Questions about becoming an RN?

I have been considering going back to college to become a nurse. When I say going back I guess I really mean starting over b/c I did one semester of English right after high school and dropped out. Anyway, I'm not sure if I've answered any questions in my online searching or just created more LOL Here's what I'd like to know:

1. How much of the program could I do online? I have children and work full time so I'd like to do as much of the work online as I can.

2. What can a person who got their RN license via associates degree expect to earn in the TN area? I'd like to go that route and then go back and finish the BSN while I work if possible, however if someone with an ADN earned significantly less than someone with a BSN then it might be worth my while to stay at this job while I work on the BSN straight through.

3. I know that math/science/english are all requirements but what are some of the more specialized courses that nurses take?

1. You could probably do many of your general education courses for the degree online, and maybe a few nursing courses, but generally there is a lot of nursing courses where sitting class time is required, and obviously you will have clinical courses you'll be taking too. It depends on the school and the program, but most nursing courses are on campus.

2. I can't say for sure about Tn specifically, you can do a search on salary.com. Generally new grad RNs (with either an ADN or a BSN) working in a staff nurse position in a hospital can expect to make between $22-$30 per hour. Hospitals pay more than nursing homes, out patient clinics, etc. At my hospital, BSN nurses in staff nurse positions only make $1 more per hour than the ADNs. The BSN mostly comes in handy later for more leadership / management / administrative positions.

3. The nursing courses themselves will vary from school to school as far as how the content is divided up, but all schools have to meet certain standards and teach the same content, essentially, to meet credentialling requirements, etc. Your nursing courses will begin with Nursing Theory and Fundementals, where you learn exactly what the practice of nursing involves and history of the profession as well as different theories and models of care. You will also learn how to perform physical, environmental, and emotional assessments of a patient and learn the essentialls of taking vital signs, etc. Later you will study pathophysiology (disease processes) which is where your Anatomy & Physiology and chemistry and microbiology courses will come in handy. You will study specific populations, such as geriatric, pediatric, and maternal - newborn and family. You will have clinical hours working with these various populations, but honestly, clinicals are mostly about observing rather than doing too much hands on work. You will learn your scope of practice, legal responsibility and liability, and how to delegate work to assistive personel, etc.

I think it's important to warn you that it's virtually impossible to work full time while in the nursing program and taking the core nursing courses when you have a family. I tried and had to make the decision - do I keep working and quit school, or cut back hours / quit the job and stay in school? I quit the job, took out student loans and worked part time on campus to get through. I was scared to death of the debt ($40+k) but on my salary I will easily pay it off quickly. It was worth it not to be stressed to my limit and not spending time with my family on top of it all. So please be realistic about the kind of sacrifices you might need to make in order to get through it. They will all be worth it in the long run.

Good luck on your efforts.

Most of ur work will be clinical after the first year or 2 u will spend almost all day at a hospital at least 4 days a week! U should be less concerned with how much $ u make and more concerned with wether or not u'll enjoy being a nurse! Its a very challenging profession! Ur gonna b around a bunch of very miserable sick people all day! UR gonna get bitched at by Docs if u don't work fast enuf and pressured to assume the largest workload u can!