Was the Nursing program your first choice?

tech1000 · Mar 17, 2011

I think radiology is hard to get a job in, but I know there's a hospital here that does rad residencies. My boyfriend has been in rad for the last 6 years and is doing special procedures (a specialty area in rad) and makes $31 an hour, which is more than I'll be making as a new nurse. It just depends on what you want to do.

chicagoing, ADN, RN · Mar 18, 2011

Nursing was not my first choice, at least when I was younger. I had my heart set on dental school from the age of 7. When some of my friends were preparing to further their education, I chose to get a job and make $$$ :)

Now that I'm older and have been shaped by more life experiences, I realize that nursing is going to be a good fit for me.

~Mi Vida Loca~RN, ASN, RN · Mar 18, 2011

The FBI academy in quantico,va was my first choice. I was going to be a forensic detective back before it became cool on TV when that wouldn't be possible (decided getting pregnant at 15 was a smarter idea) I wanted to be a medical examiner, than thought about teaching, than I wanted to save all the children by working in social services. I soon realized doing that would most likely end up with me being hunted down by the FBI when I kidnapped all the kiddos I couldn't save and well wouldn't that be awkward.

After a lot of thought I decided on nursing and figured that could give me a little of all that I wanted. I can be a forensic nurse if I want or one of the ones trained for sexual assault. I could look out for the kiddos if I saw something. I could really help people and make a difference in their life, I could also teach students when I become an experienced nurse.

Lee J A · Mar 19, 2011

Where else but in nursing can you chose to work in an office or in private homes. You can work in a hospital in too many specialty areas to mention or if your the social worker type person you can work in a behavioral health setting for chemical dependency or mental illness. My point is, the range of opportunities is soooo broad. I am an LPN that has worked in the Developmental Disabilities field for 25 years and now I'm going back for my RN. I needed a change and have looked into many other fields but being a caregiver type person I kept going back to nursing. There is several areas that I am personally interested in and I know that getting my BSN will be the best decision. Goodluck with your decision!!

LeO13 · Mar 20, 2011

I actually thought about applying for the Rad Tech Program, but after working in X-ray/CT for a year, I got bored and cannot picture myself doing this for the rest of my life. I don't know how many times I hear tech's over and over telling patients to take a deep breath, hold it, okay do not move until you hear further instructions, not for me.

D00dNrs2B · Mar 20, 2011

When I first graduated highschool I was a computer science major. I took one programming class and quickly decided that computers were not for me. I spent the next two years of my college career as an undecided. Then I switched to pre-pharmacy to biology with a specialization in genetic engineering and finally a biochemistry major before I was accepted to nursing school for Fall 2011 semester.

I started working as a pharmacy tech when I started pre-pharmacy and still work as a tech. Working in a pharmacy has definately made me realize that I would much rather work on the prescribing and hands on portion of healthcare. This was what led me to nursing with my eventual goal of becoming a NP.

This is my first post on the forum I've been reading it over for the past couple days. I just found out I was accepted off the wait list for my school not even a week ago. I look forward to interacting with all the other nursing students on this board. I am very excited to start nursing school, but also a little nervous. It seems like most people have some experience as a CNA or LPN before becoming an RN. I would have done this however I've been told that in my particular area of the country I could make more $ with better benefits by staying a pharmacy tech, and my school said that having a CNA does not increase your chances of being accepted to the nursing program so I just never did it. Does anyone think this will be a serious hindrance for me in nursing school? :eek:

chinacatSN · Mar 20, 2011

Does anyone think this will be a serious hindrance for me in nursing school?

It won't be a serious hindrance. But it would make life MUCH easier for you. In NS (at least in most programs) you have to provide TOTAL patient care - meaning you do everything a CNA does plus what the nurse would do, within your scope of practice. If you were already a CNA, it would help you with time management as well as being able to bath, transfer, and do basic patient care. The non-CNA students in my class took much longer to get their work done than those of us who are CNAs. You wouldn't believe how technical transferring a patient can be or how long a simple shower can take if you've never really done it before. Not to mention that as a CNA you would already know basic skills such as bed making, emptying a catheter bag, assisting with ADLs, bathing, feeding, vitals, etc.

You don't have to work as a CNA, but maybe you could take a CNA class? That would help you more than not taking it at all. You could even get an on-call position as a CNA. Your school schedule must be flexible...or your work schedule...there were a couple women in my class who used to be pharm techs but had to quit because class took place during the day and the pharmacy was only open until 5. Lucky you!

