LVN vs RN

[mashamontago]

what are the pros and cons of going thru lvn instead of rn? what are the pros and cons of going through rn instead of lvn?

i flunked out of nusing school after failing a course twice so i'm thinking since i did so bad i should try lvn since it may be easier than taking up the RN. but i have to wait until the LVN program opens up and there's only one lvn program i know of at a community college. i'm not about to spend 20-30 thousand dollars for an LVN degree when i can wait a year and pay about less than half of that price for the same degree... and at a place i recognize. what should i do for a year? i am planning to get my cna.. then work as a cna...what do you guys think? is this a good plan?

[Scyankee]

Here at Greenville Tech in SC the answer to that question is YES. In fact you can sign up for the LPN program here and after the first year they ask if you wish to continue to the RN program as it is the second year of the program. The Lpn and RN program is the same exact program for the first year here. So you'll have students who will drop after the first year and start working as LPN's and students who will continue on the second year and recieve an ASN allowing them to sit for the Nclex exam for a RN.

So there will be LPN students and RN students in the same classes here for the first year. The program here is a two year RN program. The first year is the LPN and First Year RN program and the second year is the second year of the RN program. All classes transfer if you wish to continue on to an RN-BSN program.

Not sure how other schools are.

[pagandeva2000, LPN]

Not all states allow for students to sit for NCLEX-PN while in an RN program. Mine stopped in June, 2007 (New York). You need to find out what the state allows as well as the school.

[Fiona59]

I am attending LPN school in August at a local Vocational school. It is 10 months long full time and does not require me to have CNA first (actually, there were no prereqs). I have heard that LPN programs are as intense as RN. Some state that there are more clinicals in LPN and more theory in RN. If I were in your position, I would review what you failed out of because you will most likely be going over this in LPN school as well. Best of luck!

TEN months. Up here in Canada it's two YEARS. PN education has basically become the diploma RN programme.

[lp_825]

I am curently an LPN, who did not have to be a CNA first. I would suggest getting your CNA first if you have the time. This will help you to understand nursing and maybe see if this is really what you want to do. Although it was stressed plenty by my instructors to all the CNA's in the class to "forget" what you were told in CNA class. We had some CNA's in our class who would always say "well in our facility our LPN's do it like this". And sometimes this caused them to miss questions on tests. I also think going to get your LPN, working as an LPN while going to school is a great idea. You will be getting paid decent, able to cut your hours to go to school for RN.

Also if your not focused on becoming a nurse and setting aside the time that this profession requires, you will be setting yourself up for failure or just getting by. I made nursing school my number 1 priority and couldn't be happier. You really have to know your material. Good luck to you!!!!

[Coloradogrl]

I'm not trying to be snarky but in NO WAY is a LPN easy I dont know why people think this all the time. LPN is usually UNLESS you got to a tech/vocational school is the 1st year of a RN program and the tech/vocational school uses the same stuff it is just a lot of faster but not really.

I would look at what course you failed and maybe look at taking some other classes to help you. Sometimes you have to take a step back