Should my husband become a nurse?

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yellowgirl
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Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by yellowgirl »

My husband is 35 year old. He wants to go back to school again. He still has about 12 credit hours at the community college he attended years back. Currently he is in sales but we all know this is not a stable field to be in. He won't be eligibility for any financial aid because he makes around $7,500 to $8,000 before taxes. The Bachelor of Science in Nursing will cost us 30k. He will go to school at night the first 3 years. He thinks he needs to go to school now before he is too old to change career.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by jebmke »

The son of a friend of mine is an ER nurse. He is about that age. He loves the job and because there are so many hospitals in the area he lives (Annapolis-Baltimore corridor) he can pretty much choose his work schedule. I think he works three days (weekends) and is paid full time salary.

Part of the answer lies in the demand for nurses in your area.
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Cindyjrn
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by Cindyjrn »

He really needs to ask himself if that's what he wants to do because a lot of people go to nursing school for the money and then they get into the hospital setting and they hate it. They hate the patients who complain about everything. The hate the people that come in seeking drugs. They hate the drunk idiots that can't find their cellphone and blame you for taking it. They hate the other nurses that won't do their job because it's almost impossible to fire them. If patient care is something he's really serious about, then go for it. The job is rewarding and the money can be anything you want it to be. I know nurses that work one day a week for spending money, most work 2-3 days a week and earn a good living.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by jebmke »

Cindyjrn wrote:He really needs to ask himself if that's what he wants to do because a lot of people go to nursing school for the money and then they get into the hospital setting and they hate it. They hate the patients who complain about everything. The hate the people that come in seeking drugs. They hate the drunk idiots that can't find their cellphone and blame you for taking it. They hate the other nurses that won't do their job because it's almost impossible to fire them. If patient care is something he's really serious about, then go for it. The job is rewarding and the money can be anything you want it to be. I know nurses that work one day a week for spending money, most work 2-3 days a week and earn a good living.
I went to graduate school (business) with an MD. I asked him why he was quitting medicine to pursue business: "I found out I didn't like being around sick people."
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island
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by island »

You haven't supplied enough info to offer much of an opinion for his specific situation.

Is it something he's passionate about or just choosing it because he thinks it will be a stable career?
If primarialy the latter then skip it.

Nursing and careers in many health care fields is hard work and getting more so with increased regulations and the crunch to keep health care "affordable". Do more with less seems to be the mantra and that includes less staff, time and pay. Most can expect long days, restrictive, inflexible work schedules at least in the beginning when you have no seniority. In many settings you are on the clock every minute and watching the clock struggling to keep on time. The pace can be grueling in hospital and clinical settings.
If the passion is there to help care for people and to keep your skills sharp and up to date then great, if not think about another job, because it's not a career to coast thru.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by Cindyjrn »

Almost everything island wrote is true except the pay. The pay is very good. That might be regional though.
ny_rn
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by ny_rn »

jebmke wrote:
Cindyjrn wrote:He really needs to ask himself if that's what he wants to do because a lot of people go to nursing school for the money and then they get into the hospital setting and they hate it. They hate the patients who complain about everything. The hate the people that come in seeking drugs. They hate the drunk idiots that can't find their cellphone and blame you for taking it. They hate the other nurses that won't do their job because it's almost impossible to fire them. If patient care is something he's really serious about, then go for it. The job is rewarding and the money can be anything you want it to be. I know nurses that work one day a week for spending money, most work 2-3 days a week and earn a good living.
He needs to consider the above prior to attending nursing school. I am a ER nurse and it's a love/hate relationship.

As for school, I would recommend obtaining the Associate of Science in Nursing (ASN) first. This takes two years to obtain. Then, continue the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) coursework while he is working as a registered nurse. This is exactly what I did. My ASN was ~ $10k. My BSN was free, because my currently employer paid 100% of my tuition.
island
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by island »

Cindyjrn wrote:Almost everything island wrote is true except the pay. The pay is very good. That might be regional though.
No I agree, the pay is good and there is job security and the ability for many to move to different specialities and settings, but from the nurses I know from working in healthcare myself for many years, their annual raises are not as generous as they used to be for those that have longterm careers in the same hospital or clinic. And I'm talking about CA, HCOA.
Last edited by island on Sat Jun 20, 2015 1:08 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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yellowgirl
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by yellowgirl »

island wrote:You haven't supplied enough info to offer much of an opinion for his specific situation.

Is it something he's passionate about or just choosing it because he thinks it will be a stable career?
If primarialy the latter then skip it.

