RN to BSN or accelerated nursing program

[DorothyR]

I'm considering becoming a RN but don't know which route to take. Go to a community college to get ADN and transfer to a BSN program, or continue to college and get my degree and apply to a accelerated BSN program. Which one takes the least time? Is it difficult to get into a accelerated BSN program? My major and the nursing major have pretty much the same pre-reqs and I live in CA. Thanks!

[FrogKissingNurse]

[color=#483d8b]i went the community college direction and got my adn but i will be continuting on to get a bsn. this is taking me about a total of 7 years, by the time it is all said and done.

[color=#483d8b]i would double check how many more prerequisites you will need before getting into the nursing classes. i'd say that if you don't mind some debt i would just go for a bsn. it would most likely take less time plus sounds like hospitals preferr bsn over adn nurses (at least around me).

[color=#483d8b]but for anyone who already has a bachelors degree and/or this is their second carrer, from my experience, just go for their adn.

[color=#483d8b]an accelorated program will be super intense and depending how organized you are you may not really be able to work while in the program.

[color=#483d8b]best thing to do is pick a few programs and compare them and talk to couselors at each school.

[color=#483d8b]good luck!

[chuckster, ADN, BSN, RN, EMT-B]

The quickest route will be the ADN and in the past, even the recent past, this would have been my recommendation for the RN. You could (ans still can) finish the ADN program in about 3 years, get your RN and find a decent job. You could stop at that point or continue on to get a BSN, probably with the tuition largely paid for by your employer.

That is still a possibility but an increasingly remote one. Finding a job as an ADN-RN is very difficult these days, probably bordering on the impossible. Jobs for new nursing grads are few and far between to begin with (at least in most areas) and nearly every hospital now specifies the BSN as their minimum educational credential. I speak from experience in this as a third-degree ADN-RN who has yet to get even a response, much less an interview to a rather large number of nursing job applications. I am not alone in this - nearly 90% of my CC graduating class from this past May is in the same boat.

Recognizing the new reality of the job market, I would recommend that you pursue the BSN right from the start, if you can afford to.

[jeepers06]

I am in the exact same boat! I don't know which route to take. I have my bachelors but my local accel BSN program is 1 year full time and $30,000. Plus you cannot work. I took prereqs in 2010. Still digging deep to decide!

[RoseanneMartin]

Money talks. I decided not to go the accelerated BSN route @ $30-40k a year and chose the community college ADN route @ $2k a year. No brainer for me since I plan on having kids after I graduate and working when I can while they're young...all of this God willing of course.

[anon695]

I was in your same situation - I had a non-nursing BA and wasn't sure which route to go, ADN-BSN or ABSN.

I think it depends on your financial situation and what your living situation happens to be. If you've got money put away or family who are willing to help you out, and not many other responsibilities (don't need to work, don't have family to take care of) then go for the ABSN. I wouldn't borrow money for a nursing degree these days, like every field jobs are hard to come by. Only do this if you can pay up front.

I personally chose ADN with the intention of doing the RN-BSN bridge right after I take NCLEX. It was MUCH cheaper, I did not have to borrow any money. What really sold me on this route was that I'd the summer off in between year 1 and year 2 so I could try to get an externship. I figured I could either be one of MANY ABSN grads with no other healthcare experience, or a 2-year grad with a previous BA, plans to enter BSN right away, and an externship. I kept reading that students who have externships are the most desirable new grads, BSN or ADN, so I thought doing an externship would make me stand out more than simply the ABSN. Lucky for me I did happen to land an externship, so I'll be one of the few new grads in my area who has that. I'm graduating in June so I haven't been out on the job market yet, but hopefully I was correct in thinking that the 2-year route with externship and solid plans for RN-BSN starting June 2011 was the right way to go.

[Jules A, MSN]

I did my LPN to RN to BSN because it was cheaper and I could work as a nurse while I was in school. Good luck.