CNA to ADN and CLEP

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Hello all,

This is my very first post. I am a senior in an online business program. I want to go into nursing as a backup. I have a family member who advised me to take a three week course at a local hospital to get my CNA license, and work there for a minimum of three weeks prior to venturing out into private care.

My question is- Will the possession of a CNA license and a few weeks of private in-home care allow me to gain any transfer credit towards an ADN? I ask because there are no prerequisite courses available at my local community college; and perhaps I may not need a course or two if i would actually gain CLEP or some sort of transferable unit credits as a licensed CNA. I want to get my ADN asap.

-SS

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No, having your CNA and working as one will not give you any CLEP credits towards ADN classes. Having your CNA and working as one gives you several advantages, but that is not one of them. Some programs may require that you have been working as one, or some programs work on a points system for admissions and give you points for having your CNA as my program did. Beyond that, having your CNA gives you a foundation of nursing skills to build on. Heck, one of my best friends wanted to be a nurse and decided in the middle of the CNA course, just kidding, I can't deal with bodily fluids.

As an aside, how asap are you expecting to get into an ADN program? Have you looked into the programs into your area to see how they do admissions and if there are waiting lists and the like?

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Hello,

I appreciate the response. To answer your questions- I am looking to get in to an ADN as soon as possible but I have a few constraints such as- I am currently between the Philippines and Thailand, have limited financial resources, would like to CLEP/Exam out of as many prerequisites and introductory courses as possible by getting proctored at a University in one of these two countries and completing as many courses as possible online; then come home to the U.S. to do the remaining mandatory [in class courses/labs] that require it.

I notice that the Community College that I am looking at is Golden West Community College in California. I already have three non-nursing associate degrees form a sister school. Of course they do have waiting lists, classes fill quickly, must apply in advance, be accepted, have priority sequencing depending on a number of factors- everyone wants to be a nurse etc.

I am trying to time the graduation of my B.S.B.A. and A.D.N. as close as possible for financial reasons- and so that I can immediately chip away at my student loans.

I appreciate any advice or guidance.

-SS

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Ortho, ASC.

Going into nursing as a "back-up" is a little unusual. Have you fully researched the field of nursing? The stress of nursing school? The demand, or lack thereof, for nurses in your area? Nursing school requires a full- time commitment. Of course some manage to work during school but there will be entire semesters where it is nearly impossible to work.

And no, CNA has nothing to do with licensed nursing, except in the sense that CNAs perform some of the more physical tasks that nurses also perform. Education-wise, there is no correlation.

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The state of the economy and the probability of meaningful employment at graduation with a B.S.B.A. place me in a position to have a backup plan and nursing is it. I understand that nursing is no cakewalk and deserves my full attention. I do not plan to work while taking any courses. I am still single so I can get up and work anywhere in the country. A close family member is a CNA in New England and has established relationships, and makes $17 in hospital per diem but mostly does private care at $25 and $30 as a CNA. So I would likely be in her same area or another well paying area, not states that are notorious for low wages in the field.

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.

This thread has been moved to our Pre-Nursing forum for more replies.

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Specializes in mental health / psychiatic nursing.

While a CNA certificate could prove valuable in helping gain admission to a nursing program (some require it or give you extra points) it will not provide transfer credit or CLEP ability. Nor will a "few weeks" of work experience be seen as valuable. Most programs - if they give credit for work experience - are looking for hundreds to thousands of hours experience, not just a couple of weeks. Also hospitals typically do not hire inexperienced workers - frequently they are looking for 6months to a year+ of experience in CNAs they hire. Your first job is much more likely to be in assisted living, skilled nursing, or home-health.

What do you mean there are no pre-reqs at your local community college? Pre-req course work tends to be classes like English, Math, Intro to Bio, Intro to Chem, etc. which are pre-reqs to a large number of programs and are the general education requirements that are nearly ubiquitous at community colleges. If you are graduating with an accredited degree any nearly any field it is likely that you have some (though probably not all) of the pre-reqs completed.

How much research have you actually done into nursing programs in your area and what it takes to get into them?

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I'm confused too with the back up thing. If nursing isn't your first choice, you're probably going to hate your life as one. I don't care how the job security is or isn't or what the pay is. I see nurses who HATE their job at work. They're miserable and let everyone know it because they can't even hide it, it's that bad.

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Specializes in Complex pedi to LTC/SA & now a manager.

CNA is not a collegiate course. There is no CLEP credit for experience. All CLEP credits are for passing a challenge exam equivalent to taking a final exam for the equivalent college level class.

$25-$30/hr is an expectation for a new grad RN or experienced LPN especially in home care. Most reputable home care agencies require 1+ years of facility experience before consideration.

$17/hr per diem as an experienced hospital CNA is not unheard of in major metropolitan areas as you don't get benefits

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Ortho, ASC.
The state of the economy and the probability of meaningful employment at graduation with a B.S.B.A. place me in a position to have a backup plan and nursing is it. I understand that nursing is no cakewalk and deserves my full attention. I do not plan to work while taking any courses. I am still single so I can get up and work anywhere in the country. A close family member is a CNA in New England and has established relationships, and makes $17 in hospital per diem but mostly does private care at $25 and $30 as a CNA. So I would likely be in her same area or another well paying area, not states that are notorious for low wages in the field.

This confuses me even more. You continue to refer back to CNA experience, pay rates, etc. Yet that is unconnected to your stated goal: licensed nurse. Which are you actually considering?

To be honest, looking to CNA as a "back-up" makes a whole lot more sense than nursing.

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CNA is not a collegiate course. There is no CLEP credit for experience. All CLEP credits are for passing a challenge exam equivalent to taking a final exam for the equivalent college level class.

$25-$30/hr is an expectation for a new grad RN or experienced LPN especially in home care. Most reputable home care agencies require 1+ years of facility experience before consideration.

$17/hr per diem as an experienced hospital CNA is not unheard of in major metropolitan areas as you don't get benefits

Thanks for your input, I mostly wondered about how to go about getting credit for examination on as many courses as possible.

As far as the hourly wages go, I was just mentioning it, I am not looking for advice on it as I mentioned, a 'very' close family member is making what I quoted as a CNA only.

-SS

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I am sorry that you are continually confused- that is not a good state of mind to be in. I only mentioned CNA experience/completion of initial training with regard to wondering if that may allow me to CLEP out of any courses towards an ASN degree.

As far as pay rates, I was not asking a question about them, simply making a statement. So I am not looking for any advice about pay rates. I know what they are, they are available on the internet, furthermore, a very close family is a CNA in a part of New England that I won't mention and is making what I quoted as a lowly CNA. I knew this might cause a ripple for a number of potential reasons- I should not have discussed money as it is a very sensitive topic for a litany of potential reasons.

I think I will start as a CNA, do the three weeks of training to get the licensure or certification, work for a month or two, then stop, and work towards the LPN in school. Then ASN etc. I will just go one step at a time up the hierarchy ladder.

As far as what level off nursing makes sense for a backup, that depends on a lot of different personal factors that is therefore different for any individual. A CNA as a backup might apply to some, an LPN to another, and so on etc. To each his/her own- we all have our reasons and personal preferences.

I have read the horror stories of how hard CNA's (assistants) work and how RN's (nurses) treat CNA's, not all- and will not stop at the CNA level for a "backup." I do want personally know how a CNA really works, with their special challenges. But I would want to get away from the manual labor that is expected of CNA's as soon as possible.

-SS

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