LTC vs Hospital Experience

[Annabell Lee]

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I'm an LPN, but haven't been working as one so far while I've been in school. I've been sending out applications the last week or so, and hopefully I hear something back soon, because things are kind of tight financially.

Anyways! I thought this might be an interesting general discussion. Do you guys think there is a difference in how paid clinical exposure is viewed by adcoms, based on if it is in a hospital or a long term care facility?

I'm not asking for advice on which to go for, as I am applying to both. Like I said I just thought it might be interesting to hear some different view points!

Personally, the hospitals in my area pay better than most LTC and also offer more advancement opportunities as well as financial incentives/shift differentials that make them more appealing. From an application stand point, hospitals might look better, since I'd see more of what doctors do, and potentially get to shadow and get LORs. The only upside I can think of for long term care (I do love LTC work, its what made me interested in health care, I'm just talking application wise) is that LPNs have a bigger role there. Working as a charge nurse in LTC might be viewed more favorably than working as a floor nurse in the hospital since it involves more leadership.

 

[Planes2Doc]

Either one isn't going to stand out or be a golden ticket. Therefore, I would go with the one that allows you the most flexibility to study and feet good stats. If your grades tank and MCAT score sucks because you were working too much, then this clinical experience won't help make your application look better.

Whatever the difference in pay is, is pocket change compared to future earnings. So just do what will give you the best ability to succeed. Nothing else really matters beyond that, since you want to become a physician, not a nurse in the future.

 

[Planes2Doc]

Correction: I didn't realize you were a nurse already. I read CNA for some reason. It's been a long day. In this case you need to give the ADCOMs good reasons why you want to go from nursing to being a doctor. The rest of my advice stands. Do whichever one will give you the best grades. Not sure if advancement in position will help you, and on the contrary, taking more responsibilities might hurt you in terms of grades and MCAT.

 

[Annabell Lee]

Correction: I didn't realize you were a nurse already. I read CNA for some reason. It's been a long day. In this case you need to give the ADCOMs good reasons why you want to go from nursing to being a doctor. The rest of my advice stands. Do whichever one will give you the best grades. Not sure if advancement in position will help you, and on the contrary, taking more responsibilities might hurt you in terms of grades and MCAT.

Oh don't worry, I've read your guides, I definitely know your position on the subject! And for the most part I agree with you. I'm only looking for part time work during the school year, but would like to work full time in the summer. I've been working two part time on campus jobs this semester and am making A's in everything, and I've been taking the maximum number of credits so after spring semester I'm going to start taking less classes so I can focus on building my ECs without tanking my GPA.

Also I'm a single mom so working is a necessity. My meager savings are running out and on campus employment just isn't cutting it. I am definitely going to keep my grades a priority and avoid excessive hours or too much responsibility. The main draw to hospital nursing are financial incentives and shift differentials. There are a few hospitals here where you can be a "float" lpn after working there a few months and make about $20/hr. Even part time that would be enough income to seriously reduce my stress levels.