Associates or Bachelors??

[Xar25]

Hi,

I am currently a student at a community college in northern Virginia. My school has a two year nursing program to get an associates degree. I am very stuck on my next step because I have been told by many that unless I have a bachelors I will have an extremely difficult time finding a job. If I decide to transfer I will spend a few more years at my community college at the rate I'm going since I work as well. But with the associates I'll be done before I know it. I am very confused and I just need to know do hospitals really look for a bachelors??? Thanks!!

[CKPM2RN, ASN, EMT-P]

Magnet hospitals like to advertise their ADN to BSN ratio and the general public has no idea what that even means. They public doesn't know that the nursing care portion of the degrees are the same, that the competence of the people holding the degrees should be the same, etc.

[dolyclaiirre]

Hello,

I will have to say Associate, because you can get your nursing license. You can continue your schooling online RN_BSN. It is much cheaper. Good luck

[dolyclaiirre]

Hello,

Great response being a 25 yrs veteran myself. It looks as though M.S.N is the B.S.N now days. Everyone is looking for nurses with Masters. Good luck in your studies

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

I am very confused and I just need to know do hospitals really look for a bachelors???

You may wish to call HR managers in your area to find out if they hire RNs who are educated at the associate degree level.

Many of the major hospital systems in the area where I reside prefer or demand baccalaureate degrees, but what matters is the area where you plan to live and work after graduation.

[CuteTXRNgirl]

I am an adn grad from a school in the dallas fort worth area. We had a class of about 110 and about 75% of us had jobs before graduation. Now the hospital I work for is paying for my rn to bsn at Texas tech university that is only 2 semesters and all online. My adn program costs me about 3000 dollars. Compare that to a local university. I would recommend this route. Get your adn, practice interview skills, get a good resume, try to get your foot in the door at the hospital you would like to work for, work your but off in clinical, and continue your education. This will give you a better chance at getting a job. My hospital system hired adns for critical care so the "bsn only" is not true for every hospital. Many of them are going magnet status but I think if you show that you are in the process of getting your bachelors, you have a better chance.

[NursesRmofun, ASN, RN]

I am currently working in a hospital that does not require BSN for all positions but strongly prefers it and they encourage a nurse to go back to school to get it. Not a bad thing. However, I AM an old bat. LOL We'll see.

[mzrainydayz, BSN, RN]

I did an ADN program then a RN to BSN program. I wish I had just did a straight BSN program. You can get nursing jobs with a ADN, but with a BSN you have more job opportunities to choose from. Each has it's pros and cons.

[AngelKissed857, BSN, RN]

Go see a Health Science Majors counselor at your community college and ask if they have a program that allows you to concurrently work on your BSN while in the ADn program. My school does, it's with the local State University, and during the summer in between years one and two, you have to do a 7.5 unit primarily online class. Then the summer after you graduate with your ADN, you do the same thing. Pass the NCLEX and you automatically get 20 units. You are left with two semesters of 12 units each and have your BSN. This is NOT a for profit school, but a very prestigious state university program. I'm amazed at the number of nursing students in our area that have never heard of it. If that's an option, I'd grab it in a heartbeat. In California, you best get a BSN if not an MSN to get jobs in the better hospitals. I know far too many wonderful new grads who can only get hired at SNFs with "just" an ADN. It's absurd, but it is what it is, right?

[applesxoranges, BSN, RN]

It depends on your area. I had no issue getting a job with an ADN. I picked my classes carefully and planned ahead for a BSN so I earned it in 9 months after I had graduated from nursing school so it took the same length of time. I would apply to several schools in order to get into a nursing program if it was me.

Our job postings say BSN preferred but ADNs get hired. I only know of one or two people out of over a 100 in my class that had issues getting jobs.

In my opinion, it seems almost like a way to decrease the spending on tuition for healthcare providers. Most nurses don't go on for their MSN (some do) so if you hire BSN nurses, then you're less likely to shell out for educational loans.