1) Are you really ready? Nurse anesthesia program is a highly demanding program that requires total commitment and dedication. And this process begins way before the school actually starts. It begins when you decide to apply. Everyone else applying along with you is your competition. If you GPA is not where you feel comfortable applying, don't apply. Work to be at your best academic and professional standing before applying. Not only that, even before making that decision to start applying for school, thoroughly assess your readiness to be able to make all the necessary sacrifices. Are you willing to move for school? Are you financially ready? Have you researched enough to determine that it is for you? Are you willing to quit work for school if needed? Do you have the requirements (GRE, CCRN etc) met? All these questions should be thought out prior to you submitting that application.
2) Is your family ready? If you go in single like I did, you may think I can skip this step. However, I would suggest you still give it a thought. You friends, parents, siblings or whoever is important to you may not understand the significant change they are going to see when you are actually in the program. It is important to discuss the changes they can expect to see in you during school. Less time at home with the family, eating out, no vacation time, emotional turmoils, traveling for clinical rotations, along with many others are common issues observed in Student Nurse Anesthetists. Your family or significant other has to be on the same page as you before you apply because even if you may not agree, your family will be sacrificing a whole lot more than you to get you through a CRNA school. Do they know you won't be able to work? Are they going to survive without your income? Can they tolerate time away from you if needed? Are they willing to move with you if needed? These are all important discussions to have before you decide its time.
3) Is this profession really for you? Great pay and "chill" job is what I kept hearing about this profession before I applied. As I got to know more about it, like every other profession this isn't for everyone. You are doing yourself and your future patients a disservice if you are doing it just for money. It is a very stressful and at times, unpredictable profession. This may not be for you, if you are the one who likes to talk to your patient and enjoy following up with patient progress throughout their hospitalization.CRNA profession has an ever going battle for their role in the anesthesia world against anesthesia assistants and anesthesiologist. This can limit the availability of job that you envisioned when you decided to be a CRNA. Like me, you may have to move to a rural area in order to find your dream job. So, you may have to continue sacrificing longer than just the duration of the your schooling. Be sure you find a CRNA (specifically a CRNA) to shadow to get an idea of how their day goes. This can give you some idea on what to expect.
Look forward for additional CRNA school related considerations. Hope this was helpful. Be sure to Like, Subscribe and Follow.
