adc85

I say apply to both types of programs, ASN & BSN, and make your decision based upon where you get accepted. Take into account the cost of tuition for each program and decide. I am starting an ASN program soon, and plan to bridge over after graduating. But there is a program at a nearby university that offers an RN-MSN, I think it is 3 yrs long, where one will earn their BSN and MSN concurrently. If there are programs like that in your area, that could be another option for you if you attend an ASN program now.

My orientation is next Friday, and then classes start the following Monday, the 19th. Im anxious but excited to get started. Good luck to everyone getting ready to start!!

Geez, who peed in your cornflakes? There is absolutely NOTHING wrong with wanting a rewarding career but being unsure about having to work weekends and holidays. Every member in my family and all my friends have M-F 9-5 jobs, so if I have to work weekends/holidays that is time I cant spend with them, and they are at work when Im off. But I decided the pros of shiftwork outweighed the cons. And another thing, if she wants to have 10 kids and a fulfilling career, then by God she can! Why cant she work hard to have it all? Sounds to me like you are bitter because you are/were unable to "have it all." I hope the OP succeeds in everything she strives for, and I wish her the best of luck. And like someone else said, she didnt ask for judgement, she asked for advice.

I start my ASN program in less than 2 weeks. I was planning on studying everyday for 2 hours. I figured that would be plenty! For my previous degree, I didnt have a study schedule, I would just start reviewing material a week or so before exams....but after reading the PP cooments above, Im thinking 2 hours might not be enough! Maybe I should plan on 2-4 hrs a day, in which case I will have to break it up throughout the day. I dont think I can sit still and study for more than 2 hours at a time! Haha....good luck in your program!

Don't say you are less deserving than someone else just because you are young and not in the same situation as the OP. Everyone's path to nursing school is different, and if you work hard and get in, then you deserve it! Good luck!! :)

Wow, your story sounds so similar to mine! I have a bio degree and worked in an environmental lab for a few years after graduation. I wanted to make more money, the work I did was too easy and boring and unfulfilling. I don't want to just earn a paycheck, I want to feel like I'm making a difference, no matter how small it may be. Bio jobs are rare and hard to get in my area, and I also want to use more of my bio degree in my career, so I decided on nursing. I'm 27, and I will be 29 when I graduate nursing school. I really struggled with the decision to go back to school. I felt like I had finished the school chapter of my life, and I was supposed to be working and doing the things I want like traveling and saving up to buy a larger home when my husband and I decide to start a family. It's really hard to have to take out loans and know that I will be in school for 2 more years.....but I finally realized it will be worth it in the end! This may sound silly, but to make myself feel better, I would say that it's only 2 years, so technically it's like getting a masters degree, and that seems better than starting all over again, haha! Good luck in your program!

When I found out I got into my program, my aunt gave me a thermos that says TLC in Training, and beneath that it says Student Nurse...I think stuff like that is ok to use. If it just said nurse on it, I would wait to use it though.

I wish that college advisors would tell students that a degree in biology is mostly a stepping stone to professional schools, and it's not easy to find a job without earning a masters or doctorate. I started out in college wanting to be a dentist, but I got so sick of school that I just wanted to graduate and get a job, not go through 4 more years! Lol, but here I am now going back for more school! I worked in an environmental lab running the microbiology lab and also doing tons of inorganic tests, gravimetric, titrations, etc. I really enjoyed it when I started, and actually I would love to work as a microbiologist, but without a graduate degree, there is not a lot of room for pay advancement. Anyway, I worked in a very small lab, I started out at $10 an hr, and ended at $17.85. It was decent money, but I think in my area, in larger labs, the average pay rate is around $15 an hr. ultimately I want to be making $25 an hr, and I was never going to make that where I worked. I also got very bored with the work, it was easy and I often felt like I wasn't using my bio degree much, since I ran a lot of chemistry tests. There are cool bio jobs out there, but like you said they are hard to get without a higher degree or 6+ years of experience.

