BSN to Med School??

EmilyCCRN · Apr 3, 2006

If you want to be a physician, why would you get your BSN? :confused:

HomeofLove4Him · Apr 3, 2006

If you want to be a physician, why would you get your BSN?

Good question, one that I get asked all the time

Two main reasons:

1) I need a bachelor's *anyway* in order to get into Med School.

2) Nursing is such a flexible career, it would be perfect (hours worked) for me, since I have a family and will need to work while going to school.

I do not have the ability to just enroll in the local university and finish my Bachelor's I was working on. Mostly, because I have a family to care for and for us it just would not work. A BSN can be gotten online. As can some other Bachelor's degrees... I know. And I have thought about finishing up my Bachelor's I was working on, and then doing a Bachelors to BSN program....BUT again I still need those science classes. Always comes back to that. LOL

Guitar_Heroine · Apr 3, 2006

Before realizing I wanted to be a nurse, I actually looked into attending med school and completed some of the prereqs, which were way different from nursing prereqs. Most med programs wanted a year of gen chem, year of organic, year of physics, year of bio. While my nursing program had it's own track of chem classes that were shorter in length and focused on nursing issues, plus A&P and others. While you might get a nursing school to accept premed classes, I don't think it will work the other way around. Especially without lab experience. But then I have limited knowledge of programs, probably depends where you're going.

suzanne4, RN · Apr 3, 2006

The science classes that are required for the BSN are in a different track that is required for medical school. You will definitely have to do the other set. If that is your goal, I suggest that you go the route of a school where you can take the other track.

If you go the BSN on-line, it is still going to take you about two years to get the pre-reqs done that you will need for med school. They require traditional lab courses, such as Organic Chemistry, Comparative Vertrbrate Anatomy, Physics with the lab, the two semester or three quarter series.

A year of general chemistry, more than one year of biology courses.

Doesn't make any sense to me to do it the way that you want to. It will not help you one bit. How are you going to be able to complete a med school program?

naggytabby, BSN, RN · Apr 3, 2006

i would suggest contacting MCAS and getting their book of medical schools- it lists all their prereqs. Requirements of medical schools vary.

NaomieRN · Apr 3, 2006

What you should is call a university and find out what you really need for medical school.

HomeofLove4Him · Apr 3, 2006

Suzanne, from what I am learning and researching, you are right. It really seems to be go one route, or go the other. I *could* do it the way I originally planned, but it seems to be kinda a waste of time. It would literally be like getting a Bachelor's in one field and wanting a Master's in a totally different field. It can be done... but then one would have to back waaaaaay up and work on the Bachelor's in the field in which they desire the Master's. So really, again, a waste of time (though I don't want to say that any learning is a waste of time... but you kwim). I did not realize all of this until I started posting to this and another health-related forum. I know that's what the forums are for tho--I get to post my idea, and ask for feedback, and people say "Wait--what?? That's crazy!" and then I learn what I should be doing instead. :lol2:

Oh, and I have been browsing some med schools and looking at the requirements. What I HADNT done yet (stupid me) was look at the req for the BSN. If I had done that, my answer might have stared me in the face before now.

Well I am in an LPN program now, because that was what I had decided to do. I love my program, I love the schooling, and learning. I'm one of those geeky types that just loves always having something to do, something academically challenging, and so that's why I enjoy it. I am doing this because right now (today really) my family needs me to do something to make decent money, and when I'm finished w/this program in a year, I will be in a position to do so (part time,fulltime, whatever.) Meanwhile, probably when I finish this program I will go BACK to the University and finish my Bachelor's (I'm about 30-roughly-credit hrs away from completing my Bachelor's I believe...I need to contact FSU and get more details on that) I guess I could finish them up by changing my major to one geared toward science (as opposed to social science, which is what it was). I will have to ponder that a bit more. Thanks so very much for your replies ladies! :)

suzanne4, RN · Apr 3, 2006

If you decide to go the route of the BSN, if you do it in a traditional program, then you can take the more advanced science classes, and the nurisng schools will usually accpet them, but the med schools will not accept the sciences that are on the list for the nursing schools.

