Need help - LPN, RN or BSN?

[enkrjrnr00]

Hello all!

I graduated in December with a B.S. is Criminal Justice and Sociology and a minor in Social Work. I want to eventually be a social worker, specializing in veterans, but in doing more research (my advisor in college was never much help with all of this), I have discovered that I want to go more towards being a clinical social worker. I guess my question is, in your opinion, which is the best way to go? I have heard about accelerated BSN programs, so I am considering that, but any help would be greatly appreciated! If you need more background information, just let me know!

Thanks in advance! :)

[applesxoranges, BSN, RN]

I would look into clinical social worker programs since all social worker postings I've seen require some sort of degree or specialization in social work. Usually it is a masters in social work. A registered nursing degree would not qualify you for the social worker jobs usually.

I would only do a nursing degree if you wanted to do nursing. Are you thinking about doing psych nursing? If you are, then I would either do a direct entry MSN program or go for your accelerated BSN. If you really do not want to be a nurse but want to break into mental health field with the goal of eventually working with veterans, then I would look into mental health tech roles. In my area, your BS in criminal justice and sociology would qualify you as a mental health tech. The mental health techs work with patients, help with leading groups, and make sure the patients aren't violent. I don't know much about psych though so they may have a bigger role than what I am giving them credit for since I don't remember if they can do any of the assessments.

Otherwise, I would not do a LPN at this point. An ADN would take the same length of time as an accelerated BSN usually if not a little longer. A BSN by itself will probably take two to three years if all your credits transfer and assuming you have to take some pre-reqs.

[elemenRN]

I think you should maybe try to shadow a clinical social worker and then shadow a clinical nurse and find out what it is that you really want to do. While these two professions often work closely, they are very, very different. Getting a nursing degree isn't the type of thing you just do for a few years to make you more marketable in a different professional field. Also, if your advisor isn't very helpful, I think you should get a different one! Proper guidance is crucial and can help you save a lot of time and money! Best of luck to you!