Starting with an associate's degree?

Nursing Students ADN/BSN

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Hello! I am still a senior in high school and have a huge desire of being a nurse! I was thinking of starting at a community college since I don't really have the money to afford a 4-year. I was thinking of getting an associate degree in nursing, taking the exam to be a RN and transfering to a 4-year to continue my next 2 years. After that i would like to complete my masters degree and all the training necessary to be a nurse anesthetist. I am pretty good at math but im not too into science since the courses i've taken in highschool are taught my teachers who don't really teach. Is this a solid plan? Do i have a chance here or am i just dreaming?

In order to attain this ICU experience, you must obtain a job at a hospital as a staff ICU nurse. In order to attain hospital employment, many hospitals are not hiring new grad RNs who are without the BSN degree.

hi! About how many years of ICU experience is enought to be considered for the nurse anesthetist program? Also i did say i would go for my BSN right after getting my associates degree so not getting employment because of the lack of BSN wouldnt really be an issue since i would have mine. Btw after getting my associates degree and i jump into my BSN that is just two more years right? Thank you :)

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I have my ADN and found a job right out of school. The hospital was also in an agreement with a well known university that offered a discount for those ADNs wanting to progress. Once you registered for a class, they even offered to work around your schedule if necessary. What a great deal!! You are working, earning money and get a chance to progress.

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You need 2 years worth of working experience in the ICU (some schools will also take experience in ED, but check with the program first.)

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hi! About how many years of ICU experience is enought to be considered for the nurse anesthetist program? Also i did say i would go for my BSN right after getting my associates degree so not getting employment because of the lack of BSN wouldnt really be an issue since i would have mine. Btw after getting my associates degree and i jump into my BSN that is just two more years right? Thank you :)

You need 2 years worth of working experience in the ICU (some schools will also take experience in ED, but check with the program first.) An RN-BSN program is usually 1.5-2 years, depends on the program.

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Specializes in Emergency Medicine.
You think bedside nurses should have their masters? Why? Why would you think that? You think bedside nurses should have prescribing privileges? By requiring bedside nurses to have their masters, you are stepping into dangerous territory with the nps and their pay for having their masters. A masters will mean pretty much nothing if every bedside nurse has it. Plus it's very cost prohibitive. I do not think you have actually thought out the implications of that.

Also, show me the actual documented source that magnet hospital nurses must have their BSN for bedside nurses by 2020. Not what you heard in the rumor mill at your hospital. Because I have looked for it over and over and I can't find it. I also know what I have been personally told by two different hospitals. One that I work for that is magnet and another one in my clinical orientation going for magnet status, and it's that magnet status has to do with RN retention, not the degree you hold. I have several thoughts on how I think this rumor got started but it's not what most people on AN think, that it has to do with one study. I won't give my thoughts and start more rumors.

The other thing is, most people don't give a crap if a hospital has achieved magnet status. When you are sick and picking a hospital to you check to see if they are magnet? Ask your family if they know what that means. It's simply some type of bragging rights in the medical community. It has nothing to do with attracting more people to choose their surgery or have their baby there. And that is how hospitals make their money and how we get paid.

You do know getting a masters degree does not equate to being an NP, right? There are numerous other nursing masters degrees you can obtain that are not an NP. Why not have masters prepared bedside nurses? Why not push our nurses to strive for excellence and advancement in the profession? We already contribute a lot to the healthcare spectrum but could contribute so much more by advancing our education. To evolve, we must seek to continue our education. Nurses have the potential to produce some very powerful and practice changing research- and we need nurses with degrees to do that to be taken seriously in the medical community.

Many hospitals offer tuition reimbursement anywhere from 80-100%, why would you not want to take advantage of that and obtain a degree? You are benefitting yourself exponentially by further your education in nursing.

I have the paperwork for the magnet requirement at work- next time I'm there, I can post it. This isn't going away. There is absolutely nothing wrong with requiring nurses to be BSN prepared, it needs to be the standard. Hospitals, like mine, that are magnet designated, can afford to only hire BSN prepared. These tend to be top hospitals. No one is requiring every hospital to be magnet designated, it's the hospitals choice. But I think in the coming years it will be understood better by the community. People know a hospitals reputation in the community and from receiving excellent care, and will return to the hospitals they feel confident in. Additionally, research proves patients receive better care in hospitals where the majority of nurses hold higher degrees.

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Specializes in Emergency Medicine.

