Best way to RN?

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Hi,

I'm a former airline pilot who has lost his job, and has no real hope of finding anything soon. I have $10,000 available for re-training, and am seriously considering going for the RN. I need to minimize my down-time as I have a house and bills to pay. RN schoools in the Twin Cities have a two to three year waiting list which would not be feasible.

Let me know what you think of this plan of attack.

CNA, and CPR through the local Red Cross.

My previous college degree seems to count for very little as far as transferring. I would have to take anatomy and physiology, medical terminology, and I forget what else as pre-requisites while still receiving unemployment. Summer, maybe I could take some classes towards the RN generals? I could work part time as a CNA while going to LPN school next fall, and I guess there is a one year option.

Once an LPN, I would be planning on getting the RN through Excelsior or another on-line school . My sister obtained her RN through Excelsior two years ago,and was just offered a charge nurse position at a larger metro hospital, so I figure the on-line thing can't be too bad.

What do you think of that plan?

My re-training advisor suggests I get the CNA, then become a CMA as I could finish sooner. Then I would take some CMA to LPN classes. To me this seems like getting too far off the path to get the RN.

What do you think?

Thanks

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Specializes in Cardiac, ER.

If you have the money, and know that RN is what you want, get into an RN program. Most hospitals will train for nurses aids positions. If you want to be an aid while in school that would probably be the best way to go,.there are other options for working in a hospital setting, ie phlebotomy, ER tech, unit secretary, admissions etc. Working in one of these positions is a good way to get your foot into the hospital you want to work in after you become an RN. It isn't mandatory for you to work as a CNA before you become a nurse.

Many RN programs will cert you as an aid after the first yr of school. Again it isn't mandatory and if you need to work part time for the cash flow you will most likely find a higher paying part time job doing something else. Good luck to you.

:confused: Just out of curiosity,.....how does one go from airline pilot to nursing?

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Specializes in ICU/ER.

I too would opt to go directly to RN. I think in the long run it may actually be cheaper and hey you only need to sit for boards once!!

In the meanwhile you couold try and get a job at a hosp as a tech. It will give you loads of hands on exp and hospitals are open 24/7 so you can schedual around your schooling.

Best of luck--I am a 2nd career nurse and I know many others who are have chose nursing after 10-20 years in another profession.

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If you plan to go LPN first, make sure you check out jobs that will be available to you, and if you would like those jobs. In my part of the country, LPN's can find work in nursing homes (some of which are switching to all RN's) home care and doctor's office. Hospitals won't hire an LPN. Also, last I knew, some states (NY being one of them) you can become an LPN along the way in an RN program. Good luck in your decision.

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hi iflew,

i'm in the twin cities as well, and am starting a post-bac nursing program at st. kate's next fall. the only school with a waiting list in the tc is the adn program on st. kate’s minneapolis campus. most (if not all) other adn programs in the twin cities no longer operate on the waiting list policy—if you don’t get in for that year/semester, you have to re-apply. check out mctc, nhcc, arcc, century college, normandale, inver hills cc...

have you considered other healthcare options besides nursing? i’ve heard great things about the physical therapy assistant programs at anoka-ramsey community college (arcc), and i have a friend who is starting the sonography program at argosy university in eagan.

also, just fyi, it’s pretty hard to get a cna job in the cities right now, at least at a hospital. granted everyone is different, but most hospitals want you to be in nursing school, or have previous acute care/direct-patient experience. hospitals in the cities do not train you, nor do long-term care facilities. i wish i was where rn-cardiac is, where the hospitals train you to be an aide, but it’s not the case here. you’ll have to go through the training course (the red cross is very good), take the test and get on the registry. but you will probably have to work in a ltc facility for awhile, before you can get a position in a hospital. i’ve heard that a lot of the hospitals in the metro are actually on a hiring freeze right now, due to the economy.

ok, i didn’t mean for this reply to be such a downer! just wanted to let you know what you’re getting into with nursing here in the twin cities. i would definitely check out the community college adn programs, as there aren’t waiting lists anymore. and maybe check out some other healthcare options, too. nursing programs and jobs are so competitive around here right now, and other healthcare programs are begging for students, because everyone wants to be a nurse. j

i hope that helped—good luck! and feel free to pm me if you want to talk more.

lola

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NY does not let RN students sit for the LPN exam anymore. I don't know what state you are in but I wanted t correct what someone posted. OP, your plan sounds great. In fact I had a BA and decided to get my LPN license because I didn't have the science pre reqs. My original plan was Excelsior but my only concern is that some states don't accept EC and I plan to leave NY in the near future.

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Specializes in ED, Flight.

I think you already got good responses. I will raise two points.

1. Find out if there is an accelerated second-degree track in your area. In my case, students were locally wait-listed, but I happened to get right in to a second-degree track at the university. I actually finished my program 8 months sooner than I would have in a regular track. In your total time budget, that gives you some time to do your prerequisites, which you will have to do in any case.

2. Consider carefully the psychology of your transition. A PIC is used to being top man on the totem pole. You're now considering becoming the bottom or near bottom of the pole by working as a CNA. Nursing may not be so much better, in some ways. All I'm suggesting is that you sit with your sister and some others, and carefully consider if the change is one that will suit you. Everyone is different. It may be fine. Nursing is a wonderful, it truly is; but it is a huge move from being a boss, solely responsible and a decision maker as PIC or even FO to being an order-taker. Better to give it some thought beforehand.

Good luck! I hope your financial issue are resolved well and soon.

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Specializes in Endoscopy/MICU/SICU.

Hi Iflew! I'm so sorry this happened to you. If I were you, I'd try for a 2nd degree BSN. I'm in a accelerated BSN that doesn't require a bachelor's degree right now, and it's terribly hard, but I love it. It's 16 months, and then I'll be done. Prereqs took me 3 semesters because I overloaded every semester. So, that's a little over 2 years for a BSN. Hard, but very doable. Consider it if your end goal is a BSN!! Good luck to you, I hope you get it figured out.

Jennie

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Specializes in Critical Care, Education.

iflew,

What an interesting career 'ride' you are having. I'll bet you have some great war stories.

Have you considered a route that would actually take advantage of your previous experience? As a pilot, you obviously have skills & knowledge to react/manage emergencies. What about going the paramedic route & getting certified for flight air/evac? In my area of the country, there are quite a few air ambulance (fixed wing & helicopter) companies, including those sponsored by hospitals.

At any rate, qualified paramedics normally have a pretty smooth route into nursing if that's the direction they choose.

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