Please help me decide!!!

[ldnurse2004]

Hello to all. I have been an L&D nurse for 8 years now and have decided that an ADN is just not enough for me. I know I am smart and feel I should increase my potential. I am interested in going for CNM/WHNP but I want a program in which I can do double majors so I won't be only qualified to do one or the other. As I said I have an ADN so I know first step is to get my bachelors but that is my question. Do I go back to get my bachelors or do I try to do the ADN-MSN bridge program that some colleges offer. I would love to get feedback from those who have done it both ways so I can decide on the best way for me. Also, if some CNM/WHNP could offer some info on salary expectations and job availability and some good online colleges that would allow me to achieve my goals. Thanks

[queenanneslace, ADN, MSN, APRN, CNM]

I'm not in your exact situation - but I've looked at some of these 'fast track' programs for becoming a nurse-practitioner/CNM. I enrolled in an MSN program after I graduated with my non-nursing Bachelor's of Science. I would have graduated with an MSN and specialized in nurse-midwifery and it would have only taken me 3 years. What I struggled with was the cost of that program - and is ultimately why I left. Each year would have cost $35-40K in tuition, and the students that completed the program are now in debt to the tune of $100K or more.

On one hand, I am grateful that I do not have that debt load. On the other hand, I could have finished this wanna-be-a-midwife project years ago. Currently I'm one semester from the completion of an ADN program, and am happy that I was able to accomplish this without taking loans and incurring debt. I plan to start working as an RN, and in the near future apply to CNM programs - hopefully I will be able to work some while going to graduate school.

My thoughts on the ADN-MSN pathway: it will be quicker, but it will be more expensive. Many of these programs charge graduate tuition for the BSN coursework. It is likely to be cheaper to complete the BSN first through a local university - the trade-off is that it will probably take longer.

Ask yourself if it is more important to complete the advanced degree in the shortest amount of time or with the least amount of monetary expense. (I'm sure there's a middle road, here, too.)