Nursing and careers in many health care fields is hard work and getting more so with increased regulations and the crunch to keep health care "affordable". Do more with less seems to be the mantra and that includes less staff, time and pay. Most can expect long days, restrictive, inflexible work schedules at least in the beginning when you have no seniority. In many settings you are on the clock every minute and watching the clock struggling to keep on time. The pace can be grueling in hospital and clinical settings.
If the passion is there to help care for people and to keep your skills sharp and up to date then great, if not think about another job, because it's not a career to coast thru.
He thinks it will be a stable career and good money. He also wants to make at least $90,000 a year as a nurse.
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yellowgirl
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by yellowgirl »

Cindyjrn wrote:He really needs to ask himself if that's what he wants to do because a lot of people go to nursing school for the money and then they get into the hospital setting and they hate it. They hate the patients who complain about everything. The hate the people that come in seeking drugs. They hate the drunk idiots that can't find their cellphone and blame you for taking it. They hate the other nurses that won't do their job because it's almost impossible to fire them. If patient care is something he's really serious about, then go for it. The job is rewarding and the money can be anything you want it to be. I know nurses that work one day a week for spending money, most work 2-3 days a week and earn a good living.

Stable career and money are main reasons.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by Cindyjrn »

Regarding an ASN, that's what I did. It was $8k. Paid as I went. I never bothered with the BSN, but it's almost impossible to get hired in my area without one now.
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yellowgirl
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by yellowgirl »

ny_rn wrote:
jebmke wrote:
Cindyjrn wrote:He really needs to ask himself if that's what he wants to do because a lot of people go to nursing school for the money and then they get into the hospital setting and they hate it. They hate the patients who complain about everything. The hate the people that come in seeking drugs. They hate the drunk idiots that can't find their cellphone and blame you for taking it. They hate the other nurses that won't do their job because it's almost impossible to fire them. If patient care is something he's really serious about, then go for it. The job is rewarding and the money can be anything you want it to be. I know nurses that work one day a week for spending money, most work 2-3 days a week and earn a good living.
He needs to consider the above prior to attending nursing school. I am a ER nurse and it's a love/hate relationship.

As for school, I would recommend obtaining the Associate of Science in Nursing (ASN) first. This takes two years to obtain. Then, continue the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) coursework while he is working as a registered nurse. This is exactly what I did. My ASN was ~ $10k. My BSN was free, because my currently employer paid 100% of my tuition.

Thanks. He thoughts about doing the Associate of Science in Nursing (ASN) first but he heard he will not make as much money with it. He needs to make enough money immediately because we are behind on retirement.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by Cindyjrn »

yellowgirl wrote:
Cindyjrn wrote:He really needs to ask himself if that's what he wants to do because a lot of people go to nursing school for the money and then they get into the hospital setting and they hate it. They hate the patients who complain about everything. The hate the people that come in seeking drugs. They hate the drunk idiots that can't find their cellphone and blame you for taking it. They hate the other nurses that won't do their job because it's almost impossible to fire them. If patient care is something he's really serious about, then go for it. The job is rewarding and the money can be anything you want it to be. I know nurses that work one day a week for spending money, most work 2-3 days a week and earn a good living.

Stable career and money are main reasons.
He really has to want to help people and provide good care as his main inspirations or the other two probably won't come to fruition. As far as his salary hopes, I make more than twice your number listed above but I've worked my butt off for over twenty years and there's not a hospital within 50 miles that I haven't worked at over the years that wouldn't hire me tomorrow if I walked in looking for a job. If you're a mediocre nurse, the extra shifts are not always there.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by Cindyjrn »

yellowgirl wrote:
ny_rn wrote:
jebmke wrote:
Cindyjrn wrote:He really needs to ask himself if that's what he wants to do because a lot of people go to nursing school for the money and then they get into the hospital setting and they hate it. They hate the patients who complain about everything. The hate the people that come in seeking drugs. They hate the drunk idiots that can't find their cellphone and blame you for taking it. They hate the other nurses that won't do their job because it's almost impossible to fire them. If patient care is something he's really serious about, then go for it. The job is rewarding and the money can be anything you want it to be. I know nurses that work one day a week for spending money, most work 2-3 days a week and earn a good living.
He needs to consider the above prior to attending nursing school. I am a ER nurse and it's a love/hate relationship.

As for school, I would recommend obtaining the Associate of Science in Nursing (ASN) first. This takes two years to obtain. Then, continue the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) coursework while he is working as a registered nurse. This is exactly what I did. My ASN was ~ $10k. My BSN was free, because my currently employer paid 100% of my tuition.

