Donald PA Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 Is there any schools that accept PAs to become FNPs? There is such a squeeze in my state, BOME wont budge on regulations and the FNPs are taking over all rural health care. I feel the push to become an FNP, but how without going to all that schooling over? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator LT_Oneal_PAC Posted July 31, 2013 Moderator Share Posted July 31, 2013 Nope. Have to become and RN first, then do all of FNP. Fastest way would be a fast track program like Vanderbilt's where it's 2 years full time study to get your RN and FNP. Cheapest way is an online RN from excelsior and then 2 year online FNP, which are lots of places, for a total of 3 years. You could easily work to pay bills and school with the latter option though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SocialMedicine Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 direct entry NP programs are at a few universities. what a shame that a PA has to waste time with this. are things that bad in your state ? seems pretty incredible Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bradtPA Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 Much easier to pack a moving van and move on to a more friendly state than retrain IMHO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhageremtp Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 Rather than FNP why not go to medical school. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ToppDog Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 ... Cheapest way is an online RN from excelsior... Did you mean BSN here? My lab assistant where I teach was able to have many of her training as an EMT/Fireman verified & counted towards getting her RN through Excelsior. I think she only has to work as an RN for 6 months before she can take the NCLEX. Funny thing is they awarded her the BSN already since she finished all the online classes, so she has the BSN, but no RN yet. My understanding was that if you "already" were trained in the skills & could verify it somehow you could be tested & given credit for the hands on stuff, but does Excelsior also arrange training of any missed skills for those that don't have them all yet, so you can get the RN portion? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator LT_Oneal_PAC Posted July 31, 2013 Moderator Share Posted July 31, 2013 Did you mean BSN here? My lab assistant where I teach was able to have many of her training as an EMT/Fireman verified & counted towards getting her RN through Excelsior. I think she only has to work as an RN for 6 months before she can take the NCLEX. Funny thing is they awarded her the BSN already since she finished all the online classes, so she has the BSN, but no RN yet. My understanding was that if you "already" were trained in the skills & could verify it somehow you could be tested & given credit for the hands on stuff, but does Excelsior also arrange training of any missed skills for those that don't have them all yet, so you can get the RN portion? I'm guessing you are confusing something here. BSN and ADN are degrees granted by an institution so that you can sit for NCLEX and become an RN, which is a license and not a degree. Both associate degree nurses (ADN) and bachelor of science nurses (BSN) become RNs with the exact same scope and test. The BSN just took more leadership courses and more prereqs. There is a 1 year vocational nursing school that makes you an LPN/LVN (same thing different name depending on area) that takes a different board test. Also you say she has to work as an RN before she can take NCLEX? You can't be an RN without NCLEX. Maybe you mean 6 months as a student. Then you say she has a BSN, but no RN? If she has a BSN awarded to her, she can legally sit for NCLEX. Summary: ADN and BSN equals RN, but to say one is an RN means they could have an associates or bachelor degree. I'm not fully aware of how excelsior operates as far as training or what they give credit for. Just know they have an online degree. Not sure even if its for associate or bachelor. -O'neal BSN, RN Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lexapro Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 Do keep in mind that some states do not recognize Excelsior graduates (California does not). Your first step would be to make sure that your state's BRN accepts Excelsior, otherwise you might not even be able to sit for NCLEX. Then you need to see if your state has a graduate nursing school that accepts Excelsior grads as well, or else you might not have anywhere to train as a FNP. I guess you could go online, but I'm pretty biased against online education in nursing, since many of the programs (not all) are at for-profits with minimal barriers to entry. OP - it's a long road to become a FNP if you are not already a nurse. The fastest options are 2-3 years in length, and require full-time training (at least for the accelerated RN portion of the program) and are expensive. It's still shorter and cheaper than going for medicine, but it would be a very significant sacrifice. Have you considered moving to a more PA friendly state? Also, do keep in mind that the fast-track NP programs are pretty competitive, and you will have to convince the school that you want to be a NURSE and you're not just switching careers out of convenience. Going from PA to RN is going to look bizarre to adcoms. You'll be going up against a bunch of people who are extremely excited to be nurses in particular. Throw the word holistic around and that will probably help you out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gleannfia Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 Are you in Ohio, by any chance? I left there long ago. There are many excellent states for PAs, like NC and AZ. As someone else suggested, pack up a moving van and get out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted August 1, 2013 Moderator Share Posted August 1, 2013 One trick to get licensed with the excelsior degree is get a license in a state which accepts it then apply for license reciprocity from state A to State B. I know a few nurses who have done this. once licensed anywhere it may be easier to get another state license. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ToppDog Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 E, I believe that is what my coworker would have to do. Oneal, I believe you are correct - the six months she would have to work would most likely be as a student. She said she would have to work in Oregon for six months before she would be able to take the NCLEX & work in Washington. Oneal, I know the difference between the ADN & BSN, & the way it typically goes, but I was just curious what you knew about Excelsior since my friend is doing it very backwards through them. It got me curious so I contacted them today. Along with offering online degrees for RNs to complete their BSN, etc., they have a unique program that will allow certain healthcare professionals to transfer their previous training towards the RN portion (not the degree portion), & it involves being tested to pass practical exams for all hands on skills. This is the part that I found unique when my coworker told me about it, because I had never heard of anyone being able to transfer hands on training between different healthcare professions before, even if they are the same skills. Certain military corpsman categories qualify, as well as RRTs, PAs & Paramedics, among some others I can't remember. Any corpsman categories older than 1 year are not considered though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NAP1986 Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 You could do Vanderbilt's program. It's 24 months from start to finish for someone with a non-nursing bachelor's to become a FNP. In the first twelve months you take the RN classes and in the second twelve months you take the MSN classes. It's expensive, but it's really fast. They have multiple entry routes so you could get the BSN/ADN elsewhere and then do the MSN at Vanderbilt. If you do not have the ADN/BSN, you have to do the first year on-campus, but you can do the MSN portion of it online (but with clinicals in your area) and a few visits to campus each year. http://www.nursing.vanderbilt.edu/msn/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Paula Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 One of the RNs at my clinic took Excelsior to become RN. I would not let her take care of my dog and we won't let her work in the clinic. She stays in the public health area and I closely supervise her, which puts her panties in a knot, since I'm just a PA!!! Not saying everyone who goes the Excelsior route is incompetent, as I have met some RN grads who are great from that program. There is another RN program somewhere in the south that offers RN to FNP to health professionals. Chiropractors have been taking it to become NPs and others who have a health profession degree. I can't remember the name of the school but will try to find it and post. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Paula Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 It is Samson University in Alabama. I could not find the links anymore to the chiro-FNP track so maybe it has gone by the wayside. They offer a fast-track direct entry BSN that takes 15 months, then you could take the FNP track after that. Go to medical school if you want complete autonomy or move to a more PA friendly state. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Paula Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 Ooops......I meant Samford University. I must have been thinking of Goliath with the previous post. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UpRegulated Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 If you do not have the ADN/BSN, you have to do the first year on-campus, but you can do the MSN portion of it online (but with clinicals in your area) and a few visits to campus each year. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe it is 7-10 one-week visits to campus in 12 months for the "online" portion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UpRegulated Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 It is Samson University in Alabama. I could not find the links anymore to the chiro-FNP track so maybe it has gone by the wayside. They offer a fast-track direct entry BSN that takes 15 months, then you could take the FNP track after that. Go to medical school if you want complete autonomy or move to a more PA friendly state. Med school or a PA friendly state is the OP's best option IMO. Next best is a 1-year accelerated BSN/ADN followed by MSN part-time while working as a PA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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