Here is what I found while not at work, directly from the American nurse credentialing center.

http://nursecredentialing.org/Documents/Magnet/MagCon-2014-FAQs.pdf

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I am graduating this December 2016 from my associates degree program. At the same time I am taking my Rn to BSN classes online so that I will have my BSN by December 2017. I am a nurse corps scholarship participant and I am incredibly grateful for that because I have a seven month old daughter that I want to be with as much as possible.... Anyways I am in the DC/Maryland/Virginia area and I want to get ahead on applications and possibly working as a student nurse tech or doing a summer internship. Is anyone from the DMV area or is familiar enough with it to know what hospitals(preferable DC because the majority of it is considered underserved and thats where I need to work) have recently hired new grad ADN? My scholarship gives me six months to find a job or I have to pay the entire thing back so it's something u want to get ahead of. Any help would be incredibly appreciated.

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I am graduating this December 2016 from my associates degree program. At the same time I am taking my Rn to BSN classes online so that I will have my BSN by December 2017. I am a nurse corps scholarship participant and I am incredibly grateful for that because I have a seven month old daughter that I want to be with as much as possible.... Anyways I am in the DC/Maryland/Virginia area and I want to get ahead on applications and possibly working as a student nurse tech or doing a summer internship. Is anyone from the DMV area or is familiar enough with it to know what hospitals(preferable DC because the majority of it is considered underserved and thats where I need to work) have recently hired new grad ADN? My scholarship gives me six months to find a job or I have to pay the entire thing back so it's something u want to get ahead of. Any help would be incredibly appreciated.

Around my area, student nurse techs and extern/intern positions are for BSN students only, but it might be different for you. I'd call different hospitals and SLF and ask what programs they offer and what the criteria is. Also, if you can get a job in the hospital as a PCA or nurse assistant then I think that'll also help you to land that intern or student nurse position.

Here's a link for a student nurse extern job position at Sibley Memorial hospital in DC. Career Opportunities: Medical/Surgical (6E) - Nurse Extern (Summer) (128283)

They don't mention anything about ADN/BSN so I'm guessing it's open for both. Maybe call and ask them what they look for in candidates and how to strengthen your app? Wish I could help more.

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Around my area, student nurse techs and extern/intern positions are for BSN students only, but it might be different for you. I'd call different hospitals and SLF and ask what programs they offer and what the criteria is. Also, if you can get a job in the hospital as a PCA or nurse assistant then I think that'll also help you to land that intern or student nurse position.

Here's a link for a student nurse extern job position at Sibley Memorial hospital in DC. Career Opportunities: Medical/Surgical (6E) - Nurse Extern (Summer) (128283)

They don't mention anything about ADN/BSN so I'm guessing it's open for both. Maybe call and ask them what they look for in candidates and how to strengthen your app? Wish I could help more.

Thank you so much I appreciate your inpput!

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Specializes in SICU, NTICU.

I think your plan is fine. I was hired into a magnet hospital with my ADN and finished my BSN online that same year. Actually, I know several sCRNAs who went that route and had higher GPAs because they were able to avoid some of those terrible required university courses that end up lowering your GPA (though that can happen in CC as well). The goal is to get in, get your ICU experience and make yourself an excellent candidate. I also know a lot of people who started in a small hospital because thats where they were able to get in an ICU right away and then transfered to magnet after a year or two. A lot of hospitals around me are saying that they will only hire BSNs, but I have yet to see that happen since there are always shortages. Plus a lot of places give you several years to get your BSN and will often help to pay for it. My husband is currently in CRNA school, if you don't like science it might not be the right path because you'll have to take all the core sciences to get accepted, but wait and see how you feel once you try a few at the college level. Keep in mind though, there are terrible instructors at every level so its likely you'll have to self-teach yourself many science classes anyway. Good luck!

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I think your plan is fine. I was hired into a magnet hospital with my ADN and finished my BSN online that same year. Actually, I know several sCRNAs who went that route and had higher GPAs because they were able to avoid some of those terrible required university courses that end up lowering your GPA (though that can happen in CC as well). The goal is to get in, get your ICU experience and make yourself an excellent candidate. I also know a lot of people who started in a small hospital because thats where they were able to get in an ICU right away and then transfered to magnet after a year or two. A lot of hospitals around me are saying that they will only hire BSNs, but I have yet to see that happen since there are always shortages. Plus a lot of places give you several years to get your BSN and will often help to pay for it. My husband is currently in CRNA school, if you don't like science it might not be the right path because you'll have to take all the core sciences to get accepted, but wait and see how you feel once you try a few at the college level. Keep in mind though, there are terrible instructors at every level so its likely you'll have to self-teach yourself many science classes anyway. Good luck!

thank you I appreciate the help and I'm doing everything I can to get ahead of the game before I graduate. If you don't mind me asking what region so you live in? I feel like everyone in my area is always talking about how there are no jobs

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