Thanks. He thoughts about doing the Associate of Science in Nursing (ASN) first but he heard he will not make as much money with it. He needs to make enough money immediately because we are behind on retirement.
It's a fallacy, at least in my area, that a BSN will make more money. What a BSN will do is open doors up the ladder for him. But honestly those doors that open do not equate to "more" money. They equate to more opportunities for a 40 hour/week salaried position, which may or may not be more money. If I were to take a salaried position, my income would be halved, thus the reason for never wanting to move up within the organization. I'll leave the paperwork to people that actually want to do paperwork for a living. But, like I said before, a BSN might be necessary for him to even get hired depending on what area of the country you're in and what kind of a job he's looking for.
Last edited by Cindyjrn on Sat Jun 20, 2015 1:16 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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yellowgirl
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by yellowgirl »

Cindyjrn wrote:
yellowgirl wrote:
Cindyjrn wrote:He really needs to ask himself if that's what he wants to do because a lot of people go to nursing school for the money and then they get into the hospital setting and they hate it. They hate the patients who complain about everything. The hate the people that come in seeking drugs. They hate the drunk idiots that can't find their cellphone and blame you for taking it. They hate the other nurses that won't do their job because it's almost impossible to fire them. If patient care is something he's really serious about, then go for it. The job is rewarding and the money can be anything you want it to be. I know nurses that work one day a week for spending money, most work 2-3 days a week and earn a good living.

Stable career and money are main reasons.
He really has to want to help people and provide good care as his main inspirations or the other two probably won't come to fruition. As far as his salary hopes, I make more than twice your number listed above but I've worked my butt off for over twenty years and there's not a hospital within 50 miles that I haven't worked at over the years that wouldn't hire me tomorrow if I walked in looking for a job. If you're a mediocre nurse, the extra shifts are not always there.
Great. So the money is there, he just needs to work hard at it. He is very good with people being in sales and all. His current job is very easy, all he does is talk but unstable.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by island »

In my area most RN jobs require a BS especially if inexperienced or fresh out of school and doubt 90K is a starting salary.

Sounds like you or he is more focused on the lure of a stable career and decent salary rather than what the career entails.

You say his job is easy, but he's willing to work hard, but is he willing to work hard at this specific hard career? I don't think gotta hurry up because behind in retirement savings screams "I really want to be a nurse".

Do you know any nurses you can talk to to find out more about what nursing involves on a daily basis?

What is his current job and training? Any jobs in that field that translates to more $ and stability with more education within the same field?
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by EnjoyIt »

There is no full time nursing job that pays 90K/yr without years of seniority and upgrading skills. Even then 90K is hard to come by. Starting pay will be closer to $25-$35/hr. To make that kind of money will require lots of overtime. Nothing wrong with that, but working too much gets you burned out very quickly. I know some nurses that work 60hrs per week and do fine. Not many can handle that since being a nurse is hard work.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by StormShadow »

yellowgirl wrote:My husband is 35 year old. He wants to go back to school again. He still has about 12 credit hours at the community college he attended years back. Currently he is in sales but we all know this is not a stable field to be in. He won't be eligibility for any financial aid because he makes around $7,500 to $8,000 before taxes. The Bachelor of Science in Nursing will cost us 30k. He will go to school at night the first 3 years. He thinks he needs to go to school now before he is too old to change career.
My advice?

Volunteer at a nearby hospital and shadow (i.e follow/help) the nurses as much as he can. Nursing is a tough job in just about every way... physically, emotionally and mentally. And like sales and other occupations, office politics can play a big role in this. Does he have a strong stomach for the various sights/sounds and especially the smells that inevitably come up as a nurse? Vomit, pee and poo... sponge baths for folks that havent seen a shower in weeks/months.

Also, the job security is not necessarily as air-tight as you might think... especially for first year nurses. When hospitals run a deficit, junior nurses are often the first ones cut loose. Senior nurses who have been there for at least 5 years are usually protected if they have a solid union.

$90k a year is on the high end for a nurse, certainly not in your first year out. $45-60k is more realistic, depending on the region. Lower if you join an academic hospital.

Disclosure, my wife was a nurse. She did eventually start to make just over $90k/yr, but she did this through covering just nights/weekends (higher compensation) and putting in extra shifts.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by jlawrence01 »

Does your husband want to be a nurse ... or is he just looking for a higher paying job? If it is the latter, you will be spending a lot cash for nothing. Being a nurse is pretty difficult and the high salary and benefits are generally 10 years down the road. What is ironic is that so many nurses are looking to get OUT of clinical nursing around 45 as it is a very physically demanding job.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by whaleknives »

I hesitated to reply, because it's so very subjective.

