Neonatal Nurse degree requirements
Being a Neonatal Nurse requires certain educational and personal requirements, which you may not be aware of. In these lines you will learn what is required to become a neonatal nurse with all the legal requirements.
Taking into account that the responsibility they have is great, they take care of those children who are just born and who need primary and special care.
Therefore, it can be said that they must have the necessary experience to take care of their patients and other requirements, which will be specified later on.
Training of a Neonatal Nurse
To be able to practice as a Neonatal Nurse, it is necessary to meet certain requirements to obtain the title.
The first thing you must have is an associate’s degree in nursing (ADN), which usually takes two years to complete, and a bachelor’s degree in nursing (BSN), which takes four years to complete.
You must also be licensed as a registered nurse (RN), be certified in neonatal resuscitation, as well as obtain NICU-specific certifications if you are already working in the unit.
You must also have at least solid experience practicing in a Neonatal Intensive Care
Unit in order to obtain an advanced degree.
Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN)
The associate degree in Nursing (ADN) is part of the course of study leading to licensure as a registered nurse (RN). It usually lasts about two years.
What you did not know and what you should take into account, before starting to study nursing
It is not only about paying money to an institution to study, you should always consider those hidden or extra elements that no one says are involved in Nursing studies.
In this case we refer to the extra costs that have to do with the associate degree in nursing.
- Canceling a tuition: Such tuition depending on where the studies are carried out usually vary, to place an example the Main College of Health Professions in Lewiston has a price of $9,520.
- Extra costs: This refers to supplies and transportation costs. This also includes other normal and necessary expenses, such as stethoscope, required clothing, flashlight, textbooks, meals and others.
- Curriculum: This refers to the degrees and requirements required by each institution, these are according to the requirements of each nursing board in each state.
- Prerequisites: To complete the program and obtain the associate degree in nursing, it is necessary to have knowledge in Microbiology, Chemistry, Anatomy and physiology, English, statistics, psychology and communications.
Requirements for a Neonatal Nursing degree
Although there is a diversity of colleges and schools that offer this type of programs, as well as any other. It is essential to know that each one of them demands certain requirements to enroll, let’s take a general look at the most common ones:
- High School Diploma or GED: The diploma is the one obtained by those students who have completed their high school studies with total normality. On the other hand, the GED, Graduate Equivalency Degree or General Educational Development Test, is a certificate that is granted for having completed a series of tests which guarantee if you have enough knowledge to have passed high school, this alternative arises in the case of not having been able to finish the required courses.
- High School Chemistry and Biology.
- SAT scores: The SAT is a popular college entrance exam in the United States. The higher your SAT score, the more chances you have for college admission.
- Personal Essay: This is a type of personal statement that contains the experiences and interests of the applicant.
- HESI Exam: This is an entrance exam that some (if not most) nursing programs require at the time of enrollment. The Health Education Systems Incorporated (HESI) is a company that aims to help nurses prepare for and pass their exams.
Summary
The Neonatal Nursing profession performs work that has a relevant place in the United States today. This is basically because they are taking on an increasingly important role. They come to assist small babies who present some complicated health problem.
This is why it is essential for these professionals to constantly specialize, so that they can continue to do an excellent job in the field.
Obtaining your Neonatal Nursing degree should be the ideal path to follow, and to do so, before starting your program, you should be aware of the requirements demanded by each institution.
