Disillusioned with nursing, jumpship or graduate and treat it as any other bachelor's

Parents Forum
1

<p>Hi!
I'm a nursing student at a large public university, a tier 3 school (cal state). Prior to that, I was at a tier 1 school (a UC) studying science.
My dilemna now is that I do not know if i should go back and finish at my UC, in, say, economics, enviornemntal science, or continue my bachelor's in Nursing at my cal state university. Alot of it has to do with problems I have in learning and the way my brain (doesnt) work. I process slow (bad for economics and science majors) and have difficulties dealing with illogical/drama filled/ridiculous amounts of politics and OCD people (bad for nursing, it's full of it). I'm good at creative stuff and probably might succeed at industrial design if the salary prospects and outsourcing problems weren't as high. I also do not really want to be a floor nurse, and am hoping if I go back to my cal state school I could add a minor in technology, computer science, or economics and go work for a pharmaceutical firm or healthcare IT even though I do not think i could do straight IT. Although It is nursing school, i'd still be just a degree, better possibly than just pyschology or something.</p>

<p>The reason i left my good school for a so-so school to do nursing was becuase I realized that I process slow and my abilities max out at calculus, physics,and chemistry, and although I did recieve a average of high B's in that UC school with hardcore science classes, It was becuase I got double time on tests, studied 24/7, most than the majority of people, and went to several different office hours for TA's and professors. In class, I almost never understand the lectures becuase I process so slowly that while the professor is talking about line 4, I just finished understanding line 2. I also have average to slighly low working memory, and I'm always anxious doing homework becuase there's always a chance i will forget the question right after I read it and cannot hold on long enough (poor working memory). I also need 100% dead silence in order to take tests and do any kind of science/math homework becuase whatever info i'm holding in my brain is held loosely due to my poor memory and will fly out the window the moment i hear some noise and get distracted.</p>

<p>So, i figured that nursing was going to be less mentally demanding. And it is less demanding. instead of physics and calculus equations, it's basically figuring priorities and ridiculous amounts of memorization (mostly long term, which i can do). But, on the other hand, my school is ridiculously political and the people are majority OCD. One has to be an expert at interpersonal communication to navigate around the high levels of drama and politics and backstabbing prevalent in nursing. I'm not good at that, i am very logical.</p>

<p>One professor whose bad side I got on wanted to kick me out. Well, she did not succeed in that, but during the last quarter of nursing school is when we do clinical internships and many student get kicked out during that time, right before graduation.. She made up alot of bad things about me that are not ture and put them in my student file. I am pretty sure I am under a microscope at this nursing school and if i do anything wrong during that clinical internship i may be kicked out The option is to just not do a clinical internship, instead do my internship in Public Health, which is office work and during which nobody gets kicked out from. However, having my practicum (internship) in Public Health vs. a clinical hospital floor setting would render me useless in job hiring and hosptials will not hire me. The most i could do would be telephone triage nurse, office work, public health clinics, which pay half of what floor clinical nurses make. however, I would not risk gettingn kicked out.
Switching nursing school is also not an option as many don't take credits from another program, etc, especially BSN programs. and the ones that have open spaces are becuase students got kicked out mid-program! My program kicks out 60% of the students, and they come in with a 3.8 science GPA average. Many students are kicked out for no good reason (writing style did not mesh with teacher, older female teacher jealous of a pretty minority student, etc)</p>

<p>On the other side, I am thinking about supplementing my nursing degree with some minors in computer science or web development, and then branching out into pharmaceutical company work, or with healthcare IT. Healthcare information Technology will be huge soon but I took an aptitude test for computer programming from the University of Kent online and got the lowest category score possible. </p>

<p>Or, i could go back to my UC school and major in something like Econ BA, as I cannot cut it in a heavy science/math field due to my slow processing and I'm not very fond of liberal arts. I am very good at theory but that's completely useless in terms of job searches.
What I am good at, is creative stuff. I'm a very good visual thinker and I've done great graphic designs for friends. I can come up with good, out of the box ideas that will save my butt. I am definitely a lateral thinker. I think I was intended for Industrial design, but people who i know majored in that work 12 hours a day for 30 k a year, in California. I'd rather make twice that amount in a job that is less taxing but with which im indifferent about (Nursing). </p>

<p>I do not believe that I would be a bad nurse, being logical as I am. Many touchy-feely nurses are very passive aggressive, and manipulative with their patients and coworkers. When they are in a good mood, they are florence nightengale. When they are in a bad mood, watch out! The best nurses I have seen are down to earth and slightly logical nurses, many of them straightforward women and also men. I've seen that female-dominated professions such as nursing tend to have vast amounts of backstabbing, rumors, cliques, lateral violence, and toxicity. I don't think like that at all! I have no intention to go into healthcare management either as I have seen how toxic many of these are in my clinical hosptials. They are all 50+ menopausal RN women backstabbing each other. It's ridiculous and very frightening.</p>

