[Stephig]

So I've decided that I am going to try and get a degree in nursing which would make me a registered nurse.
My first question, is it extremely difficult? I am really determined to get through it because I truly want to be a midwife or lactation consultant.
I am also planning on being a certified herbalist or holistic practitioner.

What are some of the things you had the most trouble in while you studied to become a nurse? I want to know what I'm up against!!

 

[Maggi315]

Well, some people find it extremely difficult, I didn't. However, it is ALOT of work and will pretty much consume your life while you are in the program.

I teach nursing at the local community college and here is how they work it. Regular colleges are different and there are programs where you can go evenings/weekends (that's what I did-still difficult because we condensed semesters from 16 weeks to 8! And went yearround):

First, you need to take all your sciences and most of your general classes before getting into the actual nursing program. It is extremely competitive so you need to get a great GPA, last year the cutoff for acceptance was 94%
This adds another 1.5 years generally to get all that done. But it really is impossible to do all at the same time anyway with our program.

When you start clinicals, you have them 2 days per week, but you can be assigned day/evening/and weekend, so if you have kids you have to have a flexible babysitter. On the other days, you will be at the school full-time in the lab or in classes. So it really is a 40hour week. There isn't much flexibility there. Summers are off, but many students end up having to take a dosage class, CPR classes, and work in the medical field for experience (good ideas, but I would probably take the summer off and take a breather!)

The classes are difficult, there is TONS to memorize! So if you are thinking about school, start doing something towards it now. Take a science course(make sure it will transfer first), take a medical terminology course, pharmacy course, dosage course, read nursing journals and do the CE credits in them, volunteer/work at a hospital.

If you are thinking about becoming a midwife, you will have difficulty during your ob rotation. I found it better and I recommend to my students to just hang in there, don't argue with everything (you are the bottom of the food chain) and get through it. If you want to make change, you can do that when you graduate!!! (Or when you teach, like me

)

That's a pretty long answer! Google nursing forums and you will find one, I think, allnurses.com where there is a HUGE board full of nurses in every specialty and several for students. hang out there and listen to learn more about the realities, I do and it's great for me.

Good luck! Don't let the hard work scare you off, but be prepared to put your heart and soul into it.

 

[kate3]

Good luck with your education.

The type of degree you get should depend on your future goals. Are you planning on an AD from a community college or a BSN from a 4 year college or university? If your goal is to work as a staff nurse a community college program and associate's degree will be fine. If you plan to go further (such as a midwife), you will need to start with a BSN.

I'm in the northeast, and midwife programs require a BSN for entry (you end with your master's and CNM degree). Also, all teaching positions up here require a minimum of a master's in nursing but most require a PhD.

I know education standards are different depending on what part of the country you live in. In the NE, all midwives have a master's degree, but I know that's not the case in other areas. It looks like you are in Texas, so if this is where you plan to stay and start your career, first figure out how much education you will really need to meet your goals.

All nursing programs are intense and heavy on sciences. The school I got my BSN from required a minimum of a 74 to pass any course. Over half of those who started didn't finish. The work is very time consuming and there is a lot of reading and studying.

It's hard but not impossible. Good luck.

 

[Stephig]

Thanks for the replies. I am expecting to be extremely time consuming, but I feel I have an advantage right now b/c I have a lot of support with the kids so I can be really flexible. I have a normal job, but it's with my grandma, so that is also extremely flexible.
Right now I have all of my core classes done besides the sciences, so that is what I am going to start on this fall. I'm going to be studying for the BSN because I don't want to be a staff nurse for the rest of my life. Not that it's bad, but I just want more, kwim?

I am a little nervous about all the sciences and math that is involved because those have never been my academically strong points, but I know that when I am interested in something I am like a sponge. I have absolutely no memory of where I last put my keys, but by golly I can remember vocab and terminology like it's nothing!

 

[fourgrtkidos]

I am a RN. Your story sounds similar to mine.

Once I became a nurse, my goals of Midwifery and herbalism, etc....... ended up on hold. It seems to be luck if you can get into L&D, it took me 2 years of working Pediatrics and talking to the nurse manager for L&D weekly and extra days floating up there and working night shifts she was short staffed to finally get in, L&D nurses don't leave, there seems to rarely be space for new nurses....... You have to have 2 years or so working full time L&D to apply for Nurse Midwifery school..... so there were more years ticking by. I never had time to learn herbs thouroughly, work full time and raise my 4 kids............

So, 12 years later I am finally in Midwifery school.

Consider the time involved and if you want to be a Midwife right away consider Direct Entry.

On the other hand. As a RN, I am never out of work.

GOOD LUCK and Blessings.
~Michelle

 

[CEG]

I just graduated, getting ready to take the NCLEX

:

Depending on what your goals are there are a lot if different paths. I had a bachelors degree in a prior field so I am doing an graduate entry program- It started with four consecutive semesters to take all the classes to make me eligible to take the exam and become an RN. Then you have direct admission to the MS program (I am in midwifery). My program was spring, summer, fall, spring and was very intense with one- two full days (8 hours+ each day) of class a week and three days (8 hours each) of clinical a week. Now I am working on my masters and I had no trouble finding an L & D job in my area, they are pretty plentiful here.

