I just graduated from CRNA school, and boy does it feel good. I remember coming on here asking if my GPA was good enough (my undergraduate GPA wasn't the best), and reading threads about what type of ICU I should work in.
I was a non-ICU nurse who had a comfortable forever job with a great pension, but I got bored and decided to pursue CRNA in the Fall of 2014. Started in ICU in 2015, took the GRE, CCRN, and CMC, and I'm just now graduating.
Anyways, a lot of people answered my questions, so I'm happy to pay it forward and answer anybody's questions about CRNA school or the process of applying and getting accepted, since I'm not doing anything else but studying for boards now!
First off, congrats! Will be finishing in April and cannot wait
How has the licensure process been so far? I have been told that holding multiple state licenses can slow down the process. Something about the state BONs verifying you have a clean licenses? Is this something you're aware of and if so, how can I start early so as to not slow down the process further?
I take boards next week, and everybody in my state says be prepared to wait 4-6 weeks to my license. I only have 1 state license. My state lets us apply early to hold our place in line, so I did just that. Some say it helped them get their license quicker, others say it didn't.
I say if your state lets you apply for licensure prior to graduation then do it.
Hi, congrats on finishing CRNA school! A true accomplishment. I have been accepted into two CRNA schools. One is DNAP one is MSNA, what is your viewpoint on doctorate vs masters in anesthesia?
Hi, congrats on finishing CRNA school! A true accomplishment. I have been accepted into two CRNA schools. One is DNAP one is MSNA, what is your viewpoint on doctorate vs masters in anesthesia?
To me, this is a very personal question and I think the answer depends on what's important to you. It's important to keep in mind that the DNAP will not make you any more money. In fact, some private practice groups that are MD owned may not want to hire you if you have a DNAP since anesthesia can be pretty political. This type of group probably isn't a group you would want to work for anyways, but it's important to keep in mind that it is a possibility. These groups will likely eventually HAVE to hire DNAPs because everybody will be graduating with a DNAP/DNP and they won't have any other choice. A lot of MDs think that since the DNP can be completed online, along with other political reasons, that a doctorates in nursing is a bogus degree.
In my situation, I chose an MSNA program to make money sooner. At the end of the day, money is the most important factor for me. Also, my program was in my hometown and I didn't have to move. The DNP program I applied to and was granted an interview at costed 40k more at the time and required me to move, which would have made it an even more expensive endeavor. The other thing that was important to me was the lost income from not working sooner. The DNAP program was 36 months, which was 8 months longer than my MSNA program. My W2 job will net me about ~10-11k/month after taxes. I'll make it easy and call it 10k. 10k x 8 months = 80k in lost income. The DNP programs I'm looking at are 20k, which still means after completing a DNP I'm still+60k in income alone from having gone the masters route. Factor in tuition costs (DNAP = 40k more), and the DNAP would have cost me 100k more than the MSNA program. This doesn't include interest on student loans either.
This particular program also added nursing theory courses for the doctorate portion which I dreaded (clinical months were the same as the MSNA). I didn't feel like this particular doctorate program would have made me a better clinician, so overall I decided to cancel my interview. If I were you I would plug in the numbers with your current situation to see what works best for you.
However, If I was younger, didn't have a lot of financial obligations, and the DNAP program didn't cost considerably more than the MSNA I would get the DNAP out of the way and get it over with because going back to school at this point sounds like a drag.
A few years from now everybody will be graduating with a DNAP. Of course those with master's degrees will be grandfathered in and will likely make the same amount of money. If you want to teach, you're eventually going to have to get a DNP. Also, you need to factor in if your ego will be comfortable enough with you being in your 50s (assuming you get a MSNA and never go back for the DNP) working alongside twenty-somethings who all have a doctorate.
As an aside, I'm currently wrestling with DNP vs MBA. Neither will make me more money, but I may want to teach when I'm older, hence the desire for a doctorate. I've always had an interest in business, and WGU offers an MBA for 7k if you complete it in a year, so we will see.
