LPN or RN? Spouse in Military?

Lulu Belle, RN, EMT-B · Feb 24, 2015

Wow. I wish I had more to offer than my support. I feel like I can oddly identify with your situation, and it is also remarkably similar to that of two people very close to me. Over the duration of the time he served in the Marines, they frequently went well over a year without seeing each other. It can be done, and it can work out. It feels wrong to give a stranger life advice over the internet, so I will say this: personally, my gut would tell me to go for the ADN. But you have to do what your gut tells you.

GucciBeaR143, BSN · Feb 24, 2015

Congratulations on getting married. Advise from milspouse, ADN (if not BSN) all the way! It's hard to type without sounding insensitive; however, he is not in the military yet. If you are already accepted in the program, then, by all means you should go for the ADN. I know a lot of people fighting/clawing/dying to get in any nursing program. When he starts BT/AIT/selection process, it'll take months and you will not be able to travel to see him on a whim while in nursing school. However, if you graduate and pass the NCLEX, you will have the money and the flexibility to work wherever you guys maybe stationed. Also, you can work on your BSN while working as an ADN.

Anonymous1257 · Feb 24, 2015

Guccibear offers good advice. I would urge you towards the ADN as well.

Another option would be to get your LVN then hunt for a bridge program wherever for yall move to. That'd be more time and money, however, but it's an option.

Deer2013 · Feb 24, 2015

Thank you for the response, Lulu Belle. I think my gut is telling me to get my ADN too but the idea of being away from my spouse is saddening. I probably will get my ADN though. It's only two more semesters than the LPN program. Do you happen to know any nurses that worked in the hospitals on bases? Or do you know if those hospitals only let people in the military work there? Thanks so much for responding! It's always nice to get a response from someone who can relate to you. :)

Deer2013 · Feb 24, 2015

GucciBeaR143, I only have my pre-requisites for my ADN but I have considered just taking a few more classes so I can get my BSN first instead of doing a bridge program later. I'm wondering though if my husband would ever be stationed somewhere long enough to finish a BSN nursing program. In your experience, how long are you typically stationed somewhere? I would hate to be only a semester away from getting my BSN and then have to move.

GucciBeaR143, BSN · Feb 25, 2015

With an ADN, you have more options to bridge to BSN, MSN, or I believe PhD now, too. There are online colleges nowadays where you can pace your time in conjunction with your military life... I remember them being taboo, to the point that I was told "no one would EVER hire them online grads." However, I've had managers/directors of all shapes/experiences/attitude to where it wouldn't have mattered to me professionally if they went online (U of Phoenix) or upper posh (Yale.)

I will say, though, that I've had numerous milspouse "friends" that I've recruited into nursing because NURSING is such a broad field. You can go work at a medspa and do derma/Botox/etch all day, nurse informatics, management, PEDI, psych, educator, etc in one career AND you can always move specialties of you get bored.... Or stay in one spot like my mother for 41+... or, as a milspouse, have the freedom to be a travel nurse, get more pay because you don't need insurance coverage since you're under your Husband's, take some time off and raise babies, work PRN, worked a FT and a PRN...

One thing you'll learn as a milspouse is you cannot plan and control anymore, you will hurry up and wait, but ADAPT. You cannot rely on your Husband's career; so, I hope you will sacrifice and tough it out instead of moving right away. Finish your school, both of you will be more grateful & prepared. There's so much the military life will challenge & reward you with; having at least your career will give you an advantage.

Good luck on your endeavours =D

Pinorah · Feb 25, 2015

Also keep in mind that many colleges have time limits on pre-requisites. If you wait years to enter another nursing program, you might have to retake courses, especially A&P and Biology.

Being away from a spouse can be very difficult, but think long term! My husband and I work currently together in Iraq. That will change this fall when I start nursing school. For the next 2 years I'll see him for about 3 months out of the year. I look at the bright side..at least I can focus on school!

During my military service I was moved around every 2 years but sometimes, depending on MOS, people have been stationed longer at certain posts.

Whatever you decide, good luck!

VAPrincess1036 · Feb 25, 2015

As another milspouse who has spent her life in school (LPN to RN to BSN) PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE get your ADN. I was young and newly married got my LPN so that I could move with my DH and would just finish my RN later. Well later with the moving, life, needing a job to pay bills, and actually getting into a program happened to be 7 years later for me. Yes you can get it sooner many people do but why take the chance. I kick myself every single day for not just getting my RN first. You can always do an online bridge program and get your BSN. I feel like I wasted tons of time and money going the long route. Plus it's not easy to find an LPN job everywhere you move I have had troubles in the past. You and your spouse will spend time apart with his career anyways and you will want a job to keep you busy while he is gone. I know it's sad and it sucks but believe me it will make you a stronger person and couple. Also about working for the base yes they hire civilian nurses. I currently work for the air force as a civilian nurse and have worked at a navy facility at our last base. It's a contract job it pays more than the regular jobs out in town because the benefits are awful but guess what you won't need them :-). Good luck and please get your RN!

Wannabeeinscrubs, ADN, LPN, RN · Feb 25, 2015

Because of the many moves, I am just now finishing my LPN. I hope to get into a LPN-BSN bridge program soon after I graduate. Never knowing how long we will be in one area is one reason why I chose LPN first. I knew I could start and finish in one duty station.

fich · Feb 25, 2015

Of course I would preface this by saying only you know what is best for your relationship.

