Why is it that we all are just now finding ourselves?  Was it family, friends, children or spouses?  We all have decided that this is our calling in life and we should make the best of it.  We may find it harder to fit in, in a traditional classroom, but we should never back down from our dreams.  Go for the GUSTO!!!!!

I started an LPN program 7/28/08, at the age of 42.  I turned 43 in June 2009 and am on track to graduate January 2010.  When I was younger, I didn't go to college because I didn't know what I wanted to do.  I have a 19 year old son and have been a single mother for 17 years.  I think years of experience sitting behind a desk taught me what I DON'T want to do, so with my son being older and able to take care of himself, I decided to make the big change!  I see some of my younger classmates not taking school seriously, so I think being older and having those life experiences makes me a better student.  If I'm going to put in the time and money, I want to get all I can out of school.  Once I had my first clinical experience, I knew I made the right choice.  Better late than never!

This site is EXCELLENT!  I'm so glad I found it!

HI!!  I will turn 54 5 days before I graduate with my ADN.  And I will probably finish off and get my BSN.  Yes are not the minority anymore.  I never thought of going to college after high school and if I wouldn't have had a shake up at work and my husband wouldn't have suggested it I probably would never have gone.  The one thing we bring to the table as older students is the life experience and the critcal thinking skills that the young sometimes lack.  The younger students can remember all the facts but they sometimes can't apply the knowledge.  YOU ARE NEVER TOO OLD TO LEARN.  YES YOU CAN TEACH AN OLD DOG NEW TRICKS!  ~~ Cheryl~~

I totally agree.  I was a average student in high school and now carry 3.85 GPA.  Time is on our side!!!  Great job!!   GOOD LUCK keep it up and let us all know when you are an RN!

Ok, being 53 and a new LPN. I also had to wait till after my husband and both of my sons finished school. But it will never slow me down. I know that being older has many wonderful things to use as a nurse. I can hold my own with these young pups any day...

I, too am at the younger end of this group - but not for long. 

I am 32 and have changed paths a couple of times so I have had plenty of practice in school and know how to earn those A's even with a hubby and kids at home.  I started out wanting to be a teacher and taking classes for that but when hubby joined the Navy and took us all over the country, I decided to stay home with babies.  When I decided the stay-at-home thing wasn't for me, the business world offered a lot more financial stability than teaching so I started as a Secretary and went back to school to pursue a Business degree. 

But I found the business world to be very unsatisfying and I continued to dream of my teaching career.  I told myself - when I can afford to retire, I'll teach.

Well, I'm a business analyst now and the last 6+ months have really been bland - I love the people I work with and I have great benefits but I just feel like it's a selfish job ---- I get paid and the company makes a decent profit, but I'm not DOING anything for anyone.  I daydream about the volunteer activities I could do if I wasn't so busy with work, school, kids' homework, soccer practices and games, etc.  

So I did a lot of soul searching and discovered that the underlying theme to what I'm searching for involves helping those who are not in a position to help themselves.  That's when nursing first occurred to me.

I've been researching the career, talking to people in the industry (my mother in law has been an RN, BSN for 20+ years.  A cousin has been an LPN for 4 or 5 years, my sister in law is a Nurses Assistant working with mentally challenged folks who live in group homes), reading posts, reading books of nurses memoirs'.  I'm purposely reading all of the BAD things about the job so I can see if I think I really have what it takes and so far I haven't been scared away.  On the contrary, my decision is solidified over and over.

It will take 2 years to finish the pre-reqs (including this current semester) since I am working full time and another 2 years for Nursing school - plus any time on the waiting list so I'll be pushing 40 by the time I enter the field as an RN.  It's easy to wish I had come to this realization 10 years ago but on the other hand, I've matured and learned a lot in those 10 years and so has my husband.  He's the biggest part of my support group so that's very important.  I'm a strong believer that everything happens in God's time and I think I had some life lessons to learn before I was ready for this next step.

I have few doubts about nursing school itself but I am more concerned about what happens AFTER graduation - will I be prepared?  Will the experienced personnel eat me alive?  With the patients eat me alive?  I think this is where the life experiences will come into play.  I now have thicker skin and a stronger backbone.    I have survived a few scrapes in other work environments and learned valuable lessons re: how to communicate and negotiate to get what I need out of a situation.

I think all of the nurses here are in the same boat.......your life experiences are every bit as important as your nursing experiences.

I am from Germany and got an RN Degree back in 1981....so I am here in the US now since almost 18 years and I couldn't get my RN Degree accepted here for anything....I went to LPN school and graduated in 2003 and graduated from RN school May of 2009. It was not an easy road....as anybody knows....but State Board of Nursing finally let me take my NCLEX in March last year, a year ago already...yikes!, and I graduated in May to finish up the ADN Degree. I guess I am a nurse at heart; otherwise I wouldn' t have gone through all this trouble to be accepted here in the US as a nurse.  I did get a financial break from a Loan Forgiveness Program and they are willing to pay half of what I still owe in school loans, and I am very thankful for that. Any nurse can apply for it between January and June, hope everyone knows that !!! If you want to know more about it, find it on the web or drop me a note.