Lpn bridge Program

RNsRWe, ASN, RN · Jul 16, 2013

Lots of people have done this, it's been around quite awhile. However, it isn't one bridge program....the 'bridge' from LPN to RN is a program that varies depending on the school you wish to receive your nursing degree from. Generally speaking, the school with consider your current LPN license as having a specific value, it may be applied toward pre-reqs if you've already taken the same ones the school uses for the RN program. It might get you out of Foundations in Nursing, for example....or it might not.

Check with the school you are interested in applying to, and find out what they will offer you as a bridge. You'll still need to earn the college credits for the college degree, so it might not be as much of a shortcut as you'd expect.

Annabans · Jul 16, 2013

Fellow nursing student, I too plan on bridging into a local lpn-rn program after my lpn is completed. Go to bestnursingdegress.com and find programs near you. Many community colleges have them and it usually only takes ONE year after lpn to get your ADN-RN. Pretty sweet! Just stick it out for 12 more months and you can boost your salary by thousands. I am from the outskirts of Boston and lpns make average of 45-50,000 where RNs make 60-80,000. Worth it in my opinion

CT Pixie, BSN, RN · Jul 16, 2013

Many community colleges have them and it usually only takes ONE year after lpn to get your ADN-RN. Pretty sweet! Just stick it out for 12 more months and you can boost your salary by thousands. I am from the outskirts of Boston and lpns make average of 45-50,000 where RNs make 60-80,000. Worth it in my opinion

I became an LPN in 2008 and an RN June 2013

While you are correct in saying it usually only takes one year after LPN to get your ADN, that really is one year (2-3 semesters) of RN nursing classes, it does not include the core courses needed to get an associates degree (English, Math, A&P, humanities etc or the pre-req classes such as chem and/or general bio usually needed in order to take A&P). It can take a total of 2 yrs if not more depending on how many college credits you have/don't have and how many of those credits the bridge program will accept (one year of non-nursing courses and one of nursing classes). I had several non-nursing classes under my belt before starting my bridge program Sadly my school only accepts 18 transfer credits (however they have since changed it and now allow more, but not many more). The others I had to retake In order to even take the nursing classes we as LPN bridge students had to take and pass all of the first year non-nursing classes (A&P I & II, psych, Algebra, English) I chose to finish off the remainder of Assoc degree classes prior to starting my RN classes so that I would only have to worry, concentrate and study for the nursing classes.

I transferred in my English, sociology, religion and psych 1 & 2. I started taking classes summer 2011 semester with chem, Fall 2011 I tookA&P 1 and College Level algebra as well as Ethics), Winter Intersession I took Micro, Spring 12 i took A&P II, my LPN transitional classes (1 online for 8 wks, 2 wks on clinical floor and classroom) and Summer 2012 I took my humanities elective. So that was one calander year of non-nursing courses (with a Fall, Winter, Spring and Summer semesters Winter classes lasted 6 wks where Summer were 8). so you can see where it could take longer than a year of non-nursing classes, especially if you don't have the option to do Summer, Winter Break classes

Fall 2012 is when I started my RN nursing classes and took the remaining RN classes in Spring 2013.

How it works in my State is you have to apply and be accepted into the LPN to RN bridge program. You have to complete and pass the first year non-nursing classes. You also have to take an online LPN transitional class (all bookwork/computer etc) and then take your 'home' school (the one where you'll be completing your degree) 2 week transitinal class which usually is a certain amount of hours on the floor as well as some minimal classwork. Once that is done you then enter the 2nd year of the RN classes of the program. You then follow the same schedule as the students who started fresh (without the bridge program).

My best suggestion is to look at the bridge requirements of the schools you are interested in. Be aware, not all schools offer the bridge programs. And from there, see what you need to do in order to be eligible to do the bridge. Some States and/or schools require that the LPN having a certain amount of time working as an LPN and some don't