I have read a lot of postings here and I really believe that this is the best place to solicit advices.
I am 41, single mother of 4 kids and a teacher of one of the biggest districts here in Texas. I am making around $58k annually. BTW this is my 20th year of teaching. I am now at the point wherein I am getting tired of teaching (too much stress, staying late for grading and recording, doing the same things again and again, etc). I don't want to ruin my record because of this feeling.
I am thinking of shifting to nursing since I really want to do something that is related to caring for people. I am willing to spend a year to go back to school plus my savings is just enough for us to survive for a year. I have checked some school websites and I realized that it takes 2 years to finish the program for RN. I know this will not work for me since I have 4 children to feed. I saw another option: Take an LVN program which is for a year, start working as LVN then take the transition program to RN once I have adjusted to my new profession.
I just want to know if there are nurses here or know somebody who did the same thing. I would love to hear your/their experiences. There are so many questions that pop up to my mind such as: Is it worth it? How much does an LVN receive? Will my salary as LVN feed my children and my schooling fo another year? Am I too old to shift profession? Is this option possible?
Please help me by sharing your opinions and eperiences! It will be very much appreciated.
I've never taught, so I can't compare the two. However, I would like to point out that not every nursing job is as bad as some here make it out to be. I work in a high acuity ICU at a major metropolition hospital. I pee more than once every shift, although there may have been a crazy day here or there when I've had to hold it for a couple of hours. I have missed lunch a few times (only done this for a year so far) but I do eat something 99% of the time - just sometimes it's at the desk while I chart. It's helpful to bring a few small things, so if it's crazy you can eat a granola bar, yogurt, etc. and at least get something in your stomach.
We don't do rotating shifts at my hospital except by choice - you're hired for days, eves, nights, whatever. I was initially hired on days, as a new grad, then switched to nights by choice for the differential. OR nurses take call regularly, the rest of us are NOT forced to - you can sign up for an on call shift if you choose to, and get paid for it. Same with overtime - we sign up for it when we need the cash, it's never mandated. We do work rotating weekends (usually 1/3, although this varies by unit) or you can sign up for a weekend option plan, where you work every Sat/Sun and make more per hour. Everyone works 40% of the holidays, and you get to make your preferences known. We also get a pension, but there is no matching contribution to our 401K.
My job is far from perfect, and there are days when I regret my decision. There are other days that I love it. I've cried twice in a year. However, my facility isn't as horrible as some people's seem to be. If you do go to school (and definitely research Accelerated BSN programs), pay close attention on clinical rotations to how happy the nurses you work with seem to be - it should help you make an informed decision on where to work post-graduation. Good luck with whatever you decide!
How long do you have to go to retire? If it is five or ten years, stay, get your pension, then think about nursing.
This is no time to give up a secure job, and it is a bad time to enter nursing.
New grads in many parts of the country are having an awful time finding jobs. I personally would like to dry up the pipeline of new nurses so there really would be a shortage instead of a surplus. So all you would-be's go on strike a few years, OK?
Well, you are getting lots of varied answers. Here's my take.
You will not enjoy working Thanksgiving, Christmas, July 4th, all the other holidays that you now have off. You will dislike getting maybe 3 weeks of vacation in a whole year. You will not see your chiodren if you work when they are off of school, that is, you work evenings, they are at their games, concerts, parties, etc., who is supervising them? If you work Days, you'll have to be at work before they are even awake, Night shift can go either way as far as when you see them, depends on when you sleep.
School is tough and there are many choices in schools to attend. The way to decide this is to research all of them. Maybe a guidance counselor can help?
There are few jobs just now for new graduates. I expect this will turn around but when?
What field of Nursing are you wanting? babies? sick kids? doc's office? ICU? many, many, many other areas to choose from and that is a plus. Something for everyone.
