Before You Decide to Become a Nurse
©2011- present by Kathy Quan RN BSN
All Rights Reserved
Before you decide to become a nurse, consider some of these points…
All Rights Reserved
Before you decide to become a nurse, consider some of these points…
Why Should I Become a Nurse?
There is a tremendous shortage of nurses and it is expected to worsen over the next decade. Nurses are in high demand due to the fact that the population is increasing as well as aging, and expects to receive high quality health care. Many more nurses will be needed for many years to come. That being said, it won’t be easy in all locations to find your first job because employers will prefer to hire experienced nurses. But don’t despair, keep looking and you’ll find one.
Is Nursing for Me?
One way you can explore the nursing field is to become a patient and experience health care first hand. That isn’t the recommended way, but perhaps even through your well-child check ups you have met many nurses and have a desire to find out more about the field. Explore opportunities to shadow a nurse for a day, attend a camp to learn more about nursing and find other opportunities to find out if nursing is for you.
What if I’m Really Bad at Math and Science?
To become a nurse you have to be passionate, but you also need to be able to pass college algebra and several science courses such as microbiology, chemistry, and anatomy & physiology. You’ll need to take some psychology, social sciences and be proficient in written and oral communication. You’ll have to speak and write the language of the country in which you’ll be working. A foreign language is always a helpful skill and may help you to land that first job. You’ll need to be able to read at a 10th grade level. If you have difficulty in any of these areas, this article will give you some suggestions for passing these subjects and succeeding at becoming a nurse. Many of these prerequisites apply to online nursing degrees as well.
Nursing is Not for Everyone
Nursing is one of the most physically and emotionally demanding professions. It is extremely hard work and not everyone is cut out for it. It’s nit just about the blood and gore, and smells that might make you think twice. Be sure you understand what nursing is all about and what it involves before you choose this route. Patients need care 24/7 and they don’t get well on weekends and holidays or so you can be in your sister’s wedding or go skiing every weekend.
Nurses Skills Transfer to Other Professions
Nursing is a profession, not just a job. As professional, nurses develop a skill set that employers seek in employees in all professions. Nurses, teacher, EMTs, and police officers usually possess all eight of these skills. How many do you have?
Are You Considering Nursing as a Second Career?
For many people 9/11 was a turning point in their professional lives. People began to find that they were not satisfied in jobs that didn’t make a difference in someone’s life. Others had always wanted to become nurses, but for whatever reason had not pursued this career option. Now they want to become nurses. With a shortage of nurses, this is a perfect time to pursue a career in nursing. If you have a degree already, you may be a candidate for an accelerated nursing program.
The Role of Men in Nursing Today
Did you know that some of the first nurses were actually men? More and more men are entering the field of nursing today and proving that nursing is a profession not a gender! Learn more about men in nursing; past, present and future.
Many Diverse Roles for Nurses
The beauty of a career in nursing is that there are many diverse roles for nurses. All too often nurses burnout and think they need to leave nursing all together, but there are many options to be explored. Not all nurses work in hospitals.
What Nursing Shortage?!!
You may have heard that the nursing shortage seems to have disappeared, or may never have been real. The fact is there has been a nursing shortage for many years, but the severity has waned and then become a crisis in a roller coaster effect. The truth about this is that new grad nurses continue to struggle to find jobs especially in the more popular locations; while other smaller towns and even rural areas have a demand for nurses. The bottom line is finding employment and gaining experience. For a year or two, it may be necessary to look to relocate.
The population is aging and demands a more sophisticated and higher quality health care system. Hospitals struggle to provide this while managing a strict budget and often nurses are cut in order to meet financial goals.
On the other hand legislators across the country are working to support nurses and demand reasonable and smart nurse-to-patient ratios to improve outcomes.
The Baby Boomer generation (born 1946-1964) was caught by the Great Recession in 2008-9 and delayed retirement. As this generation begins to retire en mass over the next decade, the need for nurses is going to grow exponentially. The shortage of nurse educators impacts the number of students a program can enroll and consequently the outturn of new nurses may not grow to meet this demand.
Are You Ready?
If you’re ready to consider becoming a nurse, read Ways to Become a Nurse? and then find out how to find an accredited nursing program. If you're thinking about bedside nursing or want to start your career as an LPN/LVN explore these programs.
Explore this site for many more articles for and about nurses, and visit often as I add more content.
