sick of ADN vs BSN! like most of us have a choice anyway!

[okie2]

SORRY - i have to rant about this. I don't want to start a fight- and I'm not going to generalize about all BSN or ADN programs. They have to be evaluated individually on their own merits but....... The constant arguement over ADN vs BSN is driving me crazy!!!! People act like I've really got a choice- like I can just walk out and "get" either one. ya right.

I am a 36yo pre-nursing student at a CC (in greater OKC metro). I have a previous BS in a science. I still have pre-reqs to do and support course to finish just to be competitive. & believe me- competition is HIGH- even for the lowly ADN Last semester there were 300 applicants for 50 spots. I have loved all my instructors, been impressed with the level of instruction, and feel prepared.

I have never seen an ad for a job that said "ADN need not apply"- all they ask for is the RN current license- yes, I understand that the BSN may be needed to go into higher mangement etc.

NOW, why I'm not doing the BSN. Here in OKC we have a few BSN programs at state & private universities, and even a few BS to BSN accelerated. The tuition ranges from $20,000 to over $50,000. Having loans from a previous degree & a husband that makes a good salary- I don't qualify for financial aid. SO....if anyone expects me to get that degree- hand over the $$$$$$, please. Also, the BSN programs don't accept many students- the smaller universities have only 20-50/ year and the larger major university accepts around 120/year. &That particular program had over 700 applicants last year!!!! YA I can just walk in and "get" my BSN- hahahahah

BTW- compare NCLEX pass rates

major university- 83% my CC - 87%

university#2 - 57% cc#2 - 87%

university #3 - 50% cc#3 - 82%

now, tell me- would I really want to go to a program that only 50% passed?? what good is a BSN if I can't pass boards? I realize there are many factors to it, but come on....50%!

Let me give you an eye opening fact---if OKC (local metro areas) went to "all BSN" this year and did away with ADN--they would lose 248 new nurses! (that's how many passed boards from 3 major ccs last year) WOW- you think we're short on nurses now- try cutting out all those new grads.

I'm just frustrated with the whole discussion. Like I've said, people act like all of us have EVERY option available, or that we can afford it, or that these programs are just waiting for me to come and "get" my degree.

At least around here- all the ADN/ASD are very professional, highly technical, and very competitive. There are no "waiting lists". You have to apply every semester, meet basic requirements, then compete with GPA, preference points, etc. NONE of them simply put you on a list for meeting the requirements.

It may be different in your neck of the woods, but that how it sits here.

Everyone has to make their own choice, evaluate their own needs and the programs available. I'm done- I feel better - thanks for listening:rolleyes:

[sbic56, BSN, RN]

I have currently made the decision between ADN vs. BSN being that I finish my prerqs at the end of next month (5 weeks of A&P II and Im done!!! :balloons: ). I decided to go for the ADN. As others have said no matter which degree you have, for an entry level RN position you will basically get paid the same. The BSN, as was said already, is good for mamagement positions. I do plan to get my future employer to pay for my RN-BSN program that I plan on pursuing after my ADN, just in case I need to go into management or teaching in the far future. Im only 20 and I know that things happen so I wanna prepare myself and have something to "fall back on".

Good plan. At 20. I think you can expect the minimum degree in nursing to be raised to BSN in your career. It won't be for several years, as the shortage won't allow for it, but I'd be prepared to get the BSN if I were 10 or more years younger!

[Momto3andNurse2B]

I'm new to all of this so I'm a little afraid of sounding simple or stupid but I was under the impression that if I signed a contract to work for a hospital for a specified time that they would pay for my school. Do I need to change my plans?

Not necessarily. My problem is, once I graduate, I have no intention of sticking around in sunny South Florida (Yuck, yuck, yuck!!!!!!) for long enough to fulfill a 2 year obligation to a hospital.