I'm glad you're here researching and hope you get some good info to help you decide. If there is a community college near you or state U that has a Nursing program, talk with them to learn the pre-req's and maybe get started on those. Just having a BA or BS won't cut it, I don't think, if you don't have Chem, Physics, Anatomy and Physiology (A & P), Microbiology, Sociology, Psychology, and maybe college Algebra. English Comp, maybe foreign lang, too. Not sure. I've been out of school many years and we just took all of these in N. School.
The pay ranges from horrible to not bad. The top end would likely be as an anesthetist (more school after working in ICU a couple of years), midwife, or NP. Go to the Specialty tab up above on this page and check into all the specialties and to the Student tab, also.
I wish you well.
You will need excellent back up babysitting plans. Absenteeism is unacceptable in N. School, largely, as the state requires you to have a certain number of lecture and clinical hours to sit for the state exam. NCLEX, as it's known now. I guess attendance is still a requirement.
LVN is quicker, true, but lower pay and harder to get work, I think, except maybe n. homes, which might be your thing, who knows? Check out Bridge programs.
Best wishes.
Can you just take a sabbatical or work in a private school that is not subject to so many regulations as public school? Or become an Administrator of Education. Or switch to or from Special Ed, become a private tutor for wealthy people or for kids who work, like in Hollywood, and must have tutors, or something exotic like that. Become a Fine Arts teacher or teach a different grade/topic. Best wishes, again.
What do you suppose is right and what is wrong about Education these days?
Yes, daycare problems always come as a shock to people that leave a daylight, monday thru friday position for nursing. How old are your kids? Who will watch them on 12 hour shifts, off shifts, weekends and Holidays? Who will stay with them during the summer? Do you know what it is like to get off a nightmare shift at 7am on a Saturday morning and not get any sleep because it is weekend and the kids are around and they want to go, go, go because it is their day off? Then you go back in at 7pm and you are exhausted. Do you know that nurses only get two weeks vacation out of twelve months the first couple of years. Do you know that nurses that are sick or injured are treated like crap. If you are injured at work or get a horrible infection from a patient you almost always have to get a lawyer to get any compensation. Sooner rather than later most people find this out. If you notice the NICU nurses are the happiest. That is because there patient weight about 4 pounds. My average patient weighed about 300 and was helpless. They will stick their hand out to you and say "pull me up" If you pull them up and get hurt management will blame you for not getting any help. The fact that there is no help does not seem to concern management and they should know it because they are the ones that laid everyone off.
MB37
1,714 Posts
I've never taught, so I can't compare the two. However, I would like to point out that not every nursing job is as bad as some here make it out to be. I work in a high acuity ICU at a major metropolition hospital. I pee more than once every shift, although there may have been a crazy day here or there when I've had to hold it for a couple of hours. I have missed lunch a few times (only done this for a year so far) but I do eat something 99% of the time - just sometimes it's at the desk while I chart. It's helpful to bring a few small things, so if it's crazy you can eat a granola bar, yogurt, etc. and at least get something in your stomach.
We don't do rotating shifts at my hospital except by choice - you're hired for days, eves, nights, whatever. I was initially hired on days, as a new grad, then switched to nights by choice for the differential. OR nurses take call regularly, the rest of us are NOT forced to - you can sign up for an on call shift if you choose to, and get paid for it. Same with overtime - we sign up for it when we need the cash, it's never mandated. We do work rotating weekends (usually 1/3, although this varies by unit) or you can sign up for a weekend option plan, where you work every Sat/Sun and make more per hour. Everyone works 40% of the holidays, and you get to make your preferences known. We also get a pension, but there is no matching contribution to our 401K.
My job is far from perfect, and there are days when I regret my decision. There are other days that I love it. I've cried twice in a year. However, my facility isn't as horrible as some people's seem to be. If you do go to school (and definitely research Accelerated BSN programs), pay close attention on clinical rotations to how happy the nurses you work with seem to be - it should help you make an informed decision on where to work post-graduation. Good luck with whatever you decide!