I am new here. I am a 25 year old mother of two little girls. My smallest one will be starting 3K next year and I want to get some type of nursing degree. I'm not sure what to go for. I work part time, two half days a week, so my schedule is pretty flexible for school. I just don't know what to go for. I don't have alot of money and I don't know where to look for grants. I don't want to go to school for too long, 2 years would be great. I guess I think I am a little different than some because if I had my way, I would be a stay at home full time mom but we can't afford it. So for the past 5 years I have been nannying and cleaning houses to make ends meet without having to put my kids in daycare. I don't want a full time nursing job. I want something part time, either while my kids are in school or at night, two days a week. I just want to be able to make decent money to make ends meet instead of working my butt off and getting minimal pay. So my point is, considering all this, that I don't need top of the line pay or a full time career, but more flexability and less schooling, what would be the best field for me to go into? I have thought about LPN. I would love to work with kids but dont you have to have an RN for that? The lady I nanny for teaches at a Vascular Ultrasound school, and she says I can go to college to get my LPN and then get schooling there for a year or so and make more money. And she loves it. DO YOU SEE HOW COMFUSED I AM???? Someone help me! lol

*michigangirl0522*: Your first step is to apply for financial aid. Very important! This will give you some insight as to whether you might receive grants or student loans. http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/. My second piece of advice would be to visit the closest college offering nursing programs and speak to the academic advisor. She/he will help you to evaluate your options and help you align yourself for making the transition back to school.

I currently attend a technical college and am enrolled in the 2 year ADN program. (For those of you that aren't familiar, ADN is Associate Degree-Nursing [RN].) At our college we have the option of taking the LPN licensing exam after our first year of the ADN program. At that point you may decide to "pause or stop" schooling and work as an LPN. Later you may decide to continue on in the ADN program for one more year.

I have been told that in rural areas ADN is typically paid equal to BSN (Bachelor Degree-Nursing [4 yr]). However, in urban areas there is typically a pay difference and ADNs are not often considered for management positions. {I would love to hear from any ADNs that can speak to whether this has or hasn't been the case for them.}

There were many prerequisites for the ADN program. We were required to pass a CNA course, take Chemistry, Anatomy & Physiology 1 & 2, and Microbiology. Grades had to be C or better. For me, there was a two year wait list and that time allowed me to take those difficult courses and get them out of the way.

I hope that this info has been helpful to you. I will be curious to know what you decide. Keep us posted and good luck!

nursekimsmith said:

I really don't think that anyone should actually go into this field not wanting to go continually to school (the skills remain the same but there is so much evidence based research evolving yearly that we sometimes can hardly keep up with new information.) and only wanting to work part time-you can, but nursing involves so much energy - mentally, spriitually, and physically - and nurses are underpaid. How much can one pay the person who has their health in their hands? Nursing involves staying abreast of the latest information, and that sometimes means taking classes to get that information, etc. The operative word for nursing is, "care" and that alone is demanding, not to mention the gazillion other traits one must possess to be an effective nurse...there are alot of nurses in this field who do it for the money, but eventually one can get burned out if they are there only for the paycheck...Trust me, I have several aquaintences who are experiencing that same thing...My suggestion is :Try sales...My sister is a stay at home mom also, and she sales all kinds of whatever and makes just as money as some RN's do. My point? If you want to simply make money and take care of your kids, then there are several other ways of doing it without going into nursing, there's radiology, respiratory therapy, and surgery....pray about them first, and whatever you do don't pay one of these business colleges 30K to do it...the prices are ridiculous when you can do the same thing at a junior college, AND get a Grant from the government...plus if you are smart, ( and I think you are because at least you are asking), you will utilize your children's needs to enhance your need for financial aid...USC here in LA offers a program specifically for single moms....you have to be creative in your financing...God Bless you...=)

I think you should go to the 2-year program at your local CC. Look around at the different requirements. The one near me only requires 2 or 3 classes (including chemistry and microbiology) but that's it. And I looked at the course requirements during the program and it really doesn't look that bad. And the 2-year RNs make just a tiny bit less than the 4-year RNs.