Need Some Advise Regarding My Career

[jakecruz17]

hi! this is my first time posting on this message board. i am looking for some advise on what to do with my career. i started to study nursing back in 1998 but due to my pregnancy of my 1st child i had to stop after the 2000 fall semester. i then went back for the summer semester of 2002 but had to stop due to my second pregnancy. i already completed all my basic classes (english, math, sciences, psychology, etc.) and i completed a few concentration classes. i did all of this while i was in puerto rico. my husband is in the navy and we now live in jacksonville, fl. will they validate my credits from puerto rico here in florida? now that my son is going to be 3 yrs old and my daughter will be 5 in two-weeks i have decided to continue my nursing career. currently i am planning on taking a certified nurse assistant (cna) course and getting my state license 2 weeks after i am done in order to gain some experience. but i am interested in finishing my associates degree and continuing on to my bachelors. my question is: is it a good idea for me to get my cna? what do i need to do in order later to convert from a cna to a lpn? if you were i what would you do? i have been told that if i am working i can complete my associate degree and my bachelors degree online. is this a good idea? any advice you can give me will be greatly appreciated.

thanks,

awilda

[AngelGail]

Hi jakecruz17,

There are others out there who could probably give you a different view as to how you should proceed, but here goes my suggestion. Do you need to work? If so, the CNA program, which takes less time to complete, may be your first choice. You can gain a lot of experience as a CNA, but the pay doesn't compare to being an RN. I don't know of any career mobility programs for converting CNA-LPN without completing the entire LPN program. I would suggest that you don't even bother with the LPN program if you want to go for RN, unless the school you select has a career mobility program LPN-RN. Sometimes, the RN programs have a waiting list, so you may choose to start as LPN, then return for RN. There are plenty of nursing schools in Florida. I would do some research to see which of them would accept the credits you received in Puerto Rico, and which would suit your situation. Was the school in PR accredited? With PR being a US territory, the program may be associated with another school in the US. Unless you have plenty of clinical experience, I don't suggest taking nursing classes online. I'm working for my MSN online now, but I have 30+ years of working in the field. What ever way you decide to go, don't give up if you hit a few barriers. There IS a program out there that fits your needs, and nursing is one of the greatest rewarding career choices.