nursing or dental hygiene (Houston, Howe: home, job market, school)

[supaflyz]

Hello guys I have a question regarding the nursing and dental hygiene profession. The reason I asked was that I'm uncertain of the job opportunity for each profession in the Houston economy. I have 5 more classes left for nursing school.
My initial dream was to be a biologist, and then trying to get into dental school. The reason was that 5 of my relatives are in the dental field. I mind as well go for it. I realized that I wouldn't last long if I dont like my job. Most of the classes require for a bach in biology meet the requirements for dental school pre-req. However, a bachelor in biology have very few opportunity to get a job. The choices were to do lab, continue to grad school and get my masters, or be a teacher in biology. I also don't imagine myself sitting in a chair twisting my wrists for 7 or 8 hours while not even having the chance for a conversation with my patient. I also heard that dentist have the most stress out of all the medical profession.

My brother also quit college. So now I have to graduate early to take care of my mom. She's getting older, and I don't want her to work forever taking care of us. I wish I would of chosen nursing or dental hygiene to begin with. I would of graduate by now.
So now I'm wondering which profession I should go for. I really want to get a job once I graduate. I don't mind taking a lower salary in the beginning.
I also have a question to ask regarding associate degree or bachelors in each field. I did some research and most of the sites shows that it takes at least 4 years to finish. Does that mean 2 year of prerequisite like biology, chemistry, human anatomy and such. Then 2 more years of actual nursing or dental hygiene school? If any of you guys are actually in the profession then I would really appreciate if you guys could shine some info for me.
Thank you, Mike

[msgood85]

as a nurse, i can only speak for the nursing part you are asking about , okay there are like different type of nursing. a whoooooole lotta types of nursing. schooling for an LVN is 1 yr, after which you can either start a bridge program to where you can attend school for 1 more year and obtain a associate degree in nursing, this will make you an RN (once you pass boards of course.) after you obtain An ADN you may choose to go back and take another year of classes to obtain your BS in nursing. this is a route many who aren't extremely financially blessed take. the other route would be to get accepted into a four year nursing program at a university, which will take approximately entire four years + depending on what you have to take. you often see many people start off with the 1 year LVN course because it only take one year to do and you start off making good money.

as for as pay goes an RN gets paid more than an LVN of course. But there is really no difference in pay when it comes to a ADN RN and A BSN RN. most places only see the "RN" and can care less by which route you have obtained it. some companies or facility require a BSN RN if the position being applied for is a management type position. but if you want to go further into nursing such as nurse practiciner or Nurse anesthesiologist you will need to have a BSN first in order to be considered for either program at a college that offers it.

Nursing is soooooooo flexible and there are so many opportunities for advancement. BUT DO NOT GET INTO NURSING IF THE MONEY IS THE ONLY THING THATS DRAWING YOU INTO THE PROFESSION, I REPEAT, DO NOT GET INTO NURSING IF THE MONEY IS THE ONLY THING THATS DRAWS YOU INTO THE PROFESSION. The only people that suffer in the long run are the patients,and i personally have no respect for these nurses.

as for as the dental thing goes, i wouldn't do something just because somebody else did it. be a leader not follower. you should do what you feel will suit you. you should be in a profession that you feel comfortable with that you are going to love. whether it be a garbage man or astronaut. there are other areas in healthcare that are great to be in also. anything in healthcare is great. great job stability because someone is ALWAYS SICK.

Texas is the best state to be in for medical, i cannot stress this enough, the market for nursing is fantastic i (there still is a nationwide shortage of nurses either way), i'm sure dental isn't too far behind (don't quote me on that guess)


i hope my long ramble helped some ...

[lhafer]

Originally Posted by msgood85

Nursing is soooooooo flexible and there are so many opportunities for advancement. BUT DO NOT GET INTO NURSING IF THE MONEY IS THE ONLY THING THATS DRAWING YOU INTO THE PROFESSION, I REPEAT, DO NOT GET INTO NURSING IF THE MONEY IS THE ONLY THING THATS DRAWS YOU INTO THE PROFESSION. The only people that suffer in the long run are the patients,and i personally have no respect for these nurses.

As a nurse to another nurse...thank you for this statement!!

To the OP, of the 2 choices you posted, I would choose nursing. Here's why:

Nursing:
~ can have a degree in as little as a year (LVN)
~ it's very easy to go back to further your education if you so choose (bridge programs that let you go from LVN -> BSN, ADN -> MSN, etc)
~ there will ALWAYS be sick people to take care of
~ you can work in a hospital, an outpatient clinic, a doctor's office, a school, home health clinic, a large corporation, a cruise ship, do research, teach, work for the health department, work for the community (like with planned parenthood), nursing informatics, management, etc
~ if you choose to work in a hospital, you then have the choice to work with adults, children, babies, pregnant women, older generations, in ICU, med/surg, OR, ER, clinics, NICU, cancer patients, etc etc etc.
~ you can work full time, part time, or per diem (as needed)
~ you can work days, nights, weekends depending on what works for you
~ if you work in a hospital, you can work 3 12 hour shifts and be done for the week, work weekends and get paid extra, work nights and REALLY get paid extra
~ if you work in a clinic or office, you work regular hours, no on call, no weekend or holidays
~ it's an incredibly rewarding career. It's not just a job. If you become a nurse, you are a nurse. You don't WORK as a nurse. It's who you are.
~ beginning pay is quite decent

Dental Hygienist:
~ you work regular business hours
~ you work in a dentist's office
~ you clean/polish teeth, take x-rays, make mouth molds
~ instruct patients on how to take better care of their teeth
~ assist dentist as necessary

[supaflyz]

Hey guys but meaning 4 years. Does that mean 2 years of prerequisites like core classes and such. Then 2 years of actual nursing school?

[lhafer]

For a Bachelor's degree - yes. I think for ADN the nursing school part is a year.

[pdouglas]

Originally Posted by supaflyz

Hey guys but meaning 4 years. Does that mean 2 years of prerequisites like core classes and such. Then 2 years of actual nursing school?

if you already have some college, your prereques may be covered. Your challenge will be getting into a school. I'm a RN as well as my husband. rewarding career.

[ksim]

Dental Hygiene is a great career, and very flexible. The job market is scarce these days.
School is very difficult and you need to be very dedicated, school is FT no exceptions 8 hours 4 days a week
It is a very rewarding career, but you really have to be into it if you want to succeed.
Good Luck