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Working Moms
ambrvan
member
Input for a FT working/student mom
ambrvan
member
in Working Moms
I am a lurker/occasional poster here. I stay mostly on the Blended Families board, but I need some input on some ideas I'm throwing around in my head from some other working moms who may have been here before. This may get long. Thanks in advance.
Quick backstory: I am 24. I have SD7 and DS3. I work full time as a surgery technician at a vet clinic. I am not a certified technician. I have several years of on the job training in multiple clinics behind me. I am currently taking classes part time at a 4yr university to get my BS in Agriculture, Concentration Animal Science, Specialty Veterinary Health Technology (which would allow me to sit for the board exam and become licensed). I am only take a class or two at a time right now, though, so that I can still work full time. I take what I can online, but there are some classes (the majority) that must be taken on campus during working hours, which I simply cannot do right now. The way things are right now with our financial situation and family, I can't see myself graduating any sooner than 4 or 5 more years (and that is stretching it since I attended college 2 years right out of high school, as well). And that is only IF I am able to quit working or drop down to part time next Fall. I was the sole provider for our family last school year while my H was in school, and it was a major financial struggle. He is contracted to work as an EMT for the ambulance service that paid for his school for 2 years before they will send him back to Paramedic school, which will take 3 semesters to complete.
So here are my options:
1) Continue pushing through what I am doing. Take a class or two at a time, and just wait until after DH has gone back and gotten his Paramedic license to drop my work hours and go to school full time to be able to finish. I worry this will waste too much money, though.
2) Try to get a job at the emergency vet clinic (a good distance away) working weekend nights only and go to school full time. I grew up with my mom being a single parent working weekend nights and it worked fine for us. I would really love to hear from others who have done or are working this schedule.
3) Look into sacrificing my dream career for something a little quicker and more financially stable, nursing. I could get my LPN quick and bridge to RN eventually. It would be a better financial choice. It would still be dealing with medicine, and I would have a very wide variety of job possibilities. And just to clarify for those who support one more than the other, in this rural area, LPN's happen to be more in demand because our local economy is fairly low and it is difficult for facilities to afford RNs or BSNs. Also, we do not have a whole lot of higher functioning facilities around here. And in this area, LPNs make a very good salary, in comparison to the usual you find around here. Of course, an RN makes more. But in this region, being an LPN is well worth it.
4) After this Spring semester is over, put school on hold again until DH has gone back to school and gotten his Paramedic license. That would mean I MIGHT be able to go back to school in 2016 or 2017 at the earliest.
I am just trying to pick the best route so that I am not wasting money, or time, or sacrificing time with my family. Thank you if you actually read this much.
Quick backstory: I am 24. I have SD7 and DS3. I work full time as a surgery technician at a vet clinic. I am not a certified technician. I have several years of on the job training in multiple clinics behind me. I am currently taking classes part time at a 4yr university to get my BS in Agriculture, Concentration Animal Science, Specialty Veterinary Health Technology (which would allow me to sit for the board exam and become licensed). I am only take a class or two at a time right now, though, so that I can still work full time. I take what I can online, but there are some classes (the majority) that must be taken on campus during working hours, which I simply cannot do right now. The way things are right now with our financial situation and family, I can't see myself graduating any sooner than 4 or 5 more years (and that is stretching it since I attended college 2 years right out of high school, as well). And that is only IF I am able to quit working or drop down to part time next Fall. I was the sole provider for our family last school year while my H was in school, and it was a major financial struggle. He is contracted to work as an EMT for the ambulance service that paid for his school for 2 years before they will send him back to Paramedic school, which will take 3 semesters to complete.
So here are my options:
1) Continue pushing through what I am doing. Take a class or two at a time, and just wait until after DH has gone back and gotten his Paramedic license to drop my work hours and go to school full time to be able to finish. I worry this will waste too much money, though.
2) Try to get a job at the emergency vet clinic (a good distance away) working weekend nights only and go to school full time. I grew up with my mom being a single parent working weekend nights and it worked fine for us. I would really love to hear from others who have done or are working this schedule.
3) Look into sacrificing my dream career for something a little quicker and more financially stable, nursing. I could get my LPN quick and bridge to RN eventually. It would be a better financial choice. It would still be dealing with medicine, and I would have a very wide variety of job possibilities. And just to clarify for those who support one more than the other, in this rural area, LPN's happen to be more in demand because our local economy is fairly low and it is difficult for facilities to afford RNs or BSNs. Also, we do not have a whole lot of higher functioning facilities around here. And in this area, LPNs make a very good salary, in comparison to the usual you find around here. Of course, an RN makes more. But in this region, being an LPN is well worth it.
4) After this Spring semester is over, put school on hold again until DH has gone back to school and gotten his Paramedic license. That would mean I MIGHT be able to go back to school in 2016 or 2017 at the earliest.
I am just trying to pick the best route so that I am not wasting money, or time, or sacrificing time with my family. Thank you if you actually read this much.
This discussion has been closed.
Re: Input for a FT working/student mom
I am a hospital administrator (Head of Human Resources at a large military hospital). In my 8 years in this position, I can tell you that becoming an RN is an extremely stable career choice. I would look into this just due to the stability it would provide your family, and the fact that there are accelerated nursing programs out there.
However, if your dream job is to work with animals then maybe consider #2. That might be hard for your family though. Would you ever have much time together?
Either way I would likely want to complete my degree faster than 5 yrs. Good luck with what you choose!
How many on campus credits are needed and how many semesters?
If you can financially swing it, I'm leaning towards #2. However, I wonder if you can work 4-5 nts/wk? I imagine there is a lot of down time and maybe your employer is flexible allowing you to study.
Or if you only need two semesters of on campus classes, I would take all the pre-req's now and go down to p/t for a yr to complete school.
GL or whatever you decide.
If you can swing number 2, that is what I would pick for sure. I think the faster you can become certified, the better, right?
That being said, can your current job be more flexible with your hours so you can take a heavier course load and/or accommodate those daytime classes?
We also talked about me working at the emergency clinic and decided that is probably not best, either. My current job is so good, I would be crazy to leave unless I was switching careers or moving. I was blessed when I found this job, honestly.
I think we have decided that when it is time for me to go strictly on campus, I will go down to PT at my current clinic (no problem where I work, but will require someone to replace me as surgery tech), and he will get a PT EMT job in another county picking up two or three 12 hour shifts in addition to his two or three 24 hour shifts at his current FT agency. He said for me to just let him know what I decide I want to do when I am ready.
I guess I just needed some motivation and uplifting.
Don't wait and do what your heart desires. It doesn't necessarily get any easier as kids grow older. Time away sucks at any age and there is always something going on.
I had my career before having my DD but now decided to go back to grad school and try out some other options that might futher my career. It's so hard working full time and going to school while havinga DH and DD but it will be so worth it in the end. Continue with your hard work and imagine how happy you will be when it's over with. Don't compromise on your dream career as long as it's a feasible job in your area.