Masters in Healthcare Admin or certificate?? Any ideas or suggestions??

[GoodYellowDogs]

I echo this. The bottom line is to make a decision, start and get moving - in 5 years from now you want to have better opportunities and that happens by starting now.

The other thing is that nursing is a good profession and there will be jobs. A lot of nurses who would have retired 5 years ago are still holding on due to the economy. However, if you look at the national statistics, the working nurses are really closing in on retirement. This means that there will be a shortage due to the retirements and due to the baby boomers getting old and needing more health services. I know that it varies by area, but there are nursing jobs out there - even for new grads. In fact, many hospitals have new grad programs to acclimate the new grads to the actual practice of hospital nursing. Before you finish nursing school get as many "informational interviews" as possible with the managers on different units, floors, departments, etc. Sometimes knowing hiring managers is the only way to get it.

Medical coding is also a good place to go. So call your local hospital, as to speak with the coding supervisor and ask if she would be willing to do an informational interview with you so that you can learn about the field. HMOs, PPOs and insurance companies also hire medical coders. You can usually find a job with a temp agency once you have your coding training and that will help you get your foot in the door and get on-the-job-experience.

there are several valuable contributors who have given you great advice, I hope you listen, because these people have a truly altruistic heart. Plus, what I'm going to say isn't going to be as encouraging.

While I know nothing about you or your community or your history, what I do have a lot of experience with is teaching adults. This won't seem relevant at first, bear with me. When I went to culinary school, I was in a group of fellow 17-18 year olds. We were "traditional" in age, but EVERYONE was. I attended a school that attracted young people. Later, when I started teaching at the community college, I was 22 and had many semesters early on where the majority of my students were older than I was. CCs attract non-trads in general. As time went on, more and more students were non-traditionally aged, in fact, the demographics of my last class were considerably weighted toward the older (28-35) student, and most on their second career. Over the past two decades, I've even had the pleasure of teaching a few RETIRED persons in my class. So, guess what I've learned about teaching adults?

Adults are better students. They are more focused, better at doing homework, give 100% and almost always attend class promptly. Adults have EXCELLENT transferable skills.

You know what else? They have a HARD TIME accepting that they have to start at the bottom too. They almost always feel that "time served" in another career somehow transfers over into this new career. The thing is, if it takes 2 years of schooling + 2 years in entry level cooking + 2 years in line cooking + 2 years as a sous chef before you're ready to jump in and become "A CHEF" then that's what it takes. It takes that path whether or not you're 15 or 35. The fact is, most restaurant workers will tell you the same thing "I was washing dishes at age 14" and that's usually true. Many people do a lot of entry level stuff BEFORE starting school. So sometimes, it's confusing to see a 21-22 year old as the chef of a restaurant, especially when he's only been out of culinary school a couple years. But, a lot of times, their "time served" WAS in industry, and working in industry builds street cred. In order to run a kitchen (or a hospital?) you need some street cred. You need to be in the trenches working alongside your peers, and only then can you earn their respect. Look up the bios of the admin at your hospital, or nursing home or wherever. MOST are going to have RN or MD along side their masters degree letters. It's just kinda the way it is.

The fastest way to the top is to start at the bottom and bust a nut.