Why Teachers Should Study for A Nursing Degree

Both teaching and nursing are incredibly rewarding career paths that make a real and tangible difference to people’s lives. The rise of online degrees and the flexibility they offer to students means that it is now possible for people who are already on one career path to look at potentially switching careers or augmenting their current one. In the case of teachers, studying for a nursing degree can make you significantly more valuable to schools, particularly when it comes to arranging field trips, while also setting you up for a potential switch of career if you are looking for equally rewarding work in another field.

To Learn Advanced First-Aid

First-aid is incredibly important but is surprisingly poorly understood by many of us, teachers included. Most school districts require that all staff members understand at least basic first-aid, but it is up to individuals to educate themselves beyond this point. It is in a child’s nature to get into all sorts of trouble and create hazardous situations seemingly from nothing. The most basic levels of nursing qualifications teach students the most basic aspects of patient care, many of which are applicable to the provision of first aid at schools and similar institutions. Advancing to complete the highest levels of nursing training, a DNP or FNP, depending on the chosen specialty, would require a reasonable amount of field work, which would have to be completed at an accredited hospital. This makes them impractical for most working people to pursue. However, even the most basic levels of nursing training offer useful skills for the school setting.

A Personal Challenge

In addition to the useful practical applications of what you will learn over the course of completing your nursing degree, you will also be setting yourself an excellent personal challenge and successfully completing it will give you a confidence boost, as well as demonstrating to both yourself and any future employers that you relish taking on new challenges. Online degrees offer a great deal of flexibility with regards to the time frame over which the course must be completed. Students typically choose between full-time and part-time study, which is good news for teachers who often take their work home with them and have only a limited amount of time in which they can focus on their course. Online doctor of nursing programs can be completed over a period as short as 18 months and some teachers may be able to take a break from teaching in order to study the higher echelons of nursing qualifications.

Increase Your Value

Outside of the school setting, there is much you can do with a nursing degree. Organizations like the Boy Scouts of America regularly organize camping trips with children and having a qualified nurse on hand will be a real boon to them. Some institutions will consider a nursing degree to augment an existing teaching degree and thus be more inclined to hire someone who holds both qualifications.

Online degrees are encouraging more people than ever to branch out of their comfort zones and take on new challenges while learning new skills. They are not only the perfect opportunity for personal growth; they can also make you more valuable to current and future employers.