Quintesca

Well said!

Another point to consider is that most hospitals and clinical environments that you are likely to work in if you pass the NCLEX will also require you to wear a mask at work. Mask wearing is the new normal.

Is it possible to live outside of Texas and travel in for the weekend clinicals?

I appreciate the details and honesty in your description of the experience of going from LPN to RN school. I especially liked how you described the NCLEX. I found the NCLEX to be the ideal way of how nursing ought to be performed and then there is the real life reality that we all face. Thank you for your candor.

If you had written that you were 55 or 65, I could see wondering if you are too old. The reality is that you are never too old to do anything in life. We are as young or as old as we decide to be in life. Go ahead and get what you need or want out of life. The time is going to pass anyway. Do you want to risk turning 36 and regretting that you had not gotten the career-enhancing BSN?

Yes! You have plenty of time to study for the NCLEX between May and August. Four months is adequate study time if you are committed to studying 50 to 100 questions a day using UWorld or another reliable study resource. I sat for and passed the NCLEX-PN after studying for 2 months. I studied about 75 to 100 questions a day and then read every single rationale, including the answers that I got right. I did not move onto the next question until I fully understood the concept. You can do this!

Thanks for sharing your experience! What was your total cost of the 11 months that you were in the program?

How do you know that both Western Governors University and Aspen University do not have group work as part of the curriculum?

It is true that the UWorld questions are harder than the actual NCLEX

I am sorry about the results of the third test. I found that Saunders Comprehensive Review for the NCLEX to be another great study resource.

This is great news! I also found the 3 week NCSBN review to be really helpful

Allegany College of Maryland has an online LPN/LVN to RN program. You have to have at least 2 years work experience before enrolling in the program. An Online LPN to RN Program at Allegany College of Maryland

You are smart to be exploring other career options after what you have experienced. Your job needs to be supportive of you both as an employee and as a person. It is insensitive for them to ignore the fact that you are planning the happiest day of your life and emphasis the need for the schedule over your happiness. If I were in your shoes, I would complete my BSN and find a more supportive environment to work in because that particular management chain is likely to behave similarly in the future. Also, I would come up with a cover story about my future need for leave. Managers love to make value judgments about who does and does not deserve leave. It is really not their place to put a value on your leave request. For future reference, I would have a made up story about why you need leave so that they will approve the leave without question. I got married years ago and my employer still does not know. I keep it private because I know that my joy is not their joy.

This is very helpful. Thank you!

I do not have personal experience with any of the ECPI campuses or nursing programs; however, a friend of mine who visited the Manassas campus said that she was appalled at the conditions of the facility there. I am unsure if this gives insight into the caliber of the program. It might be worth it to review the NCLEX pass rate to determine the caliber of the program.

If her goal is to become a nurse, then it would be wise of her to pursue a nursing program that has a high pass percentage on the NCLEX. There are plenty of accelerated nursing programs that take 15 to 18 months if you pursue a daytime program.

I have heard from a number of new graduates with an associates in Nursing that they have had trouble finding the type of job that they would prefer to have. Many settled for a nursing job that paid the bills but was not their hearts desire. This job hunt is a buyer's market if you have a BSN.

Based on what this conversation has been, these are the LPN to RN options if you live in Virginia: Standard College of Nursing Northern Virginia Community College Sentara Health Professional College Riverside Medical Tidewater Community College Thomas Nelson Community College Norfolk State University Fortis College ECPI Southside Virginia Community College Riverside College of Health Careers Indiana State University Virginia Western Community College Dabney Lancaster Community College Jefferson College of Health Sciences New River Community College

Thanks for sharing your experience! This is really insightful.

You have every right to complain and be concerned. You are facing a tough situation. This quotation gets me through the hard times: "Difficult situations are opportunities to be our best selves, hone our skills and rise to the occasion. ~DailyOm"

I applied to and was accepted into the LPN program. I am starting in September 2015.

I have not applied here yet. I am considering applying to the part-time program. I do want to wish you luck in your application!

Thanks for sharing!

I am also looking for evening/weekend RN programs in northern VA. I am finding only LPN programs thus far.