That being said, I can share my experience with you. I have been with my husband for 9 years and married for 7. He has been a Marine the entire time and I have always made plans around his career. I moved with him when he moved, and went to school for what was offered based off of where we lived. I knew in the back of my mind I wanted to be a nurse but it was never "convenient" based off of time and/or geographics, so I now have a license in skincare, and a bachelors in Psychology. But guess what! I have never worked in either of those fields, and this summer I am starting an ABSN program that I have to commute over an hour to get to, and I have 2 children under 3 years old. So, it didn't get easier to obtain my nursing degree after waiting all of that time, I just got more desperate to actually have the career that I want for my life. Now, it is going to be a special kind of hell to try and be a great nursing student and mother and wife for that 12 months, but it is such a long time coming that I am overly excited about it anyhow!

So, the reason for telling you all of that is so that I can give you my opinion on your situation (which is only an opinion!). If I could have a do-over, I would have powered through and done this 10 years ago when I was in your exact situation. If you have a place to stay behind, it would probably be a great idea to stay and do the full ADN. It will absolutely suck to miss each other longer than you have to, but think of how focused you will be on school, and when you get a chance to visit one another you can take a break and focus on only each other for that time. Even though there is no substitute for physical presence, Facetime/ video chat makes being apart a little easier than it used to. And then when you move to be with your husband, who will already be settled in his new duty station, you will be employable and ready to start working, and can do an RN-BSN online later on if you choose. If you do the LPN, and then you get there and work a while before deciding you want to finish your RN, you will have to then get accepted to a program, wait for it to start, and hope that it doesn't clash with any orders....you see where I am going with this. Settling for less that what you want to achieve will ultimately leave you feeling a sense of "what next".

All I am saying is that you put something off for a little while, and then life happens. You have to get a job to make ends meet, or you have to move before you can finish the program, or you live too far away from a college that offers a program, etc.

Good Luck in making your decision, and congratulations on your recent marriage and your husbands start in the Marine Corps. It's a fun, interesting, tedious, sometimes frustrating, but always rewarding lifestyle being a military family.

FuturePNP_32, CNA · Feb 25, 2015

Of course I would preface this by saying only you know what is best for your relationship.
That being said, I can share my experience with you. I have been with my husband for 9 years and married for 7. He has been a Marine the entire time and I have always made plans around his career. I moved with him when he moved, and went to school for what was offered based off of where we lived. I knew in the back of my mind I wanted to be a nurse but it was never "convenient" based off of time and/or geographics, so I now have a license in skincare, and a bachelors in Psychology. But guess what! I have never worked in either of those fields, and this summer I am starting an ABSN program that I have to commute over an hour to get to, and I have 2 children under 3 years old. So, it didn't get easier to obtain my nursing degree after waiting all of that time, I just got more desperate to actually have the career that I want for my life. Now, it is going to be a special kind of hell to try and be a great nursing student and mother and wife for that 12 months, but it is such a long time coming that I am overly excited about it anyhow!
So, the reason for telling you all of that is so that I can give you my opinion on your situation (which is only an opinion!). If I could have a do-over, I would have powered through and done this 10 years ago when I was in your exact situation. If you have a place to stay behind, it would probably be a great idea to stay and do the full ADN. It will absolutely suck to miss each other longer than you have to, but think of how focused you will be on school, and when you get a chance to visit one another you can take a break and focus on only each other for that time. Even though there is no substitute for physical presence, Facetime/ video chat makes being apart a little easier than it used to. And then when you move to be with your husband, who will already be settled in his new duty station, you will be employable and ready to start working, and can do an RN-BSN online later on if you choose. If you do the LPN, and then you get there and work a while before deciding you want to finish your RN, you will have to then get accepted to a program, wait for it to start, and hope that it doesn't clash with any orders....you see where I am going with this. Settling for less that what you want to achieve will ultimately leave you feeling a sense of "what next".
All I am saying is that you put something off for a little while, and then life happens. You have to get a job to make ends meet, or you have to move before you can finish the program, or you live too far away from a college that offers a program, etc.
Good Luck in making your decision, and congratulations on your recent marriage and your husbands start in the Marine Corps. It's a fun, interesting, tedious, sometimes frustrating, but always rewarding lifestyle being a military family.

^^^^^ exactly what Fich said.

I am in the exact same situation, I'm a navy spouse and still trying to obtain a nursing degree. I did what your thinking about doing and said "i'll just move to be with my husband and finish my schooling out there" It never happened cause life got in the way. We were 20 yrs old and I was a pre nursing major. I am now going to be 27 this year and still trying to get to Nursing, except life got in the way and Im a mom of two boys and been supporting my husbands Navy career since we graduated High School ( we're high school sweethearts) I regret not staying to finish school first so much to this day and wish i could turn back time and do it over to finish school and then move to be with my husband. I would be so much happier and less stressed now. We are currently still stationed away from family that could help so I am dealing with deployments, going to school, working, taking care of my home and bills, taking care of my kids including sports and extracurriculars and dropping them at separate schools (one for day care and the other elem. aged) just so I can go to school and hopefully get my nursing degree in the future. I thought i'd be done by now but we PCS again next yr so I have to hope my pre reqs work for wherever we move next. Point is, get your ADN or BSN and visit your hubby for now. You will thank yourself later down the road.