Nurse Practitioner Fellowships
When I first learned about these programs I was 1. surprised it was an option for NPs and 2. thinking it sounded like overkill. Why would I want to accept all the cons that come with a fellowship after I already expended so much money, blood, sweat, and tears in my educational program? Since this time I have known several colleagues, cohort, and former students who have applied for and completed nurse practitioner residencies/fellowships. Watching their transformation changed my mind forever about the beauty that nurse practitioner post graduate education can provide. Let’s talk about the pros and cons today.
When I say fellowship, I’m really referring to two types of post-graduate training: nurse practitioner residency and nurse practitioner fellowship. What’s the difference? A residency is more general and encompasses a broader scope of practice. It may be a longer time frame as well, most range between 6-12 months. It is ideal for someone who had little bedside experience or sub-par education in school (be it academic or clinical). A fellowship on the other hand is specialized and has a particular focus of interest. It is ideal for someone who has a strong sense of what they want to do and/or lack the opportunity to find a way into the niche.
Both are highly regulated programs, much like physician residency/fellowship. Rigorous academic, didactic, and clinical experiences are required in order to ensure they maintain accreditation so you know you are getting top tier education and investment into your training. They are similar in offering formal lectures, simulation experiences, procedures, guaranteed rotations, and direct clinical care.
Whether you’re in a surgical program or not, as pictured above, post-graduate training is going to take you from the guy looking on (student) to the guy doing the things. But it’s going to do that in a controlled, highly structured, supportive way with guaranteed investment into your unique training needs. In short, a nurse practitioner fellowship is going to take you from novice to expert in an abbreviated time frame and make you a highly coveted and rare job candidate. Let me review what I believe are the top benefits of fellowships.
A bridge from the education gap you may have
A bridge from the skills gap you may have
Dedicated and assured attention to your specific training needs
If it’s a residency you can experience many sub-specialties helping you decide where your passion lies
Almost guaranteed to receive multiple job offers coming out of the program (residencies will rotate through many specialties so you will probably get several offers along the way)
More control over what you want to learn; some programs offer an option to choose rotation foci
Direct insight into the team dynamics which can help you decide if it’s going to be a good fit for you in the long run to accept employment
HIGHLY MARKETABLE elsewhere should you not want to extend your tenure at your training institution
If you are in a saturated market this will almost guarantee you get a job and more importantly a job you like
Sounds perfect right? So what’s the catch? Well, turns out there are some biggies.
Highly coveted programs - competitive
Not many available, especially if it’s a fellowship - competitive
Not many spots - competitive
Reduced pay - think 60K compared to average low six figures for new NP
Increased work commitment - many require 60h a week in addition to didactic learning (courses, papers, etc)
So the brass tax boils down to this: you have to weigh the balance of what matters most to you. There’s no one size fits all answer to if this is right for you. I’m a visual person so when I have a difficult decision I physically write out the pros/cons in columns and then add it up. And then ask everyone I know what they think I should do. And then perseverate. And then go for a bunch of walks in the woods. And then pray. And then perseverate some more. You get the gist. Just know, most people have paralysis by analysis, you aren’t alone.
If you want some help making decisions I’d love for you to set up a consultation with me: https://www.breenp.com/one-on-ones
If you want help with interviewing for these highly competitive programs I have some insight as to what you need to highlight, set up a mock interview: https://www.breenp.com/mock-interviews
Here is a link to an upcoming webinar/career fair for NP residencies and fellowships. Highly advise you check it out: https://uaprn.enpnetwork.com/nurse-practitioner-events/140238-northwest-consortium-of-advanced-practice-education-nw-cape-residency-fellowship-job-fair-via-zoom#!info
Click image to see a TT I made on the most common interview mistakes I see.