Accelerated 2nd Degree BSN w/ No Prior Nursing Educational Background

perseveRaNce23 · Aug 9, 2010

if you want to go for your bsn, you should definitely go for it! accelerated bsn programs are specifically for people like you (us), who have degrees in other majors that now want to be a rn. my degree was in communications and i worked in tv for 5 years, so it was surely a complete career change. that said,

i don't believe there is an average because people decide to switch to nursing at different times in their lives. how quickly you finish the pre-reqs depends on you and your schedule. it took me 1 full year, (including summer and winter sessions) to complete my pre-reqs. you can double up on the sciences, depending on what you feel you can handle based on your lifestyle.

i had no science training, and the last science course i took prior to my pre-reqs was 10 yrs ago, and i got a c. that said, i knew i wanted to apply to nursing school asap, and taking pre-reqs for pre-reqs wasn't an option. i did well in all my pre-reqs and ignored the suggestion of taking certain pre-reqs prior to anatomy, physiology, or microbiology. i had to work a bit harder, but i do not feel like an extra class was necessary.

applying with pre-reqs in progress depends on the school. some schools allow you to apply with some classes in progress as long as they're completed by the end of the application period. check with the schools that you're interested in regarding their policy.

the nursing schools i applied to had a minimum overall 1st degree gpa requirement, but mainly focused on your pre-req gpa. there was only one school that i can recall that used the undergrad gpa as a cutoff point for admission consideration.

sorry i don't know anything about hunter college.

my adivice is to go for it. do your research about application deadlines and requirements for the schools you're interested in applying for. make friends in your pre-reqs because they'll push you when it's the last few weeks of class and you no longer can find the energy to study. also...very important. if you're taking your pre-reqs at a city college make sure you speak to a nursing counselor about transfering classes to the school(s) you're interested in.

best of luck!!!

ParkerBC,MSN,RN, PhD, RN · Aug 10, 2010

most nursing schools ask for similar prerequisites.

yes. i noticed a trend when i was seeking a second degree option. most want you to have anatomy and physiology 1 and 2, microbiology, chemistry, and a college algebra course. of course these were the prereqs where i was looking.

how long (on average) does it take to complete the prerequisites?

it took me two semesters. i was required to take anatomy and physiology 1 before i could take 2. other than that, i was able to take the other courses when i chose to do so.

coming from a background with no science, do any of you find that you need prerequisites before you take your nursing prerequisites??

absolutely. the prereqs give you a good foundation to start nursing courses. it is difficult to understand a professor explaining nursing interventions for someone with congestive heart failure if you don’t have a strong grasp on how the blood circulates in the body.

are you able to apply for nursing schools while you are still taking the prereq's/before you even complete the prereqs?

this is program specific. for me, so as long as i had my courses completed prior to the start of the program, i am okay. so, yes i applied to the program while finishing up my prereqs.

do nursing schools look at your prereq gpa or overall gpa?

this is also program specific. my program looked at overall gpa. the lowest accepted was a 3.49. however, some other programs i looked into only required a gpa of 3.00 for prereqs.

does anyone know if hunter nursing school looks favorably/accepts more easily hunter college alumus?

sorry. i am unable to answer this one for you.

i say go for it. i have yet to regret my decision of starting an accelerated second bs degree program. in fact, i am excited and look forward to working as a nurse.

cmw6v8 · Aug 10, 2010

I'm in a similar boat--my 1st degree is journalism and I'm starting a traditional BSN program in a few weeks. I also had NO science background or clinical experience. I applied to an ABSN program and was put on the waitlist, and then I applied to a traditional program and got accepted, so I'm going for it!

How long (on average) does it take to complete the prerequisites?

It probably depends on what else you have going on in your life. If you don't do anything but take classes, you could probably get them done in a couple semesters. I worked full time (40+ hours a week) at a job at a magazine while taking prereqs part time, through a combination of online and evening classes. It took me 15 months to complete them. I'm actually still taking my last one before nursing classes start on the 24th.

Coming from a background with No science, do any of you find that you need prerequisites before you take your nursing prerequisites?? I didn't. My degree required me to take general biology (lecture and lab), and I took college-level algebra during high school for college credit. Those were the only two PRE pre-reqs that were required for anything.

Are you able to apply for nursing schools WHILE you are still taking the prereq's/before you even complete the prereqs? Generally, yes. I applied to two programs while I was still taking them. I believe this is fairly common. What they'll do is by the time they make their decision, you'll have most of them done, and then they'll accept you on a conditional basis with a required grade for the ones you're still taking.

Do Nursing schools look at your prereq GPA or OVERALL GPA? I'm pretty sure the ones I applied to looked at both. It depends on the program--it's easy to just email an advisor at the school and ask.

Does anyone know if Hunter Nursing school looks favorably/accepts more easily Hunter College Alumus? Not familiar with this program, sorry. As far as programs favoring alumni into their programs, it's probably not one of the top criteria for admittance. It certainly can't hurt, but in the end, they will accept the students with the best grades/most potential (based on essays, interviews) to succeed in the nursing program.

Any thoughts, opinions, feedback, & advice would be greatly appreciated!

Go for it and good luck! I am sometimes pretty scared at what I'm doing, going from journalism to nursing, but so far I'm loving it and I finally feel like I've found the right career path for me. It's a lot of work to just make it into a nursing program, but I think as long as you're enjoying the coursework even in the pre-reqs, you'll do fine. I would also recommend volunteering at a hospital--I volunteered in an ER a few times and that was certainly an eye-opening experience. I also shadowed a nurse in an ICU, and I've read countless books, articles, and posts on this website to help me get a true sense of the profession and the education required.

LJR2010 · Aug 10, 2010

I searched for Hunter College to find their admissions info. Their prereqs are pretty standard, except for organic chem, I've never seen that one listed before. I say it would take you two semesters to complete them. Hopefully you have taken at least a few of them already (english comp, general psych, statistics). Don't bother taking introductory courses that are not required ie prereqs to prereqs.

They only have two factors in determining admission: cumulative GPA and test score

Accelerated Second-Degree Pathway (A2DP) Hunter College

2Jeanne · Feb 16, 2012

My uundergrad gpa in engineering is 2.97, grad in engineering is 3.67, other undergrad courses - 4.0. I'm nervous my 2.97 from 12 years ago will put me at the bottom. I averaged 22 credits a semester, varsity athlete, navy ROTC - among other things. Does any of that count?An engineering degree is way more challenging than a lot of other majors. Shouldn't that play to my advantage. I'm also a decorated war veteran, nuclear naval officer, & manager at GE. I really want o do the accelerated 2nd degree program at hunter. It is close to my kids school & has a great childcare center for my toddler. I really hope my life experiences count for something. I'm finishing up my pre-req's in the fall and want to start in 2013. Im going to meet with a hunter nursing advisor Friday. Hopefully she'll give me good news. Anyone have any advice/suggestions for someone in my predicament?