Get RN in 2 yrs or less!

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

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I am brand new to this site and brand new to nursing. I need to get my RN as quickly as possible. I am pretty set on going the private school route as they don't require any prerequisites and no waiting lists. I am a really good test taker so I think I will be able to score pretty well on the NET entrance exams. My question is, where is the best private school in the nation? I am willing to move to get this done fast. I have three kids and need to provide for them ASAP. I have been in real estate for the past ten years and need a change of profession. I will have to live off savings while I go and I don't have enough money to wait years and years to get into a CC and go through their program. I have always wanted to be a nurse so I'm going to go for it. Any of you attended a private school and could get your RN in less than two years? Where? What schools? Any prerequisites? I know some schools are better than others but I am a hard worker and will make the most of my situation. Thinking maybe Apollo?... Price is not as much an issue to me as time. Time is money... Thanks!

What is a ASN? Is the school accredited? I would be suspicious, myself. It seems too easy to me.:bugeyes:
Jefferson's nursing program has been accredited since the dawn of time. LOL! Really, the ASN (Associates of Science in Nursing) program is *not* easy. I think they designed it to capture the part of the nursing school market that prefers to get their 2-year RN degree before moving on to their BSN. And with the science coursework built in to the program, it's faster than some "2 year" CC programs that make you take 1 or 2 years of prereqs before you can start your 2 year degree! But a lot pricier, of course...
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Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia has a 2 year *ASN* program that has no pre-reqs. They teach you anatomy, etc. as part of the curriculum. This is NOT the same as their 2-year BSN, or their APW or FACT programs. I was told by an admissions counselor that it was really designed for younger students who have no college, but bottom line, there are no prerequisites. The cost is roughly $17,000 per year (which is a LOT cheaper than the BSN program), and Jefferson is one of the most amazing places to go to school. (I'm prejudiced; I just got accepted to their APW program. LOL!) If you get into the ASN program, you can move right into their BSN program after you finish.

It's weird. All their other nursing programs have a long list of the usual suspects, in terms of prerequisites, but the ASN program does not. I believe, but I am not positive, that this ASN program is only a few years old. You can read more about it here:

http://www.tju.edu/jchp/nursing/asn.cfm

The program is also offered in Danville, Pennsylvania. Last year, they didn't finish filling up the class until April or May, but I don't know what it looks like this year.

Good luck!!

I could be wrong but from looking at the link above it looks like it is for someone who has an RN already, the link brings you to RN-BSN programs which has no prereqs, however I guess it is assumed you would have had your pre reqs getting your RN. I looked around and it doesn't like, like they even offer an ASN program, it is BSN and MSN or bridge programs for Rn's.

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You sparked my interest, and the internet unsparked it lol

"Accelerated nursing programs can be a double whammy on the finances of students and their families. Tuition for these intensive programs can run to $30,000, and students generally find it impossible to fit even part-time work into their packed study schedules. "Students think they can work 20 to 30 hours a week while in the program, and that doesn't happen," Colombraro says."

This is out of an article that also has a couple links to some of these schools. Apparently the wait to get in here is way higher than the "wait" for community colleges. I dont know about all of them, but in Indiana at Ivy Tech there is no "wait list", you just have to have the grades (usually all A'a in your pre-req's- but just 4 of them ANP 1&2, ENG and PSY)

Good luck, and just to let you know, my sister caught up with me by taking 3 of those required pre-reqs in her first semester, then ANP the next, so she isn't going to have to wait much at all.

I wish you all the best, try not to get in over your head...and maybe do the LPN program and after you are working go back to the transitional RN program.

*to make a short story long......i also want to add that Ivy Tech in Indianapolis is quite cheap, ALOT of financial aid for single mom's, and cost of living is ridiculously low here, but it is a good safe area and the schools are good too!

http://career-advice.monster.com/job-search-essentials/nursing/career-changers/Fast-Track-to-a-Nursing-Degree/home.aspx

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I could be wrong but from looking at the link above it looks like it is for someone who has an RN already, the link brings you to RN-BSN programs which has no prereqs, however I guess it is assumed you would have had your pre reqs getting your RN. I looked around and it doesn't like, like they even offer an ASN program, it is BSN and MSN or bridge programs for Rn's.

I just re-clicked on the link in my post and it does bring you to their ASN program page. Here's a quote from the page on that link: "Prerequisites: There are no prerequisite course requirements for the ASN-BSN Program". Hope that clarifies things. I also am positive the program does not require an RN or science prerequisites, since I spent a morning there a few months ago, speaking with admissions counselors for both the ASN and BSN programs. Jefferson *does* also have RN-BSN, 2-year BSN, Accelerated BSN programs, in addition to the 2-year ASN, which they call an ASN-BSN program, because you are automatically accepted to both. But if you want, you can stop for a while or forever after you finish your ASN, 'cause you'll be eligible to take the NCLEX.

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I just re-clicked on the link in my post and it does bring you to their ASN program page. Here's a quote from the page on that link: "Prerequisites: There are no prerequisite course requirements for the ASN-BSN Program". Hope that clarifies things. I also am positive the program does not require an RN or science prerequisites, since I spent a morning there a few months ago, speaking with admissions counselors for both the ASN and BSN programs. Jefferson *does* also have RN-BSN, 2-year BSN, Accelerated BSN programs, in addition to the 2-year ASN, which they call an ASN-BSN program, because you are automatically accepted to both. But if you want, you can stop for a while or forever after you finish your ASN, 'cause you'll be eligible to take the NCLEX.

