Can a BSN student become a LPN?

Daytonite, BSN, RN · Nov 27, 2007

Gauge. . .this question comes up periodically. In order to sit and take the NCLEX-PN your state board of nursing must allow it. The best thing for you to do is to go to the website of your state board of nursing and pull up the application to take the NCLEX-PN and read the instructions to fill it out. What you are wanting to do is to qualify to take the NCLEX-PN by educational equivalency. Most states allow some form of this, but they have specific rules you have to follow to do this. It usually requires some sort of letter from the dean of your nursing school that details the coursework you have completed because the state board has to evaluate whether or not your coursework has met the equivalent requirements of LVN education.

However, there are a few things I would like to point out to you. Working as a new "graduate" LPN is no picnic. It is just as difficult and stressful as working as a graduate RN. Handling a job as a new LPN and being a student RN is going to be very, very stressful. I wouldn't recommend it. Also, LPNs don't have the delegation ability or the judgment authority that RNs do so you are not really going to be getting much of a chance to practice what you are learning as an RN. You will be expected to perform a job, not learn RN things on the job. If you search this forum I'm sure you'll find the older posts on this subject. Some schools allow their students to do this, but many will not give their students the letters to take the LPN exam. The educational equivalency was basically set up for people who fail the NCLEX-RN multiple times, who drop out of RN school close to the end of the program, for foreign trained nurses who can produce school records that meet U.S. requirements, and for military trained corpsman and women who have been discharged and want to continue practicing as civilians.

Finally, I was a nurse manager and had experience with several people who had done this. I wouldn't hire you and neither would our director of nursing approve it. You would most likely end up working in a nursing home that will hire any warm body if they are short of help where you would work your butt off. Want to know why? Because people who do this are doing it for the money and aren't interested in becoming the best LPN they can be. Their focus was on the money they were making and their RN studies. They were less than satisfactory as LPNs.

Gauge · Nov 27, 2007

Thank you for the information. I agree with you in the sense that I would primarily be doing it for money and to keep my clinical knowledge current. I would only do it during the summer (when I have time to concentrate on working). The main reason I am wanting to do this is because my wife and I just barely scrape by now, I make a measly $6 an hour working at the university were I goto school. I'm not saying it is a good reason to want to do this, but my family needs some additional income.

As being only able to work during the summer with my LPN I would probably work at a nursing home. I know it is a lot of work and all, but you have to do what you have to do. I think that by only working during the summer I would just get to focus on being an LPN. It would be great to get some extra clinical experience in, the nursing home we went to for class we didn't really get to do a lot of nursing stuff other than chart and pass meds once. Thank you all again.

Daytonite, BSN, RN · Nov 27, 2007

Gauge. . .I started my RN career working in nursing homes and ended it working in nursing homes after many years of working as a hospital nurse. You may not have a clear picture of what LTC nursing is like. It is much more than passing meds, doing treatments and charting. What you didn't see as a student was the monthly summaries, the monthly change over of med and treatment sheets that must be reconciled with previous month as well as any new orders written and compliance with state and federal regulations including keeping care plans up to date. We're talking about passing meds to as many as 50 patients at a time within a 2 hour period in some cases, keeping an eye on 8 or more tube feedings, and having to write up incident reports and call doctors for patients who fall (happens all the time despite being careful) and get skin tears. Follow up on every little thing that changes about a resident has to be done or you will be on the carpet, I promise. And, if you have 30 to 50 patients that you are responsible for you need to be very organized. Read some of the posts on the Geriatric and LTC Forum of allnurses to get an idea of what you would be in for. I'm not even going to mention the problems with dealing with the supervision of the CNAs. Some CNAs are worse than little children to deal with and turn a good day into a miserable one, especially when dealing with difficult people is something new to you or the Director of Nursing isn't supportive. And, then, you just might run up against some really dumb charge nurses that will drive you nuts with their stupidity--it happens in LTC all the time. It's just one of the reasons I kept going back to LTC--to help drive these dummies out of the business.

jackson145 · Nov 27, 2007

At the hospital where I work, most of our Med/Surg nurses are RN's (all specialty are RN). The LPN's are all also RN students. The hospital won't hire a LPN who isn't working hard towards the RN. Also, all the LPN's I worked with couldn't have afforded school without working. My school encourages at least becoming a CNA before starting NS so that you can have a source of income during school. Whether it's 2 years or 4 that's along time to go with no income. Not all students are kids living at home. We have 2 kids & 2 dogs. Not working through school is not an option for my husband and I. It makes it a lot tougher, but at the end we will be much better able to support our family.

Also, at the 'big' hospital north of where I live, they sent out a memo to all LPN's telling them to find a RN school to enroll in if they wanted to continue working there.

caliotter3 · Nov 27, 2007

None of my contemporaries or I took the LVN exam early because we were on a lark. We did it to earn money. My LVN jobs helped to pay for school and well as my other living expenses and those of my family. I was hired in a LTC facility because I was in a BSN program and I applied what I was learning to my job while I was a student. The one RN who did not take me seriously was herself fired for incompetence. I see nothing wrong with taking boards using the equivalency method as long as the individual is serious and practices professionally once they get their license.

Added thought: My job performance reviews as an LVN while an RN student were excellent. I received good recommendations from my supervisors.

marcy88 · Nov 29, 2007

Hey G....maybe I can help. I received my BS in Biology in 88. Got into the LPN program back home. Worked for 10y as a nurse and now this Jan I will be going through the RN program at the same school I went to years ago. You shouldnt encounter any problems except for one, thats financial aid. You might not be eligible for certain aid bc you have a BS already. However with your BS you wont have to take gen ed courses unlike your other classmates...just the core nursing classes. Less classes the better! You might want to think about going straight to the RN program and skip LPN (thats just this nurses opinion).

Good Luck!

futurecnm · Nov 29, 2007

Hey everyone, I have a quick question: Can a BSN student take the LPN test after the first year of nursing classes and work as a LPN? I have seen multiple posts from members who say they are going to do this, but I have never found any information on it and my instructors have never heard of it either. Each time I ask in the thread for information I never get a response. Could someone please enlighten me? It would be great to work making some decent money this coming summer after my first year of nursing school. Thank you for your time.

Sounds like a lot of work and time to work for, what, 12 weeks over the summer? Plus, I am guessing the test costs quite a bit to take also. I would think it would be better to just try to get an aide job, or a summer nurse intern job for the summer. Have you had clinical experience in school yet? Have you passed meds etc? Plus, you would probably have to study for the test also, which is time and time is money. If you are going for your RN, I'd pass on the LPN test. The increase in pay would be offset by all the time and money you'd put into taking the test.

Gauge · Nov 29, 2007

I am currently in a BSN program already, so that isn't a problem for me.

I have completed my first semester of clinicals at a nursing home and we passed meds once and did total patient care the rest of the time. Next semester we go to the hospital and do meds every week. You are right about it being a lot of time studying for the test. I am just looking for viable options that can pay more than $6 an hour over the summer and also being able to keep up with my skills. I live in a relatively small town other than the college (10k people including college students) and there aren't any hospitals that allow externs that I know of within an hours drive.