Back to School

Guess who's going back to school? That's right! Megan! I have officially enrolled and paid tuition for fall semester. I am only starting with two classes (Pathophysiology and Stats) which will allow me to apply for pretty much any RN-BSN program I want. In case anyone was wondering (and because I have already explained it a billion times), I thought I would share why I have decided to do this.

Usually the conversation starts with someone asking me what new kind of job or pay raise I will get for going back to school. And I tell them-- none! No pay raise, and I wouldn't be looking for a different job because all the jobs that require a BSN (bachelors of science in nursing) are management type and typically full-time, which I hope and plan to only be full time until Todd gets a job as an RN. So by the time I finish I wouldn't even be working enough to take a BSN only type nursing job.

The main reason for me right now is just the satisfaction. I always imagined myself graduating from college, and an associate degree just isn't doing it for me. It kind of hit home how much I wanted that bachelor's degree when in January a girl that started work the same week as me was promoted to our unit educator- a job I couldn't have even applied for because of my lowly simple RN status. I thought to myself "Hey, I am just as smart and have exactly the same amount as experience as her. The only difference is that B on her name tag!" Not saying I would have even applied for the job with my life right now, it was just an eye opener for me.

There are also some future benefits to having the degree- better job marketability when we move eventually (I hope to always have a job where I work- but nurses are awesome in the fact you can get jobs where you only work about once a month, something I think I could totally accommodate in my life.) And when I'm all growed up maybe I'll want to go to graduate school. That would be much easier to do if I was already done with my undergrad.

Lastly there is a small chance that one day I would need the degree to do some of the things I already do now-namely being the charge nurse on the floor. Although I doubt that that would happen for a long time or ever actually affect my career. But if I just have my BSN I would never have to think or worry about it.

So there you have it. I will be applying to some RN-BSN programs that start either January or next fall, wish me luck!