RN to MD without BSN?

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kellycaitlin

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Hello, everyone. I'm currently an RN student (ADN) who has decided to pursue Medical School. I've spoken with my Pre-Med advisor and will be able to do all of my Med School pre-reqs while finishing up my RN. I'll graduate with my RN in December 2011. Originally, I was planning on doing my BSN and then applying to med schools, but my advisor (who has been doing this for years and years) has told me to not worry about getting my BSN and to apply for med school right after I finish my RN (so I'll be applying Summer of 2012 after taking my MCAT in the Spring to hopefully matriculate in Fall 2013).

I know most Med Schools can make a decision if you only have 90 hours of undergrad coursework, but they also say that a Bachelor's is recommended. Am I completely shooting myself in the foot if I don't complete my BSN prior to starting med school? (Or for that matter, having plans to complete it when I begin the MD application process?) I would just hate to be misinformed and have it end up costing me even more time.

Thanks in advance for your help.

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it's hard to get into medschool without a bs in something. if you can use the credits you have plus the prereq credits you need to get a bs in something, nursing or otherwise, you will likely increase your chances.
it is the rare individual today who gets into medschool without a bs.
 
BSN is not needed... but a Bachelors degree in something/anything usually is.
EVERYONE you will be competing with for admission WILL have one, or two or a BA and a MS...
 
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That's what I thought....which is why I'm not sure why the pre-med advisor, who does this for a living, would tell me to not pursue my Bachelors and instead just take more upper level Bio after graduating with an RN.

I suppose it's possible, that in the Fall of 2012/Spring of 2013 I could get my BSN so that it would be finished before matriculation. Which would also give me the Spring of 2012 for upper level bio/taking the MCAT. Med Schools just want the Bachelor's before you start, right? If I'm earning it while interviewing, I'm okay? I wish my school wasn't ******ed and just offered a BSN without having to go the ADN route first. Especially since I'll have more then 120 hours when I graduate with my associates.
 
get the bachelors degree. worst comes to worst you can always fall on that. and like a previous poster said the vast majority of your competition will have one
 
A bachelor's is a requirement, doesn't have to be any specific one, but you do need one.

Edit: This is for direct entry (not BS/MD), LCME US Allo schools. Osteo or foreign schools I have no clue as to their degree requirements.
 
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Do a B.A. or B.S. (in anything). You don't need a BSN, but you really should have a Bachelor's. Yes, technically, some med schools will let you in if you have six semesters of undergrad, but there's no one at my school without a Bachelor's (and I don't know of anyone at any other med school without one).

Good luck! :thumbup:
 
The Osteopathic Schools have the same requirement of 90 credits. With that being said, I don't know anyone in my class who didn't have a bachelor's degree. In addition, I would say 20% had that and a masters or doctorate level degree.
 
Hello, everyone. I'm currently an RN student (ADN) who has decided to pursue Medical School. I've spoken with my Pre-Med advisor and will be able to do all of my Med School pre-reqs while finishing up my RN. I'll graduate with my RN in December 2011. Originally, I was planning on doing my BSN and then applying to med schools, but my advisor (who has been doing this for years and years) has told me to not worry about getting my BSN and to apply for med school right after I finish my RN (so I'll be applying Summer of 2012 after taking my MCAT in the Spring to hopefully matriculate in Fall 2013).

I know most Med Schools can make a decision if you only have 90 hours of undergrad coursework, but they also say that a Bachelor's is recommended. Am I completely shooting myself in the foot if I don't complete my BSN prior to starting med school? (Or for that matter, having plans to complete it when I begin the MD application process?) I would just hate to be misinformed and have it end up costing me even more time.

Thanks in advance for your help.

The problem is that most RN's, especially from ADN programs, will not have near the prerequisite coursework for medical school. That often includes full years of inorganic and organic chemistry, calculus-based physics, etc.
 
A bachelor's is a requirement, doesn't have to be any specific one, but you do need one.

Um, no, a bachelor's degree is not a requirement at a lot of medical schools (MD or DO). The standard requirement is 90 semester units of undergraduate work. Now I agree with other posters. The vast majority of applicants will have a minimum of a bachelors degree and a bachelors degree makes up a de facto minimum requirement, but it is not a hard requirement at most schools.
 
Hello, everyone. I'm currently an RN student (ADN) who has decided to pursue Medical School. I've spoken with my Pre-Med advisor and will be able to do all of my Med School pre-reqs while finishing up my RN. I'll graduate with my RN in December 2011. Originally, I was planning on doing my BSN and then applying to med schools, but my advisor (who has been doing this for years and years) has told me to not worry about getting my BSN and to apply for med school right after I finish my RN (so I'll be applying Summer of 2012 after taking my MCAT in the Spring to hopefully matriculate in Fall 2013).

I know most Med Schools can make a decision if you only have 90 hours of undergrad coursework, but they also say that a Bachelor's is recommended. Am I completely shooting myself in the foot if I don't complete my BSN prior to starting med school? (Or for that matter, having plans to complete it when I begin the MD application process?) I would just hate to be misinformed and have it end up costing me even more time.

Thanks in advance for your help.


Hi Kelly,

I would recommend selecting a few medical schools you might be interested in attending and speak to the admissions committee, as they can speak best on behalf of a program.

