org. In my experience, most volunteer places start off charging you money but will eventually trade an honest time commitment for the experience and sometimes offer a stipend. Don't write off places that make you pay, after you show them how different you are from a backpacker who will only be in town for 10 days, you might be able to negotiate something great with them.

Identify the need and some charismatic and energetic bilingual college students (or whoever) and start something.

If you don't need to make a lot of money doing it, I'm sure there are many options. Have a great time and have fun doing something amazing.

[cav5]

"Option 1, work with ex-pats:

Imagine you were an ex-pat with out great language skills, where would you look for healthcare? Where ever that is, they probably have English speaking staff. Look for English speaking doctors and resources for ex-pats. There might even be potential for something like starting an English "call an RN hotline." Look for opportunities through/at your embassy or if there is any foreign military base nearby. Look for international schools and see if they need a school nurse who could try her hand at teaching health/bio/?? "

Definitely this option is a good one. You will be surprised at the number of expats you meet all over the world and how many "American, International Schools" there are.

Too bad it can't be Japan-lots of bases over there.

As an expat, I love love love the life! It isn't for everybody but for those of us who love it we can imagine no other way to live.

Good luck!

[babyNP., APRN]

A friend of mine went to China and actually did work in a school as a nurse, but when he got back, he wasn't considered for the time he had spent there and was back at ground zero. Keep that in mind that US employers won't consider it experience...my friend from South Africa was also similar in that she had been a nurse for x number of years as a nurse in a hospital and they wouldn't consider her years there as any experience for a pay scale...

edit: what's his long term plan? Does he plan to stay in China indefinitely? That wouldn't fly with me, especially if I couldn't work as a nurse. What was the point of going to school in the first place?

[Enthused RN, BSN, RN]

When I was on a flight from Hong Kong, I saw a few ads for hospitals boasting about having English-speaking nurses. The pictues showed fairly All-American girls in their ads and I don't think they were models. They were normal looking girls, pretty enough but not glamorous. These hospitals cater to those seeking plastic and general surgery abroad where it's cheaper. It's actually a huge industry because it's so expensive to get surgery done in the US. You can look into hospitals that specialize in catering to that type of patient population (medical tourism). I'm sure they would appreciate your authentic American way of speaking and ability to relate to American patients that come into their facilities.

[faithoRN]

I am going to Western Governors University and they do NOT require any visits to campus, 100% online, with once a week phone call schedule. BSN or MSN. Just another option.

[coast2coast]

Why would it only be 1 year abroad? His plans sound pretty long-term and permanent. Are you sure you two are on the same trajectory here?