curious BSN OR ADN why?

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i am wondering what was the deciding factor in doing the bsn or adn. i keep going back and forth mainly because i have little ones and think if do bsn then they will be in school also so they won't have to go to daycare. do you think there are any advantages to bsn other than being able to go into management? thanks for any responses.

The community colleges in my area that offer an ADN have a huuuuuuge waiting list - and they don't go by GPA. They go by what spot you are on the list and just keep admitting you like that. I heard the waiting list for those programs are AT LEAST 2 years.

I know you can get jobs with an ADN but I know a lot of places prefer a BSN instead. I also figured that if I'm going to get my BSN ANYWAY, why not just go for it now? Universities can be really expensive but there's always financial aid that you can look into.

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I'm going for a BSN because I want to be an NP...so need my MSN.

Peace,

CuriousMe

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Specializes in Ante-Intra-Postpartum, Post Gyne.

For me, I have to get my BSN regardless because I want to become a CNM. When applying I was going to go what ever route accepted me. I applied to one each, a BSN and an ASN. I got into the BSN (goes by merit) and not the ASN (uses lotto). Had I got into the ASN and not the BSN I would have gone ASN and then bridged. Had I been accepted to both and given the choice, I would have gone BSN. I don't have any kids, my husband owns his own business, we don't get own a house (try owning a house in California with only one income) yet, and my grandmother is helping me with my tuition and books. Bridging is way longer and I am not getting any younger, and I am not having kids until I complete my masters, so the quicker route to my BSN thus quicker for midwifery school the better...I am sure you will get a bunch of different reasons, all individualized, just why you need to make this decision on your own.

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Specializes in ER/Ortho.

I am in the Dallas Texas area and the CC's here do not use waiting lists. You are accepted based on a point system. Here's how it works.

GPA + Hesi A2 score + points for having completed support courses (around 15 or so) + 3 points if you applied before = Total points

I figured it up once, and most of the weight is on the Hesi A2 score, but GPA is also important. The top 40 point values are admitted, and if you don't make it you apply again the next semester.

The problem is we have 250 -300 a semester who apply, and only the top 40 get in. So 3.8's and 4.0's are a dime a dozen, and an A on hesi A2 is a given. Even if you have all of these things you still must have completed all of the support courses, and generally have applied twice so you can get that extra 3 points.

I have been told that as far as BSN programs go here it much quicker. In relation there is less of a gap between the amount of people applying and the number they let in. Most people I have spoken to got in their first time if they had the grades. You still need a great GPA, and would need to take more Core classes like history etc.

I have went the ADN route, and start the nursing program in Aug. Frankly, I think the BSN route would be less stressful (you know when you complete XYZ with good gpa you more than likely will get a spot), and actually maybe even faster.

I have two friends who started when I did to get their 4 year degrees in teaching, and horticulture, and both finished last semester.

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In my area, it's all about merit. I know in the end that I want a BSN.

However, I'm already $47K in debt from my first degree. The BSN programs in my area have accelerated 2nd degree programs that I could finish in 1 to 1 1/2 years, BUT:

The community college will cost $5,000 over 2 years because I'm taking all the corequisite courses now as prerequisites for the BSN programs.

The BSN programs are in the $30,000 range. I don't have great credit and no-one to cosign a loan, so....

I'm applying every where, but hope I get in to the cc. I can complete my BSN while I'm working and I'd be able to pay for the ADN out of pocket as I go through it.

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In my area, it's all about merit. I know in the end that I want a BSN.

However, I'm already $47K in debt from my first degree. The BSN programs in my area have accelerated 2nd degree programs that I could finish in 1 to 1 1/2 years, BUT:

The community college will cost $5,000 over 2 years because I'm taking all the corequisite courses now as prerequisites for the BSN programs.

The BSN programs are in the $30,000 range. I don't have great credit and no-one to cosign a loan, so....

I'm applying every where, but hope I get in to the cc. I can complete my BSN while I'm working and I'd be able to pay for the ADN out of pocket as I go through it.

im with you... i applied to associate degree program because i missed the deadline for the bachelors degree for the fall, but mostly because i dont want to be in debt when i graduate college. Yeah financial aid helps but but most of the money that you get from the government is loans, not free money. Although you make more money as a BSN, $20,000 in student loans translates to about $230 a month for 10 years. Salary matters, but cost of living matters more.

I applied for the ADN as a safety net. I got in the first try because my GPA is fairly high. So i didnt have to go through the waitlist like some of you had to endure. I already have an assscoiates degree in pre-nursing, so I already finished all those "darn" pre-reqs. So i figured id just graduate the ADN program, work for a year and then apply to the BSN program, and have the hospital help me pay for it. For all of you that say.. "I want to go for MSN, so ADN wont be a good choice for me", there is a such thing as RN-MSN. research is your friend and take advantage of all the information that is at your finger tips.

The most important thing, what ever you feel is the right path for you.. do that. Dont let ppl bully you into thinking that youre way is the wrong way. you will get where you need to be.:cool:

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Specializes in Emergency Department.

I'll take whatever I can get into quickest and will transfer out. I also want to be a CNM (I'm currently a midwife, not a nurse-midwife). I can do a ADN-MSN/CNM program just as easily as prereqs, BSN to MSN/CNM track. It's all about the same amount of time.

Don't forget there are a number of ADN to MSN bridges for those who want to be NPs later. The first year of the bridge is usually the missing BSN core classes.

