How long did nursing school take for you?

luvmy2angels · Jun 14, 2007

I went to an LPN program part time in the evening, took 17 months to complete and i got my LPN diploma and passed the NCLEX in 5/06 and got my LPN license. I didn't have to take any pre-reqs, just had to pass the entrance exam.

Going for your RN degree involves more schooling and more pre-reqs. I have no desire to go any furhter at this time. I am 34 and very happy being an LPN.

Good Luck to you!!!

ZooMommyRN, ADN, RN · Jun 14, 2007

start to finish counting pre-req's and all it will be 3 years, and every second worth it, only 1 of those left lol

prinzessdy · Jun 15, 2007

5 1/2 years (change schools *2*, slightly different requirements) BSN. Well worth it, wouldnt change a thing!

donsterRN, ASN, BSN · Jun 15, 2007

Well, I took a year off due to illness, but the entire time will take about 3 years for my Associate's degree.

Esther2007 · Jun 15, 2007

It can take you less time and money if you take Cleps and Dantes. All you have to do, buy the books and study. Most exams, you need to get 50% correct. I took 4 exams and passed all. I saved $4500 and time!!!

I am studying to take a religion exam in July. All I need to get is 50 out of 100 questions and I will pass. I hope to get higher.

abundantjoy07, RN · Jun 16, 2007

I went to college August 2001 right after high school.

I was originally not a nursing major. So that set me behind a year. I also did not pass one course which also set me back another year.

So...college was 3 years. Nursing school was 2.5.

I graduated May 07 with my bachelors in nursing from Abilene Christian University.

Was it worth it? I think so.

I do however realize I could have became a nurse in less time and with less expense if I had chosen a non-private university and if I had not left home. I also could have chosen my ADN, but at the time I did not realize all of the options (meaning Associates degree). 4 year university was an expectation in my household. I'm very glad I did it tho.

battpos · Jun 18, 2007

Short answer: it took me four years (from May 03 to May 07) to earn an AA in general education and a BSN.

Long answer: (may induce nausea or drowsiness)

I quit work (a really nice gig -- but that's another story) to enter this pursuit full time. From the get go I knew I wanted a bachelor's, so I did not look at all at ADN programs (first mistake). I was 34 years old and only had 8 college credits that were then nearly 10 years old. 4 credits in Physics and 4 credits in Calculus. The calculus covered my math prerequisite. The physics credits were kind of irrelevant.

In less than 2 years at my local community college I completed the prereq's that I was told would articulate to the state university system here in florida; however, I was unable to compete to secure entrance at the state university nearest my hometown: science GPA was flagged: 3.40 (needed a 3.60; 2nd mistake: should have applied to all the state universities).

I went nonetheless to the state U nearest to me and I asked them what I could take to compete for a spot in the nursing college and they had (and suggested I take) three nursing courses open to all students, which I dutifully took and earned two A's and an A-. I also took that semester the first semester of general chemistry to bone up on the introductory chemistry I took to earn my AA; and I also earned an A there.

That was Spring 2005. There was nothing to do for the summer semester, really, but I gathered that this time I was going to cast my net really wide in sending out applications to as many nursing schools as possible -- and I found out that I would have to take other prerequisites to compete for entrance to other nursing schools so in the summer of 2005 I took Ethics and another Humanities class (one school was labeling one of my AA humanities a social science class and declared I was therefore deficient) and Biology I. I got straight As except for the 1 credit biology lab: a C. (I just couldn't get into the lab portion of it -- UGH!)

So for fall 2005 I applied to all the state universities as well as Drexel U in Philadlephia and University of Miami, and I finally decided to go ahead and hedge my bets and applied to the ADN program since one of my teachers told me I could easily come back to Florida State and use my ADN to leverage a BSN by taking two or three more classes.

During that summer I got the bad news that I did not get accepted to any of the 9 state universities I applied to. I did get accepted to Drexel U in Philadelphia and to the University of Miami and to the community college ADN program.

Why didn't I get into my state U? I went to the dean to ask him and he told me that I had a competitive application, but he pointed out that the essay portion of the application I had completed by handwriting. He said this was just not a good thing to do. HUH??? Okay -- let's call this mistake number 3 -- but really! I asked him -- Is my handwriting legible? (I have beautiful handwriting folks) Yes, it's legible. Did I make any grammatical errors? (again... nope -- I am a meticulous writer!) Did I misspell any words? (no, no, no). Fine, that's the lame excuse I got for not making it to their nursing program.

Of the three schools that accepted me -- the CC ADN program, Drexel and U of Miami -- I did not like any of these three options!

ADN program was going to take me as long to finish as the BSN program. Okay, it's really a competition between U of Miami and ADN program since Drexel -- I then discovered took a year longer than every other BSN program out there.

In my heart I wanted my BSN though, I couldn't see the point of putting two years into an ADN program when I could put two years into a BSN program. Okay; the big difference: U of M costs a fortune!

I decided to go to U of M.

I went straight through the U of M nursing program finishing in two years (graduated May of 2007).

I am eligible to sit for NCLEX now.

However, I am 69,000 dollars in the hole because I had to take out these massive student loans to deal with $30,000 per year tuition (just went up to $35,000 per year) as well as living in overpriced and over-rated Miami.

The greatest regret of my life is not having taken the cheaper route (ADN) which would have done for me what my BSN education has done for me: make me eligible to sit for NCLEX. THERE IS NO APPRECIABLE DIFFERENCE IN PAY BETWEEN ADN Vs BSN PREPARED NURSES.

Because I went the BSN route I now will have the pleasure of going to work with the obligation of having to repay these massive loans.

Okay.... I'm over my little fit.

I'll be alright. I just came back from a trip to California where I interviewed with three different hospitals and all three offered me a job.

I am picking the hospital which has offered me an in house path to earn my master's in nursing and also has a student loan forgiveness program. I will be working in the cardiothoracic ICU after a 5 month Versant training program.

I'll be in LA before the end of July and my new employer is picking up my relocation costs.

sweetiez · Jun 19, 2007

thanks so much for ur answers!

scucer · Jun 19, 2007

i went to a regular liberal arts university right after high school. i was immediately enrolled in the nursing program, no tests or waiting lists at this school. Put in my 4 years and graduated in 2006 with my BSN. I studied for a month and took my boards June of 06, passed on the first try and have loved being a nurse for the past year!

S.N. Visit, BSN, RN · Jun 21, 2007

Started Aug 2003 part-time (d/t being a stay at home mom of 3 kids) and graduated May 2007 with my ADN. It took me 3.5yrs to complete nsg school.

LindseyLou2222, RN · Jun 22, 2007

About 2.5 years total.

* 1 year for my LPN program

* 6 months to finish up my pre-reqs

* 1 year for my LPN-RN program