Competitiveness for Direct MSN Entry

[Jyggaswoop]

Hello,

A bit of background on me: I am a senior set to graduate with a biology BS from a state school with a 3.53 sGPA this May. I am currently applying to dental schools this year (waiting to hear back from a school), and have considered going into MSN and medical schools. Going toward the med route means I have to take the MCAT, but I was more interested in going to MSN, then from MSN to CRNA because the tuition seems much lower than both dental and med. Also, you can get done with your MSN in 18-21 months and start working! I know CRNA programs are competitive to get into, but how competitive are direct entry MSN programs? I know there are a lot of them out there, and require you to apply through NursingCAS. I can't seem to find any information about their competitiveness, however.

Also, there are still several schools that take applications, do you think it is late to apply into the cycle as of now? I know for dental applying right now is extremely late and not recommended.

Thanks

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[pamac]

Each of those careers you are considering aren’t interchangeable. Each has very specific work environments, hierarchies, quirks, stresses, etc. You may already feel like you have a grasp of that, but your top criteria for what you should do for the rest of your career should be centered upon what avenue is a best fit for what you want to do each day. Dentists are performing hands on all day, anesthetists do a lot of what looks like sitting and watching and making fine adjustments, and some physicians and NPs do a lot of talking and investigating to draw out facts. The differences between all of them can be as stark as the difference between a police officer, a plumber, and a postal worker (but nobody who wants to be a plumber tells them self that they are suited to choose among those three careers based upon lumping them together. And nursing as an RN is not very much like being a medical provider for the most part. NP is very similar in many ways, but there are elements to being an Np with a much more limited scope than a physician that might be problematic in your mind.

Your best source for information about schools is actually to call them and search their websites. They can break down a lot of information for you. Personally, I’ve called countless programs in the past to discuss the kinds of questions that you have, and it’s worked out well.

 

[Jyggaswoop]

Hey, thanks for the info. I did more research and the best way to go about becoming a CRNA is to actually get a BSN work as a RN and apply to CRNA programs.

I am interested in many fields; I have taken biology, neuroscience courses etc. My friends parents are anesthesiologists and maybe am interested in anesthesiology for med, but the time and money commitment is vast. I have shadowed dentists as well. To be completely honest, I will do anything instead of being idle for a year. While i am interested in dentistry, I do not want to be idle for a year when I can possibly go into other programs.

 

[pamac]

I hear you on the frustration of that year you are waiting to hear back from schools and interview. The danger that you are placing yourself in with your approach is that you might have opportunities open up from some of your other ventures that won't fit with what you truly want to do, but you might follow them because they provide the easiest pathway for you AT that moment in time. However, some of your other options might be achievable with a slight course correction after you push past a door that closed for the year. So essentially what I'm saying is that you might find yourself choosing to be a nurse anesthetist because it is immediately more achievable in your mind, when you could have simply become what you really want to be (a dentist) by putting in a bit more effort if you don't get in. Easy path's suck people in. You really don't want to panic and become a slave to convenience on something as significant as a career.

I would suggest that you keep your eye on the prize that you really want, and spend your year preparing yourself to be the best repeat candidate that you could be in the event that you don't get in. People seldom achieve goals that they don't aim for.

 

[WhitecatBlackcat]

Hello,

A bit of background on me: I am a senior set to graduate with a biology BS from a state school with a 3.53 sGPA this May. I am currently applying to dental schools this year (waiting to hear back from a school), and have considered going into MSN and medical schools. Going toward the med route means I have to take the MCAT, but I was more interested in going to MSN, then from MSN to CRNA because the tuition seems much lower than both dental and med. Also, you can get done with your MSN in 18-21 months and start working! I know CRNA programs are competitive to get into, but how competitive are direct entry MSN programs? I know there are a lot of them out there, and require you to apply through NursingCAS. I can't seem to find any information about their competitiveness, however.

Also, there are still several schools that take applications, do you think it is late to apply into the cycle as of now? I know for dental applying right now is extremely late and not recommended.

Thanks

What did you end up doing?