How to get started..?

sunshine75 · Dec 7, 2009

I am fairly new to this site, and I am wrestling with the same thing, how will I ever go to school for my RN and keep my current schedule. I already know the answer, I will have to give up my job. From what I understand the school schedule for getting an RN degree is pretty intense. My job is part-time, so I may be able to keep going with it in the beginning, but a 9-6 job, I dont think will fit well with nursing school, not for the long haul anyway. Good luck, maybe we will both be able to find a way to get out degrees!

shrimpchips, LPN · Dec 7, 2009

Honestly, working 9a-6p Monday through Friday while in nursing school is a tough task. A lot of nursing classes at a lot of schools are in the morning/late morning (sometimes afternoon) not to mention that you will have clinicals to do starting at the butt crack of dawn usually lasting for 12 hours (7a-7p). There are some programs that offer night classes and clinicals on the weekends, so I would look into that if there is one in your area that offers that, otherwise you might have to try and see if you could work other hours at your job. I know it is easier said than done.

dianajh73 · Dec 8, 2009

You might be doing what I frequently do, which is "putting the cart before the horse".

Regardless of where you go, chances are high that you will have pre-requisites to complete. These you should be able to do in the evenings, weekends or online. Decide which programs you are interested in and what courses you need to have completed before you apply (in my case each program required speech but one only accepted public speaking so I had to take an extra class where with better planning I would have saved myself), then you can get to work on those while putting away as much money as possible for when you do enter a nursing program because, like someone already said, you can probably work, at least part-time, but not Mon-Fri all day, especially at the hours you are talking about.

You can take out loans, if necessary, to get you through the first couple of semesters and then go to work in an extern, PCA, CNA type position (in CA that is after 2nd semester) which will give you experience and money at the same time, although it is going to be a huge paycut, no doubt.

Another note about nursing school, at least in my area. Although the hours of class are listed, they do not tell you about having to go to the hospital the day before (we have 2 clinical days per week so we actually go to hospital 4 days a wk), in your uniform, and spend 1-2 hours picking patient and then another 1-2 hours doing worksheets to prepare for the next day. I disregard a lot of what people say about the time they spend studying and doing work because, apparently I am much faster than others or they are exaggerating, but this part of the curriculum was non-negotiable for us.

Good luck

Strwbrywne · Dec 8, 2009

Many Nursing Programs do require pre-req's before you could even consider applying. My suggestion would be to make an appointment with an advisor at a local community college and find out how many classes you need to take before you can apply. Your advisor should put you on an academic plan to achieve your goals. You'll have a better idea of how you need to plan. Working full-time and taking online classes should be do-able. In the meantime, while taking your pre-req's, I would highly recommend saving as much money as possible. You can better prepare yourself financially for when the time comes to start your clinicals. If you are like most nursing students, not having to work full-time will definitely take some of the stress levels down!

sunshine75 · Dec 8, 2009

What about the phrase I hear most? "You dont have a life while you are in nursing school." I dont have a mom or grandmom I can depend on to run kids to school, keep kids often-basically be my right arm. My husband also works night shift. I "could" quit my job, we dont have to have that income, but that isnt going to change the fact that I have three children I am running after.

Also, what about two year nursing degree programs. Our local community college has one. Couldnt I complete that and be working while Im earning my BA?

dianajh73 · Dec 8, 2009

What about the phrase I hear most? "You dont have a life while you are in nursing school."

It often comes down to what kind of student you are. If you need to read everything repeatedly and study for hours to do well, then you really don't have a life. If you are good at testing and can write papers easily, then you can have a life, but regardless kids do make it difficult. I can only speak for my program, but a lot of the students who are parents have a particularly difficult time because you don't control your schedule and it can change from one semester to the next. This semester I have lecture from 7pm-10pm on Mon. and 8am-11am on Thursdays with clinical hours T and Th from 2pm-8pm. Most programs run morning and daytime hours. Another semester has class from 3pm - 6pm on Mondays. Next semester I have class from 7am to 8pm Tues and Thurs with mandatory time to review patient records on another day between 4pm-9pm (we schedule that one). Also have an online class to work around. Don't let this fool you though because there is A LOT of homework and written papers involved that take much more time than lecture.

The biggest hurdle you will have will be having to do things for the kids during the days you have class (taking to school, picking up etc). I don't want to discourage you because I know people who are doing it, just know the realities.

Re: BA v. AA the AA program is still 2 years (4 semesters) and that is after the pre-reqs - I am currently in an Entry Level Masters program because I have a BA in another subject. I applied to 2 city college programs and did not get into either of them. One is on lottery and I wasn't chosen (can take up to 2 1/2 years AFTER pre-reqs are done due to waiting list), the other was competitive and because of some of my undergrad grades I didn't get in. To get into our regular BSN program you have to have around a 3.8 GPA. That was why I suggested that anyone starting out check out all of the programs in your area and make sure to complete the requirements for all of them so you have the most options because, you are right to look at how quickly you can get to work.