Some people are too smart for nursing

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I hate this comment.

I have a degree in biomedical engineering but my passion is in nursing so I'm going back to school for that.

Lots of people say I'm too smart to waste it on nursing.

Have people said this about nursing? I'd think you'd have to be pretty smart to take care of sick people.

Specializes in Med/Surg, Academics.
This, this, this, this, this, this!

I can't tell you how many times I have been asked, "Why didn't you just become a doctor. You're really smart." Um, because I WANTED to be a nurse, hence I'm a nurse.

I've been asked that by a couple of fresh-faced residents, and my reply is always the same:

"Why didn't you become a nurse? You're really smart...."

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Specializes in SICU, trauma, neuro.
I've been asked that by a couple of fresh-faced residents, and my reply is always the same:

"Why didn't you become a nurse? You're really smart...."

LOVE it!!! :laugh:

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Specializes in Mental Health, Gerontology, Palliative.

I got asked why I didnt go to med school. I said "A, because I didnt want to, and B, I'm 36, by the time i do six years at medical school I'll be 42, and I want an income before then"

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I LOVE these responses :)

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very interesting " I'm a nurse because I wanted to be a nurse, be with my patients etc..." but lately, at the first opportunity that same nurse wanted to be a nurse practitioner which is the closest a nurse can be like a doctor. For doing that I will become a doctor.

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"You're so smart you should be a doctor not a nurse"

Have several seats sir. 🙅💅

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Specializes in CVICU.

For me I always got the ignorant remarks by people about how I wouldn't understand because I didn't finish high school.

Intelligence has NOTHING to do with what degree one earned and if you don't understand that comment, you fall in the not so smart category, imo.

Theory and practice are far from the same thing. I have met countless self proclaimed "educated" people that are complete idiots .

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Specializes in Cardiology, Cardiothoracic Surgical.

My response is: "Because I wanted a job when I got done with school" vs. toiling for 8 years on a PhD in biochemistry, that's why.

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Specializes in Pediatric Critical Care.

When I chose to go to nursing school, I got asked by many "you are so smart, why stop at nursing? You should be a doctor instead!"

It was frustrating. I didn't want to be a doctor! I wanted to be a nurse! And I DO use my brain every day for it!

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Specializes in Emergency, ICU.
There are smart and dumb people in just about every profession, and nursing and medicine are no different.

That is very true. There have been some residents that I hope to never encounter as a patient...

Sent from my iPhone -- blame all errors on spellcheck

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very interesting " I'm a nurse because I wanted to be a nurse, be with my patients etc..." but lately, at the first opportunity that same nurse wanted to be a nurse practitioner which is the closest a nurse can be like a doctor. For doing that I will become a doctor.

I don't think becoming a NP indicates one secretly wanted to be a MD. Two very different disciplines and different educations.

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Plus, you can never be "too smart" for anything. We need smart CNAs and smart LPNs and smart RNs just as much as we need smart physicians.

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