BS Neurobiology to ADN

[JTCafe]

Hello all,

I graduated from UW-Madison with a degree in Neurobiology (GPA 3.5) and want to become an RN. In college I had been choosing between nursing and research and ended up going the research way. Needless to say, after job shadowing, I'd much rather do nursing as a career.

Long story short, I have a few questions:

1.) Since I already have a BS degree is a BSN worth pursuing? Would a BS/ADN be afforded the same considerations as a BSN? I've been told some employers and positions require a BSN (management,etc)?

2.) I've taken Comparative Anatomy 470, Human Physiology 335, Micro 303/304, Com Arts, Writing, Psych, etc - Any one have a clue if these would satisfy the ADN pre-reqs? (obviously, I'll have to talk to the schools themselves)

3.) Best tech school to apply/attend - MATC, Blackhawk, Moraine? Mostly I'm concerned with the waitlist, but wouldn't mind the wait as I make at my current job per hour about what an RN would make starting out in Madison.

4.) Is there really a "nurse shortage" as I keep hearing? Are there options for working as much as one can handle in the Madison area (40-60+ hrs/week)?

Thanks!

[sas818]

Hi there,

I was in the exact same situation as you- BS from Madison in Neurobiology and I work in research. I was told by many advisers to go for my BSN but have the ADN as a back up plan since it is difficult to get into nursing schools. I'm attending UW-Oshkosh this fall for the accelerated program since it will give me my BSN in one year. I will tell you right now that I got on the waiting list at MATC this year and I was #401. My friend is #526. That's insane if you ask me. Your GPA is good so you shouldn't have a problem getting into a school if you have some healthcare experience and your CNA certificate.

I think that your A+P and micro classes will be just fine. You'll probably have to take developmental psych if you havent already, and yes just look at websites for schools to see if your classes are acceptable. There's a website that shows you what classes transfer from UW-Madison to other colleges...http://tis.uwsa.edu/index.html

PS if you want to go back to UW-Madison for nursing it will take you 2 years and it's very very hard to get into the program...I was rejected along with 400 others :)

[Quickbeam, BSN, RN]

A BS+an ADN does NOT equal a BSN. That doesn't mean you need a BSN. Just that the 2 are not equivalent.

A BSN may be required in your area for public health, community health, school nursing and management positions...or not.

As a career change nurse with a prior BS, I kicked the tires on the options (fewer in 1987) and went the accelerated BSN route. I've known many ADNs who thought their "BA in Health Arts" would get them over the BSN requirement. Nope. It was cheaper in terms of opportunity cost for me to go to an accelerated BSN program at the time. However, my 8K program in 1987 now costs 50K. Today? I'd have gone ADN. In terms of bedside practice, no one really seems to care.

[rn2bnwi, BSN, RN]

I think its well worth seeking an accelerated program. Im in the oshkosh accelerated program. I was also on the matc wait list and it is long. And adn + a bachelor is not looked at the same and the way it is looking ... acute care settings are leaning towards hiring more and more BSN's Good Luck!

as others said uw is hard to get in to but I have heard of people that were not accepted to uw-osh accel but were accepted to Uw madison and vice versa..... so It really depends to what their looking for.