<p>Hello - I was wondering if it would be possible for me to go to community college for my first two years of Nursing and finishing it off at a University? What is the process like? Would I go to community college and get my Associates in Nursing, and then transfer to a University for two years which I could then receive my BSN?</p>
<p>Another question, I'd go to school in NJ, but I would like to be licensed in New York so I could work in the NYC area. Would I take the NCLEX in NY?</p>
<p>I was going to go to Brookdale Community College in New Jersey, and then transfer to Rutgers New Brunswick.</p>
<p>Be aware that nursing programs are typically the hardest programs for admission at most community colleges, and they fill up quickly. Apply as early as possible.</p>
<p>There are a ton of colleges that offer BSN degrees for people who already have a RN. Ideally, you would find an employer that would help you fund that second degree. You may find that many colleges offer little financial aid to a student in this situation.</p>
<p>Once you pass the RN exam, the license can be used anywhere in the US, because the exam is the same everywhere. The amount of paperwork needed to transfer from state to state can vary, so when you are thinking about relocating, start the process as early as possible.</p>
<p>The first thing I would recommend that you do is check with Brookdale CC and see if they have formulated any type of conjoint Nursing Program with Rutgers College of Nursing. I know that Rutgers just announced such a 4 year BSN Program in association with Camden County Community College where students attend the first two years at the community college then transfer to Rutgers College of Nursing (New Brunswich/Newark) for their last two years and receive a BSN Degree from Rutgers. </p>
<p>If such a Program is not available you could obtain your Associates Degree in Nursing at Brookdale (I’m assuming they offer such a Program), obtain your RN license, and then apply to Rutgers For their RN to BSN Program to get your BSN. You could also attend Brookdale and take pre-Nursing courses and once you get your Associates Degree (not in Nursing) you could apply for admission to Rutgers Nursing Program. Of these two approaches I would recommend the first one (the competition for the second approach is extremely intense).</p>
<p>Once you have completed a Program and have obtained your Nursing Associates degree or BSN you then must decide which state you want to apply to in order to obtain your first RN license (you can apply to any state-it does not matter where you got your degree). Once you have complied with any other requirements of the Nursing Board in the state you applied to the Nursing Board will then give you approval to take the NCLEX exam. Once you pass it you get your RN license in that state. If you plan on working in NY then it would seem most logical to obtain your initial RN license in NY. You could always get a license in NJ afterwards by reciprocity (you don’t have to take the NCLEX exam again).</p>
<p>Hope this info is helpful. Good luck to you.</p>
<p>How long would it take for me to get a ASN, get my RN Licensure, and then transfer to a University to get my BSN?</p>
<p>I was accepted to a SUNY Plattsburgh for Nursing (Direct Entry BSN), but my parents are unsure if they want me to go to school in upstate NY since it’s so far away from family, which is approx. 6 hours away. This is why I was considering CC instead.</p>
<p>Thank you for the info!</p>
<p>FYI: I think I have chatted with you before as my old username was ohtacos.</p>
<p>An ASN program at a CC is typically two years but there may be waiting lists that make it longer. Also, make sure you have your pre-reqs lined up so that doesn’t cause any delay. Look at the curriculum requirements at any school you’re interested in to be sure. </p>
<p>You can take your exam after you graduate - let’s say over the summer and have your RN licensure. The RN - BSN programs are usually about 1 1/2 - 2 years long.</p>
<p>I’m not in college yet, so I would not have any pre-reqs done?</p>
<p>Some college programs recommend that you take some classes in high school - usually chemistry and biology and then either anatomy or advanced or AP biology. Psychology and statistics are also valuable in high school.</p>
<p>If you are on a waiting list to get into a nursing program, you can still take many of the same science classes and other general education requirements as the nursing curriculum, which will help finish the degree in a reasonable period of time. </p>
<p>If you are applying to a 2 plus 2 program, they typically require that you will have completed many prerequisite classes in your first 2 years of college, such as biology, chemistry and anatomy.</p>
<p>Plattsburgh is a safe, smaller city with a good direct entry BSN program and clinicals near by. Not to mention beautiful scenery. If you are already accepted, I am surprised you would give that up. Aren’t you living outside the US now? I dont know where you are exactly, but when parents aren’t stateside, will it really matter if you are six hours from NJ? If you have other options already in place, then choose the one that is best. You have awhile before you have to commit, so I hope you can get settled. Lots of decisions. :)</p>
<p>Charlieschm - I have four science credits (Phys Apps, Biology, Chemistry, and Anatomy), so I think I should be set on that. So the nursing program is only like a year in community college since I have to take pre-reqs for the first year?</p>
<p>Marybee333 - Yeah, I was thinking of just going with Plattsburgh. Well, my parents will be overseas, but I have family in NJ and they would want me near them. It’s 6 hours between Plattsburgh and New Jersey by car, so it shouldn’t be that bad. I may take the plane or take the Amtrak instead.</p>
