Get CNA cert? Before NP?

Nursing Students NP Students

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I'm not sure where to put this, so I'm starting here. Will let mods move it if necessary.

I will be starting an MSN program this fall, which admits those with degrees in other fields; so I do not have any nursing experience. I do however have about 15 years experience on the business side of healthcare (which includes some population health management and financing), but of course nothing clinical. This is a very reputable program and is well known for graduating prepared NPs (though I'm under no illusions that you really begin learning when you start to practice).

My question is - because I am not an RN, and I will most likely start to practice as an NP without RN experience, would it benefit me to get my CNA certification and then work as a CNA while I am waiting for school to start? Pros, cons, neutral? I understand this is not what I will be doing as an NP, but I wondered if it would provide any skills practice, or even any 'street cred'? Would it help (AT ALL) in the hiring process down the line?

My specialty will be AG-ACNP.

Thanks for your advice.

Specializes in Adult Internal Medicine.
I said the same thing. Then I did a little looking around online and sure enough there's such programs. I would NEVER in a million years feel comfortable practicing as an NP with zero nursing experience, but apparently this is the new thing. Even as a nurse with 5 years experience under my belt the fact that I have no ICU experience alone is enough for me to feel uncomfortable.

Are you working as an NP now?

The truth is, no matter how little or how much prior RN experience you have when you enter into practice as a novice NP you will be just that, a novice NP. Don't get me wrong, I think RN experience first can and does help with the transition for most people and may even be necessary for some people but the APN role is significantly different than most if not all RN roles.

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Specializes in Home Health.

I would get any hands on training you can. I went from CNA to LPN to RN, and am hoping to get into FNP school here soon. I cannot stress how important every step was. I get a TON of street cred, for having "gotten my hands dirty", plus I learned SO much along the way. Sell yourself. I would hire you, if for no other reason than you could benefit me in some way down the road. Figure out what you will have when you are all done with school, then use that as the proverbial carrot before the horse, when trying to get someone to consider you for a position. Usually wherever you do your clinical is a good place to start. The hospital I worked at hired students for unit secretaries, CNAs, lab techs, transport, etc. Good luck!

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Specializes in Rheumatology NP.
I would get any hands on training you can. I went from CNA to LPN to RN, and am hoping to get into FNP school here soon. I cannot stress how important every step was. I get a TON of street cred, for having "gotten my hands dirty", plus I learned SO much along the way. Sell yourself. I would hire you, if for no other reason than you could benefit me in some way down the road. Figure out what you will have when you are all done with school, then use that as the proverbial carrot before the horse, when trying to get someone to consider you for a position. Usually wherever you do your clinical is a good place to start. The hospital I worked at hired students for unit secretaries, CNAs, lab techs, transport, etc. Good luck!

Good thoughts...

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Specializes in ORTHO, PCU, ED.
Are you working as an NP now?

The truth is, no matter how little or how much prior RN experience you have when you enter into practice as a novice NP you will be just that, a novice NP. Don't get me wrong, I think RN experience first can and does help with the transition for most people and may even be necessary for some people but the APN role is significantly different than most if not all RN roles.

No I am not an NP. I appreciate your comment because I've thought I absolutely HAD to have ICU experience but I see that's not a must. Learned something new today! Thanks!

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Specializes in Adult Internal Medicine.
No I am not an NP. I appreciate your comment because I've thought I absolutely HAD to have ICU experience but I see that's not a must. Learned something new today! Thanks!

If YOU think you need it then it's important. I think that's the most important part about RN experience; if you think you need it then you get a lot out of it, enjoy it, and it works for your future. But a lot depends of if you are going for ACNP and want to work inpt vs FNP and outpt.

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Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

What are the employment opportunities? In the end, that (for me at least) was what was important.

Since you can't move, can you get a job?

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Specializes in Rheumatology NP.
What are the employment opportunities? In the end, that (for me at least) was what was important.

Since you can't move, can you get a job?

Assume you're asking me? Tough question as I'm more than two years out and I don't have a crystal ball...

But I am not upending my entire life, making a total career change, going through all this effort, and paying a lot for it, just for the fun of it. :) I can't wait to actually work as an ACNP. I do live in a city known for healthcare. Plenty of opportunities (and lots of talented NPs too). However I plan to make myself valuable in my own way, and be a trustworthy and desired hire. If I need to drive to a rural location for a while, I'm willing. I have good relationships now and hope to build more bridges through hard work. So yeah. I plan to get a job.

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Specializes in MICU, SICU, CICU.

I'm curious how you meet all the requirements to take the NCLEX after just a year. If you haven't graduated from an accredited program or completed the necessary clinical hours. Much less had the time to rotate through the different areas to get exposure to them.

I'm not at all a fan of these programs, they churn out NP grads that are not well rounded and make the rest of us look bad. It's lazy and shortcut. If you want to be a NP then you should do the work that the rest of us did to get there.

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Specializes in Rheumatology NP.
I'm curious how you meet all the requirements to take the NCLEX after just a year. If you haven't graduated from an accredited program or completed the necessary clinical hours. Much less had the time to rotate through the different areas to get exposure to them.

I'm not at all a fan of these programs, they churn out NP grads that are not well rounded and make the rest of us look bad. It's lazy and shortcut. If you want to be a NP then you should do the work that the rest of us did to get there.

This comes across as bitter. Why would you begrudge another person the opportunity to become an RN and then an NP, just because it's a path you didn't take?

If you researched my program, you would see that it is a highly ranked school, accredited of course, and we will be working our tails off to get all the needed clinical hours in order to be able to take the NCLEX. It is accelerated and extraordinarily difficult. It is anything but lazy.

I know that there are lots of schools out there basically printing NP degrees, and I hate that for the profession. But that is not the path I'm choosing, because I want to truly learn. I want to be the best provider possible for my patients, not just check boxes and pass an exam.

Ultimately we can only make ourselves look good OR bad - both you and me.

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Specializes in MICU, SICU, CICU.

You may think I'm bitter but I assure you that is not the case. The benefit of taking the longer path is getting broad experience and exposure to many different things. I'm well aware of Vanderbuilt's program, it was a program I considered applying to and ultimately did not.

A compressed program doesn't necessarily produce quality graduates. It has taken me well more than a decade to reach the point I am at in my career. But I can assure you that my years of critical care practice as a nurse has only enhanced my advanced practice career. Years of physical assessments, titrating vasoactive medications and seeing their effects, being part of many resuscitations and codes, interacting with all members of the healthcare team, and helping perform thousands of emergent and non-emergent procedures. I don't see how that gets replicated in a truncated timeline and still produce graduates that are able to come out of a program with a strong baseline foundation and ability to practice on an advanced level

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Specializes in Ortho.

No way, waste of time.

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Specializes in Hospice.
I'm curious how you meet all the requirements to take the NCLEX after just a year. If you haven't graduated from an accredited program or completed the necessary clinical hours. Much less had the time to rotate through the different areas to get exposure to them.

I'm not at all a fan of these programs, they churn out NP grads that are not well rounded and make the rest of us look bad. It's lazy and shortcut. If you want to be a NP then you should do the work that the rest of us did to get there.

I graduated from an accelerated 1 year program with a bsn( all prerequisites are completed prior to being accepted). My program consistently has one of the highest pass rates in the state. Those programs don't just let anyone in ...... They are all 2nd degree high achievers.

My classmates are all doing amazing things, many are in grad school, already nps, or leaders in their practice.

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