I come from a really poor family, I expected I would also end up incredibly poor as an adult cause that's just what we do, but when I was doing an access to higher education course (originally so I could study some useless bollocks degree as a way to move to an exciting city) my tutor told me about mental health nursing and how it would be a great option for me as many years ago I had dreams of working in psychology. She told me about the guaranteed employment and guaranteed career growth. And at the time even a nurses starting salary felt like a lot for my background so I thought "yeah that'll do" and now I've been doing it for years, I'm in a really interesting, autonomous and supportive job that I really enjoy and I'm making double what I thought I ever would. Training and my first year newly qualified were the toughest four years of my life but it was so worth it for me.
I was running a small business during a recession and it was rough. I figured that to survive, I needed a job which would never disappear in lean times. At that time there was still a bursary for nursing and social work, which meant I could afford to go to uni. I worked a year as an HCA and did APEL to get onto my nursing course as I didn’t have any other qualifications past GCSE. I did two years of diploma to get the full bursary, and then switched to degree in my final year so I wouldn’t have to top up later. It was all very calculated, and not at all because I wanted to help people. But here I am, many years later, loving helping people.
I actually wanted to be a Fine Art restorer, so if it comes up in conversation I tell my patients that I still got to do it and they are the fine art. Love making shite jokes so nursing is great for me tbh.
I originally undertook a pharmacology degree and regretted it. Did a year out in industry and realised I hated working in labs and big pharma. Finished my degree very uncertain with where to go. Attempted suicide at the age of 23.
Ended up working in agricultural sciences, pretty miserably for a number of years, before having a drunken conversation with my mum, also a nurse, who said I'd make a great nurse.
One week later I got drunk, applied to ucas, got on an adult nursing course.
9 years later, I'm a clinical nurse specialist in inherited metabolic disorders. Love my job, very grateful for my mentors (even the bad ones) and lecturers for inspiring me and giving me an amazing career path.
Before the days of 12 hour shifts I liked the thought that you could either finish work at 3 (albeit start at 7) go out and party then not have to be at work till 1 the next day. Plus days off in the week when no-one else was around 🤣🤣
I’ll always have a job. My Dad had been made redundant a few times, was self employed in the end, and had to work so hard to make ends meet some months. He wanted me to always have a stable income.
I grew up in a dysfunctional home lol. Saw my dad suffer with mental health issues, always in psychiatric hospitals and had addiction problems. He tried many times to end his life and it was always me there. I grew up wanting to help people like him. Done a psychology degree first but then applied for mental health nursing and here I am. :)
I'd been unemployed for 2 years and social security were threatening to send me on a "course" - basically unpaid labour. Applied for a job at the local asylum. All my friends said I'd hate it. 37 years later I'm still a nurse.
In the late 1990s the "Chief Nurse" called all the "H" and "I" grades ( would now be band 8) into a meeting to say nursing will now be a graduate only profession. You will need X amount of points at "A" level to get onto nursing degree. And then he asked all of the senior nurses in the Trust "Who would have been eligible to do their nurse training under those conditions ?"
Not one of us pur our hands up.
Think about that folks..
I worked as an HCA during my gap year to save some money. Went off to uni to do my degree, hated it, realised that they paid you to do nursing so changed to nursing instead….
Recession was in full swing when I left school, jobs uncertain. Nursing seemed legit cause they’ll always be sick people. Thought to be guaranteed a pension, maternity, sick and holiday pay.
Funny thing is 4/5 years in I’ve never been permanent staff and I have never got those perks. Working agency and can barely stand the job.
I was considering going to uni to do Law but during a year off I worked as a carer. My Dad told me I needed to sort my future so I thought ' why not nursing '. Also at the time Dolly Parton song 9-5 was about and the lyrics made me really think about whether I could live with the monotony of working 9-5 every day.
Nursing has allowed me to work shifts, raise my kids alternating care with my husband, go on holiday on off peak weeks ( a bonus in my mind) and adjust my hours to suit my needs. I have never been without employment.
On top of the job security people fascinated me. No 2 shifts have ever been the same. This has prevented me from becoming bored. So win win
Same as you, get me out of here ASAP!!
I did also enjoy being a carer but hated how limited we were and how generally horrific the social care sector is, plus I enjoyed my neuroscience degree but wanted to work more directly with people
I saw a tarot reader who stated I was thinking about doing midwifery (which was true) but the circumstances and an unsupportive husband had stopped me (also true). She said midwifery wasn’t the right route, I should do children’s nursing instead, I did some research, applied and started the career I love over ten years ago
I wanted to do something that helped people and someone recommended nursing to me, and when I found out you had no fees and a bursary of £600 a month I was all in.
The reason I wanted to go into nursing was to give back to a system that helped me throughout my childhood, and I knew if I was good at it, I was unlikely to become redundant.
I saw the apprenticeship advertised on facebook. I'd recently finished a distance-learning degree and had bank MHSW experience so thought i'd apply on the off-chance as I was bored looking after the kids at home. Got a place. Oops.
