How do you get an ABSN with a biology degree from Cal Poly Pomona?

**NICU Guy, BSN, RN** · Dec 7, 2016

A traditional BSN takes 4 yrs to complete (with pre-reqs), why spend 4-5 yrs to get your Bio degree, then another yr for pre-reqs, then 12-18 months for the ABSN? That's 4 yrs vs. 6 1/2 to 7 1/2 yrs. Plus the extra cost of the first degree.

jennybeanca23 · Jun 10, 2017

An ABSN will have the same prerequisites as other nursing schools: anatomy and physiology, chemistry, microbiology, nutrition, english, and statistics. There may be some minor variations from school to school (some want more and some want less). You can usually utilize courses that you took in your first bachelors and ABSN takes less time than the original B.S. degree. I've seen ABSN programs between 12 months and 19/20 months. Since you will have a bachelors degree, you might also consider an entry level masters degree. Like the ABSN, it's an accelerated program to become an RN, except you'll end up with a Master's degree instead of another Bachelor's degree. Those programs are usually 18 months (for a general masters or Clinical Nurse Leader) to 3 years (for a NP, CNS, CNM program).

verene, MSN · Jun 11, 2017

Is there a reason you aren't going for a traditional BSN program right now? Employers aren't going to care about your biology degree. Seems like by doing BS in Bio + ABSN you are just adding time and money to the process.

As for pre-reqs many will likely be covered in your bio degree: biology, genetic, chemistry, A&P are all pretty common. However every nursing program is different in what they require. Figure out now what schools you are likely to apply to and make a list of which courses you will need for each school.