Nursing Degree at 54?

[NowOrNotNow]

I'm 54 and burnt out after 30+ years of working in Accountancy roles that have destroyed my soul!! I'm now at a crossroads where I could retire (with some pretty big lifestyle adjustments and definitely no spare cash for holidays etc) but I think I still need something to occupy my brain. My husband would also need to keep working for another 5 years so I think I would be bored and lonely. Sooo I have been looking at possibly applying for a nursing degree. I would get a maintenance loan and a bursary which would help financially, and it's something I think would be really different and I would enjoy. But I'm 54!! Would a university even accept me?? Would I find to too physically demanding as I'm used to a sedentary office job? Is this a totally stupid idea?!?!

Quite honestly yes. I don’t think it’s a great idea

It's very physical. Would you be interested in going for promotions fairly quickly or want to be more hands-on?
And you have to be so quick to react to things.

What about Occupational therapy? They are offering degree apprenticeships at many places now. Not as physically demanding as nursing

why not?

Alternatively, do a healthcare assistant training which maybe less intense and you can still ‘nurse’ with it.

If you go into nursing you’ll soon be burnt out with a destroyed soul again.

Why would you leave one job which did that to you, to then spend 3 years training to end up in the same place?

You’d be CRAZY to do this.

From an ex-nurse who has no regrets at all about leaving the profession.

Go for it!

By the time you qualify you would only be working for 8-10 years. You’d never pay back the loan and bursary. It’s a bit of a silly cure for boredom.

Also- nursing atm is thankless. It’s can be physically demanding (on the wards) and I found it soul destroying and frustrating. Not able to give the care people need, seeing some people completely rinse the nhs of money, seeing a&e corridors fully of people with no room to admit. Waiting lists enormous. Constantly dealing with unhappy patients and relatives at huge waiting times and delayed treatment. I burnt out and it’s just not worth it.

Saying that- maybe try working as a carer or HCA to decide if it would be something you wanted to do.

Paediatric’s might be easier and less physically demanding. It’s the best job ever!

It’s physically demanding and NOT a role to go into if you’re already burnt out!
You’re likely to have to do 12 shifts as part of the training

I would suggest being a nurse assistant/HCA in hospital first - you would be able to see exactly what the nurses role is. I considered training as a nurse but while I loved the HCA role as it was so hands on with the patients, the nurses role seems so paperwork heavy. It is a very full on job and shift work is very very hard on your body.
Consider what it is about nursing that appeals and whether it would be worth all the training, shifts and stress.

Are you in England? If so I’m pretty sure there’s no bursary any longer.
even if there is a bursary where you are, there’s no way that I’d go into nursing at 54.
You'll come out massively in debt, knackered, stressed with the amount of idiots you’ll either be working with or for.
The job itself is physically hard, and mentally exhausting.
my advice, don’t do it!

For me bank work as an HCA in a hospital was perfect as I could pick and choose shifts and wards. The flexibility was great and the pay not terrible considering I didn’t have to spend 3 years training and not earning.

What about using your accounting skills in the public sector, such as the nhs or education?

What about an allied healthcare role eg podiatry? Or something like a radiology technician?

Do you intend to work as a nurse, beyond the placement for the degree?

it seems quite unusual, these sorts of roles are generally best done when you’re younger. I mean good for you if you think you’re sharp enough intellectually in your 50s (not sure I am) although I suppose if you aren’t working you can take your time with it

They’ll be far more soul destroying than what she’s doing now 🤣

You can’t ‘nurse’ with healthcare assistant training. Do you understand what nursing actually is?

I was a nursing auxiliary in my gap year at 18/19. It was physically the hardest job I have ever done (medic in my 30s now). Do not do it!

Tsk. Wiping bums and making beds OBVIOUSLY. That’s why you have to do a degree

I'm sorry. Nursing is awful . Just terrible on the wards. You will leave within 6 months of qualifying. Everyone is trying to get out . Care is gone so bad. Poor staffing levels. High risk working regarding keeping your own registration and patient safety. Place full of agency staff that may or may not put in the work and you end up shouldering it.just don't do it!!!

Honestly I got burnt out in nursing by the time I was in my 20s . It’s not for the faint hearted and I encountered some of the worst working conditions I can ever imagine encountering in a developed country. Imagine being so busy and so overworked that you realise at 9 o clock at night you haven’t been to the toilet all day since leaving the house. Or working all night for 13 hours with no break. Those are the type of conditions I mean.
There are some easier positions in nursing but generally you need years of experience slogging on the wards to get one of those positions.

I changed jobs six months ago and currently work in education. Its beyond awful!

I'll look into it thanks

I wouldn't, sorry. It's three years of shifts, university coursework, and hard physical work before you even qualify and then what, you'd work for two years and then retire with your husband? You'd be studying longer than working the job, if you get a place to start in September. Sorry but I think it is madness. HCA work will be just as physically demanding and doesn't sound like the intellectual stretching you're after.

Why don't you do a degree (or masters?) in something, that may be related but isn't vocational, like human biology or public health?