Lee J A · Mar 20, 2011

When does the program start for you? Its not too late, some nursing homes will teach you the skills you need but you'll have to look into it. You can work on weekends or evenings and get the hands on experience that will help you. If not, keep moving forward, you definately won't be the first without hands on experience.

pitaya · Mar 20, 2011

No, for my whole childhood, my first choice was to become a doctor and I fully intended on pursuing medical school until I got a 2.7 GPA my first semester of college. I had graduated high school with a GPA of 3.9, but going to a university where my teachers didn't even know my name was a hard adjustment to make for a small town kid. I failed chemistry, got C's in biology, and I didn't like those classes anyway and I thought, well, I think I should just like those classes a little bit more if I'm going to be a doctor. And I figured no med school would ever let me in. I'd ruined myself.

So I found out about public health and loved it and pursued a degree in public health. I loved my public health classes and I learned a lot, but what I was learning was more about injustice and poverty and politics and social justice and health education. It has changed my worldviews forever, but it wasn't challenging. I could write a few good papers and get an A. I had several friends in nursing and I started thinking that just maybe I could do that and it would be an asset to a degree in public health. I already had all the pre-reqs, so I applied, got in, and here I am. Hah, I remember my mom suggesting nursing years ago and I said, "Nursing? They do all the doctor's dirty work. I don't want to be a nurse!" (In actuality, I had no idea what nurses really did.)

D00dNrs2B · Mar 20, 2011

Thank you for the advice. I will definitely look into maybe getting some training from a hospital or nursing home. The CNA program at my school is a semester long so I don't really have the time to take it before I start class in the fall. I have my orientation for my school tomorrow so I will make sure to talk to the director of the program about her thoughts on the subject as well.

JeffC · Mar 7, 2012

The BSN program was definitely my first choice, but the school I am going to was not. Whatever you choose, make sure you choose the right school! I got into my first choice, but didn't think I would be able to afford the move (6 hours away), so decided to stay local. I hate it here. I feel like I am at a third rate university with a nursing program no one has heard about. Most of my classmates are ecstatic to be there... I walk in grumpy and mopey daily.

Good luck with whatever you do!

Scarlettz, BSN, RN · Mar 7, 2012

I had two nursing schools in mind when I decided I wanted to pursue nursing. I already have a bachelors degree, so part of me sort of wishes I went with the accelerated second degree nursing program. But, that would mean that I would have to take about 3 more science classes. Paying out of pocket for school at that time, I was not ready to put in that additional time (as that would have meant about another year of community college courses) after taken A&P and Bio at CC.

So, I decided to apply to my community college's nursing program. My rationale was that it was cheaper and closer and would start sooner than the 2nd degree program (since I didn't need those additional science classes.) I was not sure how I would do in nursing, as it was so brand new to me and even frightening. I did not want to put in all that money if it did not work out. Community college is cheaper. I wouldn't feel as crushed if I did terrible in the program. Many people apply to the CC program (over 500 applicants) and about 130 get in. I got in and was grateful for the slower paced environment, especially with nursing.

Overall, I am content with the program. I do believe that things happen for a reason and that sometimes your second or third choice may be truly what is best for you. I remember in HS choosing my dream college. The campus was beautiful and it seemed great. I felt such comfort one night in bed when I realized I wanted to go to this school. I got into the school, but the scholarship money was not as great as other schools were offering me. This school was a private school, over 30,000 dollars a year. I could see that my mom didn't want me to go there based on money issues. I think if I really wanted it that bad I could have pursued it more. But, I ended up going to a state school instead. I was majoring in psych at that time. I knew that I would certainly need more schooling beyond undergrad. I could not afford my 30,000+ school and a masters program. So, I felt okay with going to the state school for undergrad. I actually met alot of wonderful people, enjoyed the classes, and miss it alot!

Oh, and as far as programs go, nursing was not my first choice. I wanted to either pursue occupational therapy or nursing (specifically psychiatric nursing.) When I got into the CC nursing program, I sort of dismissed the OT direction. I might regret that later on, as I feel that OT might be a better fit for me. I guess I could always go on to more schooling in the future if I really want. I just thought that nursing would provide me with more options than OT. I thought there would be more job openings as well..