Advice please. LPN or RN. Halfway through and not sure what to do.

Nursing Students General Students

Published

I'm driving myself crazy on what to do and would love if someone could give me some input/advice. This is long, but I would appreciate any comments.

Here is the deal. I'm a CNA. Worked 2 years in LTC and 1 1/2 years in med surg at a hospital. I'm am currently in a tough RN program and halfway done. By tough I mean less than 10 out of 60 students pass each semester. Its really rough. Our school's NCLEX pass rates are 99% and they intend to keep it that way.

I am debating on dropping down to the LPN program at the same school. I would only have to go one semester since I have made it this far and I would have my LPN. The only bad thing is I can't quit my job. I'd have to pay back my tuition reimbursement. Plus I love working at a hospital and i learn soooo much there. Some of my former class mates dropped to the LPN program and they are actually getting to do more skills in clinical than we did in the RN program. Some of the students who were bombing their RN tests are now getting A's in the LPN program. I've been passing in the RN program but barely. Anything under an 82% is failing and I've been getting around 84-86% on my tests.

My concern is if I fail the RN program I will be put back on a wait list which could be 3-5 years to get back in and i would have nothing to fall back on. I've looked into other schools but I would have to start at the beginning of their program if I switched.

Plus I feel like we are just flying through our RN material. We have soooo much info crammed into our program that I feel like my head is going to explode. I don't even feel remotely prepared to be an RN. Lets just put it this way, I started clinical in January and after 6 months we were hold we should be at an LPN level.

I am at such a loss at what to do. If I go LPN I'd have to work two jobs since I have to keep my hospital job. They rarely hire LPNs there. I know as an LPN I'd be working at LTC most likely. I know LTC is rough and understaffed. If I stay in the RN program and don't make it I may not get back in for years, so I will not have that LPN to fall back on. Even if I do complete my RN, our hospital has said they will only hire me if I am working on my BSN (which I did plan to do).

Any advice would be appreciated. Thank you!

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Here's my advice: absolutely no way do not drop down.

You didn't start out to be an lpn. You'll never get paid as much. You'll never have the same opportunities.

You're nearly finished. KEEP GOING!!!!!!

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Stay in, study hard....its so worth it to get that RN behind your name...no matter how tough it is and how many sacrifices you have to make and you will, stick with it. I promise it will be worth it.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Ditto. Stick with it! Life's too short for "what ifs"! Don't set yourself up for failure, focus on the fact that you ARE passing and at some point will be finished. Don't leave with regrets. Good luck!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Critical Care.

You're not failing now, correct? I understand the impulse to put a backup plan together but it seems like in planning a move to the LPN program you're pretty much counting on failing out of the RN program. You're halfway done already, why COULDN'T you be one of those 10 who make it? I'm with the other posters, instead of focusing on feeling unprepared and worrying that you're not going to make it, get your head in the game and finish your program!

Nothing ventured, nothing gained, right?

Up Vote Up Vote ×

I'm an LPN and I love being an LPN, I've never regretted my decision but, I agree with the other posters. If you've made it this far stick with it! I would only drop down as a last resort. The LPN program does usually get to learn more skills (at least in my experience and in my area) because we learn more practical things and less in the classroom so, that's why the students in the LPN program are probably getting to do more skills than you. Will your program not let you get your LPN then just transition into the 2nd half of the RN program? That's how the bridge programs work in my area. Maybe you could do that and get some on the job knowledge working as an LPN while still working on transitioning to an RN.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Thanks for everyone's help. I think a lot of problem is I don't feel ready to be an RN and I'm also scared to be one. I'm scraping by with my grades. I feel like our instructors fly through our info and I don't even have time to properly study it. I thought maybe being an LPN for a while may help me feel more confident and I could learn while on the job. As a CNA I feel like I learn tons just by being in a healthcare environment.

I originally set out to go from a CNA to LPN then to an RN. Then my college changed things around and allowed students with high grades to go straight through. I was a 4.0 student and felt very confident going the RN route, but now I feel like I am totally unprepared. Our clinicals are a joke cause there are so many student to one instructor. We do an assessment and bed bath and some charting. I've only been able to do one injection and one med pass to one person the whole time I've been in clinical (9 months). I feel I do more at my CNA job than in clincal (other than meds of course).

Thanks for advice. I think I will keep trying and if I fail then drop to the LPN program. The pay rate was never an issue so that doesn't bother me. My main concern is just being a good nurse for my patients.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

No, it won't make you feel more confident. It won't take long for you to regret it bitterly. Your writing is far more literate than most and you're clearly intelligent. You have what it takes. Do not even think those words "if I fail." The instant you hear them in your head, banish them and replace them with "when I pass"!! I mean it!

Do NOT focus on what you (and many students) call "skills." Those are not skills, they are tasks, and believe me, you'll get plenty of practice in them in your first year of work as a nurse. Three months into work you will wonder why on earth you ever thought giving an IM or throwing in a Foley was such a big deal. It's because -- they aren't. They are very, very minor parts of being a NURSE. And nobody whose opinion is worth listening to in your new jobs will judge you poorly on them. Hell, I never put in a Foley once in four years, the opportunity just didn't present itself. I learned in one try. It's not a big deal, really.

One reason the LPN students appear to have the edge on that now is because they are not learning what you are learning. You will be fine. Go forth!

:flwrhrts:

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Long Term Care and Dementia / Alzheimers.

Will your credits transfer to a different school? Some schools (mine included) allow you to take the LPN test after the first year of technical RN classes and then you continue on to the next year to get your RN. That's the way I'm doing it. Also, maybe some other schools are better at explaining the material. Can you switch instructors? Could you get a tutor? First, think of all the options available to you before you abandon your dream of being an RN

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Will your credits transfer to a different school? Some schools (mine included) allow you to take the LPN test after the first year of technical RN classes and then you continue on to the next year to get your RN. That's the way I'm doing it. Also, maybe some other schools are better at explaining the material. Can you switch instructors? Could you get a tutor? First, think of all the options available to you before you abandon your dream of being an RN

Very few states allow students to take the LPN/LVN NCLEX after part of their RN-prep education is done. It's not a school decision, it's a Board of Nursing decision.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Thanks for posting guys. I do appreciate it.

I actually failed a semester before and think that's part of why I have no confidence that I will finish this semester. While I did come back and repeat it and learned more the second time around, I feel like this semester is going to be a repeat of the last. Before i officially flunked the previous semester I asked one of my instructors for help and was told I should just be an LPN if I wasn't getting it. I think that just kind of stuck with me. I ended up with an 81.6 in that semester, so I barely failed it. I was just shy of the 82% i needed.

Thanks again for everyone's positive messages. Maybe I just needed to vent a little. I'm going to try to stick it out and do the best I can. If I fail and end up going the LPN route then I will just come back to the RN program later and try again. All I can do is my best!!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Will your credits transfer to a different school? Some schools (mine included) allow you to take the LPN test after the first year of technical RN classes and then you continue on to the next year to get your RN. That's the way I'm doing it. Also, maybe some other schools are better at explaining the material. Can you switch instructors? Could you get a tutor? First, think of all the options available to you before you abandon your dream of being an RN

I've talked to other school and some general credits will apply but not the actual nursing classes. Plus there is the issue with financial aid as well. Its kind of hard to explain, but it just wouldn't be a good option for me to switch at this point. I keep in contact with former classmates who have switched and they had to start at the beginning of the program. The programs in my area that are close didn't have the option to test out for the LPN. Its either choose an LPN, RN, or BSN route.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Add a Comment