(17 year old here. Help!) How to become a CRNA?

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Greetings allnurses.com. I frequent Year 12 and at an International School named (Luanda) LIS.

My school has asked to fill out a 'University Career Choice' sheet. I wrote down 'Biological Sciences (Medicine)' and 'CRNA (Nursing)'. I have decided to become a CRNA (Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist). I decided to go after CRNA because Anesthesiologist (I think I spelled it wrong?) will take too many years for me (15 years?). And the CRNA will take at most 8 years (at least half of an Anesthesiologist career formation years). My question is how many years are each one exactly and what courses should I follow? I heard it would go like this:

1st - RN - Registered Nurse (2 years?)

2nd - BSN - Bachelor's Science in Nursing (4 years?)

3rd - Anesthesia course (2 years?)

4th - Medical school/Acute or emergency settings (1 year?)

5th - You're a CRNA

Did I get things wrong or mixed up? Also what is the SAT scores and GPA that those that follow CRNA required to get? 3.0 out of 4.0? 2.5 out of 4.0? 3.8 out of 4.0?

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Specializes in no experience yet.

That's a good plan and it's so great that you've figured out what you want to do at such a young age. But first off it takes more like 4 years to get your RN, depending on your course work. The traditional program is 2 part time years but you need about 2 years of pre-reqs to even get in.

As for grades, it is highly competitive-it varies on where you live. My area for CC is about a 3.5 on average but a 3.7 or .8 to be safe IMO.

A traditional BSN program take 4 full years. If I were you, I would go for the BSN to begin with because you know you want to do the CRNA thing. But do your due diligence first for your area. Good luck to you!

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To my understanding it takes quite a while to get into a CRNA program. Just look at a few of the program requirements. A lot of them want you to have AT LEAST 2 years experience in an Adult ICU (or other specified job title). You have to get your RN from a junior college or just go straight for the BSN, work for 2+ years, make it into the school which I think is either 2-3 years.

The only bonus of doing nursing over medical school is that you will be working at some point instead of going to school only for 10 years.

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Probably 4 years of study to the BSN.

Then work as a RN for 2 years in an Intensive Care Unit. Some schools will allow you to apply with a minimum of 1 year of ICU experience -- but the more experience the better.

Today, you can become a CRNA with only a MSN degree (2.5 years of full-time study). But nursing education is in the midst of change to a practice doctorate. By 2020, all new CNRA education will be done at the doctoral level only (no more Masters degrees). A BSN- Doctorate level will likely be 4 years of fulltime study.

So count on 4 years to BSN, then work 2 years, then 4 more years of study.

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Specializes in no experience yet.

Yea it ends up taking almost the same amount of time the be a CRNA as it does to be an anesthesiologist, I think the only benefit is that you come out with more experience. I wonder how many are going to choose the nurse route in 2020 when all have to have the doctorate and if the pay will be comparable with them. Otherwise, I don't see the point of going the nurse route if you have to have the same schooling with less pay.

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Probably 4 years of study to the BSN.

Then work as a RN for 2 years in an Intensive Care Unit. Some schools will allow you to apply with a minimum of 1 year of ICU experience -- but the more experience the better.

Today, you can become a CRNA with only a MSN degree (2.5 years of full-time study). But nursing education is in the midst of change to a practice doctorate. By 2020, all new CNRA education will be done at the doctoral level only (no more Masters degrees). A BSN- Doctorate level will likely be 4 years of fulltime study.

So count on 4 years to BSN, then work 2 years, then 4 more years of study.

http://www.bestnursingdegree.com/programs/masters-in-nursing/

Wait. I'm confused. How does the MSN degree work again? I checked and it asked that to enter the MSN program that I need a BSN in some cases? So:

1st-BSN (4 years)

2nd- RN (2 years)

3rd- Experience (2 years)

or

1st- RN (2 years)

2nd- BSN (4 years)

3rd- Experience (2 years)

or

1st- RN (2 years)

2nd- BSN (4 years)

3rd- MSN (2 years)

4th- Experience (2 years)

or

1st-RN (2 years)

2nd (?)-MSN (2 years)

3rd- Experience (2 years)

Do you suggest that I do RN to BSN or RN to MSN? And how does anesthesia fit into this? Is it the 4th that I haven't put in yet?

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Usually 4-5 years to get your BSN (depending on how many pre-reqs you have to take)

Then you need at least 1 year if not 2 in critical care.

Then at least 2.5 years of CRNA school.

However, the CRNA programs by me are changing from master's to doctorate's in 2012. So you might want to look at that and see if the school you plan on going to is doing the same. That will mean it will be at least 3 years of graduate school.

Total max can be 9-10 years.

You get the experience before you go to graduate school.

You can just get your BSN, and you will become an RN that way. You don't have to get the ADN before the BSN (unless you want to.)

So the route would be

BSN (4-5 years)

experience (1-2 years)

Masters or Doctorate (2-3 years)

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Usually 4-5 years to get your BSN (depending on how many pre-reqs you have to take)

Then you need at least 1 year if not 2 in critical care.

Then at least 2.5 years of CRNA school.

However, the CRNA programs by me are changing from master's to doctorate's in 2012. So you might want to look at that and see if the school you plan on going to is doing the same. That will mean it will be at least 3 years of graduate school.

Total max can be 9-10 years.

You get the experience before you go to graduate school.

You can just get your BSN, and you will become an RN that way. You don't have to get the ADN before the BSN (unless you want to.)

So the route would be

BSN (4-5 years)

experience (1-2 years)

Masters or Doctorate (2-3 years)

Thanks guys. :)

I've just contacted a few other websites and it seems that the years are the same length. Oh well. Guess I'm going into full blown Anesthesiology anyways. 4 years of BSN, 4 years of Medical School and 4 years of Residency here I come. :D

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Thanks guys. :)

I've just contacted a few other websites and it seems that the years are the same length. Oh well. Guess I'm going into full blown Anesthesiology anyways. 4 years of BSN, 4 years of Medical School and 4 years of Residency here I come. :D

Good luck to you! Don't let anyone or anything get in your way :)

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I'm a RN student but I do plan on going for my CRNA as well. Heard you have to be good in Chemistry (understand/learn all the various meds/drugs when knocking patients out), so study hard and learn basic CHM concepts... Good luck!

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Based on your scenarios, it appears that you think you'll need an additional 4 years to obtain a Bachelors after getting your RN license. That's not the case, since there are many RN-BSN bridge programs that take about 2 years to complete. You can even work and gain experience while earning your BSN. Thus, the BSN degree should not take 6 years, regardless of whether you went straight into the BSN program or did the RN-BSN bridge. Hope that clarifies things!

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