I left engineering after 20 years because I wanted to do something different, and decided I wanted to work in health care. We enjoyed living in smaller towns, and engineering employment requires a minimum of capital and population, while health care is needed wherever people live. My sister-in-law is an RN, and she was able to spend 3 months in Arizona each summer working at an Indian Health Services clinic, with housing provided.

Nursing is attractive for many reasons. It offers responsible work caring for patients. The investment of time and money is more reasonable than for physician assistant (more competitive than med school) or physician (too much time and money at my age). Part-time positions are the norm rather than the exception, so it's very flexible.

I entered nursing school at 44, not the oldest in my class, with 7% male enrollment. New male nursing enrollment nationally is now 13%. I got a BSN in 4 years, working half-time as a Certified Nursing Assistant in a nursing home and hospital. My employer liked to brag that they paid in the 95th percentile of all area nursing homes, but it was still poverty level income for a family of four. I've just retired after 20 years of mostly hospital work as an RN in internal medicine, pediatrics, ER, and cardiac electrophysiology.

My income as a new RN was 25% less than engineering, but it increased 2.6 times over the next 20 years. In my area an RN credential is more important than a BSN degree, unless you are looking at grad school. I never experienced any layoffs. There is stress and hard work. You can be directly responsible for people's lives. You can be told at the end of a hospital shift that you can't go home for another 8 hours, because they have no one to replace you. You can testify at a state senate hearing against mandatory overtime, only to be told by a state senator that he used to work long hours in a pizza parlor, and he had no problems.

On the other hand, I was sitting at a gate in O'Hare watching a toddler run around, when a woman suddenly shouted "Hey, it's Johnny's nurse from the hospital!" I wouldn't trade my nursing experience for anything, but I was also ready to retire after 41 years.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by kjvmartin »

Wife is a hospital RN. If you're used to an office job, this could be a rude awakening. I love the fact that it's only 2-3 days, but those are some real-deal days. It's also 12 hours of actually working/thinking. There's not much water cooler or solitaire time. Really it's more like 13 hours, because you stay 1/2 hour for shift change report and most hospitals make the employees park quite a distance from the building. My wife does midnights, which is the only spot for a new hire in this area. It works out well for us due to child care savings, but it's no easy life.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by ResearchMed »

yellowgirl wrote:
island wrote:You haven't supplied enough info to offer much of an opinion for his specific situation.

Is it something he's passionate about or just choosing it because he thinks it will be a stable career?
If primarialy the latter then skip it.

Nursing and careers in many health care fields is hard work and getting more so with increased regulations and the crunch to keep health care "affordable". Do more with less seems to be the mantra and that includes less staff, time and pay. Most can expect long days, restrictive, inflexible work schedules at least in the beginning when you have no seniority. In many settings you are on the clock every minute and watching the clock struggling to keep on time. The pace can be grueling in hospital and clinical settings.
If the passion is there to help care for people and to keep your skills sharp and up to date then great, if not think about another job, because it's not a career to coast thru.
He thinks it will be a stable career and good money. He also wants to make at least $90,000 a year as a nurse.
Not sure that thinking of nursing as "stable career and good money" is enough to make it work long term.

Where is the "this is what he REALLY WANTS TO DO"?

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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by SimonJester »

My wife is an RN and based on what you are saying my vote is no. I do not think he should go into nursing unless he really wants to help people.

Nursing is some of the hardest work, often under appreciated, understaffed, and over worked. He would have to go on to get a BSN as many places are now requiring it. As a new Rn expect to work 12 hour night shifts and every holiday. Depending on the unit dynamics it will be either the most supportive environment or the most unsupportive hellish nightmare.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by pointyhead »

I was in a similar situation to your husband. I started nursing school at 36, graduated at 38, and completed my MSN at 44 and my only reasons for going to nursing school was because I wanted a stable career and more money. In fact, when I was deciding if I should go I said to my wife, "You know, I have never thought about being a nurse until now and I don't even know if I'll like it but I'll always have a job and I can make more money." So far, it has really worked out well for me.

