Okay, so the closer I get to finishing my degree in Hotel Management the more and more I want to be a Nurse instead. So here I am with maybe a semester or so away from my AA in hotel management and I am seriously thinking of scrapping it and going the nursing route. Now the reason why I have not just conceded with the double major idea is because after this semester I only have 13 months left of my gibill until I have to start paying for everything myself...
I really do want to be a nurse, and while there may be more money in management there is no hotel anywhere that would hire me out right as a manager, I would more likely have to start out as a maid or something low on the pay grade then that. But as a nurse I would be able to be a nurse outright...So what do I do, is it silly to give up the degree that I almost finished in to start something new??? I dont know, I am very torn
I know some nurses that utilized managment skills.... I used to work in Occupational Health Services at ComEd (electric company) So don't worry about having extra knowledge/degrees
Finish your management degree, and then go for the nursing...
There are a couple of reasons why I say this. First of all, it will show that you "followed through", and didn't abandon your original path. You can only benefit from having this degree; it will give you options.
Secondly, you can still pursue nursing while working. While it's true that you may have to pay for it, it doesn't really get you ahead to jump from an already paid-for education into something else, in last-minute panic mode!
One of my childhood friends went through this with her husband, WAY back when she was first married. They had moved to Texas, and were expecting their first child. They had no money, and were living in a small apartment. My friend's husband was JUST about to finish up a degree in engineering when he confessed, "You know, I've always kind-of wanted to be a lawyer!"
My friend took a deep breath, and said, "Well, alrighty then..."
He finished up his engineering degree, and then went to law school.
The sad part to this tale is that they divorced about twelve years into the marriage, but the POINT that I'm trying to make is that this guy is now a senior partner in a MAJOR Washington, DC law firm, lived in Prague for many years, and probably makes about $1 million a year, if not more...
It's okay to change your mind. Just don't abandon the first degree.
__________________
"It is our choices that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities"
(Dumbledore to Harry Potter)
I agree completely with Moore here. But don't you need a BSc first?
That'd be okay too, Just takes a little longer. Go for what isin your heart, Shelly! My d-i-l switched career paths from having a degree in social geography from Dartmouth and working in Talbot's main office in store locations to Montessori teacher and she couldn't have been happier. It was a gruelling twomore years back in school, but she's thrilled she did it.
She does kind of miss those wonderful Talbot's discounts as an employee, though, and so do I!
The problem is is that without the GI Bill I cant afford to go to school and pay for day care, and I cant go to school at night (which I would have to do because Vinnie is never home)...And while I am aware that I can just get a loan, I really cant afford it.
I think I am going to wait til I talk with my counselor...I havent had all of my credits transferred yet from the school in Maryland...and I am afraid he may make me retake a few of them because the school in MD only required 3 credits for some classes while the school up here is requiring 4....As it is this semester I am taking 2 classes over because they arent the exact same classes the school here requires....Thats the thing I HATE about military life, this is a 2 year degree that has taken over 3 years and Im not even finished yet because of our moves. Ugh
Anyways, thanks for the advice guys. I think part of the reason I am leaning towards nursing so much is because I have toyed with the idea for years and this last job that I had where I was on a computer most of my time drove me nuts. I need people.
Ooh, that's tough Shelly.I have no idea what to tell you. Just follow what your gut tells you. I wish so hard I would have gotten a different degree, like in business or something. I think I'm better suited for that. Yes, I'm a creative writer type, but I'm not happy in newspaper reporting,which is why I'm not applying for the open reporter postition at the local paper here.
Good luck though on whatever you finally do decide to do.
Tina the GI Bill pays for school period, it would pay for either one. But since the one I am on has taken me so long because of our moves I only have so much of it left...And there is no telling how much I have left to finish. The Hospitality adviser isn't very available
