Which job would be the best while in nursing school???

[studentnurse3]

Which of these jobs would be the best to have while in nursing school?

a. Medical transcription job at home with somewhat flexible hours, pretty much five days a week.

b. Unit secretary working three nights a week 7pm to 7:30 a.m. with the possibility of working just weekends if it were to interfer with school during the week.

I've been offered both but I don't know in the long run, when I am finally in nursing school, which would be the better job to have while attending school. The hospital offers more benefits ie.. paid vacation, tuition reimbursement, but the hours suck. The MT job is at home, no benefits, and I have to type a certain amount of lines to get a good paycheck but I can be home with the kids.

I've read previous posts where people have said that a unit secretary job is a good one to have because you will get the feel of the paperwork associated with being a nurse.

I just don't know which would be best. Anyone have an opinion?

Thanks.

[Ayvah, RN]

I would suggest the medical transcriptionist position. Especially for those semesters where life just gets terribly hectic, that flexibility is a godsend. There are many parents in my class, and one that I am particularly close to tells me she feels like she takes turns being a good mom and a good student. That would be extremely hard, I think, to be away so many hours at work and school not being able to see your kids that much. That's good that you have health insurance through your husband. Overall I'd think the unit secretary job would be a slightly better 'job to learn things', however, for your sanity I'd strongly recommend the medical transcriptionist position. Think about in the future, what if you take the unit secretary position and find out later that you need to drop your hours, and they can't accommodate?

I chose an office job over a CNA job due to the office job's flexibility and every time I go to work I know I've made the right choice for me. I've had to cut down my hours a few times, and switch around the days that I've worked. I wouldn't have had near as much ability to do that with the CNA job.