I'm not exactly sure what I want to convey in this message but as others have noted nursing can be a very tough-physically and emotionally-but also very rewarding profession. I didn't really know what I was getting into when I became a nurse. I worked cardiac telemetry, Med/Surg ICU, CTICU, trauma, and as a CRNA in a wide variety of settings. Without getting into the details, I know that I have been instrumental in saving many lives as a nurse/CRNA. And If I am honest with myself I have unintentionally injured and contributed to the death of patients. Sometimes that happens. The stress can be incredible--think physical illness, insomnia, alcohol abuse, PTSD, even suicide--but the rewards can be just as incredible. Fortunately for me, I am the type of person who can be happy digging a ditch or working in an ICU. If your husband is patient, enjoys people, has a sense of humor, and understands that although some days will be really horrible (not as bad as his patient's day) nursing can be a very rewarding professionally as well as financially.

Best of luck to you both!

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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by White Coat Investor »

Heaven knows we need to encourage behavior like this. I could really use some more nurses, especially talented, dedicated ones who haven't gotten cynical yet.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by Pajamas »

yellowgirl wrote:
Stable career and money are main reasons.
Those are not "wrong" reasons to choose any profession, but they may not be enough to be happy being a nurse. Does he know anything about nursing, what nurses do, the hours, the work, the difficulties of working in healthcare in general and in nursing in particular?

The best way to go about it (if he doesn't already have a degree) is to pursue the ASN at the community college if that option is available, as someone mentioned above.

The first thing he should do is talk to some nurses and then go talk to someone in the nursing department at the school about what they suggest. There may be a waiting list to get in. He may need to take some basic courses before he is accepted to a nursing program.

There are other careers that have low barriers to entry and are fairly stable and pay a middle-class salary, e.g., accounting, if he just wants stability and money.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by BolderBoy »

EnjoyIt wrote:There is no full time nursing job that pays 90K/yr without years of seniority and upgrading skills. Even then 90K is hard to come by. Starting pay will be closer to $25-$35/hr. To make that kind of money will require lots of overtime. Nothing wrong with that, but working too much gets you burned out very quickly. I know some nurses that work 60hrs per week and do fine. Not many can handle that since being a nurse is hard work.
I think this is exactly right. Nursing is very tough nowadays - not like the old days. To make really serious money in nursing with regular hours takes an MSN and the right specialty. Very tough to get into those grad school programs and the tuition will eat you alive.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by poker27 »

My fiancé is a nurse, and we have tons of friends in nursing. I'm very jealous of her 3 day work week, good pay, and stability/ ability to get a job almost anywhere. However, I would never be able to do the work and I'm in sales

She works nights (so there is a pay bump) at a good paying hospital, and she still doesn't clear 90. She might be able to if she would pick up overtime consistently.

90k+ sounds like a nurse practitioner
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by Cindyjrn »

Those specialty jobs are very few and far between. The way I've always looked at it very few people make a lot of money working 40 hours a week. High earners in other fields are out there grinding away 60 hours a week. Young lawyers and doctors are working even more than that. If you want to make a lot of money in most fields, you have to put the time in. Nursing is no different. You can make a good stable income working 3 12 hour shifts a week but you're not going to get rich and I'd say that's the same in most fields. If you happen to have a job where you're making a couple hundred thousand a year and you're keeping bankers hours, consider yourself very fortunate.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by radiowave »

Don't have much to add to the excellent conversation. Been a (male) nurse nearly 35 years now, first 20 in critical care (both peds and adult). I went to school in my early 20's after a stint in the fire department. I could not think of doing anything else. It is one of the most flexible careers as far as setting and variety of jobs and I've worked with many excellent nurses and physicians over the years. I didn't get into nursing for the money - don't know any nurse who would say that. I went into the profession to help people and make a difference. As others have said, the job market is very tight for new grads and most hospitals who hire new grads prefer BSN. About the only way to make 90+K salary is either going up the nursing leadership ladder or advanced practice nursing. Both require a graduate degree so figure another 30-50K (a PhD could be 60K or more).
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by Cindyjrn »

radiowave wrote:I didn't get into nursing for the money - don't know any nurse who would say that.
Great point. I don't think I know any older nurses that got into nursing for the money, I know I didn't. Some of the younger ones definitely were inspired by the nursing shortage a few years back and promises of high pay.
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Bogle_Feet
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by Bogle_Feet »

I know someone who studied to be a paramedic (not a nurse). Then he rode along on a few ambulance rides and decided it was too depressing. A lot of dying old people. Just something to think about.
ktd
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by ktd »

I know many nurses and a few doctors do it for the money and stable career.
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stemikger
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by stemikger »

Warren Buffett says everyone should do a job they would do if they didn't need the money. If he thinks he will love nursing, go for it. I know several male nurses and they make very good money and usually have to turn down the OT. However, what is in demand today, may not be in demand tomorrow. I remember we had a huge nursing crisis 25 years ago and everyone and their mother was becoming a nurse. It took about 5 years and the field was not that much in demand.

