Got a BS in Biology more than 30 years ago and...

Do-over, ASN, RN · Feb 22, 2009

For my CC (yes, it is much cheaper and I am quite happy there) I had to take 6 classes (22 credit hours total) before I was even eligible to apply for the program. Four of these were biology with labs - and they did not accept biology credits older than 5 years (not that I had any). So, you probably need to investigate some schools in your area and speak with the nursing advisor. Things can vary wildly from school to school.

FWIW, I applied in May and started in August. My school doesn't have a waitlist - the best grades / scores get in.

Good luck!

caliotter3 · Feb 23, 2009

You definitely need to investigate the schools that are near you unless you have the intentions of traveling or relocating for nursing school. Time table depends a lot on the degree that your local programs are "impacted", the term that schools use to indicate that there are way too many qualified candidates than can be accommodated. What methods do they use for admissions when it comes to picking who gets in and who doesn't? Waiting lists, lotteries with a new lottery each year, blended waiting list and lottery, or straight best qualified off the top each year. The major problem with community college programs these days is that everyone wants to attend because they are reasonable in cost and time spent once one gets in. Many find that getting admitted to a BSN program is easier than the cc route. Others who can afford it and don't want to wait or take their chances each year attend private, for profit schools. Essentially these schools are expensive, may or may not be of a very high quality, but offer the convenience of little to no wait. Still others deal with the admissions issues of the cc programs by becoming LPNs first then entering through LPN to RN programs to get an edge on being accepted. I can tell you from the get go that all of your science courses (prerequisites to the nursing program) will have to be repeated due to their age, unless you find a school that will let you plead your case for an exception to policy. I doubt that you will need a class to get back into the swing of school. But cc's offer "how to study" or "how to succeed in school" classes that you might be interested in. You definitely will need to be up to speed in your computer skills for today's classroom. Many teachers require that papers be written using a standard word processing program such as Office Word. You can also find tips for school by looking at threads in the student section of this site. Good luck in finding a program that works for you.

cycler · Feb 23, 2009

Thanks for your answer. So, what I will do is contact my Community College and find out what they say and about classes to get into ASAP.

Can you tell me what this talk is about a BSN accelerated program? It doesn't sound like it would be offered at a Comm. College,(and therefor more expensive) but I thought I'd ask. And, do you know what is involved with getting it after an RN? I'm guessing that it is probably a desirable thing to do for paygrade? Thanks again!

caliotter3 · Feb 23, 2009

You already have a BS, so the accelerated BSN program is for you. If you think you are up to a fast pace you can finish a BSN faster than a traditional BSN program. You may want to enter a BSN program from the beginning in order to save time and money, particularly since you are not at the beginning of your work life. Everything will be prolonged if you first get an ASN from a cc, then later on go into a BSN program. Then again, you may want to forgo a BSN altogether if you don't have many years left to work and don't anticipate going into management or another area where a BSN is needed. These decisions wouldn't be so critical to your work life if you were on the other end of the career spectrum. Be aware though that some people have started ABSN programs but had to drop out because they couldn't keep up with the pace. You would really have to be in tune with studying under pressure.

cycler · Feb 23, 2009

Thank you, thank you thank you!!!

My area is Raleigh NC. If you have any thoughts on what the "impact" is in this areas, please do tell me.

I will be calling the Community College this week and see what they have to tell me. You've helped me very much with the kinds of questions I'll be asking them.

Thanks again!

caliotter3 · Feb 23, 2009

I forgot to add that an ABSN (as well as a BSN) can only be obtained at four year institutions. To save money, many people take their lower division courses, including the specific nursing school prerequisites, at cc's and then transfer to the four year school when they are admitted to the nursing program of that school. If you want to take a peek before you get a chance to do some calling, then try to find the websites of the various schools that are in your area. You can look at the nursing school requirements that are on the school of nursing web pages and compare them without having to call someone first.

cycler · Feb 23, 2009

Thanks for the tips... As I'm not sure how much pressure I could deal with, so I will need to take a closer look at the ABSN program. The big thing is the cost involved...and where I am in Raleigh, I only know of Duke or UNC which are nearby, that offer it.

It also may be that the traditional BSN program would be the better of the two for me...since it sounds like it would be a more "normal" pace. Any ideas about how many credits I'd need to have in that one? I'm anxious to get out there to work, but saving time and money by going straight into that may make more sense for me. One other thought...I'll bet these are competitive to get into. Would taking some classes (which would transfer)/getting some good grades give me an edge to get into one of these BSN programs?

Thanks again!!!

caliotter3 · Feb 23, 2009

You have to be accepted at the school before you apply to the nursing program of any school for the most part. To apply to the nursing program, you must have completed the nursing school prerequisites (English, bio, chem, anat, physio, micro, psych, soc, math or some other combination of these courses). The competition comes when they compare the grades of applicants. For instance one school may look at a person's total GPA, another school might look at a person's GPA in anat, physio, and micro. There are all kinds of selection processes. One school I applied to had a laundry list of "points" that a person could have; those with the most points, of course, were the ones selected. For instance, points for being a CNA. Points for volunteering in a health care capacity. Points awarded for having X number of the courses completed in addition to the bare minimum required to apply. Points awarded for the grades earned, etc. Another school might just take the entire qualified applicant pool and draw names by lottery, with 10 to 20 on a standby list. I don't think you will be gaining any advantage by taking any particular courses. What you need to do is to start taking the courses you will need to apply. But before you start, you need to find out from the various schools whether or not they will accept your English, chem, and bio from 30 years ago. They might force you to repeat the science courses or you may get a waiver. You should not have to repeat English, but who knows. Just get started taking the courses you know you will need after you look at each school's requirements. You might not need to take very many, with your degree in bio. Hopefully many of those classes will be counted. Good luck.

cycler · Feb 23, 2009

Thank you, Caliotter 3!

Wow...well, I'll just go ahead and look into the things you are telling me here... and I'll probably be back next week with more questions.

Thanks again!

NamasteNurse, BSN, RN · Feb 23, 2009

Hi there and welcome!

I too graduated back in 1981 with a teaching degree. I am going to a vo-tech school taking their LPN program. As far as i know, that's the fastest track to getting into a job ASAP. It's a one year program and there are no pre-reqs. You have to pass a basic high school academic test, being a college grad you will ace it no problem. It's costing 8500 and in one short year I'll be an LPN. By April (I started in Jan.) I'll be a CNA and can get some practical paying experience! We have the summer off so I plan on working as a CNA then and getting my community service and CPR class over with then (they are rquirements) PM me if you need more info. Best of luck!

Karen

cycler · Feb 24, 2009

Thanks New York,

That sounds like the best plan I've heard of too, to get out there and be able to work ASAP. I am interested in working ASAP also. Also, I am hearing about LPN to BSN programs, but don't know how much longer that program would take. Any thoughts on that?

Thanks again