Planning on Becoming a Nurse

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I am about to enter my senior year of high school. My high school offer's a lot of healthcare classes, which is really good! I have received certifications as a CNA and EMS-First Responder my Junior Year. Senior Year I will be working for my EMT-Basic.

I don't really want to go get my BSN, I'd rather do 2-yr at Pikes Peak, and hopefully work in the ED.

What kind of programs are out there for me? Is it a good idea to just do ASN, or are hospitals only hiring BSNs? And, to get into 2-yr nursing school, are there prereqs? If so, I may just do the BSN.

Sorry for all the questions :)

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Specializes in ICU + Infection Prevention.

OK, you already have another thread on this exact subject with three pages of responses. https://allnurses.com/emergency-nursing/trauma-nursing-paramedics-587009.html

In the Front Range it is EXTREMELY competitive to get into nursing school and the ASN programs have multi-year waitlists. The hospitals prefer, and in many cases require a BSN for new grad RNs. ED jobs are very hard to get as a new grad nurse, in fact, so are ANY hospital jobs for new grads. You will likely have to work med-surg first. Having your EMT-B WITH 911/ED EXPERIENCE will make you a much more attractive candidate, however few if any ambulance services, much less 911 services, will hire EMT-Bs under 21.

My advice is that you go get your EMT-B over the summer before college, go to college and get your first two years done and prereqs, then apply to a BSN program. You should do this not just for the broad education, the flexibility of college, and the employability of a BSN: even if you choose ASN, you'll have to go to college for 1-1.5 years anyways to get your ASN prereqs before applying to get on an ASN waitlist.

While you are in school, try to pick up a transport ambulance job and turn that into an ER tech job which you should keep during nursing school. Also, paramedics do not do more than other techs in the ER as far as I've seen in CO.

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Yes, I did have another thread, and they recommended posting a Colorado Thread.

What if I get accepted into UCCS?

Is that a good BSN program? IS there a waiting list for that?

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Specializes in ICU + Infection Prevention.

UCCS is an excellent program. There is no wait list. It is merit based entry. You could do 2 years of gen ed and prereqs at UCCS or Pikes Peak then apply to the UCCS BSN program.

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Oh good! I think that would be the best option for me then.

How do I work my way up to ED?

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Specializes in Emergency Dept. Trauma. Pediatrics.
Oh good! I think that would be the best option for me then.

How do I work my way up to ED?

If you want to be in the ED I think a good foot up would be to work as an EMT-B in the ED. I met many people when I was in the ED that worked there that were EMT-B. I didn't know about this or I would have looked into it when I was on the wait list for Nursing School.

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Definitely get a BSN, it will be extremely difficult to get a job in a hospital, especially an ED, without it. As others have said, get a job in an ED as an EMT and that will give you great experience plus a great in to get a job when you graduate. You're still 5 years away from graduating and the job market should be much, much better by then.

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