Why You Should Consider Nursing Courses in Community College

While going to community college for 2 years you will likely have to adhere to a relatively set course of study that allows you to complete your general education units so that you can earn your associate's degree and/or transfer to a four-year institution, for ambitious students, you may even transfer to Ivy League or tier 1 universities.

But within this somewhat rigid structure of specific types of credit requirements you likely have several options for courses that will contribute to the completion of your GE checklist. For example, you may have to complete nine units of English, but you could take anything from an essay course to creative writing to a poetry class to earn the units you need. And the wonderful thing about taking general courses in community college is that you have some amount of freedom to sample different types of classes in order to figure out what you like. However, there are some classes that every student should take if they have time in their schedule and they can use them to meet a requirement, and nursing is one area that students should not neglect.

The vast majority of students would never think to take a nursing course, although it could deliver on certain credit requirements (like science). But there are several reasons why you should try to squeeze one in. For one thing, you might end up really enjoying the coursework, which could lead you to consider the nursing profession as a viable career path. There has been a lot of fuss made lately about the looming deficit in the medical community, what with a large generation of baby boomers moving into retirement and needing additional medical care, along with fewer students opting to go into medical fields these days. This means that demand for doctors and nurses will only increase in the coming years, making medicine one of the few industries that already have more jobs to offer, despite the recession.

Of course, not everyone is interested in nursing, which can be a demanding profession, to be sure. But you should still consider taking at least one or two basic nursing courses. The main reason is to better understand your own body and how to treat it in case of minor injury. So few people take the time to learn about how their body functions. And most are woefully unprepared for how to react when cuts, scrapes, burns, and other injuries occur. Beginner nursing classes can help to teach you a little more about your health and how to preserve it. You may not be keen to go on to more advanced courses afterwards, but knowing how to take a temperature and pulse, for example, are skills that every adult should have, not only for their own benefit, but as they move forward and become parents.

Some students will leave community college and go on to attend local CNA schools, but even if you're not necessarily interested in a career in nursing you should consider taking a course or two before you move on to major study. Every student should know the basics where their health is concerned, and if you're lucky you'll find nursing courses that meet a GE requirement. In any case, you won't be sorry that you took a beginner nursing class as the knowledge and skills you gain will serve you for the rest of your life.