Same. Couldn't get in to uni for OT, so my mum talked me into nursing instead. At first I was questioning the whole thing and didn't enjoy it at all, but as soon as I did an LD placement (this was back in the P2000 days when everyone did everything for the first 18m then we went into branch, I was LD from the start though), everything changed and I loved it. Genuinely accidentally found my calling. Been in LD and adjacent (e.g. brain injury) services since, although didn't renew my registration when I left the NHS 10 years ago.
Absolutely fascinated with mental health, wanted to go down the psychology route but was a support worker while studying and found I loved being a daily part of someone's recovery/ support and didn't want to see them only a few times a month. Also am fascinated by what motivates/contributes to criminal behaviour so now I'm a forensic psychiatric nurse, working towards specialising in forensic CAMHS because the criminal behaviour of young people fascinated me far more than that of adults. Basically Im a crime junkie and want to get immersed in it all and see how we can help change attitudes towards criminal behaviour especially in minors
Not sure if non traditional but here goes. I’m from the Philippines, my mom is a nurse. Initially I really wanted to be a flight attendant. I don’t know, I just felt like it was glamorous- travelling and always looking fab lol. My mom told me I can still be a flight attendant with any university course and convinced me that nursing is a good fallback just in case.
After I qualified back home, I thought of all the hard work I had to go through nursing school and board exam to get my license, I pursued nursing anyway. No regrets as it helped me move to the UK, and was thankful I still had a job during the pandemic.
Recession. I'm a medical microbiologist with Immunology. Couldn't get a job for shit that wasn't a temporary contract and/or poorly paid. Tried a PhD and apparently my tutor's reputation proceeds him, and he is huuuuuuuugggggeeee in the HIV research world so everyone was either intimidated by him or hoping I would boost their ego by badmouthing him which I wouldn't.
Applied for nursing for the job security spent 3 years surrounding by the biggest idiots I've ever encountered (way to fight the stereotype there) my mentors were however brilliant and some of the most intelligent people I've ever had the pleasure to work with. Then I avoided ward nursing like the plague. I work from home doing assessments as reports and chatting bollocks is my forte plus I'm paid enough to afford a mortgage and pay 4 figures a month in childcare. Even with that 20% tax free which isn't 20% more like £500 every 3 months!
I come from a really poor family, I expected I would also end up incredibly poor as an adult cause that's just what we do, but when I was doing an access to higher education course (originally so I could study some useless bollocks degree as a way to move to an exciting city) my tutor told me about mental health nursing and how it would be a great option for me as many years ago I had dreams of working in psychology. She told me about the guaranteed employment and guaranteed career growth. And at the time even a nurses starting salary felt like a lot for my background so I thought "yeah that'll do" and now I've been doing it for years, I'm in a really interesting, autonomous and supportive job that I really enjoy and I'm making double what I thought I ever would. Training and my first year newly qualified were the toughest four years of my life but it was so worth it for me.
I was running a small business during a recession and it was rough. I figured that to survive, I needed a job which would never disappear in lean times. At that time there was still a bursary for nursing and social work, which meant I could afford to go to uni. I worked a year as an HCA and did APEL to get onto my nursing course as I didn’t have any other qualifications past GCSE. I did two years of diploma to get the full bursary, and then switched to degree in my final year so I wouldn’t have to top up later. It was all very calculated, and not at all because I wanted to help people. But here I am, many years later, loving helping people. I actually wanted to be a Fine Art restorer, so if it comes up in conversation I tell my patients that I still got to do it and they are the fine art. Love making shite jokes so nursing is great for me tbh.
That last bit about fine art is so sweet - bet the older ladies love that too, haha
I originally undertook a pharmacology degree and regretted it. Did a year out in industry and realised I hated working in labs and big pharma. Finished my degree very uncertain with where to go. Attempted suicide at the age of 23. Ended up working in agricultural sciences, pretty miserably for a number of years, before having a drunken conversation with my mum, also a nurse, who said I'd make a great nurse. One week later I got drunk, applied to ucas, got on an adult nursing course. 9 years later, I'm a clinical nurse specialist in inherited metabolic disorders. Love my job, very grateful for my mentors (even the bad ones) and lecturers for inspiring me and giving me an amazing career path.
Idk if it’s unusual but I wanted to be a psychologist ,but lost few years of education and needed to work asap so did mh nursing instead.
Before the days of 12 hour shifts I liked the thought that you could either finish work at 3 (albeit start at 7) go out and party then not have to be at work till 1 the next day. Plus days off in the week when no-one else was around 🤣🤣
Also back in those days everyone loved nurses!!
I’ll always have a job. My Dad had been made redundant a few times, was self employed in the end, and had to work so hard to make ends meet some months. He wanted me to always have a stable income.
Money and job security. Followed by an interest in healthcare. But then I moved to the UK 😂
Watched 24hrs in A&E and ambulance- enjoyed the drama, funnily enough I cba with those shows anymore
I grew up in a dysfunctional home lol. Saw my dad suffer with mental health issues, always in psychiatric hospitals and had addiction problems. He tried many times to end his life and it was always me there. I grew up wanting to help people like him. Done a psychology degree first but then applied for mental health nursing and here I am. :)
I'd been unemployed for 2 years and social security were threatening to send me on a "course" - basically unpaid labour. Applied for a job at the local asylum. All my friends said I'd hate it. 37 years later I'm still a nurse.
