CNA to ADN/RN?

AJJKRN · Nov 8, 2015

You might be surprised that Nursing programs can require an applicant to have their CNA and maybe CNA work experience to be required for eligibility into their nursing program. They also often require passing grades on entrance tests such as the TEAS and I think the HESI exam.

That being said, I don't really know of any nursing school that has a CNA to RN (Associates, Bachelors, etc). Now there are plenty of bridge programs once you become a nurse. LPN to ADN/ASN, LPN to BSN, ADN/ASN to BSN, ADN/ASN/BSN to Masters, and it goes on and on!

Your best bet is to look at the curriculum's of the different schools in your surrounding area and see what is required. You will have to be enrolled into the school of your choice and probably be taking general education courses with good grades before a program will even look at you.

I don't know of anywhere where you just apply to college, apply to a nursing program, and just start the program right out of the starting gates. If you find a place like that, I doubt it's a decent program! Hopefully others will post with their advice and experiences to give you a more well-rounded opinion.

kalycat, BSN, RN · Nov 8, 2015

So, there might be a bit of confusion about a "training hospital". Teaching hospitals have traditionally been facilities that have medical residency programs - they accept new doctors who have just graduated in to their residency training programs or medical students who are still pre-grad. Now, many of these teaching hospitals also have nurse residencies, PA students, nursing students, etc. BUT that is all coordinated by the educational program the person is attending. I went to a 4 year University for nursing school that was affiliated with a teaching hospital. That's where I did my clinicals. But, it wasn't the hospital who was training me as an employee, they simply welcomed that program's students to their units. Same for other medical specialties. Teaching hospitals can be desirable because they're set up to have folks who are new to their chosen profession on site and learning; they have policies and opportunities that may not be available at a local community hospital that simply has a relationship with a nursing school and therefore allows its students on site for clinical practice.

There used to be nursing programs affiliated with hospitals that led to a nursing diploma. These were excellent, heavily clinically focused, and very intensive. Sadly, many of these programs have fallen by the wayside in favor of associate degree and bachelor degree nursing programs. (BSN). From what I understand there are only a couple of diploma schools still in operation, and they're on the east coast. In short, there is no way to become an RN other than through an accredited ADN or BSN program, unless you find one of the few remaining diploma schools. There is no on-the-job training route to licensure.

To try to answer your other question: having a CNA certificate is often a valuable asset when applying to nursing school in that you have preparation and experience in caring for and communicating with patients. It is not always a requirement, however, and the first semester of nursing school covers most of what is taught in a CNA class (and much more). There are no direct "bridge" programs exactly. Most programs that are for initial nursing licensure, whether RN or LPN are open to application by any student who has completed the pre-requisite courses and who has the required GPA. Many BSN programs now have CNA as a requirement for entry, but many don't. They're open to any student regardless of patient care experience who has taken their required pre-req classes and meets their other requirements. Also, there is little if any transfer of academic credit from a CNA class to a nursing program. It's not that the information you gain isn't valuable, it's just that from a credit transferring standpoint, you aren't further ahead by entering nursing school already having a CNA cert.

You can most certainly attend a different school for nursing than the one where you're taking your CNA class. Many people do this. Due to the highly competitive nature of entering nursing school, it is often necessary to apply to several different programs before you're accepted.

A couple of words of advice:

Thoroughly research any nursing program. Assess their accreditation, NCLEX pass rates, the quality and number of hours of clinical practice, their SIM lab capabilities, and their reputation in the community. This is critical. A good program can really help ease the transition to practicing nurse. The a look around AN and check out some of the horror stories from current students and new grads.

Secondly, there is a community wide shift being made where many hospitals are trying to attain Magnet Status. One part of being Magnet is to have the vast majority of RNs hold a BSN or higher. While it is possible to get an ADN and bridge to BSN right after, some people (depends on area of the country) have a very difficult time getting a job in a hospital without a BSN.

Overall, the nursing market for new graduate nurses in many areas of the country is very poor because there is a tremendous glut of new nurses entering the workforce every quarter or so. This has been made worse by some of the poor quality, non-accredited, for profit diploma mill schools out there that promise online classes. Avoid these like the plague. Again, do your research! Start with your local community college and local public 4 year University and go from there. Many nursing advisers are very open to meeting with prospective students and offering them detailed guidance on how to reach their educational goals.

Good luck!

applesxoranges, BSN, RN · Nov 17, 2015

A lot of schools require students to have their CNA cert before application. My program implemented it the semester after I entered because they did not have the time to teach the basics of bed making or bed baths. I am horrible at those.