Thinking About Switching to Nursing

[Xrayrhsolb]

Hey everyone I hope everyone's doing well.

This post is to anyone who has gone through nursing school or has gone through the same situation as I currently am now. So right now I'm attending a community college and I'm about to receive my associates degree in psychology after I finish my summer class (Earth Science lab). From there, I'm supposed to transfer to a 4 year university in the spring of 2017. I came to this community college not really knowing what I wanted to do. I jumped from music to psychology. I now know that I want to help people. I majored in psychology because I find the study of human behavior and mental processes to be interesting and then apply the knowledge to help people. I've looked into clinical psychology, school psychology, and social work. But after I took biological psychology, I became very interested in the biological aspects that take place elsewhere in the human body in addition to the brain. So I looked into health psychology but there doesn't seem to be any promising careers for this area of psychology. I've always found human anatomy and physiology to be an exciting subject ever since I was in elementary school and I recently developed a strong desire to work in a hospital. Then the word nurse popped into my head. I've done extensive research about nursing. I know that if I want to switch my major to nursing, I'm looking at a whole 180 degree turn. I know that I'll have to take chemistry, microbiology, pharmacology, anatomy & physiology, clinical hours, and other nursing classes. I'm fully aware of the challenges that nursing school holds as well but I would be willing to face them. I also know that a career in nursing is challenging but so is any other career. If it's for the sake of making a difference in people's lives and helping them get better I know that I will feel accomplished. Compared to psychology, I can see that nursing is more hands-on, practical, and conventional. I would like to work in a hospital that deals with helping people in a hands-on approach instead of just sitting in an office talking to one person for hours working with only theoretical ideas.

I love psychology but I also love the idea of working in a hospital as a nurse so at this point I find myself to be standing on a crossroad and yes it is frustrating.

My questions are:

-Should I turn around and drop my Earth Science lab class and switch immediately to chemistry before I get my associates in psychology?

-Or should I finish that last class and get my degree and return to my community college again to pursue nursing with an associates degree in psychology in my transcript?

-Should I consider double majoring?

-Has anyone ever gone through this situation?

I know that it's up to me to make such a decision. I'm 22 years old and I don't want to make a mistake of choosing the wrong career. I'm opened for any honest suggestions and advice.

Thanks guys!!

[haleyannsn]

I am currently a nursing student! I just completed my first semester. If it were me, I would go ahead and get the Psychology degree, considering how close you are to receiving that! After you get the degree, go ahead and apply for the nursing program! I think it is better to finish what you started, that way, if for whatever reason nursing doesn't work out for you, you will always have something else to build on.

[Xrayrhsolb]

Thank you so much for the advice. I just completed my psychology major classes with an associates and now I'm going to register for the pre-requisite nursing classes next spring.

By the way, I apologize for the super late response. Thank you again!!