What would you do?

[Mary Mettille Brist]

What would you do? (Also posted this in the pre-nusing topic, but would love direct feedback from you all too!)

Background: I have a Bachelor’s Degree in English with a minor in American Sign Language. Life happened senior year of college and I didn’t get the best grades; I graduated with a GPA of 3.2. I got a C in Chemistry, a C in Anatomy and Physiology I, and mostly A’s and B+‘s in my other (non science) classes.

I have two children under 2 and work a full-time 10-6 job. I am the sole breadwinner of my family - my husband is a stay-at-home dad. I would love to go back to school to pursue nursing - ultimately, the goal is to get my master’s and work as a CNM.

I’m currently enrolled in Nutrition and Lifespan Psychology and anticipate getting A’s in both. I’ll also be taking Mircobiology, retaking A&P I, and taking A&P II this fall/Winter. A’s are, of course, what I’m striving for.

I’m trying to figure out how to get to the end goal. Due to my poor accumulative GPA the first time round, I’m concerned about the quite real possibility of not being accepted into any of the accelerated BSN programs or direct entry MSN programs that I’ll be applying for this Spring.

I plan on applying to multiple accelerated BSN programs this Winter, as well as a few direct entry master’s programs. I live in Minnesota, but am open to relocating to another state for school if I have to (staying in MN would be the ideal, however!).

If I don’t get accepted to any of the programs, Rasmussen (a for-profit school here in the cities) does have a ADN program. I could go that route, find a job, and do an RN-BSN bridge program, then do a master’s with a focus on CNM. I could also skip the RN-BSN and go straight into my master’s, since I already have a degree.

What would you do? Where would you start? Anyone been in my shoes?

Also, if I do end up starting with my ADN, does anyone have any experience with Rasmussen’s ADN program in MN? How difficult is it to be hired with only an ADN here in Minneapolis/St. Paul? I know there is a huge shift in wanting nurses with a BSN...Will having a bachelor’s degree in another field help at all?

Any advice/wisdom would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!

[dracarys bsn, BSN, RN]

I would probably just focus on nursing school to start with. I went in with a not so great GPA too because instead of dropping 3 classes, I just stopped going and got three Fs. But I got in and did just fine. I made sure to excel in my undergrad classes to make up for those Fs. (In hindsight, I could have requested to have those removed somehow, but I never investigated how to do that).

I worked L&D for 7 years after a year of med-surg. It was what I wanted to do before I even started clinicals. I thought about going for CNM for a minute, but I had little kids that I couldn't uproot if I was unable to find a job where I lived. In the end, I was so burnt out I left the bedside entirely.