ADN or LVN to RN. Help. Which one?

[shirayukihime]

Hi, guys. I am 27 years old. I will be turning 28 years old on November. I am currently living in California. I am taking my CNA Classes, and will be taking my state exam on August 2019. I want to become an RN and get my bachelor degree in Nursing. I don’t know which route the best way to take. I am thinking of either going to American Career College in Anaheim for LVN or CNI College for ADN. I would like to go to LVN because I can earn more money in LVN than working as a CNA. And then go LVN to RN route but I can’t find any school that accept LVN to RN in Orange County. And I don’t know if I get in right away because I heard you have to finish the prerequisites before admission and I think you have to work as an LVN before applying for LVN to RN class. There’s schools that have LVN to BSN. But it will take me 3 years. Like in West Coast University, it is tempting but I can’t afford to have a 130000 student debt. So I am looking for LVN to RN schools outside Orange County. Maybe in Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Riverside. I don’t want to attend to Community College because I am already 27 years old and I didn’t finish any prerequisites. It will take me years to finish it and get in. I want to become an RN as soon as possible. And also If I would become an RN, there are schools that have RN to MSN program it will take 3 years. Please help me and give me advice.

[mchlstvn]

Hey @shirayukihime speaking from experience as I was and still am on the same journey as you are. I would suggest asking yourself several questions to really find out was you really want to do and what will work with your current circumstances.

There are plenty of options for RN schools, especially in Southern California. You have to figure out what works best for you financially, time-wise, and how badly do you really want it because it's going to take a lot. Working while pursuing your RN degree and juggling life is a sacrifice.

My advice if I started from where you are now is work as a CNA and maximize that experience (hospital, SNF, LTAC) and earn (salary) as much as you can. Work on prerequisite even it's one or two class a semester then apply to community colleges for RN ADN. Acquiring your BSN/MSN these days is the "easy" part. This route may take a bit longer but it's the cheapest. I have several friends who went to CNI, they said its a great program, but I am not willing to take a $70K + student loan for ADN. Also, I don't advice going to WCU for $130K.

You're taking the right steps so far to a worthwhile journey. Good luck!

[shirayukihime]

On 6/17/2019 at 12:32 PM, mchlstvn said:

Hey @shirayukihime speaking from experience as I was and still am on the same journey as you are. I would suggest asking yourself several questions to really find out was you really want to do and what will work with your current circumstances.

There are plenty of options for RN schools, especially in Southern California. You have to figure out what works best for you financially, time-wise, and how badly do you really want it because it's going to take a lot. Working while pursuing your RN degree and juggling life is a sacrifice.

My advice if I started from where you are now is work as a CNA and maximize that experience (hospital, SNF, LTAC) and earn (salary) as much as you can. Work on prerequisite even it's one or two class a semester then apply to community colleges for RN ADN. Acquiring your BSN/MSN these days is the "easy" part. This route may take a bit longer but it's the cheapest. I have several friends who went to CNI, they said its a great program, but I am not willing to take a $70K + student loan for ADN. Also, I don't advice going to WCU for $130K.

You're taking the right steps so far to a worthwhile journey. Good luck!

Hi. Thank you for the advice. I decided to go for a part time LVn program school in Garden Grove for 20 months. With that I can work and go to school at the same time. I am already enrolled, and my classes will start on September, and will be finish on 2021. I know it is too long. Thank you very much for the response. I decided to go for an LvN because if everything happens, I still have my LVn license. If I can, I am going to pursue AdN after that.