NJ nurses help! Need advice!

[Ramonarudeau]

Hello all! I am in dire need of advice from some experienced nurses. I am currently making the decision to purse a degree in nursing (I already have a BS in HR). Now here is where I am stuck. Which is the best route, accelerated BSN programs or RN to BSN? With the first route I am aware it will be a MAJOR sacrifice for my family, however it's only 14months and I will earn a bachelors. With the second option, I can earn an associates and sit for the NCLEX, and then pursue a RN to BSN online while I work.

My main question is, if I do choose the second option, do hospitals frown upon only having an associates degree? I know that more and more hospitals prefer BSN. Can anyone in NJ who has gone the second route provide some insight? Is the job market tough for ADNs? Or should I just make the sacrifice and go direct BSN?

Thank you all :)

[rnrg]

Hi there. I am an ADN RN in South nj. To answer your question, yes hospital based employment does tend to take BSN educated nurses over ADN. This is because we live in a highly saturated state that doesn't in fact have a nursing shortage. I decided to obtain my ADN mainly because it was the fastest way to gain able employment with an ok income as I was already a mother to two children and needed a real job. I hurried into obtaining my BSN but stopped a year and a half ago because I broke my back on the job. I'm only 5 classes shy of my BSN, but to be honest, I'm making more money than all my counterpart nurses who are working the hospital anyway so why should I quit? After obtaining ADN remember sick pts are everywhere, not just in hospitals.

Hospital staffing is very "who you know" and has a bureaucratic system. They often hire people who have "ins" and not just the most qualified. And they will almost indefinitely go for a nurse who has BSN as opposed to ADN and a new grad. They can pay the BSN the same rate and use her higher education to count toward staffing ratios of BSN nurses currently employed. I can also tell you that if you plan on going to school while working you are in for a lot of responsibility. Many hospital staffed nurses often find it very difficult to balance their work lives with other obligations. If you have children, especially small children I would rethink this approach significantly unless you have a stock pile of emergency funding and some very reliable childcare.

Best wishes on your educational journey.

[Ramonarudeau]

Thank you for your honest opinion. I do have two children the oldest 5 and the youngest 4 months. My husband isn't too thrilled with the idea of me going back to school and dealing with such a rigorous course load if I choose the BSN option. I'm also terrified to invest such a large amount of money into a program and then if I come to realize it's way more than I can handle if lose out on that money. I too think associates is my best route, however my sister in law works at St Barnabas and told me that my only options would be nursing home care which of course made me rethink my options.

[IGSD777]

I'm an ADN RN in NJ and can tell you it will be very difficult to find a hospital job without your BSN. Everything the previous poster said was true. If you think you'll like home care, long term care, or nursing homes, the RN-BSN will be ok, but if you're looking for that hospital experience, go for the BSN. I would advise anyone in our area, looking to get into nursing, to get their BSN. The nursing field is getting tougher about increased education, even home care and LTC facilities, because they can staff LPNs for less, and in reality, they generally do what RNs do, meaning they don't have to hire as many RNs. You want to make sure you get a job after going through school.