schooling while beina cna

jem1013 · Jul 27, 2006

i have taken two classes online (intro-soc and nutrition), i liked it but it was a lot of reading and required good self motivation as there is no set time to do class work only when it's due. last year i finished all of my pre-rec's for the lpn program, applied and was put on a waiting list and ultimatly did not get in. so this year i started the pre-rec's for the rn and re-applied to the lpn program and was accepted this time:smiley_aa and plan on going on to get my rn after lpn school.

good luck in what ever you decide to do! it will definately be trying at times but the end result will deffinately be worth it!

adamsmom · Jul 27, 2006

I work weekend opt. Friday 6:30p-7a and same on Sat. I am done by pre reqs and start RN school in Aug. Right now I plan on keeping my schedule. I know a couple people who work on the weekends and go to school all week. I am not sure it is a good idea to work full time as a CNA because you will need to do alot of reading once in nursing school and you will need your rest especially come test days.

Good luck

jb2u, ASN, RN · Jul 27, 2006

to go to LPN or RN (adn or bsn?) school is a personal choice. i went the RN adn route....why? because i needed to become a nurse as fast as possible that's why i went adn over bsn, but i did not want to work as an LPN because i feel they are not paid enough (just MY personal opinion). i plan to get my bsn as soon as i complete my adn in May. it will only take a year and i can do it online, plus, i already started taking some of the classes that i need for my bsn.

as far as working, it can be done. my school said on the first day of class, "you can not work and pass nursing school," but i believe that is a statement that just can't be made. everyone is different. i get about 4 hours of sleep a night, that's all i need. some people need 12 hours. plus some people need to study 4 hours to get what some people study for 15 minutes and get. some people read every chapter, some just pay attention in class and glance over the chapter. my point is everyone is different. i know one lady, in the class that just graduated from my school, that worked 5 nights a week (sometimes she came right to school and took a test after being at work all night long) and she passed (and was an A student). only you know what you are capable of.

choose the route that is best for you. don't let anyone stop you or talk you out of it. people told me that i couldn't get into my school's nursing program on the first try, but i worked my butt off and got in on the first try!!

good luck,

jay

casi, ASN, RN · Jul 28, 2006

I've been working 56hr/2wk through most of my pre-reqs. i've found that on noc shift I get some quiet times where I can open a textbook and study.

Once i get into nursing school I plan on cutting waaaaaay back. Though I have heard of people doing well while working. It just depends on the person.

LanaBanana · Jul 28, 2006

I hope to be starting a CNA job soon that will be weekends and I am in LPN school. There are several in my class that work overnights because they say they can get a lot of studying in while at work and they also have nurses there that can help them understand concepts. Like others have said, it can be done but it depends on your needs for sleep and study time. As for the RN or LPN thing...I know in my program it is somewhat self-paced, so if you have to work a lot and have less study time you can go a little slower (there are still deadlines though) or faster if you can do that - I started in May and will have all of my bookwork completed by the end of August or mid-September, but I still to do a lot of labs and all my clinicals. So depending on how your school is, the LPN might be more flexible, especially if you did it part-time. It is also a faster way to get to your goal, although as others have said, it won't pay as much. And there's a lot of LPNs who have every intention of going back to school for their RN and because of things that happen in life that never happens. (I WILL be going for my RN no matter what happens!) So you will probably just have to weigh things out. Do some checking on all the programs available in your aread for LPN and RN and see what you come up with.

carebear_21 · Jul 30, 2006

I am working a 7 days on/7 days off shift right now which is overnight from 11:00pm-9:00am as a CNA but plan on starting back to college for my pre-reqs for RN in January and will be going from the over night shift to the weekend shift where I'll be working Fridays 3:00pm-11:00pm and Sat-Sun from 9:00am-11:00pm at night. The place I work at is really trying to help us out with college because the area I live in Nurse's are wanted badly. In the NICU there's only 5 nurses for all shifts and in Pediatrics I believe there's only 4 or 5 nurses for all shifts as well.

~Carebear~

Daytonite, BSN, RN · Jul 31, 2006

i commend you for wanting to continue your education in nursing. rns have more educational requirements than lpns. i have put together some links for you about lpn nursing and how to become an lpn. i've also included the link to discovernursing.com which is the largest website i know of that has information for people looking for information about how to become a nurse. in general, you learn many of the same things in an lpn program that rns learn. however, lpns do not have to assume the responsibilities that rns do. read these materials carefully before you make a decision as to what you want to do. i tried to find information about assistance for adults in pa studying for a new career at the pa department of education site, but wasn't very successful. it may be that i just wasn't looking in the right places. most state departments of education have information on financing schooling for adults returning to school to learn a new career. i was able to find that you can find a list of trade and professional schools in pa by county here http://edna.ed.state.pa.us/ . you want to look for schools of higher education, not high school.

http://stats.bls.gov/oco/ocos102.htm - about lpn nursing from the u.s. department of labor

http://stats.bls.gov/oco/ocos083.htm - about registered nursing from the u.s. department of labor

http://www.medicaltrainingdirectory.com/medical_school_guide/guideid/173.htm - how to become a lpn along with a list of some online programs you can contact about lpn training.

http://www.discovernursing.com/ - a website sponsored by johnson & johnson with lots of information for those looking for information about nursing as a profession and how to become a nurse

https://allnurses.com/forums/1649519-post2.html - this is a link to a post i made to someone on getting information on becoming an lpn and the job prospects. advance for nursing is a newpaper that lists nursing jobs and i have listed a link to them in this post. there is also a nursing journal that is published monthly, i believe, that is specifically for lpns that you might want to subscribe to.