Today, it is back in demand and if you have a caring heart and think you can bring that personal touch without becoming cynical, I would go for it. It is more than a job, it is very much a calling, so if that is what he feels he wants to do, it probably could be very rewarding.

One of the male nurses I know was a decade older than your husband and was a retired firefighter with a great pension, but he felt called to do it. He is still a nurse and loves the field. Do what you love, don't do it just for a paycheck.
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stemikger
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by stemikger »

ktd wrote:I know many nurses and a few doctors do it for the money and stable career.
I'm sure there are many, but there has to be something in them where they like it to a point. I think the medical field can be horrible if it is not the right fit for your personality.
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katnok
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by katnok »

stemikger wrote:
ktd wrote:I know many nurses and a few doctors do it for the money and stable career.
I'm sure there are many, but there has to be something in them where they like it to a point. I think the medical field can be horrible if it is not the right fit for your personality.
+1.

Also, as a physician, I have known and watched people going into medicine (particularly Nurse practitioners, PAs and some physicians) JUST for money, and many, if not all, are terrible at what they do.
Wanting money isn't necessarily a bad thing, but your work must be honest.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by Jack FFR1846 »

My wife has recently returned to nursing after being at home for 14 years. Some observations: she has a BSN and has worked at top Boston hospitals including being the charge nurse in cardiac step downs. She managed for a couple years before first going pt with our first son then home for the second.

Returning to work required an intense refresher course ($4000) and to work anywhere other than a rehab facility or nursing home will require a year of clinical experiance. She is doing this now at a rehab and long term care facility working per diem. Pay is $28 per hour with added differentials for night and weekend. There are required holiday hours so she will work either Christmas or another major holiday. Pay in this suburb of Boston is $28 per hour. There are NO benefits, holidays, vacation, retirement, sick pay.

Back 20 years ago, patient to nurse ratios in this setting was 10:1. Saturday night, she had 17. Documentation time is much greater then actual patient time. Her normal 8 hour shift typically takes 11-12 actual hours to complete. Nurses are typically on the clock so she is paid for this time (but not overtime).

There are a lot of recent grad nurses who also could not get hospital jobs because they require a year of recent clinical experiance. They tend to leave right at the year point.

Having gone to community college myself, I would not assume anything transfers. Out of 2.5 years in engineering technology, exactly one English course transfered to my engineering program.

This is not an easy field. Don't expect $90k to start unless he is working all night weekends and holidays with overtime.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by stoptothink »

jebmke wrote:
Cindyjrn wrote:He really needs to ask himself if that's what he wants to do because a lot of people go to nursing school for the money and then they get into the hospital setting and they hate it. They hate the patients who complain about everything. The hate the people that come in seeking drugs. They hate the drunk idiots that can't find their cellphone and blame you for taking it. They hate the other nurses that won't do their job because it's almost impossible to fire them. If patient care is something he's really serious about, then go for it. The job is rewarding and the money can be anything you want it to be. I know nurses that work one day a week for spending money, most work 2-3 days a week and earn a good living.
I went to graduate school (business) with an MD. I asked him why he was quitting medicine to pursue business: "I found out I didn't like being around sick people."
I just hired a nurse who has over 10yrs experience, to work in semi-customer service role. He quit his nursing job to come work for us, where he is making ~20% less, but he could not stand the environment. He was definitely not the only nurse who applied for the position (it's a niche health company) - it simply is not for a lot of people.

Around here, you don't necessarily make less without a BSN, but good luck finding an actual nursing job. You'll likely be up against a lot of other candidates with BSNs for a decreasing number of nursing jobs (there are four good nursing programs in my county) and need to be lucky and find someone willing to give you a first shot. My SIL gave up trying to get a "nursing" job after almost 2yrs and just settled for doing home health. I hired dozens of nurses annually in my previous job (health director for public organization), and it was a combination of not being able to find a first job and not enjoying the environment. I'm sure it is different depending on the area.
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dm200
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by dm200 »

Before he expends the time, effort and money going all the way to a BSN, I suggest he do something "hands on" to make sure he would be able to work in the Nursing field
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by Jack FFR1846 »

Co op schools are great for nursing. Grads have actual experiance and can hit the ground running. Northeastern is the best know. For this, but its 5 years because of the added time of co ops and expensive.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by PlacidMatt »

Is a $30,000 four year degree your only choice? Shop around. I am fresh out of nursing school, and know many new nurses who went to other area schools. Price does not reflect quality of education when it comes to nursing schools. Your marketability is marginally based on school's name, but the interview trumps your institution in landing a job.

