How to go from Nurse to Doctor?!?
I've decided that ultimately, my college goal is to eventually become a doctor (a surgeon to be exact!). In order to reach financial security quicker, I decided I'd complete an associates degree in nursing in the mean time. My question is what're the next steps I need to take in order to be on track to become a doctor.
How do you know if being a doctor is your right career path?
If you enjoy it, this is it.If you feel excited each day about the prospect of being able to do your work again, this is it.If you hate weekends and days off, this is it.If you love Mondays, this is it.If you fear the prospect of not being able to do your work, this is it.If you hate the prospect of retiring, this is it.If you would do it even if no one would pay you for it, this is it.Which means you can’t know it in advance.You can’t figure it out sitting on your parents’ couch and debating with them (or in a cafe with your friends, or during a family gathering with your uncles and aunts) as most young adults do.-Part of it appeared in my previous answer Lukasz Laniecki's answer to How do I figure out what I want to be when I "grow up"?
What does the career path from nurse to MD look like?
I did this a while ago.Nursing gives you no advantage. You have to start from scratch.You basically have to do the pre-reqs: biology, biochem, organic chem, physics, etc, take the MCAT… and apply. I suppose having had some work experience is a plus but overall I don’t think it helps you all that much.
Whats the difference between a nurse practioner and a doctor?
A nurse praticianer is someone with a nursing degree and some if not all of medical school. And a doctor is a graduate of medical school. Someone can complete medical and not be a doctor for certain reasons, such as a injury that would leave them not fully able to care for a patient.
What's the difference between a nurse and a doctor?
A registered nurse only requires 2 years of school, but most have a bachelor's degree in nursing, which takes 4 years. (going to school full-time) A doctor has to get a bachelor's undergraduate degree (4 yrs), go through medical school (4 years), then residency, which depending on your specialty can be anywhere from 2-7 years long It's hard to compare and contrast because a "doctor's" job can be so different. Are you talking about your family care doctor or are you talking about a neurosurgeon? A huge difference is that doctors can prescribe medicine and a RN can't. A nurse practitioner can (an extra 2-3 years of schooling), but they are limited to that they can prescribe (antibiotics,etc) A doctor can prescibe controlled medication such as vicodin, valium, and with an additional license can prescribe heavy duty narcotic pain relivers (percocet,etc) Another main difference is that doctors actually diagnose a disorder and then is the person that plans the treatment. An RN would be the one to administer that treatment and will help monitor the progress. A nurse can help perform diagnostic tests, check and administer IVs, take patient history, etc An RN makes on average about 50-70k a year, and a doctor much more, but again this depends on what kind of doctor you are. A family care doctor can make 145,000 a year while other specialties can make 300k-500k. Both jobs are stressfull, but a doctor does have more responsibility, and has to be much more careful about patient care. A physician's liability is greater. Malpractice insurance is also at an all time high, which is something you definitely want to consider. If you are interested in a health care field, I would really suggest a nurse practitioner or a physician assistant. They are very similar. It's an awesome job with great pay, less stress than a MD/DO, and way less schooling. A ton of my classmates have started physician assistant school, and they really enjoy it! Here's a link to read more about it http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos081.htm You should look into volunteering at a local hospital to really get a feel for all the health care jobs. Most hospitals only require that you be 16+, and have a minor physical.
It seems that most get their MPH after becoming a nurse or a doctor. I have an undergraduate degree in biology and I am thinking of getting an MPH. Is that wise?
You seem to be under a false impression. Most of my MPH classmates were not nurses or doctors, and only a small proportion had any intention of following those career paths in the future.For you, the question should really be whether you want to be a doctor or nurse with a side interest in public health, or whether you're interested in any of the many aspects of public health that do not involve any sort of clinical practice. An MPH can certainly be a terminal degree, especially if your interest is in research, or in working for some kind of health department doing large scale public health practice. It's quite a flexible degree, and it really just depends what you intend to make of it.
I need advice on a career path: Hairdresser or Nurse.?
Follow your heart. It will never fail you. Sounds like you have a passion for hair styling. Why didn't you follow it? Sure, nursing can be a stable career with good employment prospects. Of course, it seems like the better deal with good benefits, etc. But if you don't love it, it isn't worth the daily grind it will become if your heart isn't in it. Trust me here, I learned the hard way by not following my passion years ago. I ended up spending a lot of time and money investing into a degree and career that I didn't love. I went into it for the same reasons you went into nursing but I didn't love going to work every day. I ended up quitting. I wish I had followed my passion from the beginning. It might be too late for me, but it isn't for you. Save yourself two years of wasted time and money. Go into hair styling. If you are really good, hair styling can be a glamorous, high-paying career. Come to Hollywood and do celebrities! Go to NYC and do runway models. Go international and do rich people's hair. Nursing is nurturing and that is wonderful. But it isn't creative and if you are a creative soul, you will wither away inside if you don't express your true self. Some things--like your true passion--are worth sacrifice and risk. Don't you want to wake up every morning and love what you do? That is living, my friend. Life isn't worth much if you are an empty shell of a soul going through the motions just to pick up a paycheck at the end of the week. Good luck.