WWYD In my Situation

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I would love a little incite from others on my situation especially if others think of something that I have not thought of. I posted about this before the site went down, but now I cannot find the replies. I will make this as short as I can!

I finished my first semester in an ADN program a couple weeks ago; it went very well and I loved it! However, I had to take organic chemistry and that didn't go so well. I needed a "C" to pass and I received a "D" because of this I now have to sit out of the program for a year and I can return next spring of 2013 and pick up where I left off at. Obviously it was very upsetting knowing that I was supposed to graduate in the spring of 2013! We are also allowed to fail two classes before we are kicked out of the program. Being that I failed chem, this will be my one time out of the program.

After crying, being down and getting upset, I picked myself back up and I thought of a new plan! I figured since I LOVED my first semester of nursing, why not just forget the ADN route and go straight for the BSN route! Originally my plan was to graduate in 2013, work part time and go to school part time to get my BSN. It would probably take me 2-3 additional years to get the BSN because as of right now I only have my prereqs done for the ADN program. I do not have any of the general education classes done. So if I am excepted into a BSN program in the fall of 2013 I am really graduating at the same time. I have 4 children and I am blessed that I do not have to work. I really don't want to work if I get my ADN while going back to school, but at the same time I wouldn't want to waste that degree either, but seriously I don't think I am smart enough to work and go to school.

When I started school two years ago I decided to go the ADN route because it was faster. I knew I could get the ADN degree in 4 years rather than the BSN in 6 years. After talking with a friend of mine at that time whom is a NP, she told me she wouldn't waste her time on getting a BSN if I was not getting a masters. Like I said it was two years ago when the job market was a little better. This past year I am always pulling up our local hospitals and the all say BSN preferred and being that I want to work in a hospital and on a specialty floor on top of that, I will need that BSN.

So if you were me, would you take the next year and work on all of the general education classes and return to the ADN program in the spring of 2013 OR just forget the program and apply to the BSN in the fall of 2013?

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I don't want to sound harsh or rude when I say this, but a BSN probably isn't the best option for you at this moment. I will graduate nursing school next year, and I am going to do a three semester BSN program at a large public university here in North Carolina. The prerequisites I take at my current school will transfer to the university, so I am taking my BSN prerequisites along with my nursing courses. I already knocked all the ASN prerequisites out of the way, so it isn't too hard. With that being said, I must take college algebra, statistics, organic, inorganic, and biochemistry, three English courses, 12 hours of psychology, sociology, and anthropology, and 10 hours of history, humanities, and fine arts for the BSN. These classes are on top of all the prerequisites I took for the ASN program (A&P I and II, microbiology, general chemistry I and II, precalculus, intro to psychology, developmental psychology, philosophical intro to ethics, English 111 and 114, humanities 212, and environmental science).

My point is this: if you failed organic chemistry at the two year program, then what makes you think it will be any different if you go to a BSN program? I know organic chemistry is hard because I took AP chemistry while I was still in high school and we covered organic chemistry. If I were in your position, I would take this time to finish all my ASN prerequisites and begin working on BSN prerequisites. If there is a school that you know you want to do your BSN at, look them up and see if the credits you do at this school will transfer. If they will accept your credits, utilize this break to finish your ASN prerequisites, and then begin on your BSN prerequisites. If you do, you will have your BSN faster, and you can focus entirely on your nursing courses when you start the nursing program back in 2013. I know that a setback like this is heartbreaking, but you can turn it around and make something positive out of the situation.

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Matt, thank you for your feedback!

I attend a university and it has 7 different branches; I attend two of the 7 branches. Two branches out of the 7 offer ADN, the other five only offer the BSN. In the end it doesn't matter which branch I attend because everything transfers from school to school. Just so that everyone understands, I am not at a community college transferring to a university, I am already there.

The only classes that I have left to take are Organic because I failed (I have already passed inorganic), 9 credit hours of humanities and fine arts, 3 credit hours of addition courses (i will probably take child psych or oceanography) nutrition, one psych or soc upper division and I believe statistics and that's about it. Everything else is complete. Our school doesn't require biochemistry, general chemistry I and II, precalculus and a lot of other classes that you mentioned. Everything else is just nursing classes and being that I have already got the foundations of nursing out of the way, there are two BSN nursing classes that I won't need.

