are you on teachers' payscale?

[blacksea pebble]

Hello everyone!

I just wanted to know if school nurses get paid the same as teachers in other states. In CA we are on teachers' payscale; kind of low when you take into consideration that school psychologists start form 90,000 per year. I used to make much more at the hospital, but I love my school job:redbeathe. I would NEVER want to go back to critical care;)

[schooldistrictnurse]

No, in my district I am not. But some districts within a state might be. I was hired from the Health Department and so we agreed on roughly the same pay as I was getting there with a bump in benefits to make the switch worthwhile. Probably not the smartest move since Public Health pay is crummy, but I was really looking for the benefits.

[Purple_Scrubs, BSN, RN]

In my district (Texas) I am on the teacher's scale. Annually, it was a paycut from the hospital, but when I broke it down to an hourly wage, taking into consideration 7 hour days and 9 months working, the hourly was comparable. I'll take it

Most days I adore this job, but I have considered trying to get a PRN in the hospital setting, mainly because I eventually want to be a nursing professor and the more varied experience I have the better.

[bsyrn, ASN, RN]

nope not on the teachers pay scale...my pay is peanuts but with the benefits and time off well worth it

[Kateper]

Hi

I noticed that the person that posted is a school nurse in California.

I have been an Rn for 24 yrs. and I am in a BSN program, one of the areas I am very interested in is school nursing.

I was hoping to get some information about being a school Nurse.

What is the job like ? What do you like and dislike about the job ?

What kind of experience is best to have, and if you know if there are very many jobs availiable in school nursing ?

[geocachingRN]

Kateper-

In my area, now is the time to consider School Nursing. Frankly, no one wants this job. Yes, it pays a little poorly, but it's a great, steady job with wonderful benefits. Ambulatory care and ER are the best specialties to have going in. Many districts have only one nurse, which is fine, but a new school nurse would work best with others in the district to show you the ropes. I just recently hired into a school district that has no procedures written down. I spent most of today trying to figure out how they organize hearing and vision screenings and they do it a completely different way than my previous district. If I had no idea what I was doing, I would be very frustrated.

[blacksea pebble]

Thank you everyone for your replies. I completely agree with you that when you break down the hourly rate, you get the same $$ or even more than in the hospital. I also have a PD position on telemetry unit at the local hospital, it pays my summer travel expenses and keeps my IV skills sharp.

[blacksea pebble]

In CA you need to have a bachelors degree (in any field), RN (may be ADN), and preliminary school nurse services credential( with above qualifications you just need to apply and get your credentials), then you have 5 years to get your clear credential(1year study full time). Then if you want to have a management position in the school system, you need a masters in education.

I hope this helps:)

[geocachingRN]

In CA you need to have a bachelors degree (in any field), RN (may be ADN), and preliminary school nurse services credential( with above qualifications you just need to apply and get your credentials), then you have 5 years to get your clear credential(1year study full time). Then if you want to have a management position in the school system, you need a masters in education.

I hope this helps:)

Most of the School Nurse Credential programs require a PHN so if one does have an ADN, (and a BS or BA ) you need to get that before you can do the credential program. Very few provide just the PHN. I had to get mine as part of my MSN.

[lissaq10]

I am on the teachers payscale in MN. I am making less than any of my other jobs. I am very new into School Nursing, so I am feeling very overwhelmed at this time. It's a lot to learn, but I am enjoying learning new things. It seems weird to say that I am more stressed than any other nursing job, but it's worth the money. :-) I have young kids and so I am saving on daycare in the summer and also have that opportunity to be on the same schedule as them (very few days of daycare during the school year). The summers with them are INVALUABLE and well worth the lower pay. Can't put a pricetag on that.