Re: 18 and starting nursing school in july


it's a great occupation. there is a sort of boot camp feel to both nursing school and the first 6-12 months at your first job. some nurses like to test the new ones, and sometimes it feels like they're bullying people. that may be true, but if you can just be ready for that attitude in some of the older ones, then you'll be able to sail past that and nursing will offer you a lot of opportunities.

since starting my nursing career 12 years ago, i have:

worked as an office nurse
worked in a med-surg unit
learned telemetry
worked in psychiatric nursing - inpatient setting
served on risk management committee for a hospital
worked in psychiatric nursing - community setting
worked as a team leader for case managers
helped develop and implement an electronic medical record
worked as the risk manager and compliance person
worked as the mental health nurse in a jail of 600 inmates
consulted with prior employer about joint commission accreditation

i did all of this within 4 different companies, taking on any new challenge that presented itself. if you like change and challenges, you'll find it in nursing. if you like to settle into one job and stick with it, you can do that too.

the money and benefits are great. some people make more money, but often they also work longer hours. nursing has paid me back in many ways over the years, for the efforts i put into getting my degree and license.

don't worry about being a male nurse. almost everyone i know welcomes the men who join us. the diversity is good in many ways.