Working while in nursing school.

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I will be a nursing student this upcoming spring 2014 semester and was wondering is working while in school a good idea. I know some people who have to because of kids and stuff but for those of you who don't how are you surviving?? Are you living off of scholarships and loans? If you do work do you recommend working somewhere that isn't as stressful like a smoothie king or something? I just want to know my options although I don't mind working, I just want to know if its possible to not have to work. I want to be as successful in school as possible but don't want to overwhelm myself as well. All comments and suggestions are appreciated!!!:)

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Specializes in Forensic Psych.

I can't really speak to the surviving aspect of not working, since I'm married and the husband is paying the bills, but most of the people in my class who do work seem to either take jobs in hospitals (PRN works great from students) or in food service for the flexible hours.

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I can't really speak to the surviving aspect of not working since I'm married and the husband is paying the bills, but most of the people in my class who do work seem to either take jobs in hospitals (PRN works great from students) or in food service for the flexible hours.[/quote']

Thank you for responding! Do PRN positions require experience??

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I hope to start nursing school in the spring but I have 18 credits this semester so I quit my job of 8 years before the semester started. I don't plan to work while in the program. My boyfriend pays all the bills, except I pay 6 months worth of rent with every school refund. I get grants & loans

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Specializes in Forensic Psych.
Thank you for responding! Do PRN positions require experience??

PRN means "as needed." So it could really apply to job...it's just the schedule they hire you for :)

My friends who work PRN are required to work 2-3 days/month minimum, but can request to work as many as they want. If they need you, they'll schedule you. If they don't need you later, they'll cancel you. Very flexible if you don't need full-time work for sure.

As far as job types go and experience needed, it really depends. You could get your CNA cert, and that could give you an edge. Honestly, no one in my area would even consider me until I had my CNA cert or experience. My experience came in the form of completing my 1st year of NS.

There are also jobs in the food areas of the hospital, registration, radiology transport, monitor techs, unit secretaries, and the list goes on. Whether or not they want experience is really dependent on the facility.

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I hope to start nursing school in the spring but I have 18 credits this semester so I quit my job of 8 years before the semester started. I don't plan to work while in the program. My boyfriend pays all the bills, except I pay 6 months worth of rent with every school refund. I get grants & loans

thats good! seems like it is working for you! and 18 credits! wow thats a tough load i hope all is well! which nursing program are you applying to?

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PRN means "as needed." So it could really apply to job...it's just the schedule they hire you for :)

My friends who work PRN are required to work 2-3 days/month minimum, but can request to work as many as they want. If they need you, they'll schedule you. If they don't need you later, they'll cancel you. Very flexible if you don't need full-time work for sure.

As far as job types go and experience needed, it really depends. You could get your CNA cert, and that could give you an edge. Honestly, no one in my area would even consider me until I had my CNA cert or experience. My experience came in the form of completing my 1st year of NS.

There are also jobs in the food areas of the hospital, registration, radiology transport, monitor techs, unit secretaries, and the list goes on. Whether or not they want experience is really dependent on the facility.

Thank you so much Stephalump that was really helpful! Im definitely going to be looking into that!:yes:

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I'm doing prereqs right now (12 credits) so I can't speak for nursing school but I sort of work three jobs D: I volunteer at the hospital a couple days a week, I work at Applebee's, and I'm PRN direct service provider for an in home sort of facility for the mentally disabled.

Once I get my CNA I plan on quitting the other jobs. I haven't quit Applebee's because I make more money there, and haven't quit DSP since it's experience.

I don't plan on stopping work unless I absolutely have to. I don't think a degree with high grades will be worth all that much if there's no experience to back it up! So I would like to work PRN CNA through school if at all possible. Plus I want to get hired at a nurse at the same hospital that I'm volunteering at/will eventually CNA at.

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thats good! seems like it is working for you! and 18 credits! wow thats a tough load i hope all is well! which nursing program are you applying to?

Thank you very much & I hope everything works out for you :) I applied to BGSU in Ohio.

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I'm doing prereqs right now (12 credits) so I can't speak for nursing school but I sort of work three jobs D: I volunteer at the hospital a couple days a week I work at Applebee's, and I'm PRN direct service provider for an in home sort of facility for the mentally disabled. Once I get my CNA I plan on quitting the other jobs. I haven't quit Applebee's because I make more money there, and haven't quit DSP since it's experience. I don't plan on stopping work unless I absolutely have to. I don't think a degree with high grades will be worth all that much if there's no experience to back it up! So I would like to work PRN CNA through school if at all possible. Plus I want to get hired at a nurse at the same hospital that I'm volunteering at/will eventually CNA at.[/quote']

Wow you definitely have a lot to take on and have a plan which is awesome! I thought about getting cert as a CNA. How much do you have left to complete before you become one?

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I am aged student with a mortgage and such so have to work but if you don't HAVE to work then I would definately say don't. I don't know if you're still living with your parents so have no bills, but find out how much your student loans will be and if you can live with some extra money from those... I wish I could have done that!

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Wow you definitely have a lot to take on and have a plan which is awesome! I thought about getting cert as a CNA. How much do you have left to complete before you become one?

Unfortunately my BSN program is a little silly in that I have to take the CNA course separately, at the community college, so I haven't started it yet. I think it's a month long class and it's hard to squeeze in. I'm hoping to do it in the spring if I can get my other classes to line up properly. Otherwise I'll have to wait til summer. I really want to do it sooner though so I can have as much CNA experience as possible before applying to NS.

I'm tempted to just try to test out of it since being a DSP is pretty similar, but don't want to spend the money on it just to fail : /

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