Direct Entry MSN or Accelerated BSN

[RockLee]

Hey Everyone, I've seen a couple of threads addressing this questions as well, however, I couldn't find the answer I was quite looking for. I am currently a senior in college and will be graduating next year June 2011. I have been looking into programs and speaking with friends concerning which is the most efficient route to take in order to to become an RN and gaining experience before jumping into a NP program or perhaps even a CRNA program. It seems that applying to a NP program or a CRNA program both require some experience and at least a BSN. The accelerated BSN and Direct Entry programs also seem to have the same prerequisites and the BSN requires less time to complete. It seems like it would be efficient to just go into an Accelerated BSN program, get some experience and decide whether or not I want to go on for further schooling. Are there any benefits to jumping into a Direct entry MSN that would give me an edge over a BSN if I decide to apply to NP or CRNA programs later on down the line ? Thank you very much for your time.

[l0k33_RN]

The Entry-level MSN programs offer you the advantage of possessing, well, a Master's. However, they are longer than the ABSN programs. If you intend to go on to CRNA, then you will need a minimum of 1 year of ICU experience. CRNA is a separate Master's as well.

My feeling is, given your goals, ABSN>EMSN, purely in terms of time invested and how soon you will be able to get out there and start nursing - to even see if CRNA or NP is where your passion lies.

[RockLee]

Thank you very much for your quick reply Kurt. I definitely agree with your advice, my main goal is to get my feet wet before deciding on my next move. The ABSN seems like the most efficient route to getting experience needed to help with that decision.