Every nurse has a journey that is unique to them. This weeks guest is no exception. Surrounded by examples of medical careers, Megan knew early on she wanted to be a nurse. And with experience working with children in a daycare setting, pediatric nursing seemed like a natural fit. As is often the case however, her original plan was altered by her experiences as a new RN working at Primary Children's Hospital in Salt Lake City Utah. While teaching the parents of her pediatric patients she realized that Teaching is a passion of hers. With this realization came the decision to return to school to earn her Masters degree in teaching with an emphasis on nursing. After her masters program and a few more surprises in her planned path, Megan ended up teaching at Ameritech college of nursing in UT, truly discovering her passion in the nursing field.
Show Notes:
- Megan had a grandfather that was an MD and her mother was an RN, which led her to the medical field.
- Originally wanted to be an MD, then thought she wanted to be a Nurse Practitioner.
- She earned her RN and her MS from the University of Utah
- She had prior work experience in a day care setting and discovered a love for working with children, especially infants.
- Also had experience as a CNA prior to and during nursing school. From her personal experience and seeing the experiences of others as an instructor she highly recommends getting going this route if possible. She felt those students who were CNA's or had other medical experiences first were better prepared for nursing school.
- She found she was surprised to learn what nurses actually do, and to see how much educating was done in her new role. She loved this though and it changed her career path.
- Her masters program was 2 years, 5 semesters in total.
- While in her program she thought she wanted to teach in a hospital setting but soon learned she loved actually teaching nursing students, changing her career path again.
- Her advice if you want to become an instructor:
- Start out as a clinical instructor and if that is enjoyable the masters program will be worth it.
- There is a LOT of writing involved in a masters program, that may turn some away.
- Make sure you are passionate about what you teach as the students can tell when you do not care about your topic and will not learn as well.
- Apply to accredited schools.
- She had her kids while working as an instructor. She found her school was willing to be flexible for her and allowed her schedule to change to fit her family needs. If that is important to you, be willing to shop around until you find a school that will allow that flexibility as not all will.
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