2nd Degree Nursing Questions & Advice

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I am currently working towards a Bachelor of Science in General Business, however I've always wanted to pursue nursing. I (hopefully) plan on going to nursing school shortly after graduating. I am a single mom and not working is unfortunately not an option, so I think the ADN then RN-BSN route would be my best bet. (Although I could be wrong - any input would be greatly appreciated!) The following are my current concerns:

  • I've read several threads and from what I can tell, you have little to no control over picking the days and times for your classes/clinicals. How true is this? My concern is that without the ability to have some say so in the matter, there will be potential schedule conflicts between school and work.
  • As previously stated, after researching each option, I feel that based on my personal circumstances, the ADN then RN-BSN route would be best choice. I realize that this option will take longer, however being around for my son is extremely important to me. If anyone has successfully pursued another option, such as the Accelerated BSN, while managing work and a family, I would really appreciate any advice!

I guess I'm just trying to see if it's even possible for me to do this. Thank you in advance for any answers and advice!

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Specializes in Pediatrics, Long Term Care.

I am working on my second bachelor's the first being in psychology and I have no children, unemployed and my mom supports me. The best advice I can give is that if you are employed and they are flexible doing the BSN route is doable but if you MUST put work first I suggest you do the ADN route. The ONLY people in my BSN program have either extremely flexible work schedules or are unemployed because we have such a small class and classes are only available at one time only.

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My work schedule is pretty flexible - I currently work the evening shifts primarily with varying shifts on Friday and Saturday. We're closed on Sundays. I'm not sure if this makes a difference or not, but thank you for your input!

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Specializes in Trauma, Orthopedics.

Some things I've learned in my Accelerated BSN program

1. Most of my class has kids. They have all made it work.

2. Your school will not work around your work schedule, your work schedule will revolve around your school schedule.

3. If you feel that your life will be too difficult in an ADN program between work/school/your child, it is only going to be 10x harder in an accelerated program. Right now I'm halfway done my program, and the most I've been able to work is 2 days a week. Most of us don't work or only work very part time. I live primarily off of loans. Right now, work is not important to me like school is.

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School is definitely a priority of mine, I just wanted to make sure I would still be able to work. I currently only work part-time, so that won't be an issue. If you don't mind me asking, what is your schedule typically like? Thank you for your input - I appreciate it!

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Specializes in Trauma, Orthopedics.

My 2nd semester schedule was Wednesday clinical, Thursday class 8-3:30, Friday class 8-1, Saturday Clinical. I worked Mondays and Tuesdays so I could have Sunday to myself...but I found myself giving up my shifts a lot so I could get school work done. Next semester I'll have 3 12 hour clinical days (what days of the week those are is completely up in the air) and an 8 hour class day on Tuesdays (OB, Peds, Med/Surg 2, and Policy...hardest semester of the 4), so I don't think I'll be working more than 1 day a week.

My mindset with work was that I did not want to HAVE to work in order to keep a roof over my head, because I did not want my grades to suffer and make all of this pointless. Basically, don't bank on being able to do it if you go the accelerated route. However, I know tons of people that worked full time throughout their ADN programs. It's really all about time management...but some programs are more forgiving than others.

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Specializes in Public Health.

Keep in mind, some people don't work at all and have no kids and still fail. Some people have families and work full time and get straight A's. it's all about your work ethic and endurance.

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I currently work and attend nursing school. Fortunately, I have a supervisor who's willing to have me work around my school schedule. I maintain 24 hours of work/week. It is definitely doable but with work I have even less time to study and read assigned chapters. Your main challenge is to find out if your supervisor will be flexible with your school schedule. As far as children are concerned I have none.

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Specializes in NICU.

I start my second semester of a ABSN program. I work Friday and Saturday nights (two 12 hr shifts). It worked fine for me last semester (maintained an A avg.). As for the program being harder than a traditional program I am not sure. My program is 15 months long consisting of summer, fall, spring, summer. Summer school felt like I was doing 100 mph down the highway with a stuck accelerator pedal. It was a quick but what a ride. The Fall and Spring semesters are regular semesters so there is no difference compared to traditional program during those semesters.

You need to decide the route you want to take. Regardless of the route you will feel like you are neglecting your kids. Do you want to draw it out for years (2 yrs ADN plus another 1-2 yrs RN-BSN) or quick 15-18 months (ABSN)? Obviously my classmates with kids chose to get it over with as soon as possible.

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