So I’ve been thinking about becoming a nurse practictioner, but I’m in community college right now and I’m transferring next year. By next summer, I’ll have 60 units for a psychology associates-transfer degree which will make me a junior when I transfer. Ive applied to all my schools as a psychology major because I took all the prerequisites. I really don’t think that I’ll be able to change to nursing once I transfer so I’ve been thinking about graduating early and getting an ABSN. However, my dad (who might help me pay for college) insists that I change my major to nursing although I’m pretty sure it’s not possible since a lot of the programs are hard to get into unless you’re a freshman or a junior with an AD-N. Would it be possible to change my major this late? He also insists that I continue living at home even though my parents promised that I would be able to go to a school of my choice once I’m able to transfer from my community college. It’s kind of depressing because I won’t be able to have any sort of college experience as I literally have no social life at the community college I go to.
Have you completed the Nursing school requirements? Which schools did you apply for transfer?
No I haven’t and that’s the problem. I’ll be taking anatomy over the summer but I’d still have to take o chem and physiology. The schools that I applied to with nursing are CSUN, CSULB, UC Irvine, and UCLA (I think has nursing). And I’ve taken 60 units already and I know most colleges won’t take more than 60 semester credits.
There are ways to become a RN at this point, but they will require spending a total of 5 or 6 years in college. You could finish a bachelors in another field, while taking as many nursing curriculum classes as possible (such as nutrition, anatomy, microbio, etc). Then you would need to apply for a RN as a second degree program. Alternatively, you could take nursing prerequisites that are necessary to be accepted into a nursing program, and then apply to enter one. The admissions difficulty varies from college to college - and some programs are not as competitive in locations where there are many programs or where the tuition is higher. Transfers typically are not offered merit scholarships.
However, nursing is not a career you go into because someone thinks it is marketable. You really have to want to do it, or you will not make it through the educational program, let alone do well in the job.
Becoming a nurse practitioner is another whole different animal, and is only practical to enter after you have many years of RN experience. You can take graduate classes while you work, and get some certifications, but I imagine to become a nurse practitioner you will probably need to stop working fulltime for a while. Many people cannot afford to do that.
The price of housing varies greatly from town to town. If you can convince your dad that you can find affordable housing at a college, it may make it easier. For example, you might look for situations where a group of students are looking for a housemate.