28 year old male thinking about Nursing as a profession

chijon512 · Mar 14, 2009

a bsn would sometimes get you about $1 more per hour over and adn, if that.

hurdles mostly come from having the majority of nurses being women. eg, in nursing school you might have to bite your lip becasuse a nursing instructor likes to jokes that everyone becomes a nurse so they could marry a doctor. or you might have to be forced into being chatty or joining study groups (that's how women like to study). or you might come across a nurse/instructor who hates men and don't think they belong in the profession and takes it out on you. or you might come across a nurse on a moral crusade to keep you away from female patients when it comes to bed baths and other private procedures even if the patient is ok with it. fortunately though, most women like having a guy around. ok most of those aren't really hurdles, but they are real world annoyances that come up.

AnnieMae* · Mar 14, 2009

I have just recently started going to nursing school. I spent a lot of time investigating various programs. I have found that part-time nursing programs are in short supply. However, if there is one in your area, and if it is similar to my area, it would most likely be offered by a hospital.

To get started, go to nlnac.org, the accreditation body for nursing schools. They have a list of accredited programs with links to their sites.

Good luck. :)

Jules A, MSN · Mar 14, 2009

Hi,

If you are a strong student you shouldn't have any problem getting in and being able to work during school. I'd consider an accelerated BSN program since you already have a bachelors. I wouldn't be too interested in working as a Tech or CNA like many people do for experience because the work is way hard and the money way bad, lol. If you are making decent wages with your current job I'd stay with that. We really need male nurses. Good luck.

interleukin · Mar 14, 2009

Go to PA school.

Nursing has long become a dumping ground for anything and everything which is not physician specific.

It has become less and less of what we were told it would be and will not change unless ratios are instituted in every hospital.

If you like to study diseases and helping people, PA school will serve your soul as well as nursing, with equal salary, and without all the garbage.

(Here comes the hate mail)

Harleyhead · Mar 14, 2009

chijon 512,and jules A have good post research some more before you waste your time. Good luck.

tutored · Mar 14, 2009

i already have a master's in divinity and a bachelors degree. i became interested in nursing years back while in college (2003), but became religiously overzealous and chose the ministry. i do not feel that the ministry is truly my calling. i did an internship in hospital as a chaplain, and would see the nurses working and told myself, "that is really what you wanted to do, why didn't you follow it?"
now that i am 3 years beyond school, i want to go back to school to become a nurse, but have many questions.
should i get an associates/diploma in nursing or a bsn?absolutely get your diploma, start working, and finish your bsn online in a little over a year. you gain a whole extra year's salary doing it this way...the only thing you don't get with your diploma, instead of a full bsn, is the statistics and management courses which are of absolutely no use to you, or your nurse manager, during your first year as a new nurse.
will a bsn get me better pay over an associates? no, and several nurse managers told me point blank that diploma nurses are better clinically during their first year than bsns...in my area, bsns have much less clinical student experience than student nurses
would it be practical to become an lpn first then work towards becoming an rn? is that a good idea? no, don't do that. lpns are restricted in the work they do, particularly with meds. go for the gusto
is it practical to work full time while in nursing school? i have bills to pay that will not disappear just because i go back to school. try very hard to work less, or not at all. i grappled with this, myself. you will be a better student and your odds of making it will be better.
is there nursing related work i could do while in school to build my resume, and get some hands on experience in the profession? definitely, particularly if you want a lucrative hospital position that's hard for a new grad to get (such as icu or er)...become a pct (new term for nurses aide) in your desired area. you'll get an automatic "in" for a position when you graduate, and you'll have lots of patient exposure which will minimize your nervousness when you start clinicals as a nursing student. in my unit, the pcts know lots of stuff, and help the nurses tremendously.
how does one get into a specialized field? i know that i will probably begin very generalized in the profession, but long term i am interested in er, operating room or anestesia(spelling???) as i stated above, this is the best way to get in...you will have a slightly better time finding a job and training for a pct positoin when your employers know you're a nursing student. they love hiring aides like that, because they know it's not "just a job"
what hurdles to i face as a male in this profession, if any? you''ll likely encounter a few nervous new moms in maternity, but that's more due to your probable newness and uncertainty as a student nurse. the nurses i work with who are men are awesome, and any hurdles they had to go through, they made up with their strengths from just being men. i've seen many male patients in my icu thrive better with a nurse who's a guy....and let's not forget all that superior upper-body strength !!!
how difficult are nursing programs to get into once i have met all prerequisites? i have no idea. you do have an edge, though, with your degrees. don't try the accelerated program....too much, especially if you have family and/or work issues. most drop out, at least in my state. should i find several and apply to them all, sort like i did when i first went to college? (i have always gotten into any school i have applied to, my grades are very strong)

good luck!:)

alabamacrimson · Mar 15, 2009

Thanks everyone, this information is very helpful.