If I had to take all of those classes that you mentioned, then I am pretty sure I would NOT be ready for the BSN route if ever! LOL!!

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I'm at a community college right now, but we are one of the top five hardest programs to get into in the state. Over 200 people applied and less than 50 got accepted. There were a lot of prerequisites for this program, but I feel really prepared because of them. If you've already passed all the other chemistries, just give organic another go. I remember it from AP chemistry in high school, and it sucked; I don't look forward to taking it again. If you think that you can get into the BSN program faster, and you are okay with it taking slightly longer, then go for it. If you would rather wait and finish all your general education courses, then work on them and apply for the ASN in 2013. It's so hard when you fail over something so trivial as organic chemistry, but you will get through it and move on to your nursing education. You will need a BSN eventually, so it wouldn't be a bad idea to do it. Either way I am sure that you will be fine. Don't let organic chemistry get you down.

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Yes, it does suck failing a class such as this one. I mean we started off with 80 students and by the time our final rolled around, there were about 25 of us left. I am not sure how many failed out of the 25, but I know there were a few!

If I apply for the BSN in the fall of 2013, then I will have this next year and a half to get those last few general education classes out of the way, which is not many so I will have plenty of time to get them done.

In case you misunderstood, I don't have to apply for the ADN/ASN program as I am already in it. However, my school is not letting me continue on to my second semester next week because I failed chemistry. I have the choice of reentering in the spring of 2013, but of course I am kind of leaning on the BSN route now that I have seen how much I enjoyed my first semester of NS.

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Sorry, I did misunderstand your post. I thought you had to completely reapply rather than just resume. If you can apply for the BSN in the fall, and you would have to wait until spring to resume the ASN, then there isn't anything stopping you from doing the BSN. If you apply to the BSN in the fall and don't get in, you can always take your spot back in the ASN program starting in the spring. It is kind of like a backup fail-safe plan. In the meantime you can finish your general education courses, and redo your chemistry. I love nursing school, and I would want to start back as soon as possible if something like this happened to me. It's also a wise decision to go ahead and do your BSN. It will save you a lot of time in the long run because you won't have to go back to school while working full time, and you will be much more marketable in some of the larger hospitals.

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See that's the thing, I cannot apply to the BSN this fall of 2012, because I have about 7 classes left to take and I cannot take them all this spring/summer. I would be applying in the fall of 2013 and this is why I need to make up my mind about reentering the ADN program or giving it up.

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I'm not sure what I would do. Personally, I think I would finish out the ASN program and go back for my BSN online while I worked somewhere. That way when you graduate with your BSN you will also have hospital experience, and every department will be open to you. You will also have money in the bank. I don't know about your area, but new grad ASN nurses are often hired in the ICUs of the large level I trauma centers here, so I can get a job without a lot of trouble. In your area it may be harder to do. I plan to do a new graduate critical care residency while I do my BSN online. After I get my BSN and some experience I will be able to go where ever I want to.

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All of the hospitals in my area do say BSN preferred. So if I stayed with the ADN program, I would not be banking on getting a job in a hospital that is for sure! I just love the hospital atmosphere though.

I do wish you luck in your nursing journey. I am sure you will go very far!

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Thank you, and good luck to you too! As for hospitals saying BSN preferred, some of them mean it, and others just say it for show. My mom works in CVICU in a large level one trauma center, and all of their job postings for that unit say BSN strongly preferred, MSN recommended. They hire new graduate ASN nurses all the time because their grades are great, they have wonderful recommendations, and they interviewed well. Also, if you've done clinicals in those hospitals that say BSN preferred, you will find that you may get a job offer even though you only have an ASN. At the end of the day you should do what makes you the most comfortable. If you find the most peace with the BSN route, then go for it. Good luck either way!

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Specializes in Too Early.

Hey mattrnstudent23 is this Matt from CCC in NB?

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There is a CCC in my area, but I do not know where NB is. My program is a combination of three schools combined to form one cohort of students.

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