How much difference in pay do two year rn's get than four yr??

lindarn · Apr 10, 2009

NO, they should NOT be grandfathered in...period....WHY then would I have gone back to obtain my BSN degree? Maybe because I CHOSE to do that knowing it would advance me later on, which it has done. WHY does a nurse just want to remain forever in a hospital setting???? Do they not have any goals to go further with their career???? Grandfathered in, Heck no...I had to struggle to obtain my BSN degree, why should someone come along and just get the BSN given to them....NO way....let them go earn it themselves if they wish to. I am making more money than I ever made in my life working OUTSIDE Of the hospital.......If the AA nurses are grandfathered in ever, they will NOT have the respect of ANY of the more educated nurses. So we can just fight about that as well..hahaha

Grandfathering in does not mean the AA nurse will be handed a BSN. It only means that if and when the NLN finally gets it together, and makes a BSN the entry into practice, nurses who are Diploma nurses, or ADNs will not be thrown out of nursing, if they don't earn a BSN beforehand. They will be able to mantain licensing in nursing so they can work.

I was also originally a Diploma nurse, and went back to school to earn a BSN.

Lindarn, RN, BSN, CCRN

Spokane, Washington

Castymiss · Apr 10, 2009

I do not believe the AA or diploma nurses will EVER be thrown out of nursing. Not with the nursing shortage nationwide. How can they be grandfathered in? Should they get the same pay as a BSN? NO they should not. If these nurses are so worried about being "thrown out"...do you not think they should be going back to school NOW for that BSN degree? I struggled with 4 kids, little money for school, and was a single parent. I went back and got the BSN because I had heard that we COULD lose our jobs....(won't happen), but back then I was worried about it. So I say, go back to school. EARN that BSN degree. There is no excuse for NOT obtaining it no matter what your situation may be. I stand by what I said, they should NOT be grandfathered in....That would make all the nurses who returned to school to get the BSN.....feel very resentful. I think it is an idividual choise. AA or BSN......but I do think the BSN should be paid more money since they did go longer to school. I do not think that having a BSN degree makes one a better qualified bedside nurse.

moncj66 · Apr 12, 2009

I really think it depends on experience..My mom worked for 10 years with her AA and took home close to 85K/yr, now she owns her own home health making 100K+/a year, so does it really matter, I think not...

JNW504 · Apr 13, 2009

When I stated in my last comment that BSNs should get paid more because they have a higher education, I did not mean in comparison to an ADN nurse who has worked for many years! I don't think that when I graduate I should be paid more than an ADN who has been in this field for 10 years! I meant at an even comparison. New graduate to new graduate and 10 year nurse to 10 year nurse.

I'm not on my high horse but there were so many blogs from ADNs who don't think its fair that a BSN thinks they should receive a higher pay. I'm a very humble person and I have no problem working along side any nurse!! But why should we receive no incentive to improve our education. Not receiving higher pay is just bringing all nurses down...that gives an ADN nurse no reason to go back to school!!

I aplogize if I sounded a little cocky, but it is just frustrating to see people selling themselves short and bringing others down with them! My best friends mom is an ADN level nurse and she is one of the smartest people I know! But she also has a ton of experience! I would NEVER expect to make more than her coming right out of school!!!!

And by the way... about the comment someone made about going back to school and not learning any more than you knew before... I don't know where you went but we don't just write papers and do some other assignments! We go to clinicals three days a week! We are expected to know EVERYTHING about our patients: exactly what there diagnosis is, the patho of it, what has caused it, complications of it, nursing management of the Dx, medical management of the dx, what the lab values are expected to be, what it means when the lab values have shifted and why they have shifted, nutrition, fluids, restrictions, ALL the medications (Mechanism of action, type of med, pharmocology, side effects, expected lab values, etc.), and how each nursing dx relates to the others. Not to mention we have to do a preclinical assingment explaining all of that. It takes many student the entire night before clinical to complete it because it is so much work! Plus we are studying for exams in between. It has never been just a few papers!! Its a hell of a lot of hard work!!

Look I know that most anyone going through nursing school will have to deal with that at some point. Maybe not to the magnitude of a BSN level school but we all will!! But we are taught things a lot more in depth than many ADN programs (aeb many of my friends who are in ADN programs). But when you have to do two years of prerequisites and then two more years of all of that school gets tiring, not to mention you sacrifise your financial situation just to get a higher degree! Anyone who has attained their BSN knows that.

And I will NOT get "eaten alive" when I get out of nursing school. I'm very easy to get along with and I usually go with the flow. I try extermely hard to do a good job at anything I do no matter what it is so I'm not worried about being "eaten alive" as you say. But when it has to do with my well-being and the income I will make as a nurse of course I'm going to get upset! All students work hard for their degree but BSN students work two years longer for more education!

I know there are a lot of great ADN nurses!! I'm not knocking anyone! But just stop being so hard on people who have gone on to receive a higher degree and expect a little more for it.

You wouldn't expect to pay your family doctor the same as a specialist would you?? and why... because they have a higher education!!! Why as nurses do you want to make everybody one big blob of a profession with no room for growth!?

Like I said, I apologize if I came off as cocky, but it just gets annoying reading comment after comment about how we don't deserve more and I think we do...that is why this is a sight for opinions.

