Where to start?

Hi Confused - Welcome to the board. I do not know of any night or weekend programs in Colorado for either LPN or RN although I admit I'm not too familiar with trade schools that might offer nursing. I just wanted to say good luck to you and your family!

I am looking to switch careers into nursing, and having a hard time figuring out where to start. I have my bachelor's degree in business already. I have a full-time job that I must keep while in school to support my family. So it seems like night/weekend/online courses are my only option.

From what I have gathered, that puts me in line for an Associates as either an LPN or an RN. Does anyone have any recommendations on which school to go to or which program to take? Any direction is welcome and appreciated! Thanks!!

Hi CalebMommy,

All of this stuff is so frustrating because Nurses are in such high demand; however, there does not seem to be a whole lot of options or programs. I have looked into pretty much everything there is out there and for what you are looking for, there just really isn't much. Since you already have a degree, which I don't, you may be in a better place than myself. I know that the community colleges here in Colorado have a decent Nursing program that I believe is better than average, but there is a pretty long waitlist (several years) and to even get onto the waitlist, all of your prereqs have to be completed. Because you have a degree, you may have a good number of the prereqs; however, I am sure there will be some you will need to complete like the Science courses. This is the long route and for me, I tried to be a full time mom, take night classes, work full time and I gotta tell you, it just didn't work for me. I have recently been accepted to the School of Nursing at Platt College. This is a program that is costly and will be fast-paced; however, it is 2-3 days per week, so technically you could work while you are in school (part-time) and you might also have to have a really flexible schedule because once clinicals start, the schedule is not so cut and dry. They do offer federal loan options and in your favor some of your course work may transfer, so it would be less expensive (although, still quite expensive). Good luck to you. Feel free to ask any questions. I have been doing the damn research for a VERY long time.

Hi Confused. If you already have a bachelors, I would check into one of the accelerated or 2nd degree programs. When I checked around, CU, Regis, Metro State, UNC, UCCS, and Denver School of Nursing all had these programs. The positive to these programs is that you'll be done in 13 to 18 months, and you'll have a BSN as opposed to a ADN. The disadvantage to these programs is that you'll have to take out some hefty student loans for school and to live off of. You will not be able to work a full-time job, and even a part-time job will be difficult.

If you absolutely must work, the ADN program might not be a bad option. You still won't be able to work your FT monday through friday job, but once you get your LPN license (which will probably take you the fall and spring semester) you can probably get a flexible PT job as a LPN at a nursing home or home care agency. It will take you a little longer to get your RN license then if you choose an accelerated program, and you won't have a BSN. The job market will hopefully be better by the time you are an RN (hopefully MUCH sooner), but at the present time a BSN I believe is an advantage to getting a job.

All things considered, I still would recommend an accelerated program if at all possible. You'll be done quicker which means you can get to work as a RN and start making money sooner.

The only evening/weekend program I know of is at Regis and it is for people who already work in healthcare.

Let me know what other questions you may have. My wife went through a ADN program and I am currently in an accelerated program. Between the two of us, I think I researched just about every kind of option there is out there.

Actually, the only night/weekend program I know of in Denver is a BSN program, not an associates degree. It's offered by Regis and called the CHOICE program, intended primarily for people already working in healthcare--i.e. aides, patient techs, medical assistants, etc. Classes are in the evenings and clinicals on weekends, I think. I'd give them a call and see if they'll also work with someone working in a non-healthcare job.

Dina