[doggybour]

Hi nurses,
i keep hearing rumors that the ASN degree is going to be abolished or cancelled. how true is this and if its true whats going to happen to schools accredited by NLN with the associates degree.

[earle58]

hey doggy,

these rumors have been around for yrs.
and it will take many more yrs to actually implement this.
i think some day, the bsn will be the minimum requirement.
all existing asn's would have to be grandfathered into the new requirements.

nothing to worry about now, for sure.

leslie

[bagladyrn]

This rumor has been floating around for my entire nursing career - it's not going happen. Think about it - if the nursing shortage is this bad already, why would anyone want to make it worse and make it even more difficult/impossible for new people to enter the field.
I believe that some years ago there was one state which tried requiring a BSN - didn't last.

[racing-mom4]

I know my local nursing collage is doing away with the ASN program and are going BSN only.
Will they get rid of ASN nurses though? Not in my opinion.

[DutchgirlRN]

I've been hearing this for 33 years, I'm not worried in the least. It's the same I've been hearing for 33 about LPN's being phased out. It's not happening while were still young enough to work.

[P_RN]

This story's been around for a long, long, long, long, time. Will believe it when I see it actually happen and then grieve over it.

[Alex_RN2b09]

I think it may happen eventually but we have much larger issues to deal with in nursing and healthcare in general before this should be addressed. Standardization of education is great but it's very difficult, many current nurses, students, educators, colleges and other programs would be adversely affected. If anything happens it won't be fast and will suffer a very large amount of scrutiny before being implemented. In other words, don't hold your breath or bite your nails over this one.

On a personal note I am very much in support of making the BSN degree the standard. I feel it would help unite nurses as a profession and give us a better image overall as a profession, since people for some reason look down on those without four year degrees. I don't understand or condone this idea but I do feel the different levels in nursing can be confusing and a source of discrepancy. Ultimately I think with a more cohesive identity we may prove to be more effective as force for change in policy and politics.

Just my 2c.

[towntalker]

some hospitals have attempted to introduce this but found it difficult to keep enough nurses to staff

[BabyRN2Be]

Originally Posted by bagladyrn

I believe that some years ago there was one state which tried requiring a BSN - didn't last.

I believe that state was South Dakota. Did they abolish the BSN requirement or is it still in place?

[Franemtnurse]

I believe nobody is going to abolish anything. There's too much of a need for nursing personnel in all fields.