I just want to double check because I am new, and not sure if I am right on this.

Doesn't an ASN-BSN mean ASN TO BSN, which would imply that you already had your two year degree? Please correct me if I am wrong, that is just what it seems like to me.

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Specializes in CVICU-ICU.

I looked at the website for the ASN-BSN program at the hospital in Philly....and the OP was correct....it is a ASN program that can continue on to a BSN program if desired. There are not pre-req's so to speak because they are included in the two year course....it is the same number of credits as the other ASN programs that require pre-reqs but the difference is the credits taken in each semester total 16-17 and normally the credit load at other colleges is 12 credits a semester because 16-17 credits is VERY difficult to do esp. given the nursing clinicals. I understand your wanting to get schooling over with but please consider you have children at home and attempting to take 17 credits a semester AND take care of your children and homelife will be difficult and something or someone will suffer.

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I just want to double check because I am new, and not sure if I am right on this.

Doesn't an ASN-BSN mean ASN TO BSN, which would imply that you already had your two year degree? Please correct me if I am wrong, that is just what it seems like to me.

No, in this case, it means you are accepted to both programs simultaneously. So you don't need your college degree before you start.

I should add that the program is pretty intense. I am not a big fan of doing A&P and Microbiology at the same time you are doing your nursing courses. But Jefferson isn't the only college that has a program like that (one of the other schools I applied to, a CC, has them built into the curriculum, too), but since the OP asked specifically for ways to get an RN in 2 years, I thought I'd pass that info along and let people decide if they can handle the load. :)

I hope I've cleared up any confusion...

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If your in arizona central Arizona community college does not have a waitlist!!

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I would be wary of schools that don't require any core science pre-requisities, if you can even find them. Anatomy, Physiology, Microbiology (and sometimes Chem) are the bare bones pre-reqs, and if you have not completed those, you would likely be in a world of hurt upon entering a nursing program. These very classes are essential to a thorough understanding of nursing course content and many schools do not allow you to take them simultaneously (nor would most people ever want to).

I live in Western New York, and the community colleges (ADN program) around here do not have any pre-req's for their nursing programs. You can take A&P and Micro concurrently with your Nursing classes, in fact you must take them concurrently if you haven't taken them already. But having said that, if you do not pass A&P I then you cannot take A&P II obviously but you also cannot take Nursing II because A&P II must be completed before or taken concurrently with Nursing II.

Personally, I am only taking Human Biology this semester and am glad that I have decided to put off NS for another year so I can concentrate on A&P I&II next year without having to worry about taking a nursing class with them. Human Bio is so interesting yet I do have to work at it a bit to do well (I need a bio grade to be accepted into the nursing program at my school of "C" or better so I'm taking Human Bio this semester in hopes of it prepping me for A&P). I do not know how students handle Nursing I and A&P I together and feel that it wouldn't be smart for me personally to try that. Yet the community colleges are also geared toward success so if the 2 yr full-time program is too aggressive then they have a part-time 3 yr program option for students and A&P I&II are taken in the 3 yr program before any nursing classes are taken.

So I do not think people should be leary of attending a program that doesn't have A&P, Micro, or any other pre-req's for that matter. If the school is reputible and sanctioned by the BON of your state and you speak to advisors and so on, then you will most likely be comfortable enough to enroll. But my school does have a waiting list so there is no guarantee that you will get in for Fall and they only admit in Fall so if you don't get in on your first attempt then it will be the next year that you will get in so you could wind up waiting a year before you can actually enroll.

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Specializes in ICU, Telemetry, neuro,research.

rn in two years or less with no pre-requisites, no there is an idea. where did you find that? i went to um and i finished in two years but i was a teacher already with a bs from barry u. even the community college down here takes 3 years to complete. they have an accelerated program that is roughly 1 and 1/2 years but for that you must have a 4 year degree in something else firts. they say that they require that because if you have a degree already, it shows that you have the study habits necessary to be successful and the drive to complete what you start. i do not know if i buy that. however, i did extensive research on all the schools down here in south florida that would prepare me to sit for the boards and there is no short cut here. it is that way for a reason. i see that now. i still am overwhelmed by what i do not know. but good luck in your search. let us know if and when you find such a place and how successful you are in your pursuit.;)

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Just a quick update. I found it, thanks to this thread and your many good suggestions. I had to move but I started school in July and will be a RN in November of '09. A sixteen month program that includes all pre-req's like A & P & Micro. Where there's a will there's a way. So far it seems like a great program and I've been very impressed with the instructors. I have also heard from outside sources that the school has a good reputation for turning out good nurses. It's condensed and there's tons to learn but I have the confidence I'll have the tools I need to be a good nurse when I graduate. Clinicals start the end of next month. We have to jump right in but I can't believe how much I've learned so far. I'm not promoting this school or any others but there are schools out there where you can get your RN in less than 2 yrs. These programs include all of your pre-req's and no waiting lists. They are generally more costly but because time is money and working at a low paying job while I plunk through school was not an option for my family, this seems the most financially reasonable way to go... after doing the math. They don't accept just anybody and you have to brush up on your basic skills to get a good score on some entrance tests but it's really doable if you know your High School reading, critical thinking and math. So for all you neigh sayers out there, and especially for any of you who believe you can do it, you can!

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So happy to hear things worked out for you!

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