How MyCAA Can Be Used as a Stepping Stone to a Nursing Career

If you want a rewarding career with great job security and the potential to make a real difference in people’s lives, nothing beats healthcare. It’s a rapidly expanding field, expected to add 2.4 million new jobs between 2019 and 2020. That’s a much faster growth rate than average.

That rise comes directly from a growing need for care. The general population is getting older, and more people are dealing with chronic conditions. At the same time, the logistics of healthcare are becoming more complicated. Just one patient can have an entire network of care providers, from clinical professionals like nurses and physician’s assistants to the lab techs that process their test results.

Qualified healthcare professionals are in demand across the country, so the field is a perfect fit for the MyCAA program. If you’re a MyCAA-eligible military spouse aspiring to a career in nursing, here’s how you can use that funding to achieve your dream.

Getting Started with MyCAA

MyCAA is the My Career Advancement Account Scholarship Program, a government-sponsored workforce development program for military spouses. It offers up to $4,000, in $2,000 increments per fiscal year, in aid so that eligible spouses can prepare for career fields that are in-demand and highly portable.

Healthcare easily checks off both of those boxes. There are many MyCAA-approved programs available in the healthcare field, many of which are ideal foundations for someone who wants to go into nursing.

Here are a few of your best bets.

Patient Care Technician. This MedCerts program offers great nursing school experience for the student who’s new to the medical field. It covers the many facets of basic patient care, from infection control and hygiene to patient assessment and emergency care. After completing the 23-week program, students can test for the Certified Patient Care Technician credential and start building real-world experience.

Medical Assistant. This 27-week program teaches the administrative and clinical skills needed to work in a medical office. Students learn to take histories, collect vital signs and perform basic procedures — all skills that a nursing student needs to succeed. This program helps students prepare for the Certified Clinical Medical Assistant credential.

At MedCerts, we offer three online Medical Assistant programs depending on what certifications you are interested in.

Cardio-Phlebotomy Technician. Students in this program learn how to collect blood and perform heart function testing. This combined program gives you a broad skill set that makes you more marketable and gives you more options for building nursing experience.

Each of these programs includes interactive components that teach you hands-on patient care skills. And as an added bonus, they help qualify you for jobs that can enhance your nursing school application.

Building Nursing School Experience at MedCerts

Most nursing schools require students to have some hands-on experience in healthcare. Volunteering may help you get the required hours, but it requires a lot of unpaid work. Also, volunteers don’t build the kinds of clinical skills that you’ll develop through career training.

By completing one of the MyCAA-approved programs described above, you’ll become a more competitive nursing school applicant. You can list your training and work experience and even use your training as the foundation for your application essay.

It all starts with an application. Talk with a one-on-one education consultant today and start achieving your dream of becoming a nurse.