I took all of my sciences in the more advanced route, and it never hurt me one bit, only helped. It will give you more options, if you decide to change later on. The more traditional programs will also be much less money for you, and your employer will usually foot the cost of it.

marilynmom, LPN, NP · Apr 3, 2006

It really depends on the school. All the science classes I took for my BSN program were the same ones that the pre-meds, pre-pharm, etc were taking. I plan to go on to PA school eventually (have you thought about PA or NP?) so that was something I needed to know about.

Good luck! Check out Physicians Assistant and Nurse Practitioner careers as well. Some states (like here in Oklahoma) PA's rule, in other states NP's rule.

But your right, a BSN is a very flexible degree.

ree-nee · Apr 4, 2006

Has anyone done this, or does anyone have any ideas for doing this? I guess my biggest question is...most Med Schools I have researched want your sciences to be taken with the *lab*...and yet, part of my plans for that BSN one day would include getting the classes online. For instance, if I took the exams thru Excelsior in the science classes, managed to get licensed and managed to eventually get my BSN, would I have to take them all over if I wanted to get into med school??? Does anyone have any ideas/suggestions/career plan? Thanks so much!! :)

I think its a good idea. So many people on this board talk about getting licensed as an aide to help later in a nursing career or as a stepping stone to it or volunteering to get healthcare experience. The whole point being that you would gain valuable hands on experience to add to your career. Then as soon as someone says that they think they might like to use their BSN to lead into Med School people immediately say this:

If you want to be a physician, why would you get your BSN?

..and im not pickin on this person but...

why is that people accuse you of having stepped over to "the other team" and switched "sides"? Why should it be an either-or situation? Most nurses gripe about how arrogant and uneducated doctors are to the world of nursing, so wouldnt this be a solution? Wouldnt a doctor who has an excellent background in nursing with a great medical mind be what any patient wants? I dont see it as picking sides, I think you should look it as to educational backgrounds that compliment each other very well. It is no different than a person going to a police academy then being a cop and enforcing the law and later going on to law school to later defend the law. They work well together....

HomeofLove4Him I think one option would be to become an RN, and after graduating and while working finish pre-reqs for Med School (and start payin of school debt accumulated if you any). Cuz ur right-you have to have a bachelor's to get ino 90% of Med Schools and they dont care what kind of degree it is as long as you finish the required courses along side it. I say why not. :)

NephroBSN, BSN, RN · Apr 4, 2006

I think its a good idea. So many people on this board talk about getting licensed as an aide to help later in a nursing career or as a stepping stone to it or volunteering to get healthcare experience. The whole point being that you would gain valuable hands on experience to add to your career. Then as soon as someone says that they think they might like to use their BSN to lead into Med School people immediately say this:
..and im not pickin on this person but...
why is that people accuse you of having stepped over to "the other team" and switched "sides"? Why should it be an either-or situation? Most nurses gripe about how arrogant and uneducated doctors are to the world of nursing, so wouldnt this be a solution? Wouldnt a doctor who has an excellent background in nursing with a great medical mind be what any patient wants? I dont see it as picking sides, I think you should look it as to educational backgrounds that compliment each other very well. It is no different than a person going to a police academy then being a cop and enforcing the law and later going on to law school to later defend the law. They work well together....
HomeofLove4Him I think one option would be to become an RN, and after graduating and while working finish pre-reqs for Med School (and start payin of school debt accumulated if you any). Cuz ur right-you have to have a bachelor's to get ino 90% of Med Schools and they dont care what kind of degree it is as long as you finish the required courses along side it. I say why not. :)

I've known several RN"s who've gone to Medical School.

Maybe they didn't think they could hack med school at first or didn't know if they liked healthcare at all . Maybe it was a $$$ issue. I don't know.

And I don't know what other courses they had to take to get into Med School. I guess the best advise is to ask the med school you are interested in.