Opinions are like butt holes everybody's got one!!

rrmitch2000 · Apr 13, 2009

Hi all --

I know from experience this is a heated topic -- I know both BSN and ADN nurses. Wanted to run this by the forum, however. I am a mom of three young children ages 7, 5, and 18 months. I hold a B.A. in English and worked in publishing until staying home full-time. I have always regretted not pursuing a nursing degree while at Ohio State. Anyway, I am looking into returning to school now and have found the accelerated BSN programs in my area to be unmanageable for me -- I would love to do a BSN, but I fear I'd be biting off more than I could chew. For the moment, I have decided on a ADN program -- working on pre-reqs now and then returning for a RN-BSN program after gaining experience bedside and the children are older. Additionally, the ADN program through the community colleges is more affordable -- there is a limit to the amount of loan money one can take when you already have a bachelors....Anyone been in my situation? What did you do? Any advice will be welcomed.

Becky

Castymiss · Apr 13, 2009

I WAS in your situation. I had 4 kids and was a single mom. My youngest was 5. I went to the local Community College 20 years ago and obtained my ADN degree. I worked for the next 20 years as an RN in many different positions. I was floor nurse, charge nurse, and nurse manager. 20 years later I went back to school in an RN to BSN program. This program was a true waste of my time, but I had to go for 3 years for that BSN degree. During this 3 years I wrote lots of papers, learned powerpoint, and that was about it. Can you imagine they had us going to a clinic giving TB injections....OMG, I have given hundrends of TB shots in my career. WE also had to counsel young moms on birth control, STD, etc.....I really wish the BSN would actually TEACH us seasoned nurses something new. Like I said before the BSN was a HUGE waste of my time and money, just to get that piece of paper telling me I had a BSN degree. I do know that the BSN will open more doors and this is why I completed this program.....I am sure the Masters is more of a waste of time, but if one wants that degree, they must just go and complete all the junk that goes along with it. BY ALL MEANS get the ADN first with young kids at home. It is more do able for you. When the kids are bigger...go into that RN to BSN program....I do get MORE money at my work for having the BSN...and I think a BSN SHOULD get more pay....we have to go to school longer and suffer..hahaha...

HM2VikingRN, RN · Apr 14, 2009

ADNs with experience should look for MSN transition programs. Metro State in MN takes ADNS and they end up with A Masters after their transition instead of a BSN. (They have aso made their accelerated RN program a masters level program.)

Elvish, BSN, DNP, RN, NP · Apr 16, 2009

Just a friendly reminder from the neighborhood mod to keep things impersonal. It seems that tempers flared a bit and I've edited a few posts in the last couple pages that were a bit too personal or delved a bit too far into the realm of attack versus debate.

This is a debate that has gone on for decades, and will probably keep going on for decades....and in the meantime, all of us - BSNs, ADNs, and diploma-educated nurses - will continue to have to work together and learn from each other.

Thanks, and carry on. :)

armygirlabn, ASN, BSN, CNA, LPN, RN · May 8, 2009

Well said.

If going to school was easy everyone would be getting a 4-year degree. I agree with you. Nurses with 4-years degree should get paid more for their extra effort.

smilin_RN · Jun 2, 2009

I'd say if you want to go the quick route (which is what I did so its what I know) Get your ADN there are all types of programs online to go to a BSN and in your own time. where I live....(in the frozen tundra of north dakota) the bsn's usually get shoved into managment, which i don't want. I plan on moving and will eventually pursue the BSN degree, but with 4 children and being the main supporter...Its going to be at my own pace. but you do have that option, if you want to just get it all done at once go for the BSN but its just a longer time before the paycheck which is all what we work for in the long run right??? oh and to answer your question, the only time the BSN's get more is when they do a supervisor shift.

gcupid · Jun 30, 2009

I've precepted many BSNs and ADNs over the years because being in med-surg the two schools favor my unit. I can say for a fact one does not graduate better nurses than the other.
I've seen many ADNs nurses and BSN nurses that are totally clueness and are dreadful nurses from the start. However, most are fairly good, eager and willing to learn. Both are entry level nurses pretty much performing as they should as new grads.
One can always come up with someone of another degree than the one they favor and use them as an example of a bad nurse, but it's not fair to generalize those traits to the entire graduate pool.

Around my area,I think as students we (BSN,ADN) are equal & diploma students are better skill wise but there is something that clicks towards the end. I have extremely limited, bias (of course) experience that once graduation hits, the BSN program (in particular One BSN program) runs circles around the other new grads. Our depth in knowledge is better and it's crazy because the other schools know it.

Castymiss · Jul 1, 2009

I was an AA degree RN for almost 20 years. I returned and obtained my BSN in 2006. I have to honestly tell you that I did NOT learn that much in the BSN program. We had clinicals where we had to give TB injections. OMG, I have been doing that for years. I can also say that the main thing I learned was how to do POWERPOINT presentations. I was clueless before school. I learned a tad of research..not much and learned a little more on the entire physical assessment. That is about it. It has NOT changed how I do nursing one little bit. I went to a California State University. The teachers were older than God, one fell asleep in class while people were doing presentations. The one instructor we had in lab for physical assessment read a book in the corner while we practiced. It was horrible. There is such an instructor shortage that these schools are going to take ANYONE with a P.h.D or Masters. ANYONE........It was a huge waste of my time. Even though I do have that piece of paper that says I have a BSN. Whoooo Hooooo.....NO difference in nurses between the AA and BSN except you might get a job over an AA degree nurse. My work does pay 3% more for a BSN....