Am I too old to become an RN??

Nursing Students LPN-RN

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Hi, I'm 32 years old going on 33 I'm a few months. I'm an LVN in California. I'd like to go back to school to "challenge" myself & get that RN title. I'm happy with my accomplishments so far and my work & hourly wages. But inside, i just want to get that extra piece of the pie since it's available for the taking.

The bridge LVN-RN or LVN-BSN are all available at the public colleges, they require the prerequisites, which at this point will take me over a year to get, that's not including the other extra year of school.

Since my aim is to get that RN title for my own accomplishments, i don't mind if it's ADN or BSN. At this point, i might as well go to a private school for my ADN, which will take less time than a public school.

But by the time I'm done, I'll be 35 years old. Am i too old to go back to school? Will i be too old to get the RN title by then?

Just thoughts, thanks for reading.;)

Totally agree with PRN, you are way too old to be asking such silly questions especially on a forum! Hate to be so harsh but it must be wonderful to live a life where you can contemplate if you wish to be a RN? It's not a whimsical notion, it takes time, effort and commitment and involves life saving decisions sometimes. You are too speculative to be an RN and I actually feel insulted and I'm not being dramatic, when I see questions like this. Ask instead the question, how difficult it was for others to become RNs. Read some of the posts where people struggled through multiple jobs, horrible spouses, horrific situations, immigration and traumas whilst getting their RN's and then take my advice and not become a RN.

Wow, bitter much? It sounds to me like you're second guessing your own path to becoming a nurse. Or maybe you're one of those nurses who eats their young. Yes, that's a lot of speculation based on a paragraph of text, but that's about how many words you used to judge the original poster.

I don't think that contemplating one's age in relation to furthering one's education is silly. I asked myself the same question when I considered becoming an ADN in my late 30's. And again when I pursued my BSN in my 40's. And one more time when I applied for an FNP program at 50. It's a pretty good question to ask as one ages and contemplates additional education. The reality is, at some point, we all reach a point of diminishing returns as we make these large commitments of time, energy and finances. Nursing school is not a cakewalk, to be certain.

That said, we need to step away from the nurse martyr role if we want to be considered professional. Many professionals make life and death decisions as a matter of routine. Many professionals don't, and yet they still sacrificed and struggled to reach their professional and educational goals (yes, even through horrible spouses, horrific situations, multiple jobs, tragedies, etc.). This nurse martyr attitude hurts our profession -- we shouldn't require sympathy or special acknowledgement from others because we chose this career.

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Specializes in Neuro.

I'll be 35 when I graduate nursing school. You're not too old. As an LVN, you have a foot in the door compared to people like me who are second career pursuers.

Also, private schools, unless you're well off, yeeshh....all I see are dollar signs for the school.

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Specializes in School Nurse, LTC, Rehab, Telemetry.

You are only as old as you feel. I started my nursing path at 32, long story short, I became an LPN at 35. I am enrolled on a LPN-RN school right now and by the time I'm done with that I'll be 37. I plan to get my BSN afterwards, but it won't matter if I'm 40, that won't stop me from doing what I want to with my education. Age should not define what you can accomplish, and no one has a say on how old you can be to obtain a degree. Go for it!

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Specializes in Critical Care, formerly Oncology.

I was 38 when I went to nursing school, and while I was in the older half of my cohort, I was far from oldest. One of my classmates was using Social Security retirement benefits to pay tuition!

And as has been said many times before, how old will you be in two years if you don't go to nursing school?

Go for it! Don't be a slave to the calendar.

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Specializes in Pediatrics Telemetry CCU ICU.

Ive been an LPN for 30 years. 2 years ago i started the prereqs for RN as well as what was needed for BSN. I will be graduating in December. Im 51 years old. Nope..you are NOT too old.

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Heck no, you are not too old! Age is nothing but a number! My dad told me once, "we keep learning until we die." So GO FOR IT!!!

If you go the ADN route at a community college, you could qualify for the BOG Free Waiver, which means your tuition is waived, as per a friend of mine who just got his ADN this year!

Check out your options and see what will work out for you! Good luck, Ms. Soon-To-Be RN!!! =). You will be awesome!!!

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Nope! I just graduated with my BSN in nursing May 18th. Looking forward to a new career!

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I was 45 when I got my BSN . . . I have five college degrees . . . Including a master's . . . The nursing degree was the single most challenging degree for me . . . I cried almost daily . . . I never once thought I was too old . . . But I did question my sanity . . . Lol

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Sorry, but I have to laugh at that question. I got my BSN at 54.

But you were already an RN. She's not talking about getting an extra degree on top of already being an RN. She's talking about going to RN school.

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This cannot be a real post. If it is, I am insulted. I expect to graduate from nursing school at 55. What must you think "old" is?

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...

Are we being punk? Please tell me this thread is a joke.

33 is not "too old." Now, if you are talking military-wise...

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Hi, I'm 32 years old going on 33 I'm a few months. I'm an LVN in California. I'd like to go back to school to "challenge" myself & get that RN title. I'm happy with my accomplishments so far and my work & hourly wages. But inside, i just want to get that extra piece of the pie since it's available for the taking.

The bridge LVN-RN or LVN-BSN are all available at the public colleges, they require the prerequisites, which at this point will take me over a year to get, that's not including the other extra year of school.

Since my aim is to get that RN title for my own accomplishments, i don't mind if it's ADN or BSN. At this point, i might as well go to a private school for my ADN, which will take less time than a public school.

But by the time I'm done, I'll be 35 years old. Am i too old to go back to school? Will i be too old to get the RN title by then?

Just thoughts, thanks for reading.;)

Hi there,

You will still be 35 years old three years from now. The question is will you still be a 35 year old LVN or a 35 year old RN. The choice is all yours. Going back to your original question, I say you are not too old to go back to school. my co-worker got her RN license at the young age of 52 and she is an awesome RN.

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