Considering a Nursing Career

Considering a Nursing Career Have you always had a desire to become a nurse? Do you have a knack for being a care provider, or did you recently realize that nursing is your calling?

Whatever the reason, if you are considering a nursing career, you have a big decision to contemplate.

What Makes A Great Nurse?

You have to have that “want” to be a nurse in order to be a great nurse. It would not work to take a person studying interior design, and throw them into nursing classes. You know from within your mind and heart if Nursing is the career for you.  Are you willing to work hard to reach your goal? A nursing degree takes time, and effort. There will be class time, lots of study time, followed by clinical time, and then exams.  Do you have a passion for helping people that are ill or injured?  Do you hope to work in a hospital or medical center?

If you responded with a quick yes to those questions, odds are you will be a great nurse, and numerous patients will benefit from your care.

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What Degree to Pursue There are several considerations when planning to attend school for nursing.

The three main types of nursing are, Licensed Practical Nursing, Registered Nurse, and Nurse Practitioner. A licensed practical nurse takes the least amount of time to obtain. Depending on your availability for classes, it will take approximately 8-10 months to earn this degree. The benefits of this degree are obviously the fact that it takes less than 1 year to begin your career. For anyone that may have financial limitations, an LPN course may be the one to fit within your budget. If you do pursue an LPN certification, depending on where you opt to work, there may be tuition reimbursement if you decide to get and RN certification later.

If you have selected to obtain a Registered Nurse Certification, you can expect to attend school 2-4 years depending on what degree you pursue.

An Associate's degree will take 2 years, and a bachelor of science in nursing will take 4 years. A Nurse Practitioner will earn a BSN first, and then continue an additional 12-24 months of schooling, depending on the area of specialty.

After Earning Your Degree Depending on geographic location, there are probably an abundance of nursing jobs available to you once your schooling is complete. Several months prior to completion of school, is the time to begin exploring employment options. You may get referrals from friends or family on great, places to work. This can give you the opportunity to ask questions about the company, and obtain first hand information from someone you know. If you don't know anyone already in the medical field and employed, the search for a great company is up to you. Searching for employee reviews is one option. If you use this method, keep one thing in mind, be sure to read numerous reviews, and make sure they are all from different sources. One disgruntled employee can post terrible things about an employer, which may not be a fair or accurate review. Search various sites, and turn to social media to get more personalized reviews.

When it comes time to interview, plan to have a list of questions to ask your interviewer. There is always a point during the interview that you will be asked if you have any questions. Human resource personnel appreciate questions; it shows you have a genuine level of interest in the company and position. Three or four questions are an appropriate amount to ask, make them short and to the point.

Related: Medical Care for the Homeless Landing the First Job All schooling behind you, and ready to work. When you get that call that the person on the phone says, “we would like to offer you the position�, it makes all the schooling and studying worth it, you finally made it. As a general rule, the person extending the offer will say that you can consider the opportunity, and get back to them. Regardless of how anxious you are, take a little time to consider it. Even a few hours will be some time to make sure the position is what you were looking for, and that the schedule for work is something you will be content with.

Prior to starting work, make sure you have comfortable shoes, at least two pairs, so that you can alternate daily. Have a small notepad and pen for taking notes you first few days, and a small flashlight can be a great thing to have, especially if you are working the night shift. Checking patients IV’s and equipment at night is much easier with a flashlight, you can avoid turning on room lights whenever possible.

After starting work, give yourself some adjustment time. There may be days that don't go well, but just continue on, as it takes at least a month to determine if the job is a good fit.

Related: Victoria Lee Church, MSN, RN – International Nurses Association Please follow us on Facebook, Linkedin, Pinterest and Twitter