7 years to become an RN in California

Nurses General Nursing

Published

I am a licensed LVN in California with only a few month of experience

in infant recovery care.

I recently inquired with various CA junior colleges who offer an LVN

to RN "advanced placement program".

The requirements are always the same:

To just apply for the 2 semester program, they require an LVN license,

completion of 5 unit classes in Microbiology, Physiology, and Anatomy.

Then there is a 2 to 3 year waiting list. Then you can finally do the

full time 2 semester program, then you have to do your RN board exam.

It is very difficult to do more than one class at a time for the 3

required classes in Microbiology, Physiology and Anatomy, given that

they all have extensive lab and homework requirements. So that

represents 3 semesters of studies.

3 semesters of studies, then 2 to 3 years of waiting, then 2 semesters

in the program, that is a total of 4 years of time to just go from

LVN to RN.

If I count the time required from the High School degree to the RN

degree, I come up with 6 to 7 years of study to get just a

AA degree in nursing and an RN license.

If you don't go through the LVN step, the waiting time to get into

the full 4 semester RN program is a solid 3 years usually, so it is

still 6 to 7 years of study.

If one goes to a State college, one can get a Bachelor's degree

in Nursing and an RN license in just 4, maybe 5 years.

So why would anybody choose the junior college path?

Did I miss something?

Happyanne

Specializes in PICU, Nurse Educator, Clinical Research.

I also had the money for tuition issue- thousands to get a BSN, free for my ADN, as it was job training, and I was laid off from the tech sector.

Until more BSN programs (and financial aid for said programs) become easier to do when you're a working adult, nurses will continue to go this route en mass.

I calculated the time it would take for me to get a BSN vs. getting an ADN, then MSN through a bridge program- the MSN route was actually faster.

And now I have an employer that will pay my tuition and expenses in full for the MSN, so the whole kit and kaboodle will be free.

First of all......why would anyone get an ADN instead of a BSN? Seriously. By the time you get all your pre-reqs and general education requirements out of the way, you have most likely spent four years in school. Four years at school in any other program gets you a Bachelor's degree. For a few more theory classes you get increased job opportunites, hirability, and advancement opportunities. Plus, I really do believe that nursing theory has a vital place in nursing education and that ADN prepared nurses may miss out on it (not that you can't get it elsewhere, but when do you have the time if not in school).

I'm also an advocate for education as a method to increase the status of our profession. I think we would be taken more seriously if a Bachelor degree was the minimum requirement. Just my two cents though.

As for paying for school and getting in. I applied to 5 schools and got into three on my first try. The more you apply to, the better your odds. If you are financially needy there is money available for nursing students pursuing all levels of education. Particularly if you are willing to commit to working for two years in a medically underserved area (which is almost everywhere I found).

My pre-reqs took 2 years, but I already had a BA. I'm now in a Master's Entry program that I just LOVE. The quality of the education is phenomenal! But I really respect Junior Colleges as well. The JC where I got my pre-reqs prepared me very well for pathophysiology and pharmacology.

Good luck, and go for that BSN (you deserve it).

Specializes in Pediatrics.

To the original poster, if you want to do it cheaply, take the prereqs over 3 semesters at night, apply to the programs, then take all the other courses while you continue to work and wait on the list (speech, lifespan development, math, pharmacology, dosage calculations, English, American Cultures, etc.). Then do the last 2 semesters of the RN program.

BSN is the way to go if you can, but not everyone can. It means going to school full-time for 4 (sometimes 5) years, not 2. If you do not have a bachelor's degree in something else yet, I'd look into it, as those "opportunity costs" someone mentioned (i.e., the differential between your LVN earnings and your future RN earnings) may make an extra couple years of full-time school worthwhile.

For many of us second career RNs, though, the cheap, slow ADN track is just right. I didn't waste my waiting list years, I worked and had babies. I have a bachelor's degree and cannot get anything but loans as financial aid, and nowhere near the amounts I need. At least at a CC I get a fee waiver and a small loan, and I can work to make ends meet. I wouldn't be able to do that in an accelerated BSN or direct entry MSN. My goal is to become an RN, start working, then start on my BSN through work/online after 1 year of working full-time. I really like nursing, and I want to get into the field as quickly as possible. The MSN can wait until my 6 kids are at least in high school...

I live in Los Angeles and its not true here. If you have your LVN license and have completed the prerequisites you can enter the 3rd semester of the RN program with no wait. The two to three year waiting list applies to first semester RN students. By the time the third semester comes around many RN students have flunked out. This leaves openings for LVN's to join. There are also some community colleges in Los Angeles without waiting lists for the RN programs.

Specializes in LTC, med-surg, critial care.

I got into the RN program one year after graduating from LVN school. I graduated May 2005, took microbiology, took a semester off to get some money together and started the RN program August 2006.

And for those that wonder why anyone would take the ADN path rather than the BSN route. I was broke, divorced, my mother couldn't help me because she only works four hours a day so she can care for my grandmother and the closest University is over an hour away. Simply put, I had bills to pay (financial aid may pay for school and on-campus living but isn't paying for my grandmothers medication, my truck payment and health insurance), family to take care who have no one else to depend on and I was on a short time frame.

Specializes in Accepted...Master's Entry Program, 2008!.
First of all......why would anyone get an ADN instead of a BSN? .....

Because, as already stated, many of us have financial or family commitments that we cannot get out of. I'm also divorced, I've got car payments, outstanding loans. Getting a BSN is starting to look REALLY difficult. I simply can no longer afford to "not work" for 4 years.

for those with a BA/BS in another field, you don't get financial aid when you go back to school afterwards unless it's for grad school & i can't afford to pay for another BS all by myself, so i'm going for my ASN since it's cheaper (by $300-$400/unit).

Huh? I have a BFA, returned to school 5 years later and took out loans to take pre-med science classes. Once you have a degree, you are eligible for only loans, and you must be in a degree-seeking program. But you can get money to pay for school post bachelors. I have no idea where this came from, but it's not correct.

Specializes in Government.
Originally Posted by Quickbeam

This is true...aid really becomes non-existent once you have a bachelor's in anything and want to get a different one. I did find it was cheaper for me to go to an accelerated BSN program than it would have been for me to go ADN, taking into account opportunity costs.

That certainly wasn't true for me -- just the opposite in fact. I was ineligible for federal funds but I got a need-based Board of Governor's fee waiver from the State of California community colleges for my tuition in spite of a previous B.A. Why? Because ADN is considered job training.

I'm glad that worked for you. I'm not from California and was denied any aid for an ADN program (1986) because I had no children. I couldn't even get funding for an LPN program! For me, the accelerated BSN saved me years of opportunity costs. I was working full time 12 months after I started.

I'm glad things are more open now. My experience was 20 years ago.

+ Add a Comment