What kind of nurse should I be?

[IsabellaB]

Hi! I'm new on this site I'm a Freshman in college right now, and I want to graduate with my BSN and then get my masters. I've been thinking about what kind of nursing I want to focus on. It's between neonatal, pediatrics, oncology, and midwifery. I would love working in a hospital, and I like it when a job is fast paced. So, my question is which type of nursing would be best suited for me? And what are the pros and cons of the types I listed?

[Rose_Queen, BSN, MSN, RN]

I'm assuming that as a freshman, you haven't yet had any clinical experiences. I went into nursing school thinking that I wanted to be a pediatric nurse. Then I did my pediatric clinicals. Well, that was an eye opening experience. Guess what? I didn't even apply for any pediatric positions. I am currently an OR nurse and love my job. It was one I didn't even consider until my last semester when I finally got some exposure to it.

So I guess what I'm saying is keep an open mind. The areas that interest you now may not be the same ones that interest you when it's time to start applying for jobs. If you get through clinicals and those areas still interest you, shadow a nurse for a few days. What they do all day is quite different from what you see in clinicals with one or two patients.

[llg, PhD, RN]

I agree with the previous poster. You won't know which areas might be right for you until you give them a try. It's like buying clothes or shoes. You can have opinions by looking at pictures, seeing them on the rack, etc. ... But you don't know if it's right for you until you actually try it on.

Don't waste your energy worrying about it now. Make a plan to explore multiple areas over the course of the next couple of years ... then relax and enjoy the process of exploration.

Good luck to you.