BC RN/business owner considering NP school — worth the opportunity cost?
I’d really love some perspective from Canadian NPs, especially anyone in BC, anyone who went through UVic’s NP program, or anyone who was already self-employed/running a business before becoming an NP.
I’m an RN in BC and currently work full-time in medical aesthetics. I’m self-employed and have built a busy practice that is doing very well. I have a two-year-old and am also at the point where I’m thinking less about simply growing my own injecting schedule and more about eventually building a larger clinic, developing other providers, and potentially having multiple locations.
I’ve been working toward applying to UVic’s MN-NP program, but I’m suddenly having a bit of a “what am I actually doing?” moment.
Becoming an NP would obviously give me significantly more autonomy clinically and prescribing authority. In aesthetics specifically, it could also reduce some of my reliance on another prescriber/medical director. However, under BC’s current rules, an NP responsible for medical-aesthetic orders still needs to be present in the facility while those procedures are being performed. So even as an NP, scaling to multiple clinics would still require other NPs/physicians or appropriately authorized providers to be present at locations where nurses are injecting. Becoming an NP doesn’t completely eliminate that operational issue.
My hesitation is the opportunity cost.
UVic states that each NP course requires at least 12 hours/week of preparation per course, in addition to class time and clinical placements, and specifically says working full-time isn’t feasible. I currently generate my income through my own practice, so reducing my clinical days for approximately two years isn’t just losing RN wages — it’s reducing time in a business that I’m actively trying to grow.
I’m also a mom. My son would be about three when I started and around five when I finished. Part of me thinks, “It’s two hard years for a credential I’ll have for the rest of my career.” The other part thinks, “Why am I adding a master’s degree and this much stress to my life when I could spend those two years scaling the business?”
There is also some time pressure. UVic requires 3,600 hours of direct RN clinical care within the five years before application. I’ve moved away from hospital nursing into self-employed aesthetics, so I can’t simply wait indefinitely without potentially having older qualifying hours fall outside that five-year window.
I’d especially love to hear from anyone who has completed the UVic NP program:
What did your actual weekly workload look like?
How much were you realistically able to work while in the program?
During clinical-heavy semesters, was working 1–2 days/week realistic?
How many days/week were practicums typically?
How much control did you have over placement location/schedule?
If you had young children, how manageable was it?
If you were already earning well as an RN or business owner, did the NP designation ultimately feel worth the opportunity cost?
Any NPs working specifically in medical aesthetics/private practice — did becoming an NP meaningfully change your ability to scale a business?
I’m not really looking at NP school because I want to leave my business and get a traditional NP job. I’m trying to decide whether the NP designation is strategically valuable enough for the business and career I’m already building to justify what I’d have to give up temporarily to get it.
Would really appreciate hearing from anyone who has been in a similar position — including people who decided not to pursue NP and are happy with that decision.