This may be a stupid question...

Yep same NCLEX exam

Yes, we all take the same NCLEX exam, the difference is in the Degree you receive from your school: The Associates is a good basis, but the Bachelors enables you to enter teaching and administration pretty much immediately (if that's what you're looking for).

The higher degree programs have a more business-minded approach (as well as more classes) from what I understand. We have two ADN programs in this area and one BSN, and I always thought it was funny when I was in school that the floor units we rotated in would audibly groan when the BSN students came on. I'm not saying they're all the same, and I'm pursuing my BSN/MSN now, but most of the BSN students (who had started that way -- not been in Nursing before entering the University) couldn't stick a vein if their lives depended on it, and you sure didn't want them coming at you with a catheter! Of course, most of the people in this category were extremely young as well, not like we who decided to enter Nursing in our 30s and already had some basic skills simply by virtue of Motherhood.

I think my approach is reflected quite a bit in the field: Get the Associates degree to get into Nursing, and then if you want, pursue Bachelors and/or Masters degrees. You don't have to have them to be a good nurse, but you DO have to have them for some specific jobs, or just because you want to accomplish that (I'm doing it for myself, and because in another 20 years I think I'll teach rather than continue in patient care).

Good luck on your exam!

Thanks for the info. I plan to continue with education as long as I can-not just becuase I want better positions but because I love school and love to learn. I am still hazy about the education process in terms of what possibilities one has after attaining various degrees in nursing. I know now that one can obtain a MSN in nursing and be a nurse practioner, right?

What then, after that? If one desired to further thier education after a MSN, would they be on track to medical doctor as the next step?

You can earn a doctorate in nursing- most who do this end up teaching in nursing programs at a university. There are also specialized master's programs- nurse anesthesia, nurse midwifery, etc.

Wow! That's a lot of information... I've worked with PAs for years, but really didn't know anything about their education. I just looked up the program at UTMB, and the course is 109 credit hours, a Masters Program as stated in the last post, and costs over $21,000! By comparison, I paid for my ADN (no financial aid), and the cost was about $9000.

Instead of thinking "MD" post-masters, go on for your NP license, and then your doctorate - there's teaching-based, research-based, and nursing-based doctorates (DNSc, PhD, and DNP, respectively) - you can do LOTS of healthcare these days without being an MD! Every doctor I know personally (as opposed to being their patient) is unhappy practicing medicine, these days (mostly due to "rationed care") - EVERY NP I know is happy, confident, and a terriffic role model. Do it!

I agree -- as long as you're headed down the road of Nursing, I'd continue down that particular road. There are so many branches to try and travel if you get in a rut. Even if you never pursue an advanced degree there is TONS of stuff to learn in each of the different practice areas and fields.

Besides, truth be told, there are a lot of MDs out there who are book-smart but social morons.

Amen happy bunny! That's one huge thing we nurses have up on the MDs.

I just don't want to be limited in how I can care for people- I think down the road I will be a NP, but I want to work my way up. I agree with the last few posts about how doctors are probably unhappy. If you really think about it from a patient's point of view, how often do they actually get to see a doctor when they go to the hospital? What's appealing about a NP career is that they get more into the diagnosis part of patient care. But who knows- I may love being an RN so much that I wont want anything else.