An Associates Degree Isn't A Real Nursing Degree...Vent!!

Nursing Students ADN/BSN

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HI ALL...

LET ME START BY SAYING THAT I GRADUATED THIS PAST THURSDAY FROM SCHOOL!!! HIP HIP HOORAY:yeah:!!!

NOW I NEED TO VENT AND I THOUGHT IF ANYONE COULD UNDERSTAND AND APPRECIATE THIS TOPIC IT WOULD BE YOU GUYS/GIRLS HERE ON ALLNURSES.COM (AND ESPECIALLY THOSE WHO ARE NEW GRADS LIKE I AM). SO TODAY I FIND OUT MY AUNT (WHO IS CURRENTLY IN SCHOOL GETTING HER BSN) TELLS MY GRANDMOTHER THAT I (WITH AN ASSOCIATES DEGREE IN NURSING) DO NOT HAVE A REAL NURSING DEGREE, AND THAT I HAVE TO GO BACK FOR MY BSN!!! I SERIOUSLY THOUGHT I WAS GOING TO HIT THE ROOF WHEN I HEARD THIS:scrying:! NOW I ALREADY HOLD A BA IN ANOTHER SUBJECT, AND BECAUSE OF THAT I CAN START MY MASTERS DEGREE RIGHT AWAY (I HAVE ALREADY LOOKED INTO THAT AND CONTACTED SCHOOLS).

BUT THE IGNORANCE ON HER PART TO TELL SOMEONE THAT I DO NOT HAVE A REAL DEGREE IN NURSING AFTER I BUSTED MY BUTT WITH TESTS, CLINICALS, CARE PLANS, ETC FOR 2 YEARS WAS A REAL KICK IN THE BUTT!! I AM SO ANGRY!! NOW I DID STRAIGHTEN OUT MY GRANDMOTHER'S CONFUSION, AND MY DAD THINKS SHE MIGHT BE TALKING THIS WAY BC OF PLAIN IGNORANCE BUT ALSO BC OF JEALOUSY.

WHAT DO YOU ALL THINK? ARE YOU AS APPALED AS I AM? HAVE YOU EVER COME ACROSS PEOPLE WHO FELT THIS WAY?

ANY WORDS OF WISDOM WOULD BE HELPFUL BC I AM STILL PRETTY DEVASTATED OVER HERE EVEN THOUGH I KNOW I HAVE A REAL DEGREE AND ONCE I TAKE AND PASS MY BOARDS I WILL BE A REAL NURSE WORKING IN A REAL HOSPITAL.

THANKS FOR LISTENING,

SUZANNE :)

Instead of denigrating your education, your aunt should be supporting you and encouraging you to continue with your education. Sounds as if she is jealous and feels threatened by you. Hope that you are able to go into that ASN to MSN program that you have mentioned. Then you will get ahead of your aunt. Wonder what she will say then?!

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Specializes in ICU/Critical Care.

I'm so sick of ADN grads being harped on as not being real nurses. Damn it, I took the NCLEX-RN for cryin' out loud. I do have those same initials, RN, behind my name just like any BSN grad. I'm a nurse and for any person who thinks otherwise, well they can kiss my butt. The longer we have this debate about which degree is better, the longer nurses will be looked down upon.

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Specializes in ICU/Critical Care.
I've found that bachelors prepared nurses get much more respect from everyone.

I have found that I get respect no matter regardless of what my degree is. In fact, I've never had anyone ask me what degree I hold in nursing. I've only been asked "how long have you been a critical care nurse because you know a lot"...this came from a doctor. I've worked in critical care the entire length of my nursing career. The one question he didn't ask me was what kind of nursing degree do I have because it's not relevant. I have RN behind my name, whether or not I have a BSN or an ADN is irrelevant. I have an ADN and I don't feel any less of a nurse.

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Specializes in Med-Surg, Trauma, Ortho, Neuro, Cardiac.

At Christmas the conversation at a family gather turned towards my aunt's three children, all of whom have college degrees and my father said "guess my kids will never get a college degree".

What's sad is both myself and my sister are ADN RNs and I even got my BSN a year ago.

I didn't need to say anything because my sister went off. LOL

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Peds, ICU/CCU, ER,Case Manag..

I just graduated with my BSN in december I was a ADN before with 4 years experience. I am proud that I put the time and effort into it but I didn't learn anything helpful. Nothing about management, nothing new about ethics. I am a little familiar with nursing research but that is about it. I just hope that these 3 magical letters BSN will be some leverage to get me out of the clinical setting that I am so burned out on. I used to be so excited to learn and do new things but my nurse managers were not excited about it nor my coworkers and they have pretty much stomped the life out of me. I am just burnt out to the core. It has pretty much thrown me into depression. I just switched jobs and speciality in August from ICU to ER at a smaller hospital and it's not any better. To much politics and too much stress. You just can't take care of patients that is the last priority on list anymore. I have been doing some research and I'm hoping to make my degree work for me by helping me get into a different area of nursing.

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I am so sorry you had to experience that and that it was your grandma saying that. I constantly hear very similar statements from practically my entire family. There were times I just wanted to move out of state to get away from those statements.

But I'm still telling myself that they are just not happy campers because in a time of recession...in the end... I still have a job to go to.

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