RN Bachelor's Degree

[Bprice]

I am going to graduate with my RN associate's degree in December, I'm debating whether to find a job right away or go transfer straight into the bachelor's program. I don't know if working right after to get the skills/experience would be more beneficial or not. Any advise?

[scorpio99]

i would try to find work as soon as you've graduated and passed NCLEX. then i'd focus on finding a BSN program nearby, especially one that will allow you to go at a slower pace. i would definitely not wait to find work as a RN. you can always drop your work hours later after you're done with your new grad program at your facility to accommodate school.

[Juwon]

The few nurses I know that graduated with an associates and decided to go back for their bachelors secured a job, put their skills to use, and went back to school a year after working. I think its a good idea to secure a job first and then go back to school. Gives you a chance to pay off any debt that you may have accumulated through the Associates program. Plus the experience will help you better academic wise when completing your bachelors degree.

[Noimanurse]

Work first! There are several BSN programs to fit your schedule, plus many employers have some kind of reimbursement plan for further education. Even if its part-time employment, its still a J-O-B and you are getting experience that will help you in the long run.

[Bumashes, MSN, APRN, NP]

I'd go for a job first. The RN-BSN programs do not teach you nursing skills per se. They focus more on current trends in nursing, nursing education, health care policy, etc. So you would be missing out on the actual clinical portion until the last semester when you do a small amount of clinical hours for your practicum with a preceptor (just like in the end of your ADN program). This means you will go for a year without any real clinical experience. My RN-BSN program did 120 hours (so 10 days) of clinicals at the end. 10 days is NOT going to be enough time to brush up on your skill set and be ready for an acute care job. So I would definitely try for a job first, especially since you may be able to get the facility to foot the bill for your BSN after being employed by them for a year or so. Good luck and be careful!

[RW23RN, BSN, RN]

Agreed-you are going to learn a lot more theory, EBP in a BSN program. So get some experience, preferably in a hospital that has tuition reimbursement.

[honeykrown, MSN, NP]

i got a job in homehealth and went straight back to school (for me bad idea because when i wanted a job in the hospital no one would hire me but the rural areas).

I would say get a job first and i put my experience so you know that I am not just saying it

[tyvin, BSN, RN]

Well I guess I'll be the only one ... I would go straight and get it over with while you're still in student mode. Why drag it out and I think you'll find more opportunities when you have the BSN. It's also more time to network in clinical especially with the management quarter (my program let us actually shadow a nurse manager for a quarter). That's when I realized what I really wanted to do with my life. Ohh so exciting and there's so much more to learn. It's absolutely astounding how much more you will learn.

[Guest296136]

If you can get a job, work 1st!!!! That is what I did and the hospital I work at is paying for my BSN, it was much cheaper and helped with the classes I was taking because I had experience.

[Gratefulprn]

I went straight the 4 yrs (high school to college for my BSN). Wasn't an issue and in fact, actually helped me land a job that I otherwise wouldn't have been considered for. My advice is if you can go on to your BSN now, go - you have no idea what life will be life in another year or 2 and now the road is open. Good luck.

[shygoofyone]

I just started my BSN through Western Governors University after working 2 years with my ADN. It think it's helped with the classes tremendously. There's just no substitute for real-life experience :)

[nurseprnRN, BSN, RN]

i'm with tyvin. you're in school, going back to school while working always sounds like a good idea until you're actually doing it, you never know what might come up to make it impossible to continue that plan, and hey, in a year it won't make any difference at all in the ultimate outcome. go right to the bsn program, and be done with it.