Many here are trying to answer the question of whether your husband will like nursing. We can't answer that for him. I can assure you that there are many options available to the BSN, all with completely different environments. The trick is finding the environment that suits you. I will never regret my decision to become a nurse.

It's true that, like cigarette smokers, many who get into nursing want to quit. This is being examined by big nursing research organizations (see below). Be aware that it can be a struggle, and prepare for it.
http://www.rwjf.org/en/library/articles ... --acc.html
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3762080/
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by pugster »

My sister who's an RN told me that hospitals prefer male nurses because 1) Men have a greater physical strength to carry people 2) Patients tend to push women nurses around but won't do so on a male nurse.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by huy178 »

I don't work in the medical field but been around it for years.

Hospital nurses typically work 12 hour shifts, sometimes longer finishing up paper work. though just 3 or 4 days a week.

From I can tell it is very hard job, I rarely see nurses over 50 years of age working in a hospital.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by Christine_NM »

^^ yes, it is a hard job. He will earn every penny of that salary. After 2-3 years of this, you will have a tired, burned-out spouse on your hands. If you both are very lucky he will find some other work. I was an RN as a second career for 12 years and then switched to IT so I could sit down.

No, I am not exaggerating.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by stratton »

If his last name is Ratched then he'll go far!

:twisted:

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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by Workinghard »

Jack FFR1846 wrote:My wife has recently returned to nursing after being at home for 14 years. Some observations: she has a BSN and has worked at top Boston hospitals including being the charge nurse in cardiac step downs. She managed for a couple years before first going pt with our first son then home for the second.

Returning to work required an intense refresher course ($4000) and to work anywhere other than a rehab facility or nursing home will require a year of clinical experiance. She is doing this now at a rehab and long term care facility working per diem. Pay is $28 per hour with added differentials for night and weekend. There are required holiday hours so she will work either Christmas or another major holiday. Pay in this suburb of Boston is $28 per hour. There are NO benefits, holidays, vacation, retirement, sick pay.

Back 20 years ago, patient to nurse ratios in this setting was 10:1. Saturday night, she had 17. Documentation time is much greater then actual patient time. Her normal 8 hour shift typically takes 11-12 actual hours to complete. Nurses are typically on the clock so she is paid for this time (but not overtime).

There are a lot of recent grad nurses who also could not get hospital jobs because they require a year of recent clinical experiance. They tend to leave right at the year point.

Having gone to community college myself, I would not assume anything transfers. Out of 2.5 years in engineering technology, exactly one English course transfered to my engineering program.

This is not an easy field. Don't expect $90k to start unless he is working all night weekends and holidays with overtime.
There are so many comments I could make regarding different posts. I wouldn't even know where to start. Let me qualify this by saying I am also a nurse. So is my husband. Like the person above, I dropped out of nursing for a while, actually 10 years. I was able to bypass a refresher course. I slid back in my being a telephone case manager. Due to the lack of recent experience I started out at $16 an hour which was equivalent to an LPN's wage. I did that for a couple of months and then went to a rehab place. I made $27 an hour without benefits. About the time I accepted the rehab job, I also accepted a Home Health job and went FT with them 3 months later when a position opened up. In hindsight I can't believe they hired me as they only hire experienced home health nurses. It must've been an oversight on their part.

Like others have said, it is more than a job. It is a calling or a ministry. I don't know how many patients have thanked me for caring about them, being willing to sit and talk to them, or listen to them. It's incredibly sad that they have to thank someone for caring.

Having said that, I am glad I'm at the end of my nursing career. It has changed so much and the acuity is getting higher and higher. In our area surgeons are doing knee replacements as same-day surgery. It's not like the old days when they used to wait for a patient to have a bowel movement before being discharged. We're also seeing more postop infections, complications, and readmissions.

Although I love my job, or perhaps I should say my patients, I'm ready to retire. I am not good at balancing and caring for patients saps all my emotional energy. If insurance or my company won't pay for nursing visits and the patient still needs it, I go out on my own time. I follow up with my cancer patients, I take people to doctors appointments, I continue to have coffee dates with widows. I buy gifts and supplies for those that need it. Every patient of mine has my personal cell phone number, and they know they can call me at any time even after they're discharged. It's not , for me, a 9-5 job.

