There has to be an easier way....

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

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I was currently going to school for IT but that was terribly boring so I went to my second choice, nursing. I was thinking about taking the LPN program at Erie 1 Boces but thought why wouldn't I go straight for my bachelors to become an RN. I have completed a majority of my prerequisites so I mind as well go for the BSN right? What do you guys think about that?

I'm still taking pre-reqs, so I'm no expert. With that said, my wife is a RN. She attended Methodist School of Nursing 28 years ago and received a diploma. Once she graduated, she became a Graduate Nurse which allowed her to start working for Methodist. This also qualified her to take the NCLEX test and become a Registered Nurse. Before she attended Methodist, she received an Associates Degree at a local community college. She is now currently finishing up her BSN through a local university. I understand a lot of hospitals now prefer RN's to have a Bachelors degree because it improves their Hospital rating. Once she completes her BSN, she plans to continue working on her Masters Degree because she ultimately wants to be a Nurse Practitioner.

Specializes in Psychiatry.
but nursing is very competitive at some schools over 1000 people apply and they take 55-80 students, so having great grammar skills is a must( you do not become "an RN" you become "a RN")

please remember, grammar is not everyone's strong suit. Besides, this is a message board, not a college paper :)

Best,

Diane

please remember, grammar is not everyone's strong suit. Besides, this is a message board, not a college paper :)

Best,

Diane

I'm going to have to count off for not starting your sentence with a capital "P". (Kidding)

I agree with the people here that say pursue the BSN route. It will save you time and money. Also having the BSN will heighten your chances of getting a job. In my area, a lot of the hospitals are now only hiring those with the BSN degree. There's also a lot of debate to the duties of the LPN clashing with CNAs/PCTs..contributing to this new decision to higher those with the bachelors degree. Just food for thought!

Everyone CALM DOWN! I never said I was perfect I also never said MissLopez was not smart enough. Also for those that question me talking about being a nurse for the money, I know a lot of people that go into or think about going into nursing for the money. I was just giving my opinion on the matter of do nursing because you want to care for people not for the bucks. I believe anyone can make a great nurse if they have the heart and passion for it. I am far from perfect as you can tell from my run on sentences.

Specializes in Acute Rehab, IMCU, ED, med-surg.

I have a couple of suggestions to help you come to the right decision FOR YOU.

First, evaluate the job market in your area. Yes, the BSN is (or is rapidly becoming) the gold standard for gaining an acute care position. However, this is not an absolute in all areas of the country, nor in all areas of nursing practice. Look at job postings, especially new grad position postings, talk to employers if you can. Don't take the word of nursing schools...some are well-versed in what's happening in the job market, some, not so much!

Next, evaluate how much you want to spend for your nursing education to start. I have an ADN, no debt, and the ability to pick up a BSN in the next 6-12 months, which will put me in a par with graduates owing 100k+. While I may not land a hospital position right out of the gate, I will eventually, and I have a position just a week after obtaining my RN license, because I have gained other health care experience.

So - it may be a good idea to secure health-care related employment. I've worked as a CNA in the acute, sub-acute and long-term acute care areas, and it's taught me a great deal, not just about working in health care, but also about myself.

While you should obtain a BSN sooner than later, it's not necessarily required right away. If researching some RN-BSN programs helps you with your decision, then do so.

Hope this helps!

I think we ALL need to remember that what we type on the internet doesn't always convey our tone.

MissLipsz, you've definitely got some good advice here. Having the BSN is a great option, but it's not the only one. I'd definitely look into the options a little more before making your decision. Either way, you should be fine. :)

Specializes in PCCN.

I echo others- or is it other's lol.

OP please see if you can shadow some areas you might work- a med/surge floor in a hospital, a nursing home, etc. These might be the only jobs out there- even with the BSN

I only say this, as I would GIVE ANYTHING to be "bored" at this point. Hospital work sucks , point blank. From what others say, NH work sucks too. There is no time to finish all the things that need to be done. You may want to care about your patients, but you won't have enough time to feel you are making a difference. The squeaky wheel gets the oil. The poor liitle old lady who really needs your caring and time will be overshadowed by the aox3 drugseeker pt( for example) who calls you to bring them a soupspoon, 2 mealtrays, etc.

With all the charting regulations courtesy of JHACO ( or however its spelled) pages and pages are added to previous charting requirements.

Just make sure you "see it all" before diving in. Shadow multiple times if you can.

I can tell you being bored is not such a bad thing. At least in IT you won't have the potential to be sued.

Sunshine who cares about grammar right now? I graduated the top of my nursing class and believe me, my grammar sucks ! My grammar did not prevent me from saving the hundreds of lives that I have thus far as an ICU nurse or prevent me from effectively communicating with Dr.'s, family members, nurses and other members of the healthcare team. They all heard me loud and clear. The choice is up to you. I have an ADN currently. I will be going back to school shortly for the BSN though because nursing is competitive when it comes to getting the job that you want. I am also seeing that a lot of the hospitals are choosing BSN degrees over ADN because the hospitals are trying to become Magnent status. Having this attached to a hospital's name is like saying that the nursing care given to the patients is the " creme de la creme ". The choice is all yours . Hope this helps.

I'm just gonna go off topic here a bit a dust off my previous non nursing education in linguistics.

The rule governing the use of "a/an" is "a"-->"an"/__[vowel] which would be spoken as "a" (the default) becomes "an" (the variant) when it occurs before a vowel at the word boundary. It's important to distinguish here that we're talking about phonetic vowels, not graphemic vowels. Therefore, it would be correct to say "a registered nurse" because the "r" in "registered" is both graphemically and phonetically a consonant (the phonetic consonant in this case being a retroflex velar approximant). However, if you're using the initials "RN," it's pronounced similar to "arr en" in spoken English. Since the word boundary in this case is phonetically a vowel (a back unrounded open vowel) even though it is graphemically a consonant, "an" is appropriate to use.

TL;DR: it's "a registered nurse" and "an RN."

*stepping off my soapbox*

Thus endeth the lesson :)

Hmmm... I don't know. "An RN" just doesn't hit the ear right. "A RN" sounds better. Is there a consensus on this? Does the "arr" sound in the begininng of "RN" really create a vowel-vowel clash?

(I know this is pretty unimportant, but I'm a bit of a grammar nut myself.)

I dont have much to contribute to the actual topic, other than saying that, if your life circumstances permit, just go straight for your BSN. But sometimes one really just needs a decent paying job sooner rather than later. And that's why some go for LPN. With that said, the older I get, the more insignifigant those extra couple of years it would've taken me to get my RN seem...

Hmmm... I don't know. "An RN" just doesn't hit the ear right. "A RN" sounds better. Is there a consensus on this? Does the "arr" sound in the begininng of "RN" really create a vowel-vowel clash?

Yes, it does. When it comes to a/an, phonetics drive the choice to use the default/variant. Another example (used here: "a" or "an" before a consonant acronym?) would be "a Federal Bureau of Investigation agent" versus "an FBI agent." Since, phonetically, FBI begins with a vowel sound, you'd use "an," just as you would with RN.

Specializes in NICU, ICU, PICU, Academia.

My late mother, a founding member of the Grammar Police, is currently spinning in her grave....... :)

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