Thanks everyone for the replies. I'm not worried about living expenses at the moment, mostly just school expenses. I don't plan on buying all my books at the bookstore, but even if I get them all half price elsewhere, that's still 600 bucks I don't have right now. I'm going to email the professors and ask if previous editions are acceptable, because a friend gave me some off her books (she recently graduated), and also ask if all the books will be used in the first semester, or if the book list is for the whole program. I may only need a portion of those books to start out. I guess what I really wondered about was the unsub loan. My school's loan form has a space to fill in the amount of money you need/request, so I requested 2500. Also I googled unsub loans and it says they are not based on financial need, so I am confused how the school determines what amount I can receive. I was just really frazzled since I found out yesterday that I wasn't going to be able to use any of my sub loan funds for books, since they only give me half of the loan this semester and the other half in the spring. What's really frustrating about that is Ive done the math and i am probably going to have a surplus of loan funds next semester, would be nice if I could use that surplus now to buy books! Sheesh!

I got my bachelors in biology too, then worked in a lab for a few years. Decided to go into nursing too,I start school in August. I was able to get a federal student loan, but I also don't have any other student loan debt. My parents paid for my first degree, so I don't know how fed loans work if you already have some student loan debt? But I don't know why you wouldn't qualify just because you already have a degree. I love my bio degree, but jobs are hard to get unless you have a masters in it too, which I was not interested in pursuing. Contact your financial aid office and talk to them about it, they will be able to help you more than I can. Good luck!

I have a question I hope some of you can help me with about student loans. My school estimated the cost of attendance for the 13-14 year is a bit over $18,000. Which is inaccurate because I am not living on campus so no room/board fees, etc...then they estimated my husband and I can contribute $10,000 (also crazy since I am currently unemployed and he is paying his way through graduate school). I was awarded $4,500 in subsidized loans, which I accepted. The problem is that is not enough. I found out today that I only get half this fall, and the rest in spring. My tuition for fall is $2300, and the loan only pays $2250, and leaves nothing extra for books, and my books cost $1200. Financial aid office told me today that I can take out an unsubsidized loan to cover the rest of my tuition and for books, so I filled out another loan form and requested $2500 in unsubsidized loans. The question I have is if I will be able to get this loan? This is the first time I've used student loans, so I am a little unsure how amounts are determined. Does anyone have similar experiences? If I can't borrow more, I honestly don't know how I will be able to buy books...it's stressing me out so bad! Also, I am I the middle of the hiring process for a giant company ( it's been 2 months now), but the position will be weekends only for $30/hr, if I get the job I can pay my way through nursing school, but the big "if" obviously is getting hired, and how soon that will be...I am in step 3 of I think 5 in the process. Anyway, sorry this is so long, I'm just really stressing over financial aid and any help will be appreciated! I just know i'll be worrying about it all weekend till I can contact the aid office next week. Thanks!!!

I start next month too and I am super anxious. I just made my appt for a physical and I'm getting my vaccinations tomorrow. I still need uniforms, books, and other stuff...I'm ready to start but nervous at the same time. A friend just graduated from the school I'm going to, and she gave me her books (I can use some, but I still have to buy more) and I flipped through some of the books and sort of freaked out a little, thinking how on earth will I be able to learn all of this ?? It's so much info, but if others can do it, I figure so can I...good luck in your program! :)

No one has mentioned the cost of gas! I commuted an hour to school and an hour home for 4 years while getting my undergrad degree. I then continued to make this same commute for another 3 years for my job. I was spending on average $500 a month in gas! I'm starting nursing school in August, and it is an hour away (opposite direction this time though, so at least it'll be a change of scenery). Commuting sucks, after 7 years it physically and mentally drained me. Kudos to everyone who commutes, but once I'm done with school, I don't ever want to commute again!!

I'm a career changer, I start my program in August. I'm 27 years old and I have a BS in biology. After college I worked in an environmental lab for 4 years. I mostly ran the microbiology lab and also ran chemistry tests too. It was fun when I first started, but I burned out after 3 years of it. It was boring, the work was monotonous and easy, I wasn't challenged at all. I also commuted an hour to work and an hour home, and the commute really took a lot out of me. I have no desire to move closer and there aren't many opputunities in my field closer to home. It took me a year to decide that I want to go back to school for nursing. And I am no stranger to the medical field either. In high school, I worked part time in the radiology dept doing clerical work and hanging films for the Dr to read. I worked as a CNA for a year while I was in college, and then I worked in an ER as a ward clerk for 3 years. So I knew I would love nursing. I wanted a job Ina field that I enjoyed and something that would keep me busy. I don't enjoy sitting around with no work but still having to look busy! I wanted work that was stimulating and challenging, and something that would leave me feeling fulfilled when I went home. I also wanted better opportunities and the variety of positions and fields that nursing provides, as well as more of a work/life balance. Working 3 twelve hr shifts a week sounds more appealing than working 5 eight hr shifts a week plus 10 hours of commuting.

