Question: To get a masters in nursing do you need a lot of pre reqs?
I was thinking of getting a masters in nursing, what type of pre req classes do you need to apply? I keep looking and can't find a clear answer on that.
Answer:
The pre-reqs for getting a Masters in Nursing is first, you must get an undergraduate degree. You can start off by becoming a Registered Nurse through either an Associate's Degree program then later completing a Bachelor's bridge program, or you can go straight into a Bachelor's program.
Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) is a two year program offered at community colleges and some full universities. There are pre-reqs in biology, chemistry, anatomy & physiology, and probably a few more, it varies depending on schools. There are also non-nursing (general ed / elective) courses that you must fulfill as part of your degree, but these don't need to be completed prior to applying to the nursing program. Pre-reqs mean that those courses must be complete before starting the nursing core courses. So in all, usually for most people, the ADN takes about 3 years total.
A Bachelor of Science or Arts in Nursing (BSN / BAN) is a full, 4 year degree program. They have similar pre-reqs prior to applying to the degree major, and you are expected to do more general ed / elective courses too. Usually you do this during your Freshman and Sophomore year, then apply to the nursing major during Sophomore year, and start the nursing program in Junior year.
Either way, you take the same RN licensure exam, the NCLEX, at the end after you graduate. The difference between the ADN and BSN is that the BSN gives you more of those general ed courses, and extra nursing courses include nursing theory, research, leadership, public health, and a few other courses that are designed to make you more of a nursing leader.
The MSN is for people who want to specialize in an area of nursing, for example, Advance Practice Nursing - Nurse Practitioners, Certified RN Anesthetists, Certified Nurse Midwives, Clinical Nurse Specialists. You can also get an MSN to be a nurse educator, public health nurse, or focus in nursing leadership / health care administration. The MSN is not really necessary if all you plan on doing is direct patient care in a hospital or clinic.
There are a handful of direct-entry MSN programs, meaning people who have never had a nursing degree but have a Bachelors in some other field can enter this program and sort of fast-track it to a MSN. I personally don't like these programs because I feel like there is a lot of valuable clinical experience that you miss out on. I don't recommend them.
The only pre-req for the MSN programs is usually already holding a nursing license / degree (forgot to mention you can also do a ADN bridge to MSN where you skip part of the BSN program and go directly to MSN). You might also need a graduate-level statistics course, or take the GRE exam as part of the admissions process. All schools are slightly different and may have different requirements.
Well, first you need you bachelor of science in nursing, and experience working as a nurse.