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Miller
Student
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how to be a nurse if you can't be a doctor?
how to be a nurse if you can't be a doctor?
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2 answers
Iryna Tam
Writer, copywriter
89
Answers
Hagerstown, Maryland
Updated
Iryna’s Answer
Hi Miller!
Becoming a nurse is a fulfilling career path that offers a vital role in the healthcare system. If you have an interest in the medical field but are unable to pursue a career as a doctor, nursing can serve as an excellent alternative. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to become a nurse:
Steps to Become a Nurse
Understand the Roles of Nursing:
Research the Field: Familiarize yourself with different nursing roles, such as Registered Nurse (RN), Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN), Nurse Practitioner (NP), or specialized fields like pediatric or geriatric nursing.
Types of Nursing: Understand the differences in responsibilities, job settings, and required education levels for each type.
Choose Your Educational Path:
Diploma Programs: Some hospitals offer diploma programs in nursing, but these are less common today.
Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN): A two-year program offered at community colleges, preparing you for the RN licensure exam.
Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN): A four-year degree that provides a comprehensive education in nursing and is increasingly preferred by employers.
Accelerated Programs: If you already have a degree in another field, consider accelerated nursing programs that can help you earn a BSN in a shorter time frame (often 12-18 months).
Complete Required Courses:
Core Curriculum: Complete prerequisite courses such as biology, chemistry, anatomy, and psychology, which are essential for nursing education.
Nursing Courses: Enroll in nursing-specific courses that cover topics like patient care, pharmacology, nursing theory, and healthcare ethics.
Engage in Clinical Practice:
Hands-On Training: Participate in clinical rotations as part of your nursing program. This provides practical experience in real healthcare settings and allows you to apply your knowledge with supervision.
Obtain Licensure:
NCLEX-RN or NCLEX-PN: After completing your nursing program, you will need to pass the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX) for Registered Nurses (RN) or Licensed Practical Nurses (LPN) to obtain your nursing license.
State Licensing: Each state has its own licensing board, so ensure you meet the requirements set by the state in which you plan to practice.
Consider Specialization:
Once you have your RN license, you may choose to specialize in certain areas of nursing, such as critical care, pediatrics, or oncology. Specializations often require additional training or certification.
Seek Employment:
Job Search: Look for nursing positions in hospitals, clinics, long-term care facilities, or community health organizations. Use job boards, hospital websites, and professional networks to find opportunities.
Networking: Build connections with other healthcare professionals, attend job fairs, and join nursing organizations to keep abreast of job openings.
Pursue Continuing Education:
Stay Updated: Engage in continuing education courses to maintain your licensure and stay current with advancements in nursing practices and healthcare technology.
Advanced Degrees: Consider pursuing advanced degrees or certifications to enhance your career prospects, such as becoming a Nurse Practitioner (NP) or a clinical nurse specialist.
Additional Tips
Volunteering: Volunteer in healthcare settings to gain exposure to the field and to determine if nursing is the right fit for you.
Mentorship: Seek mentorship from experienced nurses who can provide guidance on navigating your nursing career.
Soft Skills Development: Work on developing essential soft skills such as communication, empathy, time management, and critical thinking, as these are vital in nursing.
Becoming a nurse is a rewarding career choice that provides numerous opportunities for personal and professional growth. By following these steps and focusing on your education, clinical experience, and licensure, you can successfully enter and thrive in the nursing field.
Good luck!
Becoming a nurse is a fulfilling career path that offers a vital role in the healthcare system. If you have an interest in the medical field but are unable to pursue a career as a doctor, nursing can serve as an excellent alternative. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to become a nurse:
Steps to Become a Nurse
Understand the Roles of Nursing:
Research the Field: Familiarize yourself with different nursing roles, such as Registered Nurse (RN), Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN), Nurse Practitioner (NP), or specialized fields like pediatric or geriatric nursing.
Types of Nursing: Understand the differences in responsibilities, job settings, and required education levels for each type.
Choose Your Educational Path:
Diploma Programs: Some hospitals offer diploma programs in nursing, but these are less common today.
Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN): A two-year program offered at community colleges, preparing you for the RN licensure exam.
Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN): A four-year degree that provides a comprehensive education in nursing and is increasingly preferred by employers.
Accelerated Programs: If you already have a degree in another field, consider accelerated nursing programs that can help you earn a BSN in a shorter time frame (often 12-18 months).
Complete Required Courses:
Core Curriculum: Complete prerequisite courses such as biology, chemistry, anatomy, and psychology, which are essential for nursing education.
Nursing Courses: Enroll in nursing-specific courses that cover topics like patient care, pharmacology, nursing theory, and healthcare ethics.
Engage in Clinical Practice:
Hands-On Training: Participate in clinical rotations as part of your nursing program. This provides practical experience in real healthcare settings and allows you to apply your knowledge with supervision.
Obtain Licensure:
NCLEX-RN or NCLEX-PN: After completing your nursing program, you will need to pass the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX) for Registered Nurses (RN) or Licensed Practical Nurses (LPN) to obtain your nursing license.
