avecar10

Thanks for your response. I'm finding all this confusing and a little bit discouraging. Can't seem to find anyone who is really that interested in talking to me about my options--I guess when you have hundreds more applicants than spots, you don't really feel like you have to go out of your way to help someone decide what's best. It looks like I'm going to apply to CACC (which has no prereqs) and possibly Troy Montgomery, neither of which I will get into, so I'm looking at either starting in the LPN (which I'm getting conflicting answers on whether or not Student Loans will pay for) or biting the bullet and going into a BSN program which I can start on anytime. Anyway, good luck to you too and thanks for responding.

Hi everyone, Anyone have any thoughts on going into an LPN program b/c you cannot get into the RN program? What are the advantages/disadvantages of doing this vs just waiting another year? Thanks!

Hi Alabama friends, Anyone in Bham area, I'm just starting this journey, and am waiting to speak to someone at both Jeff State and CACC...anyone have any thoughts on either school? I'm new to this field, and wondering about all I'm reading about difficulties getting in...I'm a 34 y/o returning student, have a BS (Psych) and MEd--good grades in general, but coudn't tell you what specific grades were in certain subjects, that was a looong time ago lol! Not much science/math background. Did very well on ACT but guess that doesn't matter...since it was 1992!!! Any thoughts on when I can realistically expect to get in a ADN program? Seems I may need prereqs...I know an advisor will explain all this but would like to hear about some local's experiences. Thanks! :)

Thanks everyone for your information and encouragement. I'm going to speak to an advisor at the school I'm interested in today but I'm glad to get some real world perspective from you guys too. The medical field is huge in Birmingham and there are tons of schools, so I'm hoping the process may be a little shorter than what some of you have experienced but I see that I will have some prereqs I can be working on. Thanks again!

Hi everyone, I apologize in advance for the length...I'm a 34 y/o living in Alabama who is considering a career change to nursing. I've been doing some research on nursing degrees/careers/demand and was wondering if anyone might have some advice since this field is rather foreign to me at this point. I have degrees and experience in Psychology and education and had recently gone back to school online to uneasily pursue an HR degree (not sure it was what I wanted to do)--then my mother was diagnosed with metastatic lung cancer 3 months ago. I dropped out immediately to be her caregiver. She has since passed away. I also cared for my dad two years ago when he was ill for three months with the same diagnosis. During that same time, I helped care for my grandmother who had dementia and some mobility issues. I share this as at least a part of my reasoning for considering a career in nursing. As you can see from my degrees, I have a heart for the helping professions. During all these caregiving stints, I have been told repeatedly by different nurses that I have "missed my calling" and that I'm "a natural". Perhaps they were just being nice or trying to encourage me as a caregiver, perhaps they were sincere. At any rate, I had considered the medical field in the past, but now, after going through what I have with both my parents, I am feeling a tug to possibly take what have been both wonderful and extremely difficult experiences and use them as the inspiration to move into this field, possibly into the area of hospice, specifically. Again, sorry so long, but I wanted to give some background for anyone who might have any thoughts on my situation. I am looking into an Associate RN program at a community college, but the deadline for Fall is like next week. Not sure I have time on that, but at any rate I have lots of questions which I'm hoping I can answer soon so I can move forward. Some of my questions have to do with which degree would be best, how difficult it is to get into an associate RN program, the option of doing an LPN first, RN/LPN demand, medical assisting as an option, workload of nursing school with a family, etc... I've been reading posts on this site and seem to be getting conflicting info...for example, talk of difficulty finding jobs/market saturation??? All I see on job search sites in Birmingham are tons of medical positions--many of them nurses. Any thoughts/advice? Thanks so much!