Hi all.....

I am 27 y/o and have been living with 1 kidney for 15
yrs (due to trauma) and recently delivered an
informative speech on dialysis. Although I have never
been a dialysis patient, I have met several and have
always had an interest in providing care for renal
care patients. The closest that I've ever been to working in health care was a dental office. Other than
that, I am working f/t in a completely different
field.

I have contacted a charge (or supervising nurse) at
a Renal Care facility in L.A. (where I'm from), but I
understand that she is very busy and I have yet to
meet with her. I will definitely
inquire about volunteering there. As far as my own
research, I did indeed come across a few organizations
that are very informative, however, I am also searching for one-on-one contact with professionals in the field.
Here are a few questions:

How was your college experience as a nursing/health
care major?
Also, what would you recommend for students who must
work f/t ?

What are the most challenging tasks in this career?

Can you provide any insight about the shortage of
nurses? Is there a high turnover rate of nurses? Or an
unexpected # of patients...

Is the environment welcoming? In other words, after a lot of experience, do you still look forward to going
to work?

As mentioned in the first question, I have to work f/t.
If I receive a degree
from a one of the smaller private schools vs. a
university (for scheduling purposes/evening classes), will my compensation be less?
I am currently enrolled at a community college taking pre-reqs for the nursing program.

Any information you can provide will be great. Also, I thank you all in advance for your replies.

Future RN, BSN, CNN