Does it get easier?

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Jul 13, 2016

Your mileage may vary, but the LPN-to-ASN transition program was significantly easier for me than the LVN program. I also commuted across state lines to attend the LPN-to-ASN program and worked full-time while attending, yet I still found it easier.

margin261 · Jul 13, 2016

I'm sorry to tell you this- but no!

I was an LPN for 12 yrs before going back for my ASN through a bridge program. We- the other LPNs & I- had more difficulty with the program than the students with no medical background!!

Of course, you'll have a little bit of an advantage in knowing much of the terms & such BUT let me give you some advice I wish someone had given me.

Like you, I did well in LPN school- and actually loved it! I made As in pre-reqs, (except microbiology a B) then started the nursing program.

From the first test we had NCLEX style questions. No real content questions. There was a massive amount of reading, stuff on tests that wasn't covered in class. We had different teachers for different sections- so different styles of teaching to adapt to and not all teachers are good at teaching! My grades dropped immediately & I freaked!

So here is my best advice-

1) don't worry about keeping those straight As- just pass! You keep above the passing line, you graduate & that's the goal

2) forget how things are done in the real world when you're answering NCLEX style questions- that messed me up for a while! You just have to accept that for as long as you're in school. I was told a thousand times, " you are in Utopia Hospital & you have all the staff & supplies & time you need..." It was a difficult concept to accept having been a nurse for 12 years...

3) if your program starts right off with NCLEX type tests, get a study book & do questions whenever you can. I got NCLEX apps on my phone & did them constantly- in line at Starbucks, McDonalds, etc. And always read the rationales!!

It's not easy, but it is doable & definitely worth it!!

Good luck!

margin261 · Jul 13, 2016

Your mileage may vary, but the LPN-to-ASN transition program was significantly easier for me than the LVN program. I also commuted across state lines to attend the LPN-to-ASN program and worked full-time while attending, yet I still found it easier.

Lol- maybe I should've added that I was in my 40's during my ASN program and maybe that's why it seemed more difficult than my LPN program- my brain was older!

NotMyProblem MSN, ASN, BSN, MSN, LPN, RN · Jul 13, 2016

My bridge program was online and I loved every minute of it. Of course, I barely worked at all, which afforded me the time to wisk right through to becoming an RN in under a year. Now, I was sitting in an actual classroom at the same time, though, to knock out those electives.

It was a lot of reading, as stated by a previous poster AND, I too was well past 40 when I did the bridge; so I had to do a lot of repetitive reading in order for the information to stick. The curriculum of that particular college, in addition to the costs, have all increased over the years...not going get simpler or cheaper as time progresses.

So, if you want to do this, start out with a couple of easy courses at a time. Compare the demands of those and how they factor into your work schedule, and then revise the course load accordingly in the following semester. Good luck to you...

LPNtoRNin2016OH, LPN · Jul 22, 2016

Depends on your program structure. Mine is one year, we are advanced the first year that the tradition students take but we are expected to come in with the content they teach that first year on our own and we are tested in it even if we do nit necessarily cover it in class. We have a transitions course in almost done with, we do this before we start clinical in falk semester. I was a straight A student from pre reqs and am pulling mid to high 80s on exams and I study the content thoroughly. I only work PRN now because I mainly take care of our three kids while my husband is at work most of the time. It would have been very difficult to work ft on top of all that. Many of my classmates do work ft tho, some of them do just fine and others just barely pass. It all depends on how much you think you will be able to handle. I've been an LPN for 8 years, the difficulty for me in answering test questions with an RN mindset instead of my LPN knowledge. I'm getting the hang of it quickly but I often have to check myself on tests to make sure I'm not doing that.

Natasha A., CNA, LVN · Jul 22, 2016

LPNtoRN2016, thanks for sharing your story.

Idaho_nurse · Sep 8, 2016

I just started my RN bridge program and working part time. However, I am working in home health, so there is alot of drive time and management with this. I am struggling big time. I am not sure whether it is because I have taken almost 10 years to get back to it (in my mid 40's) or if I just have way to much on my plate with this accelerated course. I have worked just about every specialty minus OB. I was a CNA, MA, Scrub tech, ER tech, etc... I am having issues with clinicals because I am sooo used to working "real world" and in home health especially, things are not always available as they are in a hospital setting or help available. I am questioning things, but having to bite my tongue, which is not a huge deal, but I forget the minor stuff that is included in skills validation. The program is intense reading, homework, etc.. and I am behind because I have zero choice but to work (I am in a single mom and paying rent and supplying food is important). I am really questioning why I am going on, but I know I need to. I LOVE this field, and I want to continue on. I think the hardest thing is that I did wait so long and they didnt accept most of my transfer credits, so I am having to retake all the sciences as well, so its a FULL load. I was a 3.9 GPA student in my LPN class, and I know I wont be doing that here. I am just hoping to get through it. Luckily, I do have a heavy clinical background, and it doesnt take much studying to get through those, but I am worried.

NurseEmmy · Sep 16, 2016

I became an LPN 10 years ago. I am currently in an LPN-ADN transition program at a local CC. Our group is mixed in with the 2nd year ADN students. I think I am much more prepared overall than some of the other ADN students who are not LPN's. Other times I think they are better prepared as they have been taking classes more recently than I, so it is more "fresh" in their minds.