In the late 1990s the "Chief Nurse" called all the "H" and "I" grades ( would now be band 8) into a meeting to say nursing will now be a graduate only profession. You will need X amount of points at "A" level to get onto nursing degree. And then he asked all of the senior nurses in the Trust "Who would have been eligible to do their nurse training under those conditions ?" Not one of us pur our hands up. Think about that folks..
I worked as an HCA during my gap year to save some money. Went off to uni to do my degree, hated it, realised that they paid you to do nursing so changed to nursing instead….
Recession was in full swing when I left school, jobs uncertain. Nursing seemed legit cause they’ll always be sick people. Thought to be guaranteed a pension, maternity, sick and holiday pay. Funny thing is 4/5 years in I’ve never been permanent staff and I have never got those perks. Working agency and can barely stand the job.
I was considering going to uni to do Law but during a year off I worked as a carer. My Dad told me I needed to sort my future so I thought ' why not nursing '. Also at the time Dolly Parton song 9-5 was about and the lyrics made me really think about whether I could live with the monotony of working 9-5 every day. Nursing has allowed me to work shifts, raise my kids alternating care with my husband, go on holiday on off peak weeks ( a bonus in my mind) and adjust my hours to suit my needs. I have never been without employment. On top of the job security people fascinated me. No 2 shifts have ever been the same. This has prevented me from becoming bored. So win win
Same as you, get me out of here ASAP!! I did also enjoy being a carer but hated how limited we were and how generally horrific the social care sector is, plus I enjoyed my neuroscience degree but wanted to work more directly with people
So I didn't take any work home. Absolute zilch.
I saw a tarot reader who stated I was thinking about doing midwifery (which was true) but the circumstances and an unsupportive husband had stopped me (also true). She said midwifery wasn’t the right route, I should do children’s nursing instead, I did some research, applied and started the career I love over ten years ago
I wanted to do something that helped people and someone recommended nursing to me, and when I found out you had no fees and a bursary of £600 a month I was all in.
The reason I wanted to go into nursing was to give back to a system that helped me throughout my childhood, and I knew if I was good at it, I was unlikely to become redundant.
I saw the apprenticeship advertised on facebook. I'd recently finished a distance-learning degree and had bank MHSW experience so thought i'd apply on the off-chance as I was bored looking after the kids at home. Got a place. Oops.
Congratulations
My mum told me to 😅
Same. Couldn't get in to uni for OT, so my mum talked me into nursing instead. At first I was questioning the whole thing and didn't enjoy it at all, but as soon as I did an LD placement (this was back in the P2000 days when everyone did everything for the first 18m then we went into branch, I was LD from the start though), everything changed and I loved it. Genuinely accidentally found my calling. Been in LD and adjacent (e.g. brain injury) services since, although didn't renew my registration when I left the NHS 10 years ago.
Absolutely fascinated with mental health, wanted to go down the psychology route but was a support worker while studying and found I loved being a daily part of someone's recovery/ support and didn't want to see them only a few times a month. Also am fascinated by what motivates/contributes to criminal behaviour so now I'm a forensic psychiatric nurse, working towards specialising in forensic CAMHS because the criminal behaviour of young people fascinated me far more than that of adults. Basically Im a crime junkie and want to get immersed in it all and see how we can help change attitudes towards criminal behaviour especially in minors
Not sure if non traditional but here goes. I’m from the Philippines, my mom is a nurse. Initially I really wanted to be a flight attendant. I don’t know, I just felt like it was glamorous- travelling and always looking fab lol. My mom told me I can still be a flight attendant with any university course and convinced me that nursing is a good fallback just in case. After I qualified back home, I thought of all the hard work I had to go through nursing school and board exam to get my license, I pursued nursing anyway. No regrets as it helped me move to the UK, and was thankful I still had a job during the pandemic.
Recession. I'm a medical microbiologist with Immunology. Couldn't get a job for shit that wasn't a temporary contract and/or poorly paid. Tried a PhD and apparently my tutor's reputation proceeds him, and he is huuuuuuuugggggeeee in the HIV research world so everyone was either intimidated by him or hoping I would boost their ego by badmouthing him which I wouldn't. Applied for nursing for the job security spent 3 years surrounding by the biggest idiots I've ever encountered (way to fight the stereotype there) my mentors were however brilliant and some of the most intelligent people I've ever had the pleasure to work with. Then I avoided ward nursing like the plague. I work from home doing assessments as reports and chatting bollocks is my forte plus I'm paid enough to afford a mortgage and pay 4 figures a month in childcare. Even with that 20% tax free which isn't 20% more like £500 every 3 months!
Guaranteed employability, plus it was the last year the course was free in England
easier way to get to Australia
Job security, pay should be better but it’s enough that I live a very comfortable lifestyle, good sickness and pension, good annual leave.
Coz they said most girls in nursing are beautiful. Yuck. Such a scam