If you know now you want to be a physician, do not pursue your BSN, rather work as an RN while you finish the pre-medical prerequisites. If you find that a BS or BA is a requirement for the school you desire, select a major that you will excel in. Most BSN programs provide too rigid of a course curriculum, supplemented by numerous clinical hours, that might draw away from your ability to invest time to excel in the premedical curriculum.

If you must obtain a baccalaureate it would be less painful and economically sound for you to select a more accommodating major and earn money as an RN in the meantime.
 
Hi Kelly,

I would recommend selecting a few medical schools you might be interested in attending and speak to the admissions committee, as they can speak best on behalf of a program.

If you know now you want to be a physician, do not pursue your BSN, rather work as an RN while you finish the pre-medical prerequisites. If you find that a BS or BA is a requirement for the school you desire, select a major that you will excel in. Most BSN programs provide too rigid of a course curriculum, supplemented by numerous clinical hours, that might draw away from your ability to invest time to excel in the premedical curriculum.

If you must obtain a baccalaureate it would be less painful and economically sound for you to select a more accommodating major and earn money as an RN in the meantime.


I completely agree with the above. WORK as an RN, you will earn money and learn so much more than you will in school, and get your b.s. in some type of science or something else that you're interested in. If you don't want to be a nurse getting a BSN will be very uninteresting for you, trust me. I also think the BSN won't add as much to you application as a hard science degree. If you already have an RN and nursing experience that will help you stand out, but I think medical schools would rather see those upper level sciences than a BSN.
 
Hello, everyone. I'm currently an RN student (ADN) who has decided to pursue Medical School. I've spoken with my Pre-Med advisor and will be able to do all of my Med School pre-reqs while finishing up my RN. I'll graduate with my RN in December 2011. Originally, I was planning on doing my BSN and then applying to med schools, but my advisor (who has been doing this for years and years) has told me to not worry about getting my BSN and to apply for med school right after I finish my RN (so I'll be applying Summer of 2012 after taking my MCAT in the Spring to hopefully matriculate in Fall 2013).

I know most Med Schools can make a decision if you only have 90 hours of undergrad coursework, but they also say that a Bachelor's is recommended. Am I completely shooting myself in the foot if I don't complete my BSN prior to starting med school? (Or for that matter, having plans to complete it when I begin the MD application process?) I would just hate to be misinformed and have it end up costing me even more time.

Thanks in advance for your help.

As others have stated, you will have little in the way of hard science courses regardless of the type of nursing degree you receive. In addition, I often hear nurses talk about taking biochem, chem, and other advanced sounding courses as part of their curriculum. However, these courses are often developed with health students in mind and do not approximate their science major counterparts. I found this one out a while back when I was looking at PA programmes. I had chem courses on my transcript, just not the ones that count.

I also agree with others that a BSN will have little to offer a prospective medical school when they look at your app. Of course, I am not a medical student, therefore I could be wrong. However, every BSN programme I have looked at had little to offer me as a prospective ADN to BSN transition. I actually decided on a degree in respiratory therapy as the class work had much more in the way of science coursework and overall interest than any BSN programme. I cannot see how a BSN would help you on medical school app.

At this point, you may as well graduate from your current programme, then work on a bio or chem degree. At least you will have a potentially viable way of making money while you work on your degree. Of course, even nursing is not a fool proof way to get a job these days.

Good luck.
 
It seems that I recall Abby Lockhart saying she had a degree in English literature.


I'm of course referring to television's "ER" OB nurse turned physician. ;)
 
To realistically get into medical school you have to have a bachelor's degree. I go to a middle of the road MD school and everyone in my class has a bachelors and 1/3 have a doctorate or masters on top of that.

As a nurse, especially a graduating one, you may have more difficulty getting into med school. This is for 2 reasons: first med schools don't want to cherry pick a nurse when there is a nursing shortage. Second, the nursing classes do not match up with the pre-med courses.
 
If you want to go to med school, you will need to take a lot more science classes than the BSN requires. If you decide to do the BSN and then persue med school, you will have to go back and complete the classes you are missing.

Any good BSN program will require you to take upper level science classes like the pre-meds do, but you are not required to take all of the classes they do. If you do this, you will have most of your science requirements taken care of, and then you can do a post-bach program to finish the requirements you need.

What should guide your decision is you need to figure out what it is you really desire. If you want to take on the responsibility of what MD's do, and if you are willing/able to make the sacrifices that med students/residents do, or you want to perform surgery than MD is the way to go. If you want to practice at an advances role, but you are OK with not being "the boss", performing surgery/complex procedures, than consider NP or PA.
 
The Osteopathic Schools have the same requirement of 90 credits. With that being said, I don't know anyone in my class who didn't have a bachelor's degree. In addition, I would say 20% had that and a masters or doctorate level degree.


True, there are no shortcuts in the medical arena..Plus it "aint" always easy getting reliable info (no matter how many certificates someone has).. As you see!
On top of that as already said some guys will have doctorates!!
You wouldnt want to flip flop in there just claiming to be a nice guy!
 
Your advisor's implication is that being an RN will somehow make up for lack of a bachelor's degree - but as was mentioned by a poster above, being an RN is not considered a benefit. To the contrary, it's a liability. So not only will YOU need a bachelors, you'll need a compelling application.

Advisors are notoriously ill-informed and *****ic, so don't be surprised there.
 
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