Richele

[Momto3andNurse2B]

Hi Richele,

Wow, $175 for a 3 credit course at your CC? That is fantastic!! Here in Southern Connecticut, the fee for a 3 credit course is approx. $320. That is good but your CC really is inexpensive. The CC here charges $2600 per yr. for full-time student status of 18 credits or less, not including lab fees or books. How much is your CC for a full yr? The fee for an ADN program at a local hospital's private college is approx. $21K per yr. and you can only transfer in no more than 18 credits from any other school. The BSN program at a local private university, Fairfield Univ. charges $31K+ per yr. currently and that is NOT including the many fees involved in the Nursing program, uniforms, or books. I do hope to get accecpted into the ADN program at St. Vincent's College because I like the atmosphere, the fact that it is a Catholic based institution as well as a good hospital so much better than the other Diploma based Nursing program at Bridgeport Hospital. I just hope tht when I do end up applying in the summer or fall of 07' that I will not be in too much competition. I wish you and everyone sll the best in your studies

Actually, when you add in all of those crazy fees, my CC isn't that much cheaper than yours. A gen ed 3 credit class is $175, but nursing classes are ultimately $200 because of some extra fees. Clinicals, although only 2 credits, add up to $222 when you look at insurance and other fees. My bill for next semester (13 credits: Pharmacology, Dosage Calc math, Nursing Process 1 & 2 with clinicals) is $1,024. Books for first semester are steep, about $1000, but after that it's only 1 or 2 books a semester. I still think I'm getting a pretty good deal!

Richele

[Sarah Bellum]

I looked into all the schools that offered nursing degrees (ADN,BSN,diploma) around here and decided on the accellerated BSN program ONLY because it was the fastest and cheapest way for me to start a nursing career. The school has a good reputation too which I also considered.

If I did't already have a degree I'd be doing ADN all the way baby. :chuckle

I think higher education is what you make of it and the words on your degree doesn't necessarily equate to how much you actually know or how well you will function in your chosen field.

[Sheri257]

I too have thought the debate was absurd ...

The one BSN program in my area is refusing to take applications indefinitely ... because their waiting list is so long. They are literally refusing all applications.

So much for ... "if there's a will there's a way." The only "way" in my neck of the woods is to get your ADN and work toward an online BSN after you graduate.

[ZASHAGALKA, RN]

The debate IS absurd.

It's an absurdity brought to you courtesy of the ANA. Without their misguided statements on the issue, it wouldn't be an issue at all.

~faith,

Timothy.

[Tweety, BSN, RN]

The debate IS absurd.

It's an absurdity brought to you courtesy of the ANA. Without their misguided statements on the issue, it wouldn't be an issue at all.

~faith,

Timothy.

I doubt it.

Nurse scholars also agree that with the BSN idea, in fact probably are the one's that proposed it to the ANA for them to come up with their statements.

The absurdity is they recommend it, but have no practical way to bring it about. Because obviously, myself hometown included, there aren't BSN programs available.

[Nemhain]

I doubt it.

Nurse scholars also agree that with the BSN idea, in fact probably are the one's that proposed it to the ANA for them to come up with their statements.

The absurdity is they recommend it, but have no practical way to bring it about. Because obviously, myself hometown included, there aren't BSN programs available.

There aren't BSN programs around where I live either. The closest ones are more than 2 hours away and with the price of gas who would want to drive that distance?

It's funny...one of my nursing professors was telling our class when we expressed concerns about finding work as a ADN graduates 10 years from now, "when I was in nursing school 20 years ago, I was told that by the year 2000 there would be no such thing as an LPN and there would be no RN Diploma or ADN programs left in the United States. God, they couldn't have been more wrong."

:chuckle Hee Hee...that's hilarious.

If you're happy with bedside nursing an ADN is all you'll ever need. I bet we'll all be long retired before ADN programs are phased out. My school wanted to create a RN-BSN program, but they can't find people to teach.

*Oh, there is a new nurse manager on the Med/Surg unit where I do my clinical and she just has an ADN!!!! Everyone loves her! ADNs CAN be nurse managers, however, if there is a BSN applicant that person will most likely get the job. Being a nurse manager is NOT out of the scope of practice for an ADN (at least in my state.)

[Gromit]

Zashagalka (did I get that right?) I agree, and its the primary reason I've refused to bother with ana -even though a couple of my compadres push them almost like they were getting a kickback.

