Nursing vs engineering

how’s it going everyone
So I’m 26, and really looking for some life advice on careers. (Hopefully this isn’t too long)

I grew up very creative, and very artistically inclined. I spent most of my childhood drawing, designing, and thinking about what I can create to make the world a better place. I have a very deep admiration for the many pioneers of our times, past and present. What would our world be like without cars, electricity, and the many other things we take for granted. I love how one idea has the ability to change the entire world and (hopefully) have a positive effect on people.

we all make shitty choices, I started kindergarten early so graduated high school shortly after turning 17. I’ve been horrible at math all my life and instead of putting some effort in college I figured I couldn’t do the math and just gave up without trying.

Fast forward to 26 year old me, I work in an emergency room as an EMT. Been there since I was 18, and I HATE IT. But I’ve been there for 8 years, I know the medical field like the back of my hand by now. Because I’m not getting any younger, I figured I’d go to school for nursing. I want to move on with my life and I feel like staying in the medical field would be easy. I know it, I understand it. Although I do hate the ER, nurses have the ability to work in various fields and departments that aren’t the ER. I hold to the fact that I can’t possibly hate every department, it’ll be an easier experience for me at school, pretty much have a job lined up, Work 3 days a week and be at around $45 an hour.. my job will also pay for me to go to Nursing school.

So on to the main question.

-Should I do the practical thing? just do nursing and if I hate it in the end, just deal with it?
-OR, chase a childhood dream.. which for all I know I might hate it too.

This has been on my mind for almost a year now, I know, it’s bad. Any advice is very welcome.

 

I would start by checking or job shawdowing in other nursing areas. No matter what you do, get more schooling especially when it's paid for. in the end happiness is most important and life is too short to be hating your job.

 

The short of it

-go to school for free and explore the many different facets nursing and only work 3 days a week with the ability to PRN whenever

OR

-rack up loans for something you might hate for a job you may not get in 4 years. Looking for an entry level position at 30 May be tough.

My dad is a nuclear engineer, and my brother is a civil. If anything, go to school for software engineering. Literally guaranteed jobs

 

If you aren't good at math you will never get through 3 semesters of Calculus and Differential Equations. Understanding trigonometry is critical to having any chance of completing calculus.

 

If you’re not good at math you will not succeed at engineering as its backbone is calculus based physics and diffential equations. Sure once graduated the math cools off but every course required for that type of degree is complex math based...
the medical field is a good place to be and I’m an electrical engineer working for a medical company. There are tons of nurses i work with outside of hospitals and they typically seem pretty happy.

 

Beat me too it

 

Look at the curriculum for nursing. Closely. Not the same level of math as certain engineer disciplines, but because of the sciences, it's certainly not devoid of math either. And I've not seen many who dislike math that did not also dislike sciences. Both being logic based.

The good news about nursing is that you can chose to move around the country and almost always find a job, where engineering is more typically (not always though) located in urban-ish areas. If you delve in to certain engineering fields you can find work in more remote areas. If that's of interest to you.

Nursing typically won't lead you to invent something to save the world, but you will touch lives, which is just as important.

Engineering typically won't lead you to invent something to save the world either, and you may touch lives in a positive way, but it rarely will be with a personal experience.

If you choose the nursing path, don't discount the idea of moving past that to a nurse practitioner.

Lastly, I know a few nurses that work for contractors and move around and get paid well for seeing the country, kinda like I said above. However, they often get the worst shifts and have few or no benefits. So you need to plan for your own future. I know one who didn't manage his income well (like lots of folks in all kinds of fields) and is now retired and working at ACE Hardware to make ends meet.

Good luck with your choices.

 

Nursing is also full of math Learning how to titrate drips. If you’re leaning towards nursing I would suggest trying to shadow someone in various departments. I would also look at RN-BSN programs, as most places are requiring a BSN.

 

I’m a nurse, hate my job. Worked in all facets of critical care: ER, ICU, PACU, etc...

But.... I bunch my days together 6 shifts on, 8 off. Went on a road trip every other week last year. Job security is there. I know with my experience I can get work pretty much anywhere in the country. If you stay on the west coast and Hawaii, it’s a guaranteed 100,000 dollar a year gig after 2-5 years of experience. And there is always over time whenever you need extra cash for mods.

 

I decided to just multi-quote you all at once lol.

So for the math argument, yes I am horrid at math. But I’m also a strong believer that anything you set your mind to can be achieved. Math is a skill that can be learned like any other. So in that regard I don’t mind the amount of math needed, but of course something that’s always in the back of my mind.

I did forget to mention that I’ll be getting some sort of business degree. I love, love, love business(figured some classes won’t hurt). But I only like the investment side of it. Ive invested in stocks since my first paycheck at 18 and have a few other business ideas for the future. But I’ve never in my life wanted a 9-5 office job. You also need money to make money.

So! Seems like everyone is leaning towards nursing as the more practical choice. I suppose I could go down that route and use it as a means to an end. I’ll be able to use my income to support my business ventures, and working 3 days a week allows me 4 days off to focus on my business. Of course this is all theoretical. I’m just afraid I’ll hate being a nurse.

