Becoming A Registered Nurse
Here in the United States a person can become a R.N. three different ways. The first is by attending a two year college and receiving an Associates in Nursing degree. The second is by enrolling and being accepted into a hospital diploma program where a student takes nursing related classes between 30 to 60 credit hours at a college and then moves into intensive nursing classes. The third way a person becomes an R.N. is to obtain a Bachelors of Science in Nursing. The first two years of Bachelors of Science in Nursing mirrors the Associates in Nursing closely, however the 3rd and 4th year are spent in more hands on courses for Nurses.
Once any one of three ways of becoming an R.N. are completed the next step is for the Nurse to take the NCLEX-RN exam for a license to become a Registered Nurse. This is exam is accepted by every state in the U.S. as an indicator of competency for a graduate.
Once a person passes the NCLEX-RN exam he or she is officially a Registered Nurse. Becoming an R.N. isn’t an instant ticket to employment, but most graduating Registered Nurses should be able to find a plethora of job offers waiting for them.
In the next part of this article we’ll tell you more about the job outlook for Registered Nurses.
Continue To Becoming A Registered Nurse - Part II .