State Licensing: Each state has its own licensing board, so ensure you meet the requirements set by the state in which you plan to practice.
Consider Specialization:
Once you have your RN license, you may choose to specialize in certain areas of nursing, such as critical care, pediatrics, or oncology. Specializations often require additional training or certification.
Seek Employment:
Job Search: Look for nursing positions in hospitals, clinics, long-term care facilities, or community health organizations. Use job boards, hospital websites, and professional networks to find opportunities.
Networking: Build connections with other healthcare professionals, attend job fairs, and join nursing organizations to keep abreast of job openings.
Pursue Continuing Education:
Stay Updated: Engage in continuing education courses to maintain your licensure and stay current with advancements in nursing practices and healthcare technology.
Advanced Degrees: Consider pursuing advanced degrees or certifications to enhance your career prospects, such as becoming a Nurse Practitioner (NP) or a clinical nurse specialist.
Additional Tips
Volunteering: Volunteer in healthcare settings to gain exposure to the field and to determine if nursing is the right fit for you.
Mentorship: Seek mentorship from experienced nurses who can provide guidance on navigating your nursing career.
Soft Skills Development: Work on developing essential soft skills such as communication, empathy, time management, and critical thinking, as these are vital in nursing.
Becoming a nurse is a rewarding career choice that provides numerous opportunities for personal and professional growth. By following these steps and focusing on your education, clinical experience, and licensure, you can successfully enter and thrive in the nursing field.
Good luck!
Michael Torio
Consultant - Data Reporting & Analysis (HQ Finance)
347
Answers
Alpharetta, Georgia
Updated
Michael’s Answer
Hi Miller:
While in high school, one will need to focus on science and math classes to prepare for a nursing career. Physics, chemistry and biology will be the core science courses. For math, algebra, geometry and statistics will be needed. Both concentrations will enable you to focus and refine your analytical skills for research; complex problem solving; investigative and innovative critical thinking; attention to detail; etc.
Other skills that will need to be built upon center around team building, team work and communication. In any work culture, collaboration among team members, staff and partner departments occur on a daily basis. As a nurse, communication is essential and critical when dealing with patients, medical personnel and other hospital staff. A college course in public speaking, communications and English will help with one's communication and writing skills. While in high school, the debate team will provide the opportunity to sharpen communication skills which are backed with research and factual data and information.
Here are the Top 10 Best Nursing Schools of 2024 per www.nurse.org:
https://nurse.org/education/top-10-best-nursing-schools/
- Duke University
- Georgetown University
- Johns Hopkins University
- New York University
- University of Pennsylvania
- University of Michigan
- University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA)
- University of Washington
- Emory University
- University of Maryland
U.S. News & World Report has additional college listings for the best schools for a Master Degree in Nursing or a Doctor of Nursing Practice:
https://www.usnews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-nursing-schools
A Bachelor of Science (BSN) in Nursing will concentrate more on math and science courses. This will be earned at a college or university for a duration of four years. Clinical experience is gained while in nursing school at a college or university. Physiology, psychology and anatomy are some additional college courses that are required for one to take to become a Registered Nurse (RN).
When reviewing colleges and universities, it is best to check the following:
- In-State vs Out of State Tuition
- Internships
- Scholarships
- Career Placement upon graduation
- Course work and offered classes
- Post-Graduate Degrees - Master and Doctoral
There are scholarships based on need, academic performance, school activities, sports involvement and community service. So, it will be to your advantage to seek out these types of scholarships. All of the academic staff at your high school that you interact with can write letters of recommendations for you based on what was just stated above. These recommendations can greatly help when filling out college and scholarship applications.
There will be a application fee to pay for when submitting college applications. The amount of application fee will depend on the college that you are applying to. If there are questions about the college application process, please reach out to the college's Registrar Office.
College and scholarship applications can start to be submitted during your Junior year and will continue throughout your Senior year in high school. It is best to ask your Academic Advisor/School Counselor on the timeline process as well. College and scholarship applications will have specific deadlines and requirements to meet in order to be submitted for review and consideration.
You may want to start to compile your resume/portfolio since a majority of college and scholarship applications will require academic grade point average (GPA), academic accomplishments, school activities (clubs, sports, etc.), community involvement (volunteer, church, etc.), academic and personal recommendations, etc. There may be essay requirements on why you are a qualified candidate to receive the scholarship and acceptance to the applied college of choice, what your future goals are academically and professionally and other questions centering around who you are, your beliefs, etc.
Here are a couple of links for College Scholarships:
https://www.mometrix.com/blog/scholarships-for-college/
https://www.nchchonors.org/students/awards-scholarships/national-scholarships
Also, it will be best to check with the colleges and universities that you will be applying to. You can check with the School/Department of your desired major, the Campus Career Center and the Register's Office for additional information for college scholarships and grants and specific requirements for qualifications.
