Pre-nursing student, want to become an FNP. Reputable fast track programs??

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Hi AllNurses!

Long-time lurker (reader but never poster) here, and I figured it was time that I got on here to glean some wisdom from the endless oceans of it here. :)

So I'm a pre-nursing student right now with almost all my pre-requisites done and a 4.0 pre-req GPA so far -- overall GPA is about 3.35 though from earlier classes/years. To clarify, I still have to do A&P this next academic year but have been already studying, and I have straight A's in all of my more recent terms and in all other pre-reqs (Bio, Microbio, Chem, Nutrition, Stats, Human Dev, Sociology, Philosophy, etc)....basically I've had a 4.0 ever since I really, really knew I wanted to go into nursing.

I know I want to be an NP, very likely an FNP, I'm 25 and just want to be DONE with school as fast as possible! At the same time, when I do one day finish school, it is way more important to me to be as employable as possible. I don't want to risk coming out with a degree from a school that isn't looked highly upon or to take any path to get my terminal NP degree that isn't looked highly upon. All that said, would it be bad to take an "entry-level masters" NP program like this one ( https://www.seattleu.edu/nursing/msn/apni )???? I KNOW I have the drive for an intense program like that, and the possibility of trimming off 3 years of schooling -- if it prepares me well for my career -- is incredibly appealing.

I have an associates degree right now (NOT in nursing), but I could complete just a few more credits at my school I attend for pre-reqs and wind up with a bachelors degree to then go on and apply for something like this. Bad idea? Is there a reason why this sort of program is (seemingly at least to me) really rare? If not something like this, then I've been looking to get into a very competitive BSN program from OHSU here in Oregon...great, great school that I'm drooling over...and then hopefully take their DNP FNP program after. I think I could do this for sure, but this would take me till 2021 or 2022 to complete. If I did go the fast track option, which I assume would grant me a masters NP degree at the end, it'd be cool to be eligible to go back and finish a DNP at some later point.

Any thoughts on these options -- or other ideas you might have -- would be fantastic!!! Also, if it's helpful or relevant, I'm a male, very motivated, and am ready to up and move anywhere in the country or world for this dream of mine. Most importantly to me though, it would have to be a really reputable program, and it is important to me that I be able to fully practice as an FNP in Oregon (my home state) and California once all is said and done. Thoughts?? Open to any and all ideas!

Thank you for the input! Sincerely -- I really mean this -- I appreciate all of you, any of your input, and what you each add to this community; hopefully I can add to it as well!

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Specializes in ICU.

I guess my question is how can you be a master in nursing if you have never practiced it? How do you master a skill? Practice, practice, practice. I honestly don't think you will be prepared to work in the field of diagnosing and prescribing if you don't have the basic nursing practice skills down.

I would put feelers out in my area and see what employers are looking at when it comes to a NP and what is being hired. Nursing is say not the same as teaching where it is a complete theory degree and you don't need to necessarily hone your skills. Kind of like basketball. Could a person go to the NBA without ever having practiced basketball? Maybe they sat in a room and watched more videos than say a high school player. But the high school player is going to be better 9 out of 10 times because they have practiced their skill. Now could you be a ESPN commentator by watching all those videos and becoming proficient in the language? Sure can. But you aren't a master at the skill until you have had practice in my opinion.

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Preferably you should be practicing as a nurse before you become a nurse practitioner. There is so much to learn outside of nursing school that I feel is necessary to prepare you for graduate work focused on practice in particular. Nursing school gives you a broad education of nursing and medicine, and much of your learning is on-the-job.

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Many NP positions prefer/require you to have experience working as a nurse prior to being hired.. I admire your initiative to accomplish your goals as soon as you can, but theoretical knowledge will only get you so far. Whether or not your program requires experience as an RN beforehand, I highly recommend you gain some experience first. It will make you a better candidate and better NP in the long run. Good luck in your endeavors!

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Specializes in Cardiac, Home Health, Primary Care.

I agree with PP's. I can't IMAGINE starting my NP clinicals without AT LEAST the RN experience I had under my belt. I did start on my MSN straight out of my BSN program. I took 1-2 classes at a time, though, so I didn't start my NP clinicals until I was 3 years out of RN school. Doing it this way allowed me to work and pay for much of my MSN out of pocket. I also gained a lot of experience and became more comfortable assessing patients, interpreting labs, understanding disease processes and medications, etc.

Did I still have more to learn? Why yes, yes I did. PLENTY left to learn. Did I at least have a good grasp and comfort with the basics? Yes. I could assess pulses, listen to heart and lung sounds, pick up on adventitious sounds, and develop "gut feelings."

There are several threads here about this similar type of thing. Apparently some nurses turn out to be great NP's doing direct entry. I am not sure I would have been comfortable doing that knowing what I know now.

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I recommend at least working while in NP school. If you plan to work in a hospital, RN experience will be essential as a new NP.

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Agreeing with previous posters--some time as an RN would be advisable. I'd be terrified to graduate and on the first day of my "real job" have to write prescriptions when I've never had to figure out how to read a MAR or call a doctor or...

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OP here-- THANKS all for these pointers! I've been really thinking about what you all have said, and decided I will just bite the bullet, do the full BSN program followed by the full DNP program, and will work as an RN at least while going to school for the DNP, and of course if I don't get into a DNP program right away after graduating with the BSN, I'll work as an RN in that in-between time too. As much as I want to get to my end goal as fast as possible, even more I want to be a great practitioner and advocate for my patients. Seriously thank you for the input!!!

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OHSU: GREAT program. Say hi to Sue Wood for me. :)

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Specializes in Cath/EP lab, CCU, Cardiac stepdown.

You sure you want to do that, nursing school will be the hardest schooling you've ever had before, then you will have nclex. But wait, first year on the floor as a nurse will turn out to be substantially harder than those 2 from all the learning, stress, and time management that it requires. And if you plan on going to school for NP while in your first year as a RN, well let's just say that is supposed to be even harder than the rest. You don't want to burn yourself out and quit or be so piled with work that you fail. You're not even in nursing school yet, give it some time. You're young still. It's easy to make all these grand plans, but you will have to make things feasible, otherwise you will be setting yourself up for failure. No one is saying that you can't, but you should take some time to do it.

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Ah GrnTea, will do!!! :)

RescueNinjaKy, thanks for that! I will take that into consideration for sure. Still, I am pretty sure what I said is what I'll do. I want this literally more than any single thing I've ever wanted in my whole entire 25 years of life, I've researched and shadowed and talked and thought and prayed about this more than any life direction goal I've ever been interested in my life, I've got the motivation and the vitality for it, and I've already been cutting things (relationships, jobs, and more) out of my life to the end of making this thing a reality. On top of that, and I mean ZERO offense to the RN occupation (which is amazing and incredibly needed), I'm afraid if I stop in between for more than a year, life may catch hold of me and I may wind up never going back for an MSN or DNP.

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