<p>so the question, is, go back to my UC school and finish up a degree in Economics, or Enviornemental science (with an emphasis on enviornmental chemistry as I cant cut it in straight enviormental chemistry), or finish up my nursing degree doing a public health intern to ensure I don't get kicked out and supplementing it with a minor such as Computer science minor, Finance Minor, enviornemental engineering minor. GIS minor, Economics Minor, etc...in order to move into the fields of Healthcare IT or healthcare equipement Design. The problem with this is that while I can do a STEM minor, i cannot cut it in the major itself. So, would i be too weak to be a candidate for healthcare IT or to work in pharmaceutical engineering and processes? i DO NOT WANT to be a floor nurse. :D
or, maybe go into GIS with a bachelor's in nursing as GIS master's will take any bachelors and a nursing degree is at least practical vs psychology?
here are the minors my school offers.....</p>

<p>--Computer science minor, 21 units
which includes (Intro to programming/prob solving, Discrete structures, database fund and structures, object oreinted programming, object oreinted app development, C++ for Java)
--Web +Tech literacy Certificate 24 units
web design intermediate, advcanced, and design of dynamic web sites, computers and networks, computer network architectures
--Web Tech minor 18 unit web design courses only
--Web comp sci Applications minor 18 units*
web design begg/intermediate, comp networking, intro to programming. </p>

<p>*The advisor says that it teaches student to write small programs and to maintain upgrade PC software and hardware set up a local area network, design and implement web applications.
--Finance minor
biz finance, accounting, investment principles
--Economics minor
24 units, micro/macro theory and calculus and electives
--Entrepreneurship minor
courses include venture creation and mangement/operations.
--enviornmental engineering minor
compliance, various electives, pollution courses, fundamental engineering courses
--enviornmental science and policy minor
law, policy, geology, political science, biology courses.
--GIS minor
--GIS certificate (map interpretation, cartography, geospatial techniques, remote sensing)
-Management information systems minor</p>

2

<p>Finish your bachelors degree in something…then get some kind of job…and take some,time to figure out what you really like and what you do well.</p>

<p>If your school has a career office, you might want to head down there and see if thy have any advice about careers in areas that interest you.</p>

<p>For the record…nursing is a very taxing job that does require the ability to think quickly, and problem solve and react/respond quickly.</p>

<p>Get a bachelors as quickly as you can. Many graduates pursue careers/jobs in fields that are not drectly related to their actual degrees.</p>

3

<p>Have you spoken with your college counselor about your options? S/he may have more insight than any of us can at this point, knowing you, your file, and the available options much better. </p>

<p>It seems like you have given this quite a bit of thought. It does seem to be useful to know more about tech, social networking and the web, since that will be a skill most folks of your generation will need.</p>

4

<p>I would go the public health route and use that plus an interest in computers to move into medical information technologies. Have you taken many computer science classes? I don’t think you would need to take the most hard core route to learn what you would need to know in the field. </p>

<p>I am sorry that Nursing School has ended out to be such a minefield for you, but I think you might find floor work difficult because folks often send a lot of orders to nurses at one time, and the nurse has to pull out the correct order from the mess and reason it through on a short time scale.</p>

5

<p>As a 50+ yo RN with over 30 years of experience all I can say is…OUCH!</p>

<p>(However, you should be aware of the vast amounts of backstabbing, rumors, cliques, lateral violence, and toxicity in predominantly male dominated professions as well as those that are represented equally by men and women.);)</p>

6

<p>Once you complete the public health clinical, is it possible to do something clinical after you graduate? I know my MIL worked in several different jobs as a nurse, everything from ER to cardiology to Intensive Care Nursery. </p>

<p>It is a difficult situation, but I think graduating is crucial.</p>

7

<p>Get your degree as soon as possible. A degree in nursing does not mean you have to be a nurse, and even if you do go into the nursing field, it’s a varied one. I know nurses who do no patient or clinical work. You can get administrative positions at health care companies and be a paper pusher. But that RN can be very valuable in getting a good paying job. </p>

<p>I want to also tell you that every profession, school , field has the problems you have described. It can be a matter of luck whether you get a lot of little of it, but it’s out there. I know so many people who can’t bear the interpersonal, poitical and other nonsense at one place, who leave at great sacrifice and find the same everywhere else, and often for less pay and fewer amenities. I have a son who hated his high paying job, quit for a lower paying one, and is now struggling with the exact same issues and it’s even worse. Doesn’t help that he feels that he should be apprecaited more in taking this job over some that pay more. Doesn’t work that way as he is brutally learnings. So it can be with school.</p>

