Sorry it has been a super long time since I blogged anything... it has been a mixture of new (tiny) part time job, interviewing for more jobs (no luck yet), and pondering my career future.
I am just about finished with my MA in anthropology (I will hopefully be officially graduating in May this year) and I am realizing that, well, having an MA in anthro isn't going to help me get a job right now. Honestly, anthro wasn't exactly what I had imagined it as... I had this bold idea of applied anthropology (i.e. using anthro and research to help people) but the grad school I went to wasn't too applied friendly, and then to top it off, the economy is so bad that most non-profits have been scaling back their projects, not looking for fresh-from-grad-school researchers.
Looking back at my education, I see a great deal of confusion and poor planning. I kind of just went with things I liked and that I thought were interesting, which would be fine, except I didn't really consider the grander scheme of things until recently.. At 27, I am finally in a place in my life where I want to (ahem) 'settle down' to some degree. Vivek and I are trying to work out a plan so we can both be gainfully employed and happy here in the ole' USA, and his job is pretty straight forward. (He is lucky that he knows exactly what he wants to do!) I, on the other hand, have been merrily strolling through my education, trying this and that, and ending up with lots of knowledge and passion, but with few practical skills*.
(*that I can be EMPLOYED to use, that is)
Lately, I have been pondering my options and taking a look at myself and deciding what exactly it is I really want to do. One of the things I have been thinking about for a long time now is Nursing. As a nurse I can
a.) help people
b.) work with kids
c.) get a steady, well paying job anywhere in the country
d.) use my skills as a volunteer/work with a non-profit at some time
e.) Use my Hindi language/Indian cultural knowledge in many communities in the US
f.) a flexible schedule so I can also pursue some of my other interests as well.
I found this really great nursing program that is designed for people who already have a undergraduate and/or graduate degree in another field. It is designed to train highly educated nurses, and I would be an RN after the first year, and have a chance to get a CNL certificate and my MSN after the second year. and VOILA! I could be a nurse. Earning the monies. Helping the people.
Plus, I think I look pretty awesome in scrubs. ;)
What do you guys think?
6 comments:
go for it! why not? like you said, you won't be investing another 7 years in education and it's not like you can't go back into anthro at some point in the future.
doit!doit!doit!doit!
hehe... i like your enthusiasm. I am working on getting into the prerequisite classes for summer right now... :P
You have such a humble idea of helping people... You will succeed in anything you take up..
Good luck
Hi, I found your blog via sepiamutiny. Would you mind sharing the name of the nursing program that you talked about in this post? Thanks heaps!
Sure, Kanchan,
I have been looking at what is called a "Direct Entry Masters Program", I have been doing some research, and their are actually many of them, but the one I was referring to in this post is at the University of New Hampshire.
Some of the different programs have different requirements though. The UNH one require 3 prerequisite courses, but some other programs require more/less...
Are you also considering such a program?
er.. sorry 4 prerequisite courses.
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