alabamacrimson · Mar 15, 2009

definitely, particularly if you want a lucrative hospital position that's hard for a new grad to get (such as icu or er)...become a pct (new term for nurses aide) in your desired area. you'll get an automatic "in" for a position when you graduate, and you'll have lots of patient exposure which will minimize your nervousness when you start clinicals as a nursing student. in my unit, the pcts know lots of stuff, and help the nurses tremendously.

please forgive my ignorance, but how do i do that? what level of training and education do i have to have under my belt before i can do that?

FA to CRNA2b · Mar 15, 2009

Hi,
If you are a strong student you shouldn't have any problem getting in and being able to work during school. I'd consider an accelerated BSN program since you already have a bachelors. I wouldn't be too interested in working as a Tech or CNA like many people do for experience because the work is way hard and the money way bad, lol. If you are making decent wages with your current job I'd stay with that. We really need male nurses. Good luck.

I agree with Jules! Go for your BSN from the start and skip the tech/cna thing. Starting from the very bottom is not necessarily the best way to get your foot in the door, especially since you've already earned a Master's. GL!

Prettyladie · Mar 15, 2009

ok here's prettyladie's two cents. i think that if you could cut back on work and still make it (support the fam, pay bills etc) do it. I also think you should do an accelerated program because you already have a bachelors. that makes complete sense to me. but on the other hand i look at it this way.. you'll be done in a year, with another bachelors and its shorter to do that than get your associates. you got two years vs. one. but accelerated program is V E R Y rigorous... and you cant afford to work at all.. but if you have a to work a little.. id try to get a CNA job or PCT, or something medical related to get my foot in the door that allows me to work on the weekends. and you can go to school during the week. if you do that..then i say just get a regular bachelors. either way its not going to be a cake walk and im not saying thats what you are implying, im just saying. as for LPN or LVN NOOO. and no offense to any people in that profession. but the time you will spend doing that and then trying to bridge you could have finished with the accelerated or the associate program.. thats just my opinion. and where i live. there are not a lot of jobs for LVNs other than nursing homes and stuff like that. the jobs lately ive been seeing are "must have a medical assisting degree or be a LVN" so its realllly gonna put you on the low end of the payscale. like somebody else said. they are V E R Y limited in what they do. hope this helps.

mochabean · Mar 15, 2009

I have a Masters degree in social work, I work as a nursing assistant and I don't see myself as starting from the bottom. I worked at a hospital as a social worker, so I was already comfortable working interacting with patients. However, nursing is completly different than social work since it deals more so with the medical aspects of a person. I"m gaining valuable experience working as a nursing assistant. At the facility I work at I was provided free training and next month I'll receive further free training for phlebotomy.

I'm going for my ADN because that'll be more financially beneficial for me. My place of employment offers tuition assistance/reimbursement and a lot of my fellow nursing assistants are taking advantage of this while they are in school (However, you must remain with the hospital for a year) and still being able to make ends meet. Being a nursing assistant is hard work and the pay isn't that high, but you can gain valuable exerperience, esp if your working with awesome nurses who know you're in nursing school and will show you things and give you good advice. There are junior/senior nursing students (BSN/ADN) on my unit all the time and it's no coincidence that the ones who know what they are doing have experience as nursing assistants, medical assistants, etc.I have a co-worker who's a junior BSN and told me she gets more clinical experience being a nursing assistant than that what she gets from a clinicals. And from what I've been seeing, being a nursing assistant DOES get your foot in the door. Two nurses on my floor used to be NA's- on the same floor! If you think being a NA is too much, you can always work casual, part-time, or just do volunteer work.

I have a friend who'll be doing an accelerated nursing program next fall and she'll be done in a year, but her program will be more expensive and she'll have to take out loans. The program will also be more intensive since everything will be crammed.

I think the best thing to do is to look at all your options and come up with a plan.