<p>Hang in there, get that degree in anything as soon as you can.</p>

8

<p>Agree with the group. Get your degree.</p>

<p>Long term, you might find other health care professions more in line with your skills- dietician, occupational therapy, working in pharma marketing, PR for a bio-tech or device company, editing websites or creating annual reports for hospitals or health insurance companies. But these can all be “attacked” from a position of strength- someone with a degree- and some clinical experience (even if you hate it and aren’t good at) vs. a position of weakness (i.e. transferring, maybe taking an extra year, etc.)</p>

<p>Agree you might find the career counseling folks at your U helpful here. And try and ignore the haters- you will find them in every profession.</p>

9

<p>Have you looked into health care administration? That might combine a nursing education and IT skills, without having to work on a hospital floor.</p>

<p>yes, I’d talk to your college’s career counseling office as soon as possible. You don’t want to waste a semester if those courses are not essential for your eventual degree.</p>

10

<p>I agree that pharmaceutical sales and marketing might be good avenues for your creative thinking abilities. Having a nursing degree might make you an attractive candidate for these positions. </p>

<p>Also, there’s no use comparing what you’d make in a non-clinical nursing position to what you’d make in a clinical nursing position, since you’ve already decided a clinical nursing position isn’t for you. I could have made more money if I’d gone into plastic surgery, but that was not a good fit for my interests, abilities, or personality, so the salary is a moot point.</p>

11

<p>I think you should do the public health option. It is a safer route for you, and might lead to work in a field you would enjoy. Good luck.</p>

12

<p>I could go back to my Original University, it is a top #30 US University, and major in Economics or Enviornmental Science. Both I could probably work my way through, however, I process very, very slow, especially in math and science and probably not be able to withstand working in Finance (Econ) or in higher-level Chemisty and physics (the good jobs in enviornmental science…) In that case, I do not know what i would do with my ES or Econ degrees…</p>

<p>So I guess the question is, finish a BSN at Podunk state University, or get a passable degree from top USA university in a field where I might not have the brainpower to succeed?</p>

<p>My friends and relatives all say that I should get a degree in ANYTHING from Top 30 USA University since it’s the name that counts, rather than a BSN at Podunk state university…becuase with a degree from a low rated state university i (in nursing) it will be harder to branch out whereas a degree from TOp 30 USA university will open more doors.</p>

<p>However, Since i’m so darn slow, I’d be studying 24/7 rather than doing internships and building connections… :/</p>

<p>Say I do go back to Podunk State Nursing school…
I would love to do advertising, design, copywriting eventually down the line, could I do that on the side while being a part time nurse? Would I even get hired with a nursing BSN?
If so, with advertising, design, and copywriting, what are some minors that would be good for that to supplement a BSN degree?</p>

<p>What would you do in my shoes?</p>

13

<p>How much extra time/expense is involved in returning to your original college for another degree? It sounds like you really hate nursing/find it tedious, and so, for the sake of your patients, please do not become a nurse. </p>

<p>Got back to your original school. There are more majors there than Econ or environmental science (you write like a non-native speaker; sciences can be very difficult fields for non-native speakers, especially if the native language is not Latin-based). Change majors to something you think you can handle.</p>

14

<p>I wrote a reply a few hours ago but it disappeared for some reason. Maybe I forgot to hit submit!</p>

<p>Nursing is a very demanding profession and those who are good at it tend to be passionate about it. It sounds like you switched to nursing because you felt it would be easier than the sciences, which honestly is not a good reason, nor it is true. Do you have any actual interest in health care? Do you love taking care of people?</p>

<p>You don’t say how long you have until your BSN. Have you done one or two years?</p>

<p>If you are not relatively close to graduating, I have a different take on your situation. Why not step out entirely for awhile and take stock. Maybe take some graphic design classes and/or some marketing classes at a community college or as a non-matriculated/ continuing education student at a college or university? I think it might be good for you to try your hand at another academic path, and also maybe intern or volunteer (there are many pr, fundraising, development type positions at non-profits, for example) and see how you like it.</p>

<p>Then go back to your original university with more focus.</p>

<p>I would also advise seeing a counselor or advisor about a more strength-based approach to your processing issues. I am assuming you have had a full neuro-psych. evaluation. I have a kid with very slow processing and other issues and I really admire the way she makes a life for herself that fits her learning style, rather than always knocking her head against the wall to fit someone else’s idea of functioning.</p>

<p>What are your strengths? What are your authentic interests? </p>

<p>I would explore these questions with a qualified, insightful, positive professional. Follow the most natural path for you in terms of school or work or whatever else you end up doing, rather than trying to plan it all out so much. I know about money worries, believe me. But if you love design or computer science or whatever it is that really appeals to you, finish school in that area and worry about your career after you graduate.</p>

