LPN Petition to Take RN Boards

Jules A, MSN · May 20, 2008

I'll be honest since I have just taken my RN bridge I think there is quite a bit of value in the extra formal education. My program was a pretty painless short summer mostly independent study class and then the last two semesters of the RN program. I worked the entire time and it only cost just over $1,000 a semester so imo that isn't an unbearable sacrifice if LPNs want to get their RN. I would be infavor of testing out or skipping some of the mundane clinical skills depending on which area the LPN has experience with but I think the theory classes really expanded on what I learned in LPN school.

herbivorousRN · May 20, 2008

I agree with the above post. I do not support the idea of LPNs challenging the NCLEX-RN. Just because an individual has experience as an LPN,it does not equal the education that is received in that additional RN training. I feel qualified to speak on this matter as I was an LPN for 12 years before I got my RN. If you want the additional opportunities, salary, and responsibility that comes with RN liscensure, then go back to school.

withasmilelpn · May 20, 2008

If it was that easy where I live, I'd have done that as well. Here it takes almost 2 years, which in my view you might as well just sign up for your A.D. I've been an LPN for 11 years and am always educating myself and others about current practices. Every school has different requirements and not all of them have bridge programs.

herbivorousRN · May 20, 2008

Excelsior College is a wonderful option.....that is how I got my RN.

withasmilelpn · May 20, 2008

I also didn't mention the fact that I started out an English/Art major- 2 years worth then switched to an RN program. But as money and time were an issue, when I got accepted to an LPN school I went for it. My reasoning was I could always go back. Now 3 children also have put a crimp on my time, so it is not so easy. (And $ of course!)

withasmilelpn · May 20, 2008

Excelsior College is a wonderful option.....that is how I got my RN.

I am thinking about that, but it seems pretty expensive. Do you mind me asking how much it cost you? It seems to vary.

BlueRidgeHomeRN · May 20, 2008

i know i will be flamed for this, but there is a difference in education and practice between lpn's and rn's. knowing how to perform a task is not the same as understanding the rationales and disease process behind it.

before the bullets fly at me--i am in no way denigrating the masses of talented lpn's practicing in the us. i am saying that ojt is not always the best way to learn. i am an experienced rn, but in no way qualified to sit for medical boards just because i can second guess most interns. i don't have the education, and it matters. :nurse:

herbivorousRN · May 20, 2008

It really wasn't bad because I already had all my prereq's done. (I had AA degree from a community college here in Florida). So I just had to do the nursing exams and the CPNE. I have nothing but WONDERFUL things to say about Excelsior...and I would encourage anyone to pursue a degree from them. I know about $$$ issues and time constraints, too. I also have 3 children. It can be done.... ! Good luck! I would be happy to answer any questions you may have.

elkpark · May 20, 2008

For what it's worth, my personal experience has been that it's the LPNs who haven't returned to school who think this is a reasonable idea. All the RNs I've known who started out as LPNs and went back to school say they never realized until they went back to school how much difference there really was between LPNs and RNs.

Personally, I would never support such a proposal.

withasmilelpn · May 20, 2008

For what it's worth, my personal experience has been that it's the LPNs who haven't returned to school who think this is a reasonable idea. All the RNs I've known who started out as LPNs and went back to school say they never realized until they went back to school how much difference there really was between LPNs and RNs.
Personally, I would never support such a proposal.

I have had college A&P, Chemistry and Microbiology. I know that LPNs get an overview of these subjects, not the in depth versions that RNs get because I have taken them. But they are now out of date and would have to be retaken. My English and Sociology and Psychology may be accepted, if the school feels the curriculum is comparitive. Ask any person who has tried to transfer college credits from one school to the other and you will see how difficult it is. For Nursing or whatever. I keep up to date and research diseases and medications on an ongoing basis. I even do that for things that are out of my scope like TPN. I want to know how things work and how they effect my patients. I don't think I am approaching this subject from an uneducated standpoint. I can see why some would be reluctant to support this idea, however.

RN34TX · May 20, 2008

I have had college A&P, Chemistry and Microbiology. I know that LPNs get an overview of these subjects, not the in depth versions that RNs get because I have taken them. But they are now out of date and would have to be retaken. My English and Sociology and Psychology may be accepted, if the school feels the curriculum is comparitive. Ask any person who has tried to transfer college credits from one school to the other and you will see how difficult it is. For Nursing or whatever.

Excelsior does not have a time limit on transferring credits for the general education component of their ADN program. This is plainly stated on p.29 of the current school of nursing college catalog. So your A&P, micro, and chemistry in addition to your other general ed classes would transfer as long as they were obtained from a regionally accredited college no matter when they were taken.

Yes I agree that some schools make it very difficult to transfer credits. I rejected an offer to get my BSN from a school that wanted me to re-take chemistry from my ADN program because they were splitting hairs over "General Chemistry 101" vs. "Principles of Chemistry I" or something along those lines. Excelsior is not one of those schools.

Make sure your state board or board of any state where you may want to someday live/work accepts Excelsior for RN licensure. If so, then check it out as an option for you. It worked for me.