CA woman looking for advice on going into nursing

[SimoneB]

I am a 26 year old Californian interested in going back to school for nursing. I live in the SF bay know that openings for nursing schools and jobs are very competitive right now. Forgive me, but I have a lot of questions and hope that some of you can help me out.

I have two and a half years of college credits from a prestigious liberal arts college but not a lot of experience in the sciences. I worked in sustainable agriculture for four years and have been working as an office manager for an insurance broker for the past two years. In my current job I do a lot of reading and writing about health care policy (I write a weekly blog for my boss) and am pretty well informed about current issues in health care reform. I just completed a three month training to become a collective member of the Berkeley Free Clinic, where I work referring low income people to the health and other social services they need.

I am hoping that the interest in public health shown in my recent work can help me get into a nursing program. I know that I could finish my bachlors in something else and then apply for the accelerated BSN or masters program but I feel like I probably have to take so many science classes anyway that it might be wise for me to transfer into a BSN program at USF or Mills/Samuel Merritt. I am a good student but I am concerned that the accelerated programs would be very stressful.

So my quesions are:

1. Will it be impossible for me to get into a bay area program without a long history of work in the sciences? Can I succeed in nursing school if I haven't alway been a "science person"?

2. Where should I take some pre-nursing classes before applying to transfer into a BSN program? The Mills program says, "We recommend refreshing your knowledge of chemistry and biology in order to make a successful application.Take community college classes in introductory chemistry, biology, and English before applying for admission."

I took chemistry and biology in high school but clearly that was a while ago. Is there a community college where I can take science classes designed for aspiring nurses?

3. I am more interested in working in a clinic or private practice than a hospital. Is it impossible to get such a job as a RN grad? Could I go straight from getting my BSN into a masters program to become a nurse practitioner or do I need work experience first? How about going from a BSN into a Physician's Assistant program?

Thank you so much for any advice you are able to give me; I really appreciate it.