A nurse anesthetist is a type of advanced practice nurse who works in a surgical setting to treat and monitor patients who need anesthesia for surgery, performing functions similar to an anesthesiologist (a type of physician). A nurse anesthetist may work alongside an anesthesiologist, or in some cases may be fully responsible for handling anesthesia in a facility. A nurse anesthetist needs a minimum of a Master's degree in order to seek certification, and admission to graduate school can be competitive.
Instructions
1. Have an active Registered Nurse license. Unless you find a direct-entry Master's degree program that allows non-nurses to train, you will need to be a licensed nurse in order to get into nurse anesthetist school.
2. Have a Bachelor's degree. A Bachelor's of Science in Nursing (BSN) is ideal, but in some nurse anesthetist programs, you simply need to have a Bachelor's degree in order to be considered.
3. Get at least a year of experience working in acute care. Having held employment in medical-surgical nursing is the strongest way to boost your resume for your nurse anesthetist school application.
4. Find ways to demonstrate your interest in the field in addition to holding related employment. Write opinion articles for nursing publications or form committees to solve problems in your place of employment.
5. Locate a nurse anesthetist school (usually a university offering a Master's of Nursing Practice degree with that specialization) and follow the instructions to apply, being sure to highlight all your unique qualifications in order to make your application stand out.
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