An associates degree is also a good option. It's usally four semesters, not during the summer. When you graduate you have the same licensure as a BSN grad. And many grad programs have ADN- MSN programs (meaning without a BSN you can still get your MSN, usually requires a few extra classes). Off the top of my head I think Columbia, Marquette, Frontier, one of those SUNY schools, and others. It's a pretty common program and may be cheaper and less time consuming than a BSN.

If you do a BSN you can look for traditional or accelerated programs. Acc. programs seem to be about 18 months. There are many available. Traditional programs are four years but many schools have 2 year options for students with previous college experience.

The website allnursingschools.com is a great reference. You can search by type of program. Like a PP said, taking prerequisites is the key. I made a chart of all the schools I was applying to and what they required (they are surprisingly different). I took the most common ones first and started applying and got into my #1 choice. Good luck.

 

[Ackray]

I got my BS in nursing as a first time college student (AKA much much younger than most people in the program). In the beginning I was overwhelmed by how time consuming it was and how much everyone else seemed to know already. Oh and some of the clinicals I hated A LOT. But I did well. The only classes that I found terrible were the hard sciences. If you can take those at a community college DO IT. They cost much less and are a lot easier than competative college classes.

I started out in L&D by luck (and that's what I really wanted) and I've pretty much done OB ever since.

 

[tidalwalker]

:

 

[Funny Face]

I'm working on my ADN and all I ever heard from the college advisors was "Your life is over!" Although nursing school is time consuming I don't find it all that difficult (as far as the material). Our school seems to keep pretty crazy schedules and my first semester felt like a constant run around but that won't be true for all schools. That being said, I think it CAN be stressful for some people. We had two women who's husbands left them during their first semester because of stress, and half the class ended up flunking out... a big factor in that is that many people tried to keep working, which I would say to avoid if at all possible.
That being said I am soooo bored this summer and can't wait to get back, so I guess it's not that bad.
Oh, also, I am getting my associates and plan to do a bridge to masters degree and then midwifery when my kiddos are older so ADN have options too.

Oh and

about grades, our program had a 4.0 cut off for admissions, ouch.
Good luck on your journey!

 

[BetsyS]

I have a BSN and a MSN/CNM degree. I, too, got my BSN as a first time college student, graduating at 21. Crazy young. I went straight to L&D, too. I worked 2 years, then went back for my master's.

I worked as a CNM, then back to L&D as a RN, then back to CNM. I liked being a RN better.

: Hard to stomach when I pay back student loans every month, but it's the truth. I also taught clinicals for a community college, and I really enjoyed that a lot.

Nursing school wasn't that hard where I went to school (state school). We started with 50 people; we graduated with 49. All but 2 passed the NCLEX on the first try. There are maybe 7-8 of us with master's degrees. We had something like 300 applicants for the 50 slots in my program, but the cut-off wasn't that high. I had less than a 3.5 GPA getting in. It is time consuming, but as I was 21, I still found time to go out on the weekends

, work a couple of part time jobs, and study.

I really like that I am a RN. I think it's a useful degree, and I think that it taught me a whole lot. Plus, it's very flexible. I think that if I go back to work (I'm a SAHM now), I'll go to the ICU, work a couple of years, and think about CRNA school for a career change. Few other degrees give you that much flexibility.

 

[Stephig]

Well. From everyone that I've spoken to, I'm thinking that I won't be able to become a nurse.
There is a 2-year wait list to start nursing classes at my community college, and the university I want to go to is really strict on admissions. If I get into the college itself (University of Texas at Austin) that doesn't mean that I am automatically admitted into their nursing school.
For me with 2 kids already (and their 2 and under) I don't think I could do it because I have to work also. I'm separated from my husband and he thinks that helping me out with the kids means paying for half their daycare.... even though I'm still paying for his cell phone.

: (that will change as soon as October hits and the contract is over!! yay!!) lol.

So keep the comments coming, I would still like being a nurse, but for now I'm going to just focus on becoming a teacher. The clients are cuter anyway!

 

[junamoss]

I found nursing school to be a drain on my family life. I was owned by that school for almost 2 years. But I love my job right now, in L&D, (had a great birth last night) and loved my job on a surgical floor. The money is okay, and their are always hours to pick up. Have you worked in healthcare? I would suggest trying it out. It's not for everyone and you might decide it's really for you. Check out the board called
"Nurses, Student Nurses, Pre-req takers " on the finding your tribe area.

 

[AmieV]

Do you have a degree already? I am applying for a second degree program come January.

As far as the other stuff...I don't know how hard it is to do L&D but here there are always almost 10 job listings everytime I've looked. My advisor said if I can get through the Accelerated program I should go ahead and apply to the CNM program immediately because I'd almost definitely get in. So that's the path I'm looking at for now.