With an ASN will it be hard to find a job?

[MissJessie]

I am a nursing major currently attending a community college and have almost completed classes to be able to apply to the ASN and or BSN program. However at this time I feel that the ASN is what I currently have time and money to do. Does anyone know if it is hard to go back and apply to get into the BSN program after I have already completed my ASN. And with an ASN will it be hard to find a job???

[MunoRN, RN]

It does depend on location and the specific facility you want to work in, but in general it's not that much harder for ADN grads to find work compared to BSN grads. According a the largest recent survey I'm aware of, 61% of ADN grads had a job at 4 months post graduation, and 65% of BSNs had a job at 4 months.

I think people confuse the "BSN preferred" lingo in postings and the difficulty for both ADN and BSN grads to find work.

[applesxoranges, BSN, RN]

My school was easy to transfer because they have a dozen or so partnerships including one with OU. I only need 9 nursing classes and 1 English class for my BSN due to skillful planning on my part. My job will pay for my BSN schooling but not the MSN part because they have deemed it unnecessary at the moment (due to budget cuts really).

I found two job as an ADN before I walked for graduation in December, however, I was an internal hire and I was really applying around. Some of my classmates waited till they received their ATT to start applying. I know of a dozen who were hired internally at a residency program and a few hired externally for it. I know of at least two or three others who have interviews at my healthcare system this week.

My school is NLNAC accredited and that is what you want if you plan on going back for your BSN. A lot of schools want the ADN schools to have the NLNAC. Should you go back, look for a RN to BSN school with CCNE accreditation. The CCNE is only available for BSN and MSN programs (post masters certificate programs are not accredited by the CCNE). I think they changed the letters around and I never remember what they are now.

I know of a few schools who deny entry to students whose school was not NLNAC accredited.

There is also RN to MSN programs. Financially, it's cheaper for me to do RN to BSN because of all the credits I have and this way I will have a year of experience saved up. I want to go into Frontier's CNM program.

I have seen a handful of jobs at a healthcare system a few hours away that required the new graduate to graduate from a CCNE or NLNAC school.

Also, do not be afraid to take part-time work. I am working part-time so that way I will have time for school and enjoying life. I worked hard as a full-time employee. Take the time to learn and enjoy yourself. Also, your first job may not be in the unit you wanted. Take anything you can get regardless of whether it is med-surg, stepdown, ICU, or ER. I tell people get their year in and then transfer around if they do not like it.