ADN/BSN to MSN

Murse901, MSN, RN · Sep 29, 2011

There are ADN to MSN programs, but they all require varying amounts of bridge courses between the ADN and MSN (see Frontier Nursing University for an example).

Most MSN programs do require a BSN or an RN with a Bachelor's in another area. Even if you're an RN with a non-nursing Bachelor's, many still require bridge courses.

The time to completion will vary depending on your school and program. From my research, CRNA seems to take longer than FNP (1 or 2 extra semesters full-time). You can finish most full-time MSN programs in about 40-50 credits, which would be about 4 semesters of full-time at 12 hours per semester.

Again, this depends on your specific program. Research the different programs in your area to compare the actual number of credits required. Also, pay attention to clinical hours. In my area, CRNA's have a LOT more clinical hours than FNP, which is why it takes so much longer.

Good luck.

chuckster, ADN, BSN, RN, EMT-B · Sep 29, 2011

This is just a question that arose in my mind when thinking about my future nursing goals:
When you apply for a MSN program, does it matter if your RN degree is an associates or a bachelors?
Can an associates degree RN apply for a master's program without having to take "extra" classes to equate them with bachelor's degree nurses?Also, how long do these master's programs generally take (full time)?
...and how long does it take thereafter to become a nurse practitioner or nurse anesthetist (full time)

Yes, no and it depends.

Yes, you can be admitted to an MSN program with an ADN however, all of the MSN programs I'm familiar with for associate degree RN's are 2nd degree programs and so require a baccalaureate. In addition, all of those second degree programs require a number of bridge courses for non-BSNs, usually around 12 credits or 3/4 courses as part of the program.

The length of time to get to an MSN will vary by school and by specialty and obviously also by FT or PT status. The school that intend to apply to requires 46 credits and a minimum of 672 hours of advanced nursing practice for their NP-MSN program. At 12 credits per semester, NP would be about 2 years, plus 6 – 9 mos on the front end for the bridge courses. I’d expect that the CRNA admission and graduation requirements are more stringent but don’t know for sure.

There are some RN-BSN-MSN programs out there as well for ADNs.

I would like to eventually get a master's in nursing, but this is far down the road as I am an LPN, and in an associates degree program to get my RN. I was just wondering if I should plan on doing some type of ADN-BSN program before applying to a masters program.

Since I’m a second degree ADN-RN, I could have gone the RN-MSN route but opted not to. Instead, I decided to get my BSN on-line, then apply to the MSN program. One reason for this is cost – it is actually significantly less to get my BSN than to take the bridge courses (which are billed at the grad rate). There is also not a significant time penalty in getting my BSN either: It will take me just over a year to get my BSN versus about 9 months to complete the bridge program. I also did not want to spend the money and put 9 mos of work into getting essentially . . . nothing. This way, I at least wind up with a BSN. Just something to consider.

My advice would be to find a school you’re interested in and meet with the nursing advisor there. Good luck to you.

AgentBeast, MSN, RN · Sep 29, 2011

It also varies by specialty. Certain specialties require that you be bachelors prepared before entering the MSN program.