nursing requirements

If anything, get your BSN first. From what I've heard ASN and BSN take almost the same amount of time to complete. Also, you'd have better chance of landing a place to work with a BSN come time. If you're in highschool see if you can't do some duel enrollment at a community college. Prereqs can go as fast as you want them to depending on how many your BSN program requires, but I Think if you want MSN then there are even more prereqs for that. If you manage time and can dedicate your life to school you can knock out quite a few classes per semester. Retaining the information is more important than trying to get through it as fast as you can, so if it takes the normal 2 year of school to complete the prereqs going at a normal pace, so be it.

Good day, kgionet:

Go for your B.S.N. with taking your prerequisites at a community college to save a lot of money.

Thank you.

For your 3rd point, if something does happen and you need to fall back on another nursing degree, I would say go for the BSN, as a lot of places (hospitals primarily), are listing it as a job requirement. It'll make you more marketable later on.

1. It depends on the University to which you apply. Most universities have a pre-licensure BSN program-- as in you don't need your RN license to get your BSN, only prereq's and general ed are required. But the RN-BSN program means getting your ASN degree/RN license first, then getting your BSN.

2. Correct. After completing prerequisites, and then upon admission into a nursing program, you will get an Associate's or a Bachelor's in Nursing. Prerequisites and general ed required to get into these programs are two years full-time. ASN programs are two years after that, and most BSN programs are 3 years. So you're looking at 4-5 years in school total for your BSN.

3. I would recommend taking your prerequisites at a community college (because of the low cost!), get VERY VERY good grades (these programs are super competitive), then transfer to university and do the BSN program, so you have a BSN to fall back on rather than an ASN. There is a nationwide push for nurses to have their BSN, and many hospitals are starting to only hire nurses with their BSN.

Hope this helps answer your questions. And I wish the best of luck to you!

okay so I should go get my BSN, I figured that would be the smartest thing to do, just in case but so you guys are saying that like I take my prereqs for my ASN, which can be like 1-2 years, then go for my ASN degree(2 yrs) and this will be three years, then go for my BSN, which is another 2 years = 5 years altogether? + 2 yrs from MSN

The CC has all the prerequisites for the ASN to take one year, and I can't take BSN classes because I won't have my license lol I have to talk to an advisor about everything and plan out my schedule and stuff but thanks for clearing some things ups for me because I dont want to go in and say something dumb lol

okay so I should go get my BSN, I figured that would be the smartest thing to do, just in case but so you guys are saying that like I take my prereqs for my ASN, which can be like 1-2 years, then go for my ASN degree(2 yrs) and this will be three years, then go for my BSN, which is another 2 years = 5 years altogether? + 2 yrs from MSN

The CC has all the prerequisites for the ASN to take one year, and I can't take BSN classes because I won't have my license lol I have to talk to an advisor about everything and plan out my schedule and stuff but thanks for clearing some things ups for me because I dont want to go in and say something dumb lol

Don't worry about saying something dumb :) Because of the multiple entries to practice that are available today it could confuse anyone. And don't forget, there are still diploma programs out there that are hospital-based and do not result in a degree at all, BUT qualify the graduate of such a program to sit for the same NCLEX licensing exam as a BSN graduate. Confused yet?

Hang in there. Talk to the school advisor, and read around this website, on the various forums dedicated to the topic of "what program do I pick?!"

Good luck :)

If you want to get your BSN, you don't necessarily have to do your ASN first. There are generally pre-licensure BSN programs (check with the school. If that's not available, I would say to do the ASN then the RN-MSN program.