Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Take two

I am now back on board with my pre-nursing courses and have registered for the second required course, developmental psychology. When I started my BSN journey previously, their were several ABSN (accelerated bachelors of nursing) programs that I considered, including SUNY Downstate, CUNY Hunter, and SUNY Stonybrook. Now I have decided that CUNY Lehman's accelerated BSN program would be my first choice, with SUNY Downstate being my second choice if I am not accepted into Lehman. So not only did I make the decision to follow through with nursing but I have even narrowed down my choices of schools! Most of the 7 courses that I would be required to take prior to entry would be completed online which is not the most ideal due to the number of science courses I have to take but this is the most convenient option for me at this time. The HESI A2 nursing school entrance exam is also required.

I have also decided that a course in Phlebotomy would also be useful prior to entry since my understanding is that many nursing programs don't teach Phlebotomy and I want to do all that I can to stay competitive. I had initially considered a CNA (Certified Nursing Assistant) course but I realized that I'd qualify for entry level positions once I complete one semester of nursing school and I am already somewhat familiar with basic nursing skills since I already took a CNA course in high school. There is definitely no guarantee that everything will go as planned (especially since I am essentially putting all my eggs into one basket) but at least now my goals are a little clearer








 

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

Changed My Mind, Again

(Original post from http://gettingmymsw.blogspot.com/)

I have once again changed my mind and decided that a second BSN (Bachelors of Nursing) degree would be the best option for me. I am not surprised I have changed my mind since I have flip-flopped with my decision regarding my future career and schooling for years now. I pray that my indecisiveness will end soon but in the meantime I will be going forward towards a career change in the nursing field. I didn't call it a journey for nothing!

For some reason, I cannot leave nursing alone. Is that a sign? Perhaps. But that doesn't dismiss the fact that I will be presented with a whole set of obstacles that I must overcome before I could become a registered nurse, despite my "calling" into the career.

The search begins

(Original post from http://gettingmymsw.blogspot.com/)

So now that I have decided to go back to school to finish my master's degree in social work, what school do I attend? Initially when I started the MSW (Master of Social Work) program nearly two years ago, I did an online program at the University of New England (UNE) which was great because of the convenience but the cost of the program, not to mention personal issues I was going through at the time, caused me to withdraw from the program. I actually have 12 credits and returning to UNE would be beneficial because my credits would transfer with no problems; however with the current tuition at over $800/credit and the nearly 20 hour/week required for the internship component of the program, I am skeptical about going back to the program without significant financial, professional, and emotional support.

On campus programs

There are variety of on campus MSW programs in my area, including New York University, Hunter College, and Adelphi University but all programs (with the exception of the public universities) are very expensive! Even if expense wasn't an issue, it would be extremely difficult and close to impossible for me to go to classes in the evening and/or Saturdays because I would never know if my husband is working or not, leaving me without someone to look after our children. Traveling to classes from work would also be difficult (with the exception of Adelphi). Graduate school is hard enough as it is. The last thing I need to worry about is whether or not I have to miss class because no one can watch my children or being late to class because I got stuck in rush hour traffic. Weekend childcare could be an option but I already pay enough for childcare during the week.

My choice: an online MSW program

Due to its convenience, an online MSW program is ideal for me and I am probably going to go that route again if and when I decide to return to school. The good news is more and more reputable colleges and universities are adding online components to already established MSW programs. In fact from the time I withdrew from UNE until now the number of accredited online and distance learning MSW programs has probably doubled! Now if only I could find a school that not going to put me in debt for the rest of my life...

Return to MSW

(Original post from http://gettingmymsw.blogspot.com/)

I have recently decided to forgo my decision to change careers to nursing and stick with my previous plan of getting an MSW (Masters of Social Work) degree which would be an expansion of my current job. Although I had some reservation about going into nursing for a variety of reasons, I have my reservation about formal social work as well but hopefully the positives of pursing a MSW degree will far outweigh the negatives. I just hope I don't change my mind yet again and just stick to one plan.