Struggling Where to Go in my Career

[Nurse Beth, MSN]

Dear Nurse Beth,

I have been working in the NICU for the past 3.5 years as a Patient Care Tech, and recently graduated from nursing school in May 2019 and remained in the NICU as an RN.

I recognize I still have tons to learn at the bedside but want to continue on the education path to a graduate degree. In the future, I would like to be in a leadership position and am contemplating going back to school for an MSN with a specialization in Administration and Management.

I am constantly met with a question to myself of will I regret going this route, or am I wasting my time, should I focus on bedside nursing and wait, etc. I am just looking for any advice you can provide to a new RN struggling where to go so early in my career. Thank you so much for your time.

Dear Struggling,

Why don't you decide to give yourself a certain amount of time, say 1 year, to not decide. You are still in your first year of nursing and your energies need to be focused on learning to be a nurse.

You've become aware of the multitude of career choices and it can be overwhelming. Because a master's degree typically makes you narrow your focus, you can be afraid of painting yourself into a corner and limiting your career choices.

Deciding not to decide means tolerating a certain level of ambivalence for now. As time passes, your future will become clearer to you.

Often career advancement is a function of both education, opportunity, and paying attention to the signs as they appear. Trust the process.

Best wishes to you.

Nurse Beth

Author, "Your Last Nursing Class: How to Land Your First Nursing Job"...and your next!

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