How long should prereqs take?

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I just met with an advisor at my school to find out what classes I should take next and I learned that it will take me 4-5 more semesters to finish my prereqs. Which would be 6 totals semesters. I'm in community college. Is is just me or does this feel way too long? How long did it take everyone else to complete prereqs?

The 4 bio courses are bio 189 - fundamentals of life science

Bio 223/224 - A&P 1,2 and Bio 251 is micro.

If I wanted to immediately get my BSN, instead of a RN, I wouldn't be worried as much, but that's just not my plan.

And? You need science and anatomy fundentals as a nurse.

I pulled the prereqs sheet for Southern College Nevada from here:

Nursing (RN) Advising Sheet - Regular Track - Fall

https://www.csn.edu/sites/default/files/documents/rn-adv-reg-f19.pdf

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Did I say I didn't? The person asked what the 4 bio classes I need were.

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Specializes in Oncology (Prior: Ortho-Neuro, Metabolic Surgery).

Yes, that does seem like a fairly typical progression for an ASN. The problem is the perception that an associate's degree in nursing is similar to an associates degree in other studies. An associates degree in nursing is more like 3/4 a bachelor's degree in any other field. It simply cannot be done in 2 years. That said, associates degree programs can be more flexible yet just as rigorous as bachelor degree nursing programs.

I am also in an associates degree program at a community college. I have a prior bachelor's degree, so I was able to skip many of the general studies courses. However I had to retake all of my sciences because they expire after a certain number of years. I tested out of a few of the early pre-prerequisite courses and took 2-3 classes per semester. It took me 5 semesters before I could start the nursing program. I took all of the prerequisites for a RN to BSN bridge so that I can go right into that after I finish the ASN. I had to take 34 hours to fulfill the ASN and BSN prerequisites (not including requirements fulfilled by my prior degree), my ASN program is 43 hours, and the BSN is 30 hours. By the time I finish the BSN, I will have been in college courses for a grand total of 233 credit hours.

Keep moving forward. I know it looks like a long road, but you will get through this. I recommend getting all the information for your program and make yourself a plan so that you make the best use of each semester.

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I started my prereq's in 2014. I work full time and never took more than two classes/semester. I also had to do a couple "do-overs". I am pleased to announce that I am currently in my last semester of generals and will be starting in core in the fall. So yes, it takes awhile based on the amount of credits that you can take on.

I always advise people at work to get a general associates degree if they have free time. One day when they wake up and know what they want, a lot of the work will be done!

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It took me 4 years to finish my prerequisites :/ but I did it part time too at a community college. It just really depends if you go full time and if you take summer classes as well. I would say 1 year and a half to finish prerequisites should be normal!!

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Specializes in New grad.

It should not take more than 2 semesters to get your pre-reqs, 3 if you need to take developmental courses. Most schools require English Comp I, general psych and A&P I which requires a pre-req of biology. Others might require Lifespan, Growth, & Development, algebra, chemistry, or even microbiology. You should check with your nursing school advisors, not general ed advisors. They will go over all the pre-reqs and the point system criteria for that particular school, as well as any pertinent deadlines for vaccinations, tests, etc. If you are considering any other nursing programs you must go to each one because they will most likely all be different.

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Specializes in Oncology (Prior: Ortho-Neuro, Metabolic Surgery).
It should not take more than 2 semesters to get your pre-reqs, 3 if you need to take developmental courses.

This is highly specific to the school. I was able to do my prerequisites in a shorter time because I had a prior bachelor's degree, but there was no way to do it in less than 4 semesters. Here's the suggested progression for some of the progression for prerequisites for my school:

Semester 1:

Biology 1

English 1

Algebra (may test out)

Chemistry 1 (Prerequisite: Quantitative Math (generally tested out))

Semester 2:

Anatomy and Physiology 1 (Prerequisites: Biology 1, English 1, Algebra)

Microbiology (Prerequisites: Biology 1, English 1, Algebra)

General Psychology (Prerequisite: English 1)

English 2 (Prerequisite: English 1)

Semester 3:

Anatomy and Physiology 2 (Prerequisite: Anatomy and Physiology 1)

Developmental Psychology (Prerequisite: General Psychology)

Nutrition (Prerequisites: English 1, Algebra)

Statistics (Prerequisite: Algebra)

Semester 4:

Pathophysiology (Prerequisite: Anatomy and Physiology 2)

Medications Math (Prerequisite: Algebra)

Nursing Assistant Course

Minimum of 4 semesters before nursing classes can be started.