Oh, and I forgot to mention that another important factor in deciding between the two programs is clinical experience. Another reason I chose the MSNA was because I knew SRNAs at the place I'd be doing clinical at (I worked in the ICU there), and I knew I would get a lot of autonomy, traumas, and other big cases. Even though I graduated with more blocks than a lot of other people in my state who went to schools with a better name, I do wish I had more regional. Nobody tried to limit the amount of regional I got, it's just that there was only so many blocks and my primary site was a SRNA driven site so ALL of the SRNAs kind of fought over the blocks. This included SRNAs from other programs.
Overall, I would have to say that if the program I graduated from was the more expensive option, and was a DNAP, I still would have chosen it because of the experience I've gotten. I'm very thankful my experience, and I didn't know how good it was until I rotated to other clinical sites that had MD anesthesia residents. I would personally try to stay away from programs where SRNAs compete with residents for cases because a lot of the time SRNAs end up with lower acuity cases. This isn't always the case though, especially in hospitals that are so large that there's plenty of cases to go around for everybody.
Also, as long as the school has a decent NCE pass rate, I wouldn't worry too much about didactic. At the end of the day we all study APEX, which I think kind of equalizes out the didactic (or lack thereof) for most programs. Whether or not this is a disservice to the students is an entirely different topic.
Hi there, thank you for taking the time to do this.
My question is about the exams in CRNA school. Are the questions similar to nursing school exam questions in regard to “select all that apply” and “both answers are correct, but what is the more correct answer” or is it less tricky but more about ensuring the student understands the material?
Hi there, thank you for taking the time to do this.
My question is about the exams in CRNA school. Are the questions similar to nursing school exam questions in regard to “select all that apply” and “both answers are correct, but what is the more correct answer” or is it less tricky but more about ensuring the student understands the material?
Thanks again for doing this!
I can only speak on behalf of my program, and I think the answer to that question depends on the instructor who wrote the test. We had some instructors who were fairly straight forward (there was a lot of content), and others who made questions that were more tricky than nursing school ever was. For instance, some would be select all that apply with double negative questions AND double negative answers where every answer seems correct, while others would be fill in the blank. The NCE (our certification exam) ended up being similarly difficult to a lot of our tests, and had multiple SATA and covered WAY MORE information than the NCLEX.
I personally felt that once I was able to decipher the double negative answers they were more straight forward than NCLEX questions, if that makes sense. There would always be an answer that was clearly correct. I also feel like questions in CRNA school were more science based, which made things easier for me. I would prefer to take an anesthesia school test over a subjective nursing school test 100%.
So, to sum it up I would say the questions were of equal of greater difficulty, but if you knew the material they were easier to answer. It just took a lot longer to learn the material. This is my subjective experience though.
I can only speak on behalf of my program, and I think the answer to that question depends on the instructor who wrote the test. We had some instructors who were fairly straight forward (there was a lot of content), and others who made questions that were more tricky than nursing school ever was. For instance, some would be select all that apply with double negative questions AND double negative answers where every answer seems correct, while others would be fill in the blank. The NCE (our certification exam) ended up being similarly difficult to a lot of our tests, and had multiple SATA and covered WAY MORE information than the NCLEX.
I personally felt that once I was able to decipher the double negative answers they were more straight forward than NCLEX questions, if that makes sense. There would always be an answer that was clearly correct. I also feel like questions in CRNA school were more science based, which made things easier for me. I would prefer to take an anesthesia school test over a subjective nursing school test 100%.
So, to sum it up I would say the questions were of equal of greater difficulty, but if you knew the material they were easier to answer. It just took a lot longer to learn the material. This is my subjective experience though.
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RNtoCRNA16
16 Posts
First off, congrats! Will be finishing in April and cannot wait
How has the licensure process been so far? I have been told that holding multiple state licenses can slow down the process. Something about the state BONs verifying you have a clean licenses? Is this something you're aware of and if so, how can I start early so as to not slow down the process further?