<p>CC Nursing Programs are generally 2 years in duration. If the 4 science courses you completed were HS courses the CC might not give you credit for them unless they were AP courses and the CC accepts such courses. If the courses were college courses you might be able to get some transfer credit but it would depend on the policies of of CC regarding transfer credits. Even if you were able to get some CC credit for the courses I doubt you would be able to significantly reduce the total time at the CC (because usually courses need to be taken in sequence and not all courses are often available each semester). You really need to discuss this with the CC you are interested in attending (Brookdale). If you are really interested in pursuing this course of action,as previously mentioned, I would move on this ASAP to maximize your chances of being accepted. Contact the Admissions Department and set up an interview so they can give you some direction regarding all of your questions and interests.</p>
<p>I agree with marybee in that SUNY-Plattsburgh does have a very good direct entry Nursing Program (Congrats on your acceptance there). I believe its first time NCLEX pass rate is above 90% (which is very good). Also the total annual cost there for an OOS students for tuition/fees and room/board is only about 29K (a bargin compared to many colleges). It is in Upstate New York so expect cold weather and probably a lot of snow. I have little doubt that you could get a quality Nursing education there if you apply yourself. Best of luck to you whatever plan you decide to pursue.</p>
<p>I will add a third endorsement of Plattsburgh. If you have an acceptance into a good 4 year BSN program (Plattsburgh), and money is not an issue; then I would definitely enroll at SUNY-Plattsburgh and not worry about needing to find, and get your credits transferred, and get accepted into another BSN program in 2 years. Good luck with your decision and your nursing career!</p>
<p>Amtrak is a great way to travel - it is very safe, you have room to move around or sleep, and they have free wireless on-board. As a result, they are not wasted hours, because you can comfortably do school work during that travel time. Unlike air travel, you can also show up 15 minutes before the departure time. Just make sure you make your reservations as early as possible (esp. for Thanksgiving) because the prices can go up rapidly if you wait too long. It is worth joining AAA or Student Advantage to get the Amtrak discounts if you will be riding it often.</p>
<p>(By the way, it sure looks like Amtrak service between Pittsburgh and Harrisburg will be abolished. PA. is refusing to pay the required subsidy to keep the service running.)</p>
<p>Also, I imagine it would not be hard to catch rides from other students traveling between Plattsburgh and the NYC area, and from there you can reach most parts of NJ by public transit.</p>
<p>My daughter earned her ASN at a community college in NJ. Took the NCLEX and then began her BSN at a NJ public college. It was very doable and quite affordable (when compared to the cost of a BSN at a 4 year college (for all 4 years). </p>
<p>Many CC nursing programs require A&P I & II before you apply to the program. So what you do is take all your non-nursing clases at the same time. This will be helpful to you when you are in the nursing program. You might be able to take A&P while you are still in high school (this is an option at some schools and this is what my daughter did) or you could take them during the summer. </p>
<p>Contact your local CC and find out what their requirements are. They vary quite a lot from school to school.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the input! I think I’ve decided on attending SUNY Plattsburgh and hopefully I’ll be able to transfer to Rutgers after sophomore year. </p>
<p>I do have some more questions. Do you think there is a lot of me to do in Plattsburgh when I have some (LOL very little) free time? Also, it wouldn’t be hard to visit my family during breaks, am I right?</p>
<p>Montreal is a great city - you can probably go there for a long weekend on Amtrak.</p>
<p>[Adirondack</a> Trains Travel from New York City to Montreal, through the Lush Wine Country of the Hudson Valley | Amtrak](<a href=“Amtrak”>Amtrak)</p>
<p>IMHO it might be in your best interest to enter into the Nursing Program at SUNY-Plattsburgh with a little bit of a more open mind about planning to transfer to Rutgers after your soph. year. You might find you really like it there and it does have an excellent Nursing Program. Nursing classes at most all universities are very small and as a result the students often become very close-knit in helping and supporting one another (probably much more so than in other majors). Transferring into another Program where you don’t know anyone can be extremely stressful and Jr. and Sr. years of Nursing Programs are tough enough to deal with without adding any other additional stressful issues. Again this is just my perspective. Others might feel differently. In addition you need to be aware that it is extremely competitive to try and transfer into the Nursing Program at Rutgers. They tell perspective transfers that you need to have a GPA at a minimal of 3.5 to be considered (in reality they mean a minimum of 3.75-and even this is not a guarantee for admission). So be careful you don’t set yourself up for disappointment. </p>
<p>In response to your other questions Plattsburgh is a relatively small town (20,000) located on the bank of Lake Champlain. Most of the time you would be there would be in the Winter Season so if you like winter sports you would have a lot to do. Other than these activities there may not be a lot of other activities available. It looks like the school requires students to live in on campus housing for their first 4 semesters but I don’t know if a lot of these students go home on weekends or stay on campus. There is a ferry to Burlington, Vermont, where the Univ. of Vermont is located so perhaps there may be some social connections here (as long as the ferry is running on Lake Champlain). Montreal Canada is also not too far away where there are abundant social activities. There is an Amtrak station about 1 1/2 miles from campus. There is the Plattsburgh International Airport that utilizes a runway on Plattsburgh Air Force Base. The service out of this airport is very limited. PenAir does fly regularly to Boston where you could connect to an airport in NYC/NJ areas. Greyhound does provide bus service to Albany, NY, where you should be able to get air, rail, or bus connections to NJ area. So there does appear to be a number of ways to get home to visit your relatives (but it probaly will take some time due to the connections you would have to make). Hope this info is helpful. Good luck to you.</p>