Also keep in mind that many nursing programs start only on specific semesters, so you may find yourself finished with prerequisites but still needing to wait a semester. That's a great time to take Co-requisites that can be completed before the nursing program begins. This is a great way to reduce some of the stress during the nursing program.

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Specializes in Critical Care, Trauma.

Everyone goes at their own pace. I did my nursing prerequisites as a part-time student over the course of 3 years. This was a a community college to prepare for my ADN-transfer degree. If you went full-time, you could potentially get all the prereqs done in about a year and a half to two years. Don't focus on simply getting classes done, make sure you do well and comprehend the material. Now that I'm in a RN program, I'm constantly referring back to my a&p, micro, and even English classes for pharmacology and completing my patho packets.

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My community college only requires a freshman interest group course, English comp, A&P 1, Dosage calc, and the TEAS 6 as prerequisites to enter the nursing program. However, A&P 1 recommends taking an intro to Bio & lab prior to registering for the course, and requres intro to algebra and English comp; dosage calc requires college algebra (which, unless you test out of it, also requires intro to algebra); english comp, unless you test out of it, also requires college reading and basic writing; and the teas is based heavily upon these classes, especially A&P, therefore, it is recommended that one takes it only after they've completed their other prerequisites. Once you're accepted, it isn't unusual to have to wait 3 semesters until there's a spot available. If you don't place well on the accuplacer, I can understand it taking a couple of extra years to earn your ASN, which seems counterintuitive since associate's degrees have a reputation for being relatively quick to complete. However, I would imagine the same situation is possible in a BSN program, as well, if taking low level math and english courses is unavoidable.

OP, did you take the accuplacer? Or does your college require all courses need for the degree have to be completed prior to your acceptance? If your school requires all other courses taken prior, that might not be a bad thing, as your nursing courses are going to be tough enough without the added pressure of additional ones.

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If you're taking summer school (and assuming you're able to register for said classes), around 2 years.

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If you're taking summer school (and assuming you're able to register for said classes), around 2 years.

I second this post. Also keep in mind there may be some required prerequisite classes to the actual prerequisites themselves. See if your program allows it to take some of the prep classes during the program. I am in my second semester of NS and just took sociology during winter and taking my last prep class (Art) this summer. I have a classmate doing AP2 now so it depends on the program.

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Are there any other community colleges in your area that you could check into? Most that I've seen in my area were about 3 semesters so if you did summer you'd be able to apply at that time for the program. Well, actually I take that back. Micro could be done while in the program but had to be completed before taking certain nursing courses which I wouldn't recommend as I've seen many struggle with taking it along with a full nursing courseload, so two semesters. Keep in mind that once you apply and get in you will have a start date. If there's a list this could be extra years and most places are putting a time limit on science and sometimes even math credits. Typically five years. So if you don't get accepted before that five years is up you very well may be retaking that class. A certain number of other general ed had to be done but if your a FT student it is easily doable.

I've been out of school (well, the General ed portion anyways) for about 20 Years. I don't know if the CLEP still exists, but you can typically wipe out a year of general ed (English, humanities, etc) by taking the CLEP exam. They sell prep books that were extremely helpful for me and then I saved on time AND tuition. I'd check if this is an option.

Also, college placement tests at community colleges. If you test at college level you won't need to take remedial course crud (such as basic math etc). The one that I went to also accepted certain SAT/ACT scores to place at college level and avoid the placement exam. It didn't require a great score either, I don't remember exactly but it was below 1000 on the SAT that was required. I don't know about the ACT.

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