There should be no limit on the amount of scholarships that one can apply to. It will take time to fill out the scholarship applications and provide all of the necessary required information. Also, there should no fee and no cost to fill out and submit scholarship applications. If there is a fee or cost that is associated with a scholarship application, then please do not send this particular scholarship application in. It will be a scam and money will be lost.
According to Johnson and Johnson, here is a link for Nursing Specialties:
https://nursing.jnj.com/specialty
Here is a list of some of the High Demand Nurse Specialties:
- Cardiac Care Nurse
- Certified Nurse Midwife
- Emergency Nurse
- Perioperative Nurse
- Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA)
- Labor and Delivery Nurse (L&D)
- Home Health Nurse
- Hospice Nurse
- Neonatal Intensive Care Nurse
- Nurse Practitioner
- Obstetrics Nurse
- Oncology Nurse
Best wishes for your education and career path in Nursing!
While in high school, one will need to focus on science and math classes to prepare for a nursing career. Physics, chemistry and biology will be the core science courses. For math, algebra, geometry and statistics will be needed. Both concentrations will enable you to focus and refine your analytical skills for research; complex problem solving; investigative and innovative critical thinking; attention to detail; etc.
Other skills that will need to be built upon center around team building, team work and communication. In any work culture, collaboration among team members, staff and partner departments occur on a daily basis. As a nurse, communication is essential and critical when dealing with patients, medical personnel and other hospital staff. A college course in public speaking, communications and English will help with one's communication and writing skills. While in high school, the debate team will provide the opportunity to sharpen communication skills which are backed with research and factual data and information.
Here are the Top 10 Best Nursing Schools of 2024 per www.nurse.org:
https://nurse.org/education/top-10-best-nursing-schools/
- Duke University
- Georgetown University
- Johns Hopkins University
- New York University
- University of Pennsylvania
- University of Michigan
- University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA)
- University of Washington
- Emory University
- University of Maryland
U.S. News & World Report has additional college listings for the best schools for a Master Degree in Nursing or a Doctor of Nursing Practice:
https://www.usnews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-nursing-schools
A Bachelor of Science (BSN) in Nursing will concentrate more on math and science courses. This will be earned at a college or university for a duration of four years. Clinical experience is gained while in nursing school at a college or university. Physiology, psychology and anatomy are some additional college courses that are required for one to take to become a Registered Nurse (RN).
When reviewing colleges and universities, it is best to check the following:
- In-State vs Out of State Tuition
- Internships
- Scholarships
- Career Placement upon graduation
- Course work and offered classes
- Post-Graduate Degrees - Master and Doctoral
There are scholarships based on need, academic performance, school activities, sports involvement and community service. So, it will be to your advantage to seek out these types of scholarships. All of the academic staff at your high school that you interact with can write letters of recommendations for you based on what was just stated above. These recommendations can greatly help when filling out college and scholarship applications.
There will be a application fee to pay for when submitting college applications. The amount of application fee will depend on the college that you are applying to. If there are questions about the college application process, please reach out to the college's Registrar Office.
College and scholarship applications can start to be submitted during your Junior year and will continue throughout your Senior year in high school. It is best to ask your Academic Advisor/School Counselor on the timeline process as well. College and scholarship applications will have specific deadlines and requirements to meet in order to be submitted for review and consideration.
You may want to start to compile your resume/portfolio since a majority of college and scholarship applications will require academic grade point average (GPA), academic accomplishments, school activities (clubs, sports, etc.), community involvement (volunteer, church, etc.), academic and personal recommendations, etc. There may be essay requirements on why you are a qualified candidate to receive the scholarship and acceptance to the applied college of choice, what your future goals are academically and professionally and other questions centering around who you are, your beliefs, etc.
Here are a couple of links for College Scholarships:
https://www.mometrix.com/blog/scholarships-for-college/
https://www.nchchonors.org/students/awards-scholarships/national-scholarships
Also, it will be best to check with the colleges and universities that you will be applying to. You can check with the School/Department of your desired major, the Campus Career Center and the Register's Office for additional information for college scholarships and grants and specific requirements for qualifications.
There should be no limit on the amount of scholarships that one can apply to. It will take time to fill out the scholarship applications and provide all of the necessary required information. Also, there should no fee and no cost to fill out and submit scholarship applications. If there is a fee or cost that is associated with a scholarship application, then please do not send this particular scholarship application in. It will be a scam and money will be lost.
According to Johnson and Johnson, here is a link for Nursing Specialties:
https://nursing.jnj.com/specialty
Here is a list of some of the High Demand Nurse Specialties:
- Cardiac Care Nurse
- Certified Nurse Midwife
- Emergency Nurse
- Perioperative Nurse
- Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA)
- Labor and Delivery Nurse (L&D)
- Home Health Nurse
- Hospice Nurse
- Neonatal Intensive Care Nurse
- Nurse Practitioner
- Obstetrics Nurse
- Oncology Nurse
Best wishes for your education and career path in Nursing!