A little help for a soon to be student...

[Ricu]

I am about to start school to become a RN(BSN) and I was wondering How does an RN obtain their specialty? I have been looking around at jobs and the show RN jobs with designators like ER, PACU, PICU, NICU etc... How does an RN obtain these designators or specialties? I know what they stand for and NICU seems to be what I would most enjoy doing. I was needing to know do I take classes in college directed towards where I want to work in a hospital or is it an additional schooling I need to take? Any help would be much appreciated...

Hi Malenurse,

Nurses usually get an idea of what their specialty area may be during their clinical rotations. Most of the time, the new nurse starts in a general or med-surg area to get solid patient care experience and from there, gravitate in the direction of preference if it isn't med-surg, that is. Once established, that nurse would be encouraged to attain certification in the specialty field and there are usually fast-track courses to take and then a certification exam.

Hope this helps,

R