Career as a nurse -- DH has a prejudice against it

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My mom is a nurse practitioner. Idk what she makes but she is well compensated. NPs can do a lot of the things physicians do (prescribe, practice as a primary care provider, etc.) especially if they specialize. My mom is a pediatric NP. It's also a good certification if you want regular hours like at a primary care doctor's office.

I'm really jealous of my mom's ability to flex her hours. She was basically a SAHM but still made decent money part time and still had all her professional credentials/wasn't penalized for a resume gap when she went back full time. Same for my sister who is a physician assistant.

There's a gulf of difference between a high school educated LPN or CNA who went into nursing because it's "what women do" vs. a nurse practitioner at Georgetown or Johns Hopkins with a master's degree.

I don't think your DH is picking up on that.

DH classmates all went to university for nursing, like Georgia flagship. They work at hospitals, but not JHU. Does JHU and Georgetown pay like $150k for RNs?

Lol. Hopkins and Georgetown starting pay for RN is about $55K. After 10 years and a bunch of shift differential (nights, weekends) maybe $85K.

I'm an RN in DC. Nursing is a decent career for many reasons (flexibility, etc) but it does not pay well. The California nurse who posted above is irrelevant because nurses in California are unionized and their salaries are almost twice what they are in the DMV.
Most DC nurses (over the age of 30--i.e. those who want to own a home, start a family) live 1.5-2 hours outside of DC because they can't afford to live closer in. The next time you're in a DC hospital, ask your nurse where she lives. She will probably tell you Frederick or Leesburg or Fredericksburg.
Almost none of my colleagues live within an hour of their job.
Nurse practitioners make more but their schooling has become ridiculously expensive. A master's at Hopkins or Georgetown is now $150K. And then you make $120K when you're done.

People always, always, overestimate what nurses make. Covid has contributed to that because now there are travel nursing jobs that pay a ridiculous amount (12 week contracts that work out to $200-300K a year). However, the trick is, you have to be able to travel to take these jobs.
Most RNs can't pick up an move to Phoenix for 12 weeks. And then St. Louis for the next 12 weeks after that.

Anyone deciding to pay $150k for an MSN at Hopkins rather than $45k for an MSN at UVA is a fool. I know plenty of NPs who did their MSN at UVA or VCU while working and keeping their debt load quite reasonable.

Assuming the same pre-MSN nursing experience, there's absolutely no difference in job outcome for a UVA MSN versus a Hopkins or Georgetown MSN.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My mom is a nurse practitioner. Idk what she makes but she is well compensated. NPs can do a lot of the things physicians do (prescribe, practice as a primary care provider, etc.) especially if they specialize. My mom is a pediatric NP. It's also a good certification if you want regular hours like at a primary care doctor's office.

I'm really jealous of my mom's ability to flex her hours. She was basically a SAHM but still made decent money part time and still had all her professional credentials/wasn't penalized for a resume gap when she went back full time. Same for my sister who is a physician assistant.

There's a gulf of difference between a high school educated LPN or CNA who went into nursing because it's "what women do" vs. a nurse practitioner at Georgetown or Johns Hopkins with a master's degree.

I don't think your DH is picking up on that.

DH classmates all went to university for nursing, like Georgia flagship. They work at hospitals, but not JHU. Does JHU and Georgetown pay like $150k for RNs?

Lol. Hopkins and Georgetown starting pay for RN is about $55K. After 10 years and a bunch of shift differential (nights, weekends) maybe $85K.

I'm an RN in DC. Nursing is a decent career for many reasons (flexibility, etc) but it does not pay well. The California nurse who posted above is irrelevant because nurses in California are unionized and their salaries are almost twice what they are in the DMV.
Most DC nurses (over the age of 30--i.e. those who want to own a home, start a family) live 1.5-2 hours outside of DC because they can't afford to live closer in. The next time you're in a DC hospital, ask your nurse where she lives. She will probably tell you Frederick or Leesburg or Fredericksburg.
Almost none of my colleagues live within an hour of their job.
Nurse practitioners make more but their schooling has become ridiculously expensive. A master's at Hopkins or Georgetown is now $150K. And then you make $120K when you're done.

