CNA to RN

Nursing Students CNA/MA

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Has anyone gone from a cna to a rn? I start my cna class in one week and already know that I want to further my education. My goal is to be a PEDS nurse. Any tips on going about this?

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Welcome to allnurses! :balloons:

I've known a number of RNs over the years who started out as CNAs, and quite a few of the CNAs I work with now are currently in nursing school.

I'm not sure what you mean about "tips on going about this." You get into a nursing program and finish it. :) One of the good things about being a CNA is that employers will often help you work around your school schedule, or you can at least work evening/night/weekend schedules so that you can go to school on weekdays.

Best wishes for your journey!

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I am also on the path to becoming an RN and I just started my CNA class. I figure it will give me experience being in a hospital setting and see the inner workings of being a nurse so that I know a little of what to expect being an RN. So I plan on working as a CNA while on waiting lists and applying to RN school!

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Specializes in LTC, Med/Surg.

Most RN's I know started as CNA's, and the RN's that never started out as such are generally not trusted by their CNA's. And, honestly, with reason-- RN's who started as CNA's tend to be better at time management and general patient care.

I plan on going on to RN one day myself. :D

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it's very, very, very common in the area i live in , because most adn (rn) programs requires you to be on the cna registry for admission into the nursing program.

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Specializes in ICU.

In my area, having your CNA is a pre-requisite for almost every nursing program. :) So you're already moving in the right direction! Even if CNA experience isn't required, I definitely think it's a great way to get hands-on experience, see what nurses do, get used to working long, hard shifts, and get comfortable interacting with patients.

I am a CNA, though I no longer work as one. I did a year of being a CNA on a med/surg/telemetry floor, and it was good. And hard. But I did learn about what kind of nurse I want to be and what kind of nurse I don't want to be. I got lots of experience! Then I cross-trained as a monitor tech, and did that for a few months before an opening opened up in cardiovascular, where I work now. I do EKGs and other non-invasive tests now, as well as rapid responses and code blues. It has been awesome, let me tell you! I cannot wait to start nursing school now, because of all that I've seen and learned. Because of being a CNA and now a CV Tech, I *know* nursing is right for me, and I *know* I can cut it. That kind of confidence is what has gotten me through my nursing pre-requisites and I'm sure will get me through nursing school.

If you want to be a Peds nurse, get a job as a CNA in a hospital. A lot of places probably won't hire you to a specialty unit like Peds without experience, so you may have to start with general med/surg. But get to know as many people as you can, float to other units often, find out who the nurse managers are, get to know them, and after you have enough experience put in a transfer!

While doing all this, start looking at nursing programs in your area and get crackin' on those pre-requisites! Good grades in science pre-reqs will go a looooooong way!

Good luck in your class!

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As a CNA I started out in the float pool once I was hired in the hospital. Let me tell you that's the best place to be hired. You get to experience so many different units and meet so many different people. Being in the float pool you're able to know which units you want to work in and which units you don't want to work in. You're more marketable working in the float pool rather than specialization. This is the perfect economy where working in the float pool comes in handy. Say for example you're laid off and you're applying for another job. There's an opening in critical as a CNA. As a float pool member you have worked that unit, then you're more likely to be hired than the CNA who specialized in peds who also applied for the position. You already have the experience that the other CNA doesn't have. Specialization is good, but generalization is even better. Good Luck

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Specializes in PACU, LTC, Med-Surg, Telemetry, Psych.

Almost all of the "best" LPNs and RNs that I have had the opportunity to work under have been CNAs at one time. I have posted this before, and I swear by it. I also believe 6 months verifiable CNA should be required for nursing school, but that will probably never happen and is opposed by many folks.

They are much more understanding than the new "I did not get a degree to wipe butt" crowd that seems a bit too common nowadays. Some of them will even help if they have the time.

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I totally agree with the above poster! It should be required that a nursing student should have worked as a CNA for at least a year before allowed to apply to the nursing program. But most pre-nursing students wont go for that. There's so much you can gain from taking the course and getting that experience.

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A move in the right direction for sure. I've been a CNA for a year, and I'm in my second semster as a nursing student. While in my first rotation, many of my fellow students were awkward and timid at approaching a patient. Patient care was a whole new world for them. Part of being a nurse is getting up into someone's personal space, with confidence, and getting the job done. Being a CNA will give you that experience.

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Specializes in LTC, CNA/SPN.

I actually went through the CNA program the month before I started nursing school for several reasons: 1. I want to know how every area works in a facility so I know better how things work when I graduate. 2. I think everyone should pay their "dues" in their career field and it bothered me that I'd graduate and be expected to have people under me whose job I didn't completely understand. 3. I wanted to have the confidence that I really enjoyed nursing before starting an expensive, long program, and 4. I wanted some clinical experience under my belt.

I love being a CNA now while I'm going to school. I am very proud to announce I'm a CNA. I think I will be a much better nurse because I'll always be a CNA in my heart :)

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
Almost all of the "best" LPNs and RNs that I have had the opportunity to work under have been CNAs at one time. I have posted this before, and I swear by it. I also believe 6 months verifiable CNA should be required for nursing school, but that will probably never happen and is opposed by many folks.

They are much more understanding than the new "I did not get a degree to wipe butt" crowd that seems a bit too common nowadays. Some of them will even help if they have the time.

My close friend was a CNA for 5 years. She has a previous B.S. degree in public health and will complete an RN associates degree program very soon. She currently works as an LPN at a nursing home.

She absolutely will not help with the more mundane, humbling tasks. She will sit at the nurses station and read a newspaper or send texts over her cell phone while call lights are ringing. Here are some of the statements that she has made over the years:

"I've got a degree, so I don't have to pass trays."

"I don't wipe butts anymore."

"I was a CNA for 5 years, so I've had enough of wiping ass."

"I don't give showers."

Not all of the nurses with CNA work experience are willing to work hard, go the extra mile, or help out with certain tasks.

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