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For my situation, there was no way that ADN would be good for me because by the time I decided that I wanted to finish school to become an RN, 1) I started off at a university and left 2 1/2 years later, making me already halfway to finish a bachelors. 2) All the community colleges in my area have a waiting list of about 2 years anyway. If I decided to wait it out for an ADN, it literally would take me the same amount of time to get a BSN. 3) I have really good prereq grades (3.8 GPA) where there should be no problem into getting into a BSN program. 4) I'm still pretty young (25 years old) with no kids which makes my time very flexible. And one of the biggest deciding factors 5) I'm planning on moving on to a graduate level nursing program within a couple years of experience, so BSN would be the quickest/cheaper route there.

I agree with the general consensus here that it depends on what works for you, what your priorities are, etc. There are many many different pathways to reach your goal, but you have to decide what is the BEST path for YOU.

This was my situation too, with an AA degree and over 100 credits from my first college experience. But there are no direct BSN programs in my area, only RN to BSN so I had no options other than ADN. So I went the ADN route and I can't imagine BSN being any harder because my school is really tough! I graduate in December and then I'll work on my RN to BSN degree. Seems unreal to me that I will have gone to school for 3 years to get my AA, 3 years for my ADN (no one can do it in 2 unless you take 16-22 credits per semester), and 2 years for my BSN. That's EIGHT YEARS to get my BSN whereas a generic BSN is 4-5 years. In the end, we will have the same BSN degree but a VERY DIFFERENT education, IMO.

All BSN degrees are not created equal!!

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Specializes in Family Practice, Primary Care.

I had a BA in sociology so I decided to do an Accelerated BSN program. There was no way I was going to wait 2 years to even get INTO an associates degree program when I would have gotten in at the earliest in fall '10. I am now going to graduate in 14 months after just starting last month. It's about $3000 a semester and well worth it since I want to get my doctorate in nursing science some day.

I hate when people, especially parents, say there is no way they'd get a BSN. I don't think saying that sends a good message to the nursing community as a whole and to their kids. I know one can be a nurse with just an associates, but that is RARE for careers and to pass that message on to children just baffles me.

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I hate when people, especially parents, say there is no way they'd get a BSN. I don't think saying that sends a good message to the nursing community as a whole and to their kids. I know one can be a nurse with just an associates, but that is RARE for careers and to pass that message on to children just baffles me.

What message? I don't understand what bad message a parent (or anyone else) sends to children or the nursing community as a whole by not obtaining a BSN. Could you explain? :stone

As someone's child, as a parent, and as a future member of the nursing community, I don't confuse academic elitism with capability or intelligence. And fortunately, my kids are smart enough not to either.

Maybe for parents who choose an ADN, what they are telling their kids is that they love them, want to be able to provide for and spend time with them AND get through school as soon as they can. That they don't want to borrow their children's college fund or retirement to fund their own education or go into debt for a BSN when they can get a ADN, faster, cheaper or more conveniently doesn't speak a bad message. It speaks of priorities. Learning to make the right choice for yourself in your own unique situation is a life lesson skill that everyone deserves, and they don't teach that in school!

As a latch key kid, I can tell you I wasn't that impressed with my mom's masters degree while I was home alone! I was proud, but believe me, I would have been just as proud had she stayed home and baked me cookies!

Personally, I don't see a bad message, but shoot, I don't have a bachelor's degree! Maybe I will get it 2011.

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Specializes in Family Practice, Primary Care.

The bad message comes when parents say directly to their children "oh, why bother with a bachelors degree? You can do the same thing with an associates."

Well, that may be true for nursing, but I'd LOVE to see someone get as far in say, social work, with just an AA in it. Or engineering. Etc.

I am a first generation college kid, and even my mom told me not to get an associates because my aunt had one and her career went nowhere. THAT is where the problem is. I thought that was an easy inference to make from my post.

As far as the nursing community...well, higher education never hurt anybody! I find the way I am being taught to think in my BSN program is already remarkably different from what I've heard similar ADN nurses speak of.

Then again, I also found my sociology classes 10x more challenging than nursing classes. And my nursing classes are all accelerated.

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The bad message comes when parents say directly to their children "oh, why bother with a bachelors degree? You can do the same thing with an associates."

Well, that may be true for nursing, but I'd LOVE to see someone get as far in say, social work, with just an AA in it. Or engineering. Etc.

Oh well, I guess I still don't get it. Why would someone bother with a bachelors degree if they can do the same thing with an associates?

IT IS TRUE for nursing. That is what those parents are choosing! Nursing. That is what we are talking about. The parents who want to go on and be an engineer or an MSW have a different path and it doesn't apply here. Further, if their kids want to be have an occupation that has different academic requirements, then they will have to face that, but I doubt the ADN in their parent's past will confuse them or cause them to give up a dream.

I think there is plenty of room for people to pick their path while not doing a disservice to their kids, by getting a lesser degree, for goodness sake. If that was the biggest flub up of most people parenting, I would do a happy dance for humanity and they would deserve a parent of the year award!! Parent themselves are the best judge of what is best for their families. Most are picking ADN over BSN as a benefit to their children! If the ADN didn't do the trick, there wouldn't be any!

Besides, I am still unclear how I am getting any better of a nursing education by getting a BSN. A longer (and somewhat incidental) education, yes. I think most of the nuts and bolts of the actual nursing programs are the same.

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