ISU LPN to BSN ..RN Graduate in Washington State.. letter of guidance to such students

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Hello!

I am a recent graduate of an online LPN-BSN program, have successfully passed my NCLEX and am registered now in two states. The program I attended was Indiana State University and it took me a little of 2 years at a mix of PT and FT courses. I worked while attending, and have a family. I made the mistake of getting mixed up with TCN bc thought I needed to, in order to get the challenge exam study material.. they have since eliminated that and are no longer contracted with TCN.. thank goodness! TCN is a waste of money. However, while there were hurdles to over come, if you have the self motivation to stay ontop of tight deadlines, and ability to work with students all over the US and sometimes oversees(military) then this is a FANTASTIC program! I am happy to be a resource for a local Washington LPN should anyone need guidance in their application process or just need someone to vent to that is already in the program:) I want to assist in the success of this program bc that is how much I believe in it! I have seen a lot of questions about ISU on this forum and thought it easiest to set up a new topic thread instead of answering everyone's posts..

Specializes in Cardiology and General.

I am glad my post helped you out. Feel free to reach out to me if you need any help through the process and I will do my best. I know going into the program I wish I had been able to find someone that had already been through the process.. they were out there but hard to find:) As for clinicals.. it can be tricky. I had just moved to WA from teh east coast when I started this program so my nursing network was limited. I was a contractor LPN for the VA, so they could not help me as I was not a permanent employee.. ISU has a website for assisting you find facilities in your area that they already have a clinical contract with.. HOWEVER ... that does not mean they have to take any more students. It only means they have a student currently or recently that used their facility for clinical. It is up to you to contact the appropriate person at those facilities to see if they would be willing to accept you. Persevere! Keep contacting as many facilities as you can, even if they do not have a contract. It does not take much to establish one. I ended up doing all my clinicals with Virginia Mason Hospital in downtown Seattle. Look for the nursing education office, or HR that can direct you to the person you need to speak with. It is a timely process so start early. In the end it makes you a very autonomous and resourceful nurse for it! And the positive side is that you will always be a 1:1 preceptorship instead of cohorts that are 5:1 or more at times. You get more hands on experience and time to ask questions.. Good luck!

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Hi there! I'm an LPN in vancouver, washington and I'm in the process of getting all my prerequisites finished for the ISU program. I'm hoping to apply by this next deadline, october 1st. I would LOVE to ask you a few questions if possible, I'm not sure how the website works in terms of sending you private messages or whatnot. Let me know the best way to contact you!

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Specializes in Geriatrics.

I have many questions for the LVN-BSN graduate. I was woundering if I am able to CLEP or test out of my preqs. I am currently an LVN in Tx and really would like to know where to start for the cheapest route. Can you email me or comment some info? TY

jamieheartsfield@live.com

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Specializes in Geriatrics.

Cleeato,

i am an LVN in TX and I would really like info on the smartest way to get my preqs done dor ISU LVN-BSN. Can I CLEP through all of them? Or test out? Do you know which preqs are required? Please comment or email me at jamieheartsfield@live.com. Thank you!

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Specializes in Complex pedi to LTC/SA & now a manager.
Cleeato,

i am an LVN in TX and I would really like info on the smartest way to get my preqs done dor ISU LVN-BSN. Can I CLEP through all of them? Or test out? Do you know which preqs are required? Please comment or email me at jamieheartsfield@live.com. Thank you!

Why not contact the school directly to get the most accurate information regarding required pre-requisites, admission criteria, and what alternative credit earning methods are accepted such as CLEP exams?

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Hi ! I am in search of some guidance maybe you can help me, I am currently in the excelsior program but Im considering transferring to ISU if its possible. Can I email you or can you message me. Im new on here not sure how it works. Thank you so much !

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Specializes in Cardiology and General.

Hi! Yes you can email me. I accepted your friend request so I should be able to recieve private messages from you now. I would be happy to offer guidance. But the best reccomendation I can give is to FIRST apply into ISU. The applicaiton fee is small. Have all your credits from previous college expierence transfered over so that they can be reviewed by the admissions dept. to see what they will accept. Once you are accepted into the ISU under general applicaiton you can request to speak with someone from the nursing dept and have credits reviewed to see what you will be able to use. I will say that Excellsior college credits will most likely NOT transfer over to ANY university as it is a CLEP based program and not GPA credit based. I discourage the use of such programs due to these limitations and this is why you will not be able to be endorsed in some states such as CA. During the endorsement process your education is reviewed, and ea state differs on the details of which they want there nurses to have completed. In my case, most my courses were done in my AA and anything that required a lab I completed at a local CC and then transferred those INTO ISU's program so that when I apply to CA, those courses met the lab requirement. That is how you get through the "ISU is not supported in CA" myth-loop whole:)

I am wondering how far into Excellsior you are? And how much flexibility you want with your RN license. If you are satisfied to work as an ADN prepared RN and never going onto BSN and/or not applying to any of the states where Excellsior is not accepted (I think there are over 5, CA is one and few other major states) .. then its not a bad program.. :/

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As Can you tell us the total cost of the LPN/BSN program (not including preqs)? I read somewhere it was around $23,000, but someone else commented it was over $67k!! I hope that's not right. Please give us an idea. I'm really interested in applying.

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Specializes in Cardiology and General.

It most certainly is NOT 67k! I can't remember how much I paid, def under $30k and that is with me taking out a little extra with ea loan to help offset working less. It is a university and everything goes off $/credit hour. So totally depends on what classes you have already completed. To get the most accurate here is a link to thier website: Tuition and Fees | Indiana State University you would be an out-of-state online student.

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Hey! I am from Seattle Washington hoping to do ISU LPN to BSN program. WOuld love to chat with you!

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Your absolutely right. God bless you. I'm looking forward to starting the program next year fall. If you don't mind, may I inbox you with any questions ?

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