15

<p>I agree with compmom.</p>

<p>It seems like you have a lot of disdain and even contempt for nurses, in addition to not liking the job, so I’d advise you not to go into the field. You will be miserable and you will make everyone around you miserable, since you have already made value judgments about nursing without working a single day on the floor in a full time job. (I gotta say - I take offense to your statements, because my mom is a 50+ nurse and she is the sweetest person you’ll ever know. She’ll make your hospital stay magic. And I grew up knowing all the nurses on my mother’s job and they are capable, smart, and caring people. They do things for each other and they certainly don’t backstab. I find it kind of hard to believe that you have this idea about every single nurse in every hospital floor in every hospital across the country.)</p>

<p>Anyway. I do want to add, though, that all of these alternative careers for nurses that are mentioned below require a nursing license and usually some years of experience. Healthcare consulting and medical IT often do hire nurses with computer skills, but they want nurses with floor experience and possibly some nursing tech experience like telemetry. Administration does like nurses, but you won’t get hired without 3-5 years on the floor. So I would say if you want to finish your BSN and then leverage that BSN into a healthcare-related field, you have to plan on working at least 3 years on the floor. A nurse without nursing experience isn’t very useful to these allied fields; they want to build upon your nursing knowledge and most of that is gained on the floor. So if you absolutely don’t want to do floor nursing - at all - then you should probably change your major.</p>

<p>I think you should step back and decide what it really is that you want to do. I don’t think being a “slow processors” precludes from entering a heavy math or science field. A lot of math and science is actually very slow. You may just have to spend some extra time grasping the concepts, but that does not mean that you won’t be able to get an internship or network. That’s what summers are for, or it may mean that you don’t party much.</p>

<p>It also sounds a lot like you are trying to make decisions on what to major in based upon what’s “hot” or huge right now, which I think is something of a mistake. Not that you shouldn’t gravitate towards fields with good job pospects, and health IT is not going anywhere. BUT, it’s difficult to tell what’s going to be the next big thing or for how long. A lot of kids graduated from college in 2007 with majors in finance and went to Wall Street. And while few years ago majoring in Russian was great for security jobs, now they want Korean or Chinese or Arabic. In a few years, who knows what it’ll be? So I think you should pick something with good prospects but also something that you like to do. If you really like math, who cares if you need to take a few hours to work on it? I really love statistics and working on it for 5 hours doesn’t bore me.</p>

<p>Just as a few thoughts: Interpersonal communication and logic are not mutually exclusive, and in fact, strong communication skills are necessary in any industry. So you may want to work on that. Also, logic and compassion/emotion/touchy-feelyness are also not mutually exclusive; the best nurses are compassionate and care about their patients while also being logical and quick-thinking.</p>

16

<p>Get your degree in whatever you can finish quickest. I graduated with a degree in nursing and now I am doing something totally different. There are lots of things you can do with any type of degree and I think many employers look very favorably at the nursing degree. Also, there are many types of nurses and many situations where you can be a nurse. You may find one that fits you.</p>

17

<p>Ditto what Woody said. As a registered nurse with over 30 years experience I implore you to get a degree in something other than nursing. I have no idea where you are getting your ideas about what nursing is like, but where I work it is extremely fast paced and challenging; there is little time for drama and backstabbing. You need to possess good interpersonal skills, compassion, brains, fortitude and be able to work for hours at a time without stopping to eat or use the rest room! You must be able to think on your feet, remain calm in the face of life-threatening emergencies, and function efficiently and compassionately in emotionally charged situations. By your own account, you need silence to work and are easily distracted when there is noise. Most successful nurses I know are proficient multitaskers, juggling the information and needs of several patients at once. This requires an ability to focus and again, from your own description, it seems this is not one of your strong suits. Good luck.</p>

18

<p>Ditto Juliet’s post. Industry that hires nurses don’t want nurses without experience. You have a disdain towards the profession and you will be doing patients a disservice while you get that experience.</p>

19

<p>I agree with juillet. You will not be happy with nursing and those in nursing will not be happy with you! Nursing is hard work and you have to like what you do or you will not be successful! As a nurse for over 30 yrs, I’m not sure where you are getting your stereotypes and information. Nursing requires problem solving, excellent assessment skills, good prioritization and being able to handle multiple complex situations at the same time. You will have great difficulty in finding a job as a new grad nurse in anything beyond floor nursing. These basic skills are quite necessary in building a foundation in a nursing career. Seasoned nurses usually fill those types of jobs. You will have to make a decision on what your passion is and pursue that route.</p>