Where do I go from here to become an RN as soon as possible?

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Hello, everyone! (:

I am feeling very discouraged lately and I just need some advice about where to go from here from other students and/or nurses who have been in my shoes.

I am a 23 year old Army wife with a one year old child. My husband joined the Army two years ago and we have been living in Fort Leavenworth, KS since April of 2012. Before moving here, I was attending a very expensive four year university in order to get my BSN as a part time student because I was also working full time. After just two years there, I was already $22,000 in debt with student loans. :/

Therefore, when we moved to Kansas, I decided to attend a community college. Not many of my credits from my four-year program transferred, but I didn't let that stop me. I didn't know this then, but the four-year university didn't have regional accreditation and wasn't a school that was any where near worthy of its cost. :(

Now, I am set to graduate from the community college with my degree in "pre-nursing" at the end of this summer, July of 2013. My husband's contract with the Army isn't up until April of 2015. Also, after talking to five different representatives of different ASN/ADN programs here, I learned that I will not be here long enough after getting my pre-nursing degree to pursue my ASN/ADN in Kansas. I would have to wait until we move back home, which is the Pennsylvania/New Jersey area. I just didn't want to go a whole 20 months without being in school, when maybe I could be moving forward and closer to graduation and becoming an RN. I hope that that makes sense. I just feel like I am already a 23 year mother and wife. If I didn't move to Kansas and would have done more research on colleges before graduating from high school, then I could have had my BSN at 22 years old. I have so much debt to pay that I rather graduate as fast as possible to truly start supporting my family and start paying that debt off.

Is there anything that I can do? I wasn't sure if there was a BSN program from any school back in PA/NJ that is partially online that I can start before we move back home in April of 2015. I just feel like I am at a dead end and I need help.

Here is a list of all of the classes that I have already completed or will complete once I get my pre-nursing degree...

1. English 101

2. English 102

3. Sociology 101

4. Psychology 101

5. Anatomy & Physiology 101

6. Anatomy & Physiology 102

7. Intermediate Algebra

8. Microbiology (with its lab component)

9. Interpersonal Communication

10. Ethics

11. Child Development

12. General Biology

13. General Chemistry

14. Nutrition or Statistics (we can take either or and I haven't decided which to take during the summer of 2013 semester yet)

Thank you for all of your answers and feed back! I truly appreciate it! :)

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I don't understand why yor college is only a pre nursing degree? I go to a community college and they offer ASN. If there's more community colleges by you ill look into that and call around.

You could also do CNA training about 3 weeks then you take the state exam you could get two years experience in the medical field which some schools require before you can even get into there nursing program.

Also idk how you are with online schooling but you could look into that also!!!!

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Specializes in Psych/Mental Health.

Don't feel discouraged! You're very young and 20 months is really not that long. =)

Is it possible for you and your family to stay in Kansas a little longer after your husband's contract is up?

If not, how about LPN program? They are usually 9-months long. And once you're back home in the east coast, you can go to a LPN-to-RN program which is shorter than typical ADN program.

Lastly, even if you don't go to school in those 20 months, you can perhaps pick up some work so you can save and pay off some of that debt.

Good luck!

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Thank you both for your replies! I truly appreciate it! :)

ph94, the community college that I am currently attending does offer an ADN/ASN degree. The only thing is that I am an Army Wife and I will not be in Kansas, at that school, long enough to complete the program.

umbdude, I am definitely going to look into that. I looked into the CNA program that they offer, but that only makes you eligible to be a CNA in Kansas. I will look into the LPN program and see if I could get that in Kansas and then use it to do an LPN-RN bridge program in Pennsylvania or New Jersey.

Thanks, again! I do feel a little better! ;)

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. I looked into the CNA program that they offer, but that only makes you eligible to be a CNA in Kansas.

I think all you have to do to be a CNA in another state is to take and pass their state test. When I took my test (I'm in NC), one of the others was from out-of-state (midwest somewhere). She got the booklet from NC, studied the skills, and passed the test to get her NC certificate.

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Thank you both for your replies! I truly appreciate it! :)

ph94, the community college that I am currently attending does offer an ADN/ASN degree. The only thing is that I am an Army Wife and I will not be in Kansas, at that school, long enough to complete the program.

umbdude, I am definitely going to look into that. I looked into the CNA program that they offer, but that only makes you eligible to be a CNA in Kansas. I will look into the LPN program and see if I could get that in Kansas and then use it to do an LPN-RN bridge program in Pennsylvania or New Jersey.

Thanks, again! I do feel a little better! ;)

You can have your license transferred.

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