Is LPN school just as hard as RN school?

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Hey guys,

I will be starting an RN 1+1 program (1st yr LPN, 2nd yr RN) this August. I was just wondering if LPN school is just as hard and demanding as RN school? Will it require the same amount of studying and tedious work? I hear LPN school is more clinical work, whereas, RN school is more theory, any truth to this? Anything helps. Thanks is advance!!!

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Specializes in Family Nurse Practitioner.

I found them to be about the same. The difference was that when I started the LPN program I had to adjust to the culture shock that is nursing school and by the time I did the RN bridge it didn't phase me. Good luck.

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Specializes in 4 years of L&D and 6 years of Med-Surg.

Hey there!

I've been an LVN for 9 years. Worked 4 years in L&D and decided to switch to Med surg. Been doing 5 years of med surg now and i love it more than L&D.

I decided to go back and get my RN. You know how it is....do almost the same stuff (some of it) but not get paid or get credit for it, usually the RN does.

Well, thank god I did med surg, because trust me when you do the RN program everything is going to be based on Med surg.

For me it was hard because, I developed easy but SAFE habits which we call "short cuts". Well once you are in the program.....get rid of those bad "easy short cuts" it will kill you!!

It has happened to me many times and it has haunted me. I've been referred to skill lab you might not know how many times. So make sure before any procedure, go backt to your skill book and read each step by step.

Once you got those skills down, it will be ok with clinicals. But the other hard part for me was patho. You have to know patho with the disease process. OMG! you don't know how important it is.

Wish you luck in your studies! But you know what, having the LVN experience does help out a lot. You've been exposed and so when you hear things or see things what you experienced in the hospital it wont be too new for you.

Good luck!!

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Hello there,

I am new to the forum. I just graduated from an LPN program and I am very interested in doing the bridge program. Where are you? I am in New York...any advice will be greatly appreciated!!

thanks in advance.:p

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I graduate from LPN to RN Bridge Program August 1, 2008:D. I graduated LPN school August 2005. I feel the LPN program was more diffucult even with me being a CNA before I began. If you have been out of school a long time it may make some difference.

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I'm sooooo happy for you??? where are you?? I am interested in doing the same bridge program...can you give me some info on it??? also, does anyone recommend doing the Rn online????

can't wait to hear from the forum!

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I live in Mississippi I drive about 50miles one way to class(I carpool). My classes are Tuesday and Thursday nights and every other weekend for clinicals. Sometimes we would do clinical time in class. My last clinicals was 2nd weekend in may. I did my preceptorship at an acute care hospital. Any specific questions?

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Specializes in LTC/Rehab, Med Surg, Home Care.

The third semester, the one I finished in May, which is the first semester of "RN" was the most challenging for me. We also had a high percentage of failure as well. My class lost 8 students.

Hey guys,

I will be starting an RN 1+1 program (1st yr LPN, 2nd yr RN) this August. I was just wondering if LPN school is just as hard and demanding as RN school? Will it require the same amount of studying and tedious work? I hear LPN school is more clinical work, whereas, RN school is more theory, any truth to this? Anything helps. Thanks is advance!!!

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Specializes in LTC, med/surg, hospice.

In LPN school, our clinicals were harder IMO. RN school we had careplans to do that were fairly time consuming and hard (depending on the grader). With some LPN experience most have a one-up on the traditional students in certain clinical areas (caths, passing meds, giving injections). As far as the classwork..some of it is harder b/c it's more in depth.

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CP123,

I just moved to Oklahoma City. The NS's here seem to be a little bit easier to get into than the schools in California... but it is still just as competitive. I start at OSU-OKC this August so I am soooooooooooooo excited! I cant believe that 2 years from now, I'll be a nurse!!!

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Specializes in Physician office, Hosp, Nursing Home.

HI, I'm in a LPN-RN bridge program..I"ve been a LPN since 2-07 and work med/surg at the local hospital for 2 years..I live in small town IN with few LPN-RN bridge programs available. I went to IVY-tech for my LPN...wonderful experience, good program, High NCLEX pass rate. I received a good foundation..However, the bridge program I'm in sucks.....the pass rate is below 60% and the school is on probation. I did not know that when I enrolled. (yeah, like the college is going to announce that.) If it wasn't for IVY-Tech and my experience at my local hosp. I would be lost..The bridge progam is ridiculos. I'm in with the second year RN students. NOt many are going to pass boards. My clinical experience is horrible..Basically I find my own clinical sites..for example my ob-peds rotation-I only get three hosp times, then I have to find my own clinicals and still pay over $2000 for clinicals..I have to go to and call to find hours at WIC, health dept.,Hospital, OB-GYN clinic/offices, healthy families, head start, day care centers,etc.I have to find my own peds pt to follow and shadow and do extensive care plans and journal reports for each progam and receive 3 hrs clinical time for each. I will not recomend this program for any one...I'm in too deep to drop. I graduate in May 09...I hope. I had to take a leave of absence from my job to finish school. I go to school four days a week plus find my clinicals for OB and Psych...(those are the only rotations I have left)...If I knew that I would have never enrolled at this college. So to answer the original question is LPN or RN harder? My RN program is harder due to school I chose. HIndsight is 20/20. At this point I don't care about my GPA (was always on dean's list) I just want to forfill the schools requirements and take the NCLEX. I also have to do an electronic portfollio that had the 6 core values of the school. OH pleeze..more useless "busy work" that has no purpose...I'm also sick of 10 page care plans...I work in the "real" world...Yeah we do care plans but they are just check off sheets that go in the back of the chart..Dr. orders, kardex and the M.A.R. are the main plan of care..(well at my hosp anyway). Thanks for letting me vent...Only 86 days to go...spent thousands and deep in debt to get where I'm at...i just wanna pass at this point...When I started this progam in May -08 there were 5 LPN's who started with me from the hosp..I'm the last one left. Only because I took a leave of absence the other LPN's need the full time job. In the total program 18 LPN's and 20 second yr rn students now about 20 students all together..I probably can't legally name the school however, northern IN students beware! I'm so proud of nurses....We all have "our" story and it took us all a lot of hard work and dedication to get where we are...Keep on Keepin' on.

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I want to know the real difference between a greaduate nurse and a registered nurse. Which one ia better?

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