Taking a pay cut to enter into Nursing

Nurses General Nursing

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I'm going to ask the same question here that I asked in the NJ section but got no response. I spent two years get my BSN through an accelerated program and recently will be going on an interview. However, now I am faced with the prospect of taking a significant pay cut to enter into nursing. I am not happy in my current career and I'm at a point that I want to do something worthwhile with my life and that I feel a sense of accomplishment. I can also afford to take the pay cut at this point in my life.

I wanted to know if there was anyone out there that has done the same thing and if they have looking back on their decision, was it worth it??? or am I just flat out crazy for even considering this option..... :confused:

Specializes in LTAC, ICU, ER, Informatics.

I'm not there yet, as I just started RN school for an ASN. I'm in computers (data warehousing) right now, never got a degree, just work exp got me where I am. When I graduate and go to work as an RN, I'll be taking a pay cut from the 80's to the 40-50's. I'm working now to pay off all my debt except my house before I graduate. So long as I can pay my bills, it's enough $$.

I'm doing this because I was a paramedic years and years ago, and love the work. (I want to be an ER nurse.)

I also have several options when I go for my advanced degrees, either NP or a specific area in medical technology (I'll decide after my BSN) so I know I won't be in ER forever but I want to work ER/Critical Care for a long while. :)

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I'm not there yet, as I just started RN school for an ASN. I'm in computers (data warehousing) right now, never got a degree, just work exp got me where I am. When I graduate and go to work as an RN, I'll be taking a pay cut from the 80's to the 40-50's. I'm working now to pay off all my debt except my house before I graduate. So long as I can pay my bills, it's enough $$.

I'm doing this because I was a paramedic years and years ago, and love the work. (I want to be an ER nurse.)

I also have several options when I go for my advanced degrees, either NP or a specific area in medical technology (I'll decide after my BSN) so I know I won't be in ER forever but I want to work ER/Critical Care for a long while. :)

It's good to know that there are other ppl out there, like me, that have or are considering this. I find it comforting. My husband is the breadwinner, so I can do this. However, like you, I'm feaverishly paying off all debt other than our house should things pan out and I decide to take the plunge..It's a scary prospect considering I've been unhappy yet comfortable doing what I'm doing now. I have applied for grad school for an NP, so I'm hoping that all pans out too...

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I'm in the very same situation.... I DON't like my job...... i fact I detest it. .... In fact in the pharma field, I could get laid off at any time... it is very lean times right now and I truly believe that another round of LO's are in the future...My current job is a professional job, but my life is not my own... I'm there at 7Am and there till 7 PM.... and though I'm not serving others persay, I still believe that I meant to do more with myself than sit behind a desk....

I'm lucky to to be able to consider this endeavor because my husband is the breadwinner otherwise this would not be an option for me. I appreciate you perspective!

I also came from Big Pharma where I made 2x what I make now. The stress of layoffs and moving state to state was just too much for me. My friends that stayed in the industry are contantly fearing layoffs as it is a yearly occurance. I loved what I did, and the money was fantastic, but to me the stress was just too much. Making less money sucks but it's a much easier lifestyle. Now, I make the choices.

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I also came from Big Pharma where I made 2x what I make now. The stress of layoffs and moving state to state was just too much for me. My friends that stayed in the industry are contantly fearing layoffs as it is a yearly occurance. I loved what I did, and the money was fantastic, but to me the stress was just too much. Making less money sucks but it's a much easier lifestyle. Now, I make the choices.

So from your perspective you feel that nursing is less stressful than the pharma industry?

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Yes I do

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It better be a dream too and not just a passing fancy.

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Specializes in Family Nurse Practitioner.

I also love being a nurse but wouldn't take a pay cut to do anything. My former career paid about what I make as a nurse but my benefits and overtime that I get every year as a RN make a big difference in my bottom line. OP, I'd be concerned that you seem to have done numerous things and are still searching. I'm not being critical just suggesting you think about it. Best of luck with whatever you decide.

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Specializes in ICU.

I worked in market research/analytics and now in clinical development (I am working while in school). Part of market research was interviewing physicians and nurses about the products they use, treatments, conditions, and patients, etc...

I found out early on that I was really good with medical stuff and my brain absorbed everything related to pharmacology and disease states. I decided I didn't want to work for a pharma company but would be better off in direct care. Plus, I can't stand sitting at a desk all day. I was just waiting for the right time. I got laid off from my job and decided that was the time. I found another job in clinical development working on safety and adverse events while I am in school.

This sounds like it would interest me... how would one get into that?

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I took a pay cut in changing jobs to go back to school. I think once I'm out of school I'll make about what I did before I quit so I'm actually losing money. The crappy part is that I don't think the career change (if I do change) will make me any happier. Probably won't.

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This sounds like it would interest me... how would one get into that?

If you want to get into clinical research... look for positions titled clinical research associate, clinical research manager, Local Trial Manager. These types of positions run/coordinate the clinical trials that pharmacuetical companies use to get drugs approved by FDA. You can find these types of positions at either pharma companies or clinical research organizations (e.g. Omnicare, i3 pharma) that run the clinical trials for the pharma companies. Typically there is travel required because you need to visit the reseach sites to make sure documentation is being gathered and properly stored in case of an audit by FDA.

As for the safety portion of it and reporting advese events, I believe those types of positions are title with something called drug safety. These types of positions gather all the AE data on drugs that are reported by ptns, docs and literature. These are then reported to the FDA.

I'm not so sure about the market research aspect of things....

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Specializes in Critical Care.

I made twice what I do now in Nursing in my previous life, and I'm quite happy I did. Coming out of college, my main goal, actually my only goal, was to make good money, which I managed to do but I was miserable. I thought if I could just make good money then I could afford to spend my time and live my life in a way that would make up for however terrible the job was. I found that your job itself is how you spend the biggest single chunk of time in your life, and if you don't enjoy that then there is no amount of money that can buy that time back.

That doesn't mean that Nursing is where people go to enjoy their job; there are plenty of people in Nursing who are just as miserable as I was in my previous career, they're usually fairly easy to spot both on the job and on this website. If you end up just viewing it as a source of a paycheck then you'll end up miserable, whether you realize it or not. All jobs suck to some degree, it's your perspective on it more than the job itself that determine if the job worth accounting for the largest single chunk of your waking hours.

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Specializes in CVICU, Obs/Gyn, Derm, NICU.
I'm interested to hear the responses.

I'm in much the same position as you dragn2623, except that I cannot afford the pay cut just yet. My original plan was to become an RN, work part-time in nursing for a year or 2, then return to school for my MSN to become a CNP. At that point, I'd be in position to take early retirement from my present job and could withstand the pay cut to enter nursing full-time.

It seemed like a reasonable plan when I began it and I finished the first step with no problems. Step 2 has me stymied though and I'm probably going to go directly to Step 3 instead.

Well ...but as the whole picture of nursing has changed ...there are many, many more of us with lots of relevant experience who are going the NP route.

Many of us have 20 + yrs acute care / teaching hospital experience.

Whilst it's wonderful that newbies aim for NP roles - I'm not optimistic that they will find work easily with only a year or two (or less) of RN experience

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