My_Dream_Career

Well, to be quite honest, I’d love to be independently wealthy and be able to stay home with my two year old daughter, Layla. But since this is the real world and there’s no one waiting to give me a boat load of cash, I’m working toward a four year nursing degree. When I first graduated high school, I thought that I wanted to be a teacher, but a semester of student teaching a 7th grade science class changed my mind quickly. I was not cut out to teach other people’s pre-teeners. So I took some time off, trying to figure out what I wanted to be when I grew up. In September of 2008 I delivered my daughter and I absolutely loved my O.B. nurse. I had been leaning toward the nursing field for while and after I had Layla I made up my mind to start getting my pre-reqs for nursing. This summer I plan on starting the LPN program here at PTC and after that hopefully on to UAMS or UCA to finish up with my BSN. Where money is a very strong motivation in my career choice, it’s not the only one. Being a single mom, the nursing career offers very flexible hours. Most hospitals have 36hr work weeks, allowing you to work 12hr shifts and get a full week’s worth of pay in three days, or clinic work that has office hours and holidays, or as a school nurse. A school nurse would the ideal thing, that way I would have the same schedule as my daughter and all of the holidays off with her. Skills and/or Special Training required As stated previously, I have been working on pre-reqs for nursing since fall of 2009 and will be starting the LPN program in August of 2011. After that going on to pursue my RN at a school that will have me, taking boards and passing them, and becoming licensed. Being a single mom, I’m eligible for a nice sized pell grant and I have some student loans. Luckily most hospitals have programs that help pay off some or even all of student loans, if I took a hospital position. What is the market demand for the Career Field The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that employment for registered nurses will grow faster than most other occupations through 2018. According to the Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics the average yearly wages of RN’s in 2007 was ~$60,000 (AACN). According to an article in the Arkansas Times, the economy has affected the amount of hospital nursing jobs available in the central AR area, but if nurses are willing to look in surrounding area hospitals, or changing the type of nursing, meaning, look at clinics, offices, or long term care facilities, then jobs are not so unattainable. Works Cited http://www.aacn.nche.edu/education/nurse_ed/career.htm “The Economy and Nursing.” http://www.arktimes2.com/guides/nurses/content.cfm'StoryID=32