I don't have any kids so I can't advise based on my experience, but I think why make your life more stressful when you don't have to? You can have your cake, just eat it a little later! :)

I can totally relate! I'm 27, and when I was younger and in college I went out every weekend with my friends. When I met my husband, we also went out and spent time with friends. I noticed a change once I graduated and started working full time. My job (non-nursing) sucked the life out of me, I was so burned out. I decided to change careers, and I start nursing school in the fall. I'm hoping the change of scenery and not having I-hate-my-job syndrome constantly on my mind will help me want to get out of the house more often!

Oh, and if you get a BS in biology, you could also apply to professional schools like med school,vet school, dental school, pharmacy school.

I have a bachelors in biology, and I strongly suggest you go into nursing to get your RN, associates or bachelors, or continue in biology to get your bachelors in biology. Jobs that require a bio degree will require a bachelors degree minimum, the really good paying jobs will require a masters or doctorate, I know this from experience. Also, there are jobs out there for people with a BS in biology, you can work in labs, do environmental fieldwork, work in zoos, the possibilities are endless, but also depends on location. Hospitals are everywhere, but for example environmental labs, not so much. If you get a masters or doctorate you can also work in research, or teach at a university. I personally worked in a lab for a few years before deciding to go into nursing. Good luck whatever you decide to do!

Yes I am sure that is partly the case with those job listings, however I worked in an environmental lab as a lab analyst in charge of the microbiology lab as well as running chemical analyses on multiple matrices. I worked there for 4 years after I graduated college. I was laid off 2 months ago due to a big decline in work coming in because of government budget cuts. As of a few days ago, there were a total of 4 job postings for lab analysts in my area. Fortunately I was accepted into a nursing program. Job shortages are everywhere in every field, not just nursing. But ( in my area at least) I prefer the higher chances of finding a job as a nurse compared to finding a job in my current field.

There's a shortage in my area. I recently looked at nurse job postings at 2 hospitals in my area. One had 126 postings, the other had 155. Those are big hospitals and there are several more big hospitals around my area too. I also looked up postings on monster.com and there were pages and pages of listings for nurses ranging in lots of different employment settings. I hope the situation is the same once I finish my program! I guess the shortage or non- shortage differs across the country.

Idk what my books will cost yet, but fortunately I have a friend who just graduated from the program im about to start. She is going to give me her books, bless her heart! I found out today how much fall semester is going to cost, and it is DOUBLE what I anticipated! The fees add up to the same amount as the tuition, it's insane! I'm still reeling from that sticker shock.

I have a previous bachelors degree and I was able to get a federal loan for nursing school.

I'm not a nurse and don't start nursing school till this fall, but I think if it is truly something you want, then maybe you can start out as a CNA and try that for awhile and then try nursing school again? If you can't go back to NS, maybe something else in the medical field will appeal to you, like a medical technologist or a medical assistant, respiratory therapist or radiology technician? I would suggest looking into all of your options and make a plan. Also work on your test anxiety and practice to improve your listening skills. As for the PP, I don't think you can make assumptions of someone's writing abilities based on a post on an Internet forum. There's a big difference between a post on AN forum and a research paper for school.

Lol, I didn't think you were lying! It's a difficult class, I think it's great that you did so well in it. I have a BS degree in biology, so I'm hoping my science background will help me out in nursing school too. I love science too, but I don't like chemistry, it's not my thing haha...I loved my bio classes, because in most cases, I could see what I was learning about (dissections, studying tissues and cells under the microscope, etc). Chem was harder for me to visualize all the concepts, especially organic! Anyway kudos to you for doing so well! :)

Wow, 100% in organic chemistry? Very impressive! When I was working on my bs in bio, that class was a weed class for entry into professional schools. I was super proud of my C's in both O Chem I and II. Half the class either dropped or failed. A's were rare..a perfect score? Unheard of!