I know this is super random but…

I’m not sure what kind but I think they definitely need to go through nursing school to get the job

Yes they need to go to nursing school and become a registered nurse then specialise

Yes, often they have advanced degrees as well bc their districts pay for more school and in some case are part of the teachers union which requires them to have their masters.

@Kelsi really? Well I was asking because I saw a reel about how they don’t do anything but give you an ice pack and I remember back in middle/high school, we used to joke about that. So that’s why I was wondering. So I thought they were not real nurses.

@Kelsi this is interesting to know

In MA, yes they are registered nurses and they have to complete a form of teacher's licensure exam

Paediatric nurse here and have a friend who's a school nurse in UK 👋 they do have to complete a postgraduate programme to become a school nurse and specialise. They do more than just ice packs. They create children's care plans, take part in safeguarding plans,meetings for vulnerable children, health promotion and are generally in charge of many schools and their care etc...

My husband is a school nurse. He was given two years to complete his masters or he would not be able continue as a school nurse. He worked for years in a hospital ER and school nursing is very different but way bette for family life balance. He also does way more than give ice packs, what he sees and deals with is actually pretty crazy. You are lucky to have been a student that didn’t need the school nurse but there are a lot of issues students face that require daily or multiple trips daily to the nurse.

I’m not a school nurse but I am an RN and I get spammed by recruiters all the time for school nurse jobs. They maintain health records, give meds, respond in emergency like asthma attacks, anaphylaxis, seizures etc. they have to be generalists and keep track of many kids, sometimes on more than one campus. It seems like a hard job tbh. Also lpns can be even more competent than rns and vice Verda because it really depends on their experience. Rns have a broader scope, like we can give certain meds that lpns can’t for example. But I’ve worked with seasoned lpns that I definitely would want with me in an emergency.

Yes, they do a lot more than give ice packs! I didn't realize this until I had some health problems in high school and needed to see the school nurse daily for injections of blood thinners. My sister's MIL is a school nurse and she has a lot of student's chronic health conditions (diabetes, seizure disorders, ect) to manage on top of the day-to-day injuries/upset stomachs/ect

You are required to have an active nonencumbered nursing license to be a school nurse. School nurses should have experience so they can identify anything concerning happening with a child. Sure somedays are just ice packs and Tylenol, but they also help manage kids with diabetes or other chronic medical problems.

Yes, to be a school nurse you must be a registered nurse which means you have at least a two year degree and have passed the NCLEX. LPNs cannot typically be school nurses because school nurses do a lot of educating kids. And an LPN cannot initiate any kind of education in most states.

In the UK they are registered nurses with a masters in public health nursing school nursing branch

Yep! The reason they can’t give actual helpful treatments to the average kid is due to insurance liabilities on the schools side, not on their legal ability to care for patients (: