LOANs... a good idea?

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hi everyone... so i have a question regarding ADN vs accelerated BSN. I KNOW its been asked before but i was just wondering about loans. I have 15,000 loan from my undergrad years. Right now i'm planning to persue nursing and i'm going to start my pre-reqs at a community college. So my question is for the current nurses and what route they took if they already had a Bachlor before nursing and have loans from that. I hear ADN is cheaper but how about when you go from RN to BSN? when it all comes down to it, does the ADN to RN/BSN end up like the accelerated BSN? I can see the appeal of getting the ADN then working and making money to cover the expense of the RN to BSN but right now i am single, no kids, house, etc... is it best to just get it over with? Is the loans worth it? ANy advice you have will help. it's nice to hear from people that have went through it... it helps alot

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Specializes in ICU.

I'm not a nurse yet, but when I am in school, I fully plan on taking loans and going the aBSN route. I also have student loan debt from my first degree (and my husband's first degree...). I will take out the loans necessary to get my degree quickly.

I've been working full-time and paying my tuition in full for all my pre-reqs at a community college. When I transfer to the larger, more expensive university next year for the aBSN program I will quit my job or go PRN and just bite the bullet and take loans, knowing that 14 months later, I'll be a nurse!

Everyone's financial situation is different...for me the speed of the program and getting my BSN faster is worth the extra expense (in my area the aBSN is 14 months. ADN is 2 years, ADN-BSN is at least 1 more year). You just have to decide what's right for you! For me, I have a feeling I'll be wanting to continue my nursing education past a BSN, so getting that BSN quickly is important to me so I can start figuring out where to go from there (if anywhere!).

There are several other good posts on this topic in the "Pre-Nursing Students" Forum and in the "Diploma, ADN, or BSN?" board.

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Specializes in Emergency.

I got my BA (using loans) then went back to ADN (using loans) because it was cheaper and more clinical experience then the BSN. Now, because I had the BA, I qualified and am enrolled in an RN to MSN program (once again using loans). I did it this way because it ended up being cheaper and I didnt have to waste time getting a second bachelor's degree. If you plan on continuing your education this is a good way to do it.

Now I have a good amount of loans, but hopefully when Im done with the MSN I will have the paycheck to start taking care of them...for 30 years:rolleyes:

I just couldnt have afforded it without them. Thats what they are for.

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Specializes in CRNA, Finally retired.

Many years ago I borrowed money for BSN. Once you're working time flies very quickly and the loans get paid back. Bite the bullet now while you have no other expenses. I already had a BA but it still took me 3 years to get BSN but was able to work part-time the entire three years since I didn't have to take more than 9-10 credits a semester. Had to take 12 credits each semester the last year but that was to reap the benefits of an NIH scholarship which required 12. Just do it and get it over with while you you're working the early stressful years in a new profession. I had a non-taxing part-time desk job while going to school.

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I earned my BSN, and plan to do school again later to be a nurse practitioner or whatever I decide. My preceptor at my first job did ADN and started working at 20 years old. She then went straight back to school and did her ADN to BSN. As soon as she graduated she started work on her masters degree.

She has spent years and years in school, but she doesn't have a lot of debt from loans because 1)She had a real job the whole time, not a waitress job or a side job like most college students have to just make enough money for meals and rent. and 2)Many hospitals offer tuition reimbursement. At my first job, after 90 days of employment you could get the hospital to help you pay back your loans. They were paying 400.00 a month towards student loans! I could have never done that on my own!

I think the key is doing what you want. Either way is the smart way, it just depends on the experience you want to have. Money is a big deal, but don't let it stop you from doing what you want. Remember there are scholarships out there. I have never had any luck with those random scholarships you see posted on websites, but who knows! People do receive them.

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I have my BA, and am starting an ADN program in the Fall. After going back and forth, I decided that this is the best route for me to go. I am going to be able to pay for the ADN without taking out any loans, and I will be able to work while I do the RN to MSN after I graduate. The ABSN program in the SF Bay Area is a whopping $50,000. I am going to pay 1/10 of that to get the RN, and the MSN once I have the RN done will not even add up to that much. I do see how it is hard to make a decision, but I have friends who have done both routes, and all three are working as Staff Nurses. My friend who did the Masters Entry Program at SFSU told me there is no difference in pay between her and the ADN nurses she works with. The job market is very tough out there for nurses right now in the bay area. I think it would be easier for me to swallow taking 6 months to find a job if I had no debt vs. having a mountain of debt. IMHO.

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Be really careful how much you accumulate in student loans. Paying back student loans and defaults are predicted to be the next financial crisis. For the past several years, up until our current economic crisis, student loans were handed out to any one and everybody. Almost 20% of people with student loans owe over $75,000. How are these loans going to be paid back? Most of these people with SL are younger, would like to buy a house and have children, but can't afford to. And you can't declare bankrupcty and wipe out the debt-student loans are exempt from bankruptcy. Some people have 30 year loans now--are you sure you want to do this?

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Specializes in ICU.
Most of these people with SL are younger, would like to buy a house and have children, but can't afford to. And you can't declare bankrupcty and wipe out the debt-student loans are exempt from bankruptcy. Some people have 30 year loans now--are you sure you want to do this?

That's why they exist, though...to help people that couldn't otherwise pay for college go to college. Especially in my case (and likely the OP's - both being second-degree students) financial realities of loans and living as an adult have already hit. Sure, taking out loans and choosing to be a poor college student *again* is a huge decision that will impact our lives far into the future and is not to be taken lightly. Therefore, wise decisions about major purchases like a home will have to be weighed, as well as (to the extent that it can be controlled, and of course everyone has a personal opinion about the degree to which it can/should be) decisions about starting a family. But to be honest, I can't responsibly afford those right now either, regardless of how much I want them. Taking out loans isn't going to change that fact. Taking out loans, will, though, enable me to get a degree with a future in which I might be able to someday afford those things. I've done my research, I'm as sure as a pre-nursing student can get that nursing is right for me, I've spent over two years working in a hospital building relationships with nurse managers and impressing management with my work ethic and abilities. I'm fairly positive I will have a hard-to-come-by New Grad job waiting for me if I can get my degree quickly. I know nursing isn't a career to pursue merely for financial stability (a quick look at this forum proves that!), but I also know that it is my best option right now for a better future. And if that means taking extra loans to get an Accelerated BSN, get done faster and make myself available to these nurse managers while they still remember how great a worker I am, I'm prepared to do that. It's not a light or easy decision, but it's the right one for me.

I get your point about the seriousness of loans and the potential danger and the implications they have for years and years on one's life after, but in some cases, they can be used as they are intended to help people along to a better education, career, and life.

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Be really careful how much you accumulate in student loans. Paying back student loans and defaults are predicted to be the next financial crisis. For the past several years, up until our current economic crisis, student loans were handed out to any one and everybody. Almost 20% of people with student loans owe over $75,000. How are these loans going to be paid back? Most of these people with SL are younger, would like to buy a house and have children, but can't afford to. And you can't declare bankrupcty and wipe out the debt-student loans are exempt from bankruptcy. Some people have 30 year loans now--are you sure you want to do this?

I agree with you about the next financial crisis. It's really sad because many of these people (including me) are financing their education with loans and then can barely find a job when they are done. It's like you hate to take out a loan but schools are so expensive that you have too. The other choice is not to go to school at all and we all know where that can go if you don't have an education. Some people say,"when I was in college in my younger years I paid my way through school." But what they fail to realize is this is a different time, people with college degrees and experience can barely get jobs. So the "go out and get a job" is easier said then done. I would not have had to take out loans currently in my undergrad but my employers cut my hours so drastically (work for the state of Ca) that I had no choice. Hopefully this economy picks up for everybody.

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I have a BA, as well as all of my pre-requisites complete for the ABSN program I'm starting this fall. This all cost me around $15,000 in loans. My ABSN will add $23,000 to that. I will not go back for my MSN until I'm paid down my current loans..

For me, it was an issue of time. The waitlist in my area for an ADN is around 2 years, and then 2 years for the program. The ABSN is 1 year. I've been an undergrad for a long time.. I'm ready to be done. Also, the school mattered to me. The school from which I received my BA is the school with the ABSN program, and this is where I really wanted to go. If they had any other program (ex. direct entry MSN), I would have done it, but this is all they have.

It's a very individual decision.. depends on what you're comfortable with financially and academically. Although, it's not my personal choice, I like the idea of doing an RN-MSN if you already have a BA, it seems the most cost effective.

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Specializes in ICU.
I like the idea of doing an RN-MSN if you already have a BA, it seems the most cost effective.

I agree! RN-MSN seems like a great route, I wish I could find a program like that without having to move out of state (thus submitting myself to out of state tuition or private institution tuition...eee). Unfortunately the programs in my area require an ADN and a previous BS degree in a "related field"...I have a BA in history, not a BS. I think I just need to get my aBSN and then spend some time working to reasses my financial and education and career situation for a while before making a commitment to a MSN or DNP level program. And pay down those loans. :)

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I agree! RN-MSN seems like a great route, I wish I could find a program like that without having to move out of state (thus submitting myself to out of state tuition or private institution tuition...eee). Unfortunately the programs in my area require an ADN and a previous BS degree in a "related field"...I have a BA in history, not a BS. I think I just need to get my aBSN and then spend some time working to reasses my financial and education and career situation for a while before making a commitment to a MSN or DNP level program. And pay down those loans. :)

That's my plan! :D If you do choose that route, hopefully you have an ABSN program in your area that's not ridiculously expensive. In my area, there are some programs that really take advantage.. $50,000 for an ABSN is a price I would never pay...

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