 

You do know the broad spectrum of nursing, right?

The world is not all ER or even hospital based. Even within hospitals there is a variety of options/specializations in most cases.

As far as scheduling, nurses that work for something like an oncology center have pretty regular hours, no ER related trauma and usually premium pay.

Not trying to make you 'love' nursing. Just making sure your exposure is broader than you seem to indicate.

And please. If you don't love the function of nursing, don't go into it just to make money. I don't want people who hate their job caring for me in my dotage.

 

MY wife is a nurse, and has always wanted to be one. She said she can tell the difference between those who are there for the money and those who are there because they love what they do. The ones there for the money bring down the quality of care. As an EMT, you most likely only see a very small segment of the nursing field. It is broad and has lots of facets. Do what you love, as you will happier and probably have more meaningful contributions.

But I am also a realist. The nursing profession pays well and will likely be one of the last positions taken over by robots. The 3 days per week is awesome and will leave you with lots of down time to pursue things you do love. Nursing school is intense, my wife did not work during her course load, so that is something to consider if you can afford to do that.

 

You can’t go wrong in healthcare. Jobs are available, demand is high for nurses. You can take the degree anywhere in the country. The downside is, your schedule is going to be inconsistent, which makes it difficult to plan anything.

Like others have mentioned, there are several nursing opportunities to work in non hospital areas or even administrative roles and your schedule will be more consistent. You’ll have less burnout due to the admin activities that come with patient care duties.

I’ve had friends struggle with job stability in the engineering field. Hopefully it’s gotten better by this time but it was pretty rough a few years back. The plus side is it’s something you’re curious about. being interested and passionate about something will really help propel success, in my opinion, much better then doing something that you felt like doing due to being in your comfort zone. People subconsciously pick up on these things.

You really just need to figure out what gets you fired up and will keep you motivated. The math, grades, and job satisfaction will come together as long as you maintain a high level of interest

 

Hating your job sucks. If you hate all things nursing why for the love of god would you get a degree in it when you have other options? I have two degrees. I got the first one because I was stupid, and when I graduated I hated what a did with a fiery passion. I went back for a second degree and for the past 30ish years I've mostly loved what I do. You may think you're old right now, but there's nobody older than a person that has hated their job for their entire life.

 

here goes:

i barely survived high school math. i had a girl do all my Geometry. in college that payed off big time!! (<----i'm being sarcastic, it haunted me!!) i was so bad in math, they started me in College Algebra. how can i put this delicately? i cant..i failed it twice. i simply couldnt learn the numbers.

i then did what you did. i essentially ran away. i pursued ART. i was pretty proficient, but i HATED it. well, i hated the criticism. which is not a good thing as an artist.

it nagged at me. did i chicken out? i grew a pair when i hit 29..dead end job, dead end girlfriends. i called the Dean of Engineering at my old school. he invited me over for a chat. he could tell i was serious, but he also told me he was gonna put me thru the math ringer. i started at Algebra. i was in class with a bunch of young folks. i could have made the best friend if i bought them their beer.haha. i put my head down and worked the problems..i asked questions, i think i had to do every homework assignement TWICE to make it stick. i got a free tutor and i missed NONE of our meetings. i am not joking when i tell you i got straight A from that point forward in all my math classes. i got a few C's in some random engineer classes, but i graduated!! i remember almost crying when i ruined the curve in some engineer class, (mechanics of materials) by scoring a 100. i have never ruined any curve..i always was the one hoping for a curve.

i am now a licensed CIVIL ENGINEER. i even passed that test!! i got invited to write survey and seismic test questions because i scored so high in that portion. i declined.

my mom's cousin told me my mom cried when i elected to go back to school. she cried two more times. when i graduated and when i landed a career.

trust me kid. there is ONLY one way to find out. just DO IT!! i promise you, i was worse off than you in the math department. if i went back and told my highschool algebra teacher what i do for a living now..she might pass out. she passed me just to get me out of her hair..

oh, my wife is in Nursing. that shit seemed really really hard!!

BTW, i friggen LOVE my job!! i work in heavy construction managing huge bridge projects.

 

Almost forgot I had made this post! Lol. But your story is very inspiring. Not just from an engineering standpoint, but the fact that you stuck to something you KNEW you were bad at and worked at it until you made your dreams into a reality. I think that’s great! And congratulations on your success. Effort goes a long way in life.

I read everyone’s post again and I probably won’t be Pursuing nursing. I really hate that job. At least the Emergency Room. But I’m trying to keep an open mind, taking a few classes and looking to see what might peak my interest. I learned I also like business a lot. So that could also be another option. Best and worst part of life is we have more options than time lol.

 

My wife did the nursing gig. Er,Or, ICU. She knew going Into college she wanted to due anesthesia. She did her required time in each department, went back to anesthesia school. Graduated top of her class and can pretty much get a job anywhere she wants. Makes more money then a lot of doctors and loves the field. The doors the nursing field can open up are mind boggling. Not many other master level programs you can make 250k a year fresh out of school. Could always go the np or pa route, won’t nearly make as much money but plenty of jobs in both those fields.