I will be winding up patient care and transitioning to husband care next year when he retires. He's been second place for too long between raising a family and work. He's never complained or minded, and we knew it was for a season. Soon it will be our time. I know I will miss my patients and feeling like I'm making a difference in someone's life, but I have a feeling my husband will fill that void.

Oh, as far as 90-95k a year. Forget it. We averaged 50-60k as RNs. The 12 hour shifts have allowed room for extra shifts/OT. I have no regrets, and neither does my husband, that we chose nursing as a career. However, I would not do it again today.
huy178
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by huy178 »

I just read a great article on CNBC

http://cnb.cx/1LwoLdc

It states the case that skill based programs can an alternative to college.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by Cindyjrn »

All I can add is that I don't know where the OP is located, but the pay is obviously wildly different from region to region. So, that might be the first thing you want to check out. How much do nurses make in your area? If it's $30 an hour, no you're not going to make $90k a year, maybe not even $60k. If you're not willing to work OT, you're probably not going to make that either. I'm in SoCal. I'm full time staff at one hospital (benefited) and part time staff at another (also benefited although I only use the 401K and life insurance from this employe). I've been a ER and ICU nurse for going on 20 years. I worked registry for the first 10 years of my career, which is like working for a temp agency that can send you to any one of many hospitals on any given night. It was a great way to break into the business and get top pay while also getting to work at many different hospitals and find out which ones were a good fit and which ones weren't. I started in ICU and I only work in the ER now. I was actually trained in the ER on night shift while working registry which is very rare to have a hospital train you when you're not even an employee of that hospital. I've never made less than $145k in a year and that was once when I had to take 10 weeks off work for surgery and complications from that surgery. It's probably more like an average of $175k over 20 years. This year I'll make over $200k easily. Well not easily, I still have to put in the hours, but the numbers are on pace for that. I also only work night shift, 7p to 7:30a. Same shift I've worked since I started. Night shift is definitely not for everybody, I know many nurses that won't touch a night shift.

Like I said before, the money is there if you're willing to work and I'm willing to work. I have a great support system. My husband has raised our kids and does EVERYTHING for our family involving the house, the kids, the cars, etc. I don't consider myself any different than any man that is out there busting his hump for his family. I won't lie, I love the money, but I also love being a nurse and I feel like every place I've worked has always appreciated me. I feel like I provide my patients with top notch care, day in and day out. My plan is to be fully retired in 15 years, but my husband always jokes that when I "retire" it will means I've cut down to 1-2 days per week. He's probably right. :wink: If your husband has any specific questions, don't hesitate to ask.
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Re: Should my husband become a nurse?

Post by EnjoyIt »

Cindyjrn wrote:All I can add is that I don't know where the OP is located, but the pay is obviously wildly different from region to region. So, that might be the first thing you want to check out. How much do nurses make in your area? If it's $30 an hour, no you're not going to make $90k a year, maybe not even $60k. If you're not willing to work OT, you're probably not going to make that either. I'm in SoCal. I'm full time staff at one hospital (benefited) and part time staff at another (also benefited although I only use the 401K and life insurance from this employe). I've been a ER and ICU nurse for going on 20 years. I worked registry for the first 10 years of my career, which is like working for a temp agency that can send you to any one of many hospitals on any given night. It was a great way to break into the business and get top pay while also getting to work at many different hospitals and find out which ones were a good fit and which ones weren't. I started in ICU and I only work in the ER now. I was actually trained in the ER on night shift while working registry which is very rare to have a hospital train you when you're not even an employee of that hospital. I've never made less than $145k in a year and that was once when I had to take 10 weeks off work for surgery and complications from that surgery. It's probably more like an average of $175k over 20 years. This year I'll make over $200k easily. Well not easily, I still have to put in the hours, but the numbers are on pace for that. I also only work night shift, 7p to 7:30a. Same shift I've worked since I started. Night shift is definitely not for everybody, I know many nurses that won't touch a night shift.

Like I said before, the money is there if you're willing to work and I'm willing to work. I have a great support system. My husband has raised our kids and does EVERYTHING for our family involving the house, the kids, the cars, etc. I don't consider myself any different than any man that is out there busting his hump for his family. I won't lie, I love the money, but I also love being a nurse and I feel like every place I've worked has always appreciated me. I feel like I provide my patients with top notch care, day in and day out. My plan is to be fully retired in 15 years, but my husband always jokes that when I "retire" it will means I've cut down to 1-2 days per week. He's probably right. :wink: If your husband has any specific questions, don't hesitate to ask.
How do you make that much money as a nurse? Do you work 24 shifts every 4 weeks?
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