CNA to LVN TO RN

Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN · Jun 15, 2012

Welcome to AN! The largest online nursing community.

Anything worth having is worth working for........nursing is a lot of math, spelling and science. You may have your challenges but if this is something you truly want you can succeed. I would check into math tutors at your school or think about taking an Algebra course.

I wish you the very best on your nursing journey.

student forever · Jun 15, 2012

Intense desire and dedication will overcome much lack of talent. The talented ones to whom math, science and spelling come easy may not end up being 1/10th the nurse you will one day be. It is OK to study many hours more than everyone else! I too know that feeling! Best wishes to you.

Maryea · Jun 15, 2012

I have 4 hours left of my CNA class, yea!! All the while taking classes that will allow me to apply for the nursing program at our local community college. I have always been terrible with math, even failed math 1 in high school and had to take math 1a, then math 2a. Never wanted to look at another number in my life after that :) I took my entrance exam at school and missed math 40 by 2 points. The advisors told me to go home and practice and come back and try again, however, I am so bad in math I had no idea what to practice. I deceided to just start at the bottom in Math 20 and work my way up. I am so glad I did. I made a B in that class...yay again!!! That was enough to build my confidence just a bit so I feel ready to take the Math 40 class. I was not encouraged to take science classes by my family when in high school. I took just what I had to. I could either take Biology or Chemistry this summer so I opted for Biology. To me biology should be cells, living things like plants and animals, etc. NOT. This biology class is chemistry without the lab, yikes!! It is a lot of math, but it is the math we had in Math 20. I'm okay with that.

I say all of that to say....you can do this is you want it bad enough. I am 53 years old next week. I have always wanted to be a nurse and would have been by now had I had any encouragement. If you have problems with math and spelling, go to the labs that are offered through your school. They want you to succeed and provide all kinds of free help. Take it!! You may have a bit of a struggle and you may have to sacrifice, but if you are will to give up your free time to obtain this goal you have set for yourself...you will be greatly rewarded.

Good luck to you. With your passion I know you will succeed!! Go for it!

Twinkle007, LVN, RN · Jun 16, 2012

hi , I am taking currently my CNA class , my goal is to be NP which is a long route but possible. I love science and thats one of the reasons why I chose to go into nursing. My spelling is not fantastic either , but I am ESL student so hopefully will brush up my language skills.

All the best

jval · Jun 19, 2012

Hi Kimberlin! I'm also in Fresno. I'm doing a 33 day CNA course at Golden Living. The great thing is they hire you afterwards! Like you, I also want to do CNA ---> LVN ---> RN.

I went to FCC for a little over 3 years to complete my prereqs. No joke. I thought I was there for a long time but as I continued through the prereqs, I met TONS of others that were also on their 3rd or even 4th year! For an Associates, let me remind you.

I have been in the RN lottery at FCC twice, the third time will be this Fall. My mistake was taking GE along with prereqs. I recommend completing all prereqs, applying for the program, then starting your GE to save time. I've never had a break all 3 years; spring, summer and fall since '09. After applying for the program I started my transfer requirements and have finally completed it just in time for the enrollment freeze at Fresno State. I got my acceptance letter in April and I'll start at State this Fall. I'm so excited.

So, down to the nitty gritty:

LVN, like you were talking about is a 1-2 year program here. Which is pretty insane. You could do all that and become an LVN and do the bridge at FCC. I'm pretty sure it's easier to get into the program being an LVN. The bridge is only 30 units, I believe.

For you, this would be GREAT. For me, there's not really any hope in becoming an LVN that I have found. It doesn't make any sense whatsoever for me to have an Associates from city (I had met grad reqs already) and get an Associates somewhere else for LVN while I'm a junior at State. :uhoh3:

Also, the great news is that once you get your ASN from FCC, it is way more likely you can get into the Bachelors prog at State. I asked the admin and she confirmed.

So, LVN increases FCC chances, and RN increases State chances.

Follow your dreams! I'm 26 and barely becoming a CNA. You gotta start somewhere!

Goodluck with your program!

RmCU_nA · Jul 3, 2012

we are all the same Im planning CNA exam since CNA dep say I do not need further formal training since I have a bachelor degree and completed fundamentals of nursing(equivalency)...my story is I wasnt eligible to take the NCLEX RN here in CA..I am a BSN from PHIL..yeah concurrency issue.....need/want income!!!

mintygirl · Jul 12, 2012

I am doing an CNA Program at fresno adult school that is about 2 months then I plan on getting into the lvn in program which is about 53 weeks then I want to transfer to fresno city and do my general ed there and then apply for the lvn to rn program which is 1 year.... I am so passionate about becoming an rn's I just know its the right career for me I love people so much and I the idea of helping someone through a hard time in their life when there hurt and I can fix them up I know it will satisfy me for the rest of my life but I'm really bad at math and spelling and I hate science. I started my medical terminology class online about 3 days ago and I've seriously been on the computer nonstop everyday for hours at a time trying to learn the terms... When I see nurses I see myself in the future I want to so badly but at times I doubt myself:/

It's good that you are passionate about wanting to become an RN in the long-run, as you are going to need that time and again when you find yourself taking pre-reqs that sort of diminish the idea of nursing. Fortunately though they only expect college-level math for RN as well as English. As far as the science classes go, I'd recommend taking those back-to-back so that you don't struggle with it if you take them out of sync (ie. fall x fall )