I didn't do the BSN thing due to practicality. I was almost bankrupt for one, and it was easier to get into my CC for another. I'm fortunate to live in an area that has an abundance of schools, some offering BSN as well. But time and bread made my choice -wish I'd been smart enough to go back to school when my parents were paying the tab so many years ago (grin). Fortunately, at my workplace, few give a crap what your level is (adn/bsn) -those that do are usually managemen-bound. And one day I'll probably go the BSN route, but for now I have to get out of debt and gain experience, and enjoy being a nurse.

I was very fortunate in that it wasn't very difficult to get a spot at my local CC -which had (at the time) a very good NCLEX-pass rate (still in the 80 percentile range, I think -and all of my class did pass -though it took some of us a couple of tries)

I see students coming onto my floor now (and some are techs who are trying to get in) and they tell me plenty of horror-stories about how bad the competition is to get in now. My luck stemmed from the fact that my chosen CC actually opened up a whole new class the year I applied, and my GPA was pretty good, so I got a slot.

What boggles MY mind is that a year ago, Florida BON raised the level required to pass NCLEX AGAIN, (so I'm told, making my state one of the most difficult in which to pass the boards) -with shortages being what they are -not that I want standards to drop, but they aren't helping their cause when so few can get spots in schools, and then making it even more difficult to pass boards.... well, it seems simple to me, anyway.

[SueH]

When I was in nursing school.....ADN program 28 years ago now.....one of our instructors who actually had her MSN, stated that she wished she had graduated from an ADN program initially instead of her BSN program. She told us that there was so much emphasis placed in the BSN program at her university on research and writing papers that she was ill prepared to actually care for patients. She said she actually graduated from nursing school without giving an enema or putting in a foley......and that because of the intensity of our ADN program, she felt that she personally might have a hard time making it in the standard alloted time. She explained that she felt her BSN education was greatly "drug out" and that the ADN students get the same education, perhaps without all the paper writing and research, but just in a more compact and concise format and in addition get more "hands on" practical experience. I know that different programs at different institutions will vary......but let's face it.....there are a lot of us who did not have the luxury of a four year program and had to get to work and start making money as quickly as possible. My friends who went on to get their BSN mostly state that what they learn is actually minimally useful and and in the words of one such ADN to BSN graduate, "a mountain of bovine dung." By the way my ADN class had a 100% first time pass rate on boards.

[LMTtoRN]

I am taking my math prerequisite this summer so I can start full time in the fall for my first semester pre-nursing toward an ADN. I live in the northeast, and most hospitals around here offer tuition reimbursement if you pursue your BSN -- which is my plan for moving forward toward an eventual MSN goal.

I'm 47, divorced, living on my own (my kids are grown), and a licensed massage therapist making not-very-much-money. I DID qualify for grants (thank the powers that be!!) but the cost of books is phenomenal! I paid $100 for used for this summer course. I don't even want to THINK about the A&P books at this point. I will probably have to take out loans just to make it through, but I am looking forward to a salary that will allow me to pay it back.

My belief is that it is up to you to make the most of the opportunities you have. Your education is only as good as the effort you put into it. My school had 100% of last year's class pass the NCLEX-RN. To me, that is a good indicator of the program, but the comments I've heard from other nurses about graduates from my school convinced me that this was the program I wanted to pursue.

Here's to working our tails off so we can succeed!!!

[psychtech1]

Funny that I should happen upon this thread, I am currenty registering for my prereq's at my CC. I am still contemplating attending my CC for my RN or going for the BSN. Either way I am going to have to take out loans, but the CC's here have a waiting list of 900-1000 and only take 75-100 stuents per year. So even if I have a wonderful GPA, life experience, etc. I am still placed on a waiting list. I am 33 years old and already have a Bachelor's in Human Development.

There are 4-5 universties here who have a fast track BSN and one that has an MSN program specifically for students who have a non-nursing bachelor's degree. Right now, the fast-track BSN is probably going to be my choice because it will have smaller classes and I can finish within a couple of years.

Thanks for all the insight on this dilemna!

Pepper