Working as a PMHNP with no psych nursing experience??

[Kevin]

Vanderbilt has a program that people with non nursing BA can enter, its called the prespecialty program, that eventually leads to a MSN. My bachelor's degree is in molecular biology, and I completed the first 2 years of med school before having to withdraw for failing to pass the first part of the board exam.  I am thinking about applying to the Vanderbilt prespecialty program, then picking PMHNP as my specialty.  The program is 2 years, after the first year you can become a RN, the second is accelerated PMHNP school.  The thing is, with a program like this, would I be well prepared to practice as a PMHNP?  My dream job would be telepsychiatry. The ability to live anywhere or travel while I work is appealing to me, But I worry if it will be difficult to find a job with no psych nurse experience.  Has anyone ever completed this program or a program like this and now working in telepsych? What was the process of finding a job like?  I think  you can work as a psych RN after the first year, but for personal reasons I would prefer to go straight through the program. 

[umbdude, MSN, APRN]

On 3/4/2022 at 10:02 AM, Kevin said:

The thing is, with a program like this, would I be well prepared to practice as a PMHNP?  My dream job would be telepsychiatry. The ability to live anywhere or travel while I work is appealing to me, But I worry if it will be difficult to find a job with no psych nurse experience. 

You should be able to find a job, but your first job might not be the ideal job that you want.

When employers want experience, they want "prescribing" experience in most cases. Some 100% telepsych companies require 1-2 years of PMHNP experience because they need providers to hit the ground running without need for training. Most new-grads do not feel prepared whether they have psych RN experience or not (but having psych nursing experience helps).