Help with nursing education/etc. direction?

[Kipper_Ialovskii]

Pardon me, but I've come at an impasse with my goals for my nursing education.

Right off the bat, I know that we will not have the funds for a BSN (Four years, I believe). Scholarships sound great, but I would prefer a plan without reliance on things like these. (Just in case.)

I will have enough for two years in college at this point (If nothing goes wrong in the family) and I am fairly unsure with how the programs work in the area.

Now, once I graduate high-school, I plan to either attempt to become a CNA, or work odd jobs to help with college. I can also attempt to go through a program to become an LPN (From what I understand) and work to pay student loans, and education towards RN training.

My mother is urging me to begin as a CNA for time management, and general acclimation (Even though it does not count as nursing experience directly, from what I have read) to the medical environment.

I've been lurking these forums for a while, and recently created an account. If possible, I would like help trying to find my way into this field, without grinding my mother and family into debt.

I greatly appreciate any help, and am sorry for any inaccuracies in this post.

[TexRN, BSN, RN]

Not sure how you'd feel about joining the military. I joined in as a lab tech 4.5 years ago. I went in with the idea to pick a job that would easily transfer to the outside world. There is RN programs in the military. Now that I'm finishing up my 5 years, (I joined soley to pay for education) I have the Post 911 bill which pays you a housing allowance, as much as a sergeant with dependents would make, plus 1000 for books, and full tuition paid at any 4 year college. It's worth looking into. While I am in, I'm using my Tuition assistence to pay for my prereqs that I take online. So really, I'd only need to use 2 years of my 4 that are paid for by the military. 1 year is going towards my IBCLC credential and then I will have an extra year, either as a cushion in case I need to retake prereqs, OR I can use it to get a masters.

[NurseGirl525, ASN, RN]

I would go straight for the RN. I have never heard of anywhere paying for CNAs to get their RN degree. Very few places offer tuition assistance anymore. I would take out student loans and look into grants. There is plenty of assistance out there for anyone that wants it. Go and speak with a financial aid person at a college you are looking to go to. A CNA and nurse are 2 different jobs. Many people think it's the way to go, but unless you are planning on working for awhile and saving money before college just go straight into it. It's up to you but talk to your guidance counselors and financial aid people. There is more available than what you think. And why not apply for scholarships? It's silly not to. I apply all the time. The more of my schooling I get paid for, the less I have to pay.

[iwant2b1]

I'm going to agree with Heathermaizey here. I would definetly go for the RN. Check with your local community college to see if they offer an ADN program. You can do the RN-BSN bridge later on.