Advice about where to go for nursing school if accepted

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

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Hello, I really just wanted some outside opinions of "What would you do?" type question. Okay, I am a divorced single mother of two children 7 and 5. Currently I live in the same town of as my parents and my children's father (who is very involved with the children's lives). I am a graduate of the local university and currently a transcriptionist, but feel like changing to nursing as a career would be a wise choice for the future of both myself and my children, so I am trying to get back into nursing school (was officially in nursing school at one time, but really only completed the prereq's). My GPA isn't quite high enough for the ADN program here in my town. Because of financial reasons it would probably be best to go to a community college first to obtain an RN degree. There is a community college ADN nursing program 60 miles away (planning to relocate there if accepted), all my prereq's have transferred over and what I have left to do is complete 75 hours of CNA classes and need to take NLN test to get accepted into that program. Now, there is a program in Florida that all I would need to do is pass the NLN test as a requirement for admission into the program. It's in a town near the ocean I would love to live in at least during nursing school, but 9 hours away from my family and the children's father. Then, there's another community college in Los Angeles (I absolutely love Los Angeles) with a program that I think pretty much I have all the requirements for, need to make sure all my prereq's will indeed transfer, so I might be able to accepted right in if selected. However, Los Angeles would be so far you have to pretty much fly to get there in any reasonable amount of time.

I am just really wanting to move forward with life and get into a nursing school, and not wanting to spend too much time having to take prereq's over, or more prereqs, that takes time and money.

Now, I would love to just go for it and go where accepted and to the locations I would love to live, but really should I be more realistic and stay relatively close to home to be closer to my family who are definitely a support system and the children's father? This is of course kind of personal, but would be interested to know what others who also want to get into nursing school would do in my situation.

If it were up to me, I would stay in the same town as my parents...free childcare!

Childcare alone is costing me $900 a month.

Specializes in Accepted...Master's Entry Program, 2008!.

I think that's really personal. Do you want to stay in your current location or not. That's the question I would answer first. If the answer is truely "yes", then you don't leave.

I've made the choice that I want to stay where I am for a variety of reasons. I'm planning everything out that way. It may take longer, cost more, or be harder, but I'm not leaving Chicago.

Specializes in Family Nurse Practitioner.

I would also try to stay close to family for their help during school. If you can get into the school 60 miles from your home that is not a huge distance if you were to find a place halfway between. Since you said financial reasons mean a community college I would really be hesitant to spend the massive amounts of money to move somewhere without a local support system. Good luck. Jules

Thanks for the thoughts. Like I said, it is a personal situation, but just wondered what others would do. My parents aren't actually available for daily babysitting though, but they do help out from time to time. Having a built in babysitter with my parents is really not the case in my situation. I really would love to move to Los Angeles, and to a lesser degree this other town in Florida (obviously I like a warmer climate :)). Maybe I should just put the moving to another city off for a few years. I am a little inpatient and wanting to get into a nursing school and get started down that path. I'm in my mid 30's and just ready for change. Just wondered what others would do if they had a shot at getting into a nursing school quicker but in a rather distant location.

Specializes in Family Nurse Practitioner.
Just wondered what others would do if they had a shot at getting into a nursing school quicker but in a rather distant location.

But are you sure you can get in? I wouldn't head to Calif. just because its so expensive although the nurses out there "got it going on" for sure but Florida might be nice if you know you can get in and can afford to live there.

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