People always, always, overestimate what nurses make. Covid has contributed to that because now there are travel nursing jobs that pay a ridiculous amount (12 week contracts that work out to $200-300K a year). However, the trick is, you have to be able to travel to take these jobs.
Most RNs can't pick up an move to Phoenix for 12 weeks. And then St. Louis for the next 12 weeks after that.

Anyone deciding to pay $150k for an MSN at Hopkins rather than $45k for an MSN at UVA is a fool. I know plenty of NPs who did their MSN at UVA or VCU while working and keeping their debt load quite reasonable.

Assuming the same pre-MSN nursing experience, there's absolutely no difference in job outcome for a UVA MSN versus a Hopkins or Georgetown MSN.

well, to begin many nurses don't live in Virginia.

[Anonymous]

Do what you want to in life and the money will follow. Work is not work if you like your job.

We have so many posters on here who make big money but hate their jobs and are desperate to do something else.

[Anonymous]

Do nursing for several years and then pivot into medical device sales.

Every medical device interview that I went on wanted prior nursing or medical experience.

There is big money in this field.

[Anonymous]

Check into the PA program at UMES in Princess Anne.

https://wwwcp.umes.edu/pa/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To the person who claims that dialysis nurses and nursing home nurses spend their work time watching tv and laughing, and says the reason they’re always hiring is “because they pay less,” then tell me why nurses don’t transition to these easy jobs instead of leaving the field entirely.

Answer? Because you’re talking out of your ass. Your aunts, if they exist, are not dialysis nurses. Not an easy job. And I don’t for a moment believe nursing home nurses, whether LPN or RN, have easy jobs either. They can’t find staff because it’s a ton of work. And yes, they should be paid more.

You can not lump the whole field to what you know. Common sense yes?

Go outside the city into the suburbs, what you will find are obviously lower paid positions but workload is 2-4x less.

People are paid what they are worth. Yes, 60k-70k nursing job in nursing home/outpatient/dialysis floor is lower paid but less stressful than the 100k a year
medsurge nurse in large inner city hospital.


You know not everyone wants an easy job and would rather make the most and be challenged than sitting at a desk relaxing earning 30-40 percent less.


I’ll say it again: Dialysis nursing is not an easy job. I don’t know of any nursing job where the nurses sit around watching tv. You are a liar. And an idiot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do what you want to in life and the money will follow. Work is not work if you like your job.

We have so many posters on here who make big money but hate their jobs and are desperate to do something else.

+1 Nursing can also be a step toward hospital administration. My sister is a nurse and has done ICU bedside, nurse manager, got a master's in clinical practice, taught in a nursing program and now oversees research and training for a hospital system and is working on her doctorate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To the person who claims that dialysis nurses and nursing home nurses spend their work time watching tv and laughing, and says the reason they’re always hiring is “because they pay less,” then tell me why nurses don’t transition to these easy jobs instead of leaving the field entirely.

Answer? Because you’re talking out of your ass. Your aunts, if they exist, are not dialysis nurses. Not an easy job. And I don’t for a moment believe nursing home nurses, whether LPN or RN, have easy jobs either. They can’t find staff because it’s a ton of work. And yes, they should be paid more.

You can not lump the whole field to what you know. Common sense yes?

Go outside the city into the suburbs, what you will find are obviously lower paid positions but workload is 2-4x less.

People are paid what they are worth. Yes, 60k-70k nursing job in nursing home/outpatient/dialysis floor is lower paid but less stressful than the 100k a year
medsurge nurse in large inner city hospital.


You know not everyone wants an easy job and would rather make the most and be challenged than sitting at a desk relaxing earning 30-40 percent less.


I’ll say it again: Dialysis nursing is not an easy job. I don’t know of any nursing job where the nurses sit around watching tv. You are a liar. And an idiot.

You don’t get out much and it clearly shows... don’t get so offended on an anonymous forum.

