Do we have nurses online that began their career later in life? What would you do different? Would you stay in the nursing career or do something else?
I am 51 years old and have been accepted into the Ga. Perimeter nursing program this fall. Of course I'm terrified of being able to complete the 2 years of training at my age. I have been considering switching to a 2 year Diagnostic Medical Sonography program but then I won't have any guarantee of getting into the program. Since it is not a broader range of study like nursing it seems less stressful, however only 30 students are taken per year. I am at a loss at to what to do. I would love to hear from other nurses that started later in life.
I don't think that there's anything to be terrified about. If anything, I consider the maturity of middle age to be an asset and said students to be much better than the 20-somethings.
I would also challenge all the "you have to be in great shape" posts. On a scale of 1-10, I'd rate my conditioning as a 5 and I do pretty well. Further, I see many nurses around the hospital whose physical conditioning is very poor and they seem to get by. I realistically plan to do my job until I'm 70.
My only regret about entering nursing in my mid-40's is that I didn't do it 20 years earlier.
The exact words I wanted to hear. Thank you so much for your input. You experienced nurses can't know how valuable your points of view are to those of us just entering the field.
You're welcome! Oh, and here's a little suggestion. Most nursing school pre-reqs are the same, but there are a few differences here and there. My school didn't require a medical terminology class - and I took my pre-reqs elsewhere, not sure at the time which nursing school I was going to go to - but I'd recommend one if you can fit it in, because in nursing school, I usually :^) remembered what this or that prefix, suffix, or 'root' part of a medical term was, whereas some of my classmates would say 'what's so-and-so?', or 'how did you know that?'.
Specializes in orthopedic/trauma, Informatics, diabetes.
I was 48 when I finished my ADN. That was 4 years ago. I have since finished my BSN and I just started my MSN. I am going into Informatics b/c I know that I don't think I will be able to do bedside for 15+ more years. I am fitter than most of the younger nurses LOL. Totally doable
You go girl! Get that BSN and knock out two years on the floor. Once you get that in, you'll have so many more options that are physically less demanding. Your Belts will serve you well. :)
Mindfulone1 - There is no hard and fast rule that says you have to put graduation years on your resume. Just list your school(s) and the degree(s) you received (and GPA if brag-worthy). If and when an employer needs to know the year you graduated from a program, they will ask you.
dbabz
157 Posts
The exact words I wanted to hear. Thank you so much for your input. You experienced nurses can't know how valuable your points of view are to those of us just entering the field.