[Anonymous]

OP's DD is considering pursuing a Nursing Degree right,
I thought with a nursing degree, you are not just a RN starting 50K?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My mom is a nurse practitioner. Idk what she makes but she is well compensated. NPs can do a lot of the things physicians do (prescribe, practice as a primary care provider, etc.) especially if they specialize. My mom is a pediatric NP. It's also a good certification if you want regular hours like at a primary care doctor's office.

I'm really jealous of my mom's ability to flex her hours. She was basically a SAHM but still made decent money part time and still had all her professional credentials/wasn't penalized for a resume gap when she went back full time. Same for my sister who is a physician assistant.

There's a gulf of difference between a high school educated LPN or CNA who went into nursing because it's "what women do" vs. a nurse practitioner at Georgetown or Johns Hopkins with a master's degree.

I don't think your DH is picking up on that.

DH classmates all went to university for nursing, like Georgia flagship. They work at hospitals, but not JHU. Does JHU and Georgetown pay like $150k for RNs?

Lol. Hopkins and Georgetown starting pay for RN is about $55K. After 10 years and a bunch of shift differential (nights, weekends) maybe $85K.

I'm an RN in DC. Nursing is a decent career for many reasons (flexibility, etc) but it does not pay well. The California nurse who posted above is irrelevant because nurses in California are unionized and their salaries are almost twice what they are in the DMV.
Most DC nurses (over the age of 30--i.e. those who want to own a home, start a family) live 1.5-2 hours outside of DC because they can't afford to live closer in. The next time you're in a DC hospital, ask your nurse where she lives. She will probably tell you Frederick or Leesburg or Fredericksburg.
Almost none of my colleagues live within an hour of their job.
Nurse practitioners make more but their schooling has become ridiculously expensive. A master's at Hopkins or Georgetown is now $150K. And then you make $120K when you're done.

People always, always, overestimate what nurses make. Covid has contributed to that because now there are travel nursing jobs that pay a ridiculous amount (12 week contracts that work out to $200-300K a year). However, the trick is, you have to be able to travel to take these jobs.
Most RNs can't pick up an move to Phoenix for 12 weeks. And then St. Louis for the next 12 weeks after that.

Anyone deciding to pay $150k for an MSN at Hopkins rather than $45k for an MSN at UVA is a fool. I know plenty of NPs who did their MSN at UVA or VCU while working and keeping their debt load quite reasonable.

Assuming the same pre-MSN nursing experience, there's absolutely no difference in job outcome for a UVA MSN versus a Hopkins or Georgetown MSN.

well, to begin many nurses don't live in Virginia.

This is a DC area forum right? So, this is geared towards Nova, MD, and DC. Are you really that dense?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP's DD is considering pursuing a Nursing Degree right,
I thought with a nursing degree, you are not just a RN starting 50K?

Huh? This comment doesn't make any sense. A Bachelor of Science in Nursing makes one eligible to take the registered nurse licensing exam (NCLEX).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do what you want to in life and the money will follow. Work is not work if you like your job.

We have so many posters on here who make big money but hate their jobs and are desperate to do something else.

I did this and sooo regret it. The world is too expensive for dreams.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do what you want to in life and the money will follow. Work is not work if you like your job.

We have so many posters on here who make big money but hate their jobs and are desperate to do something else.

I did this and sooo regret it. The world is too expensive for dreams.

Yes this is horrible advice. You can’t pay rent with dreams and happiness

I’m also loling that op thought nursing would be a path to being upper middle class. It can be a good career and pay decently but upper middle class? Lolol.

[Anonymous]

I guess when the OP husband is deadly sick one day he plans in calling his accountant or lawyer to do his IV.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do what you want to in life and the money will follow. Work is not work if you like your job.

We have so many posters on here who make big money but hate their jobs and are desperate to do something else.

I did this and sooo regret it. The world is too expensive for dreams.

Yes this is horrible advice. You can’t pay rent with dreams and happiness

I’m also loling that op thought nursing would be a path to being upper middle class. It can be a good career and pay decently but upper middle class? Lolol.

What is your minimum of salary for upper middle class that you LOL about?