Can I major in Biology instead of nursing and still become a nurse practitioner?

I was thinking majoring in biology in undergrad, then going into a nursing program and becoming a nurse practitioner. Any suggestions?

You would take more time doing that.

Ok, I have a college degree in biology. (counts for nothing, but I see you do have a goal after college using it) I was in LPN school briefly at the local technical college (trade school). A girl in my class had flunked out of the university pre-nursing program (too much partying).

She had as a goal to be a nurse practitioner.

She went thru the LPN program, and became an LPN. Then she got married and has 2 kids now. She is also getting her BSN slowly (because of the 2 kids) and fully intends to be that nurse practitioner at some point.

I have every sympathy for a student who wants to go to the university full time and major in a subject to be with other students the same age.

However, if it were me at my age now? The practical thing is to get the LPN right now. Just don't bother with college first. Takes 15 months to get the LPN. You also don't have to sweat getting into the clinical rotations like you do in pre-nursing program at the university, where the competition is fierce for a few slots and placement is by GPA. You get the LPN and all of the clinical experience you need for the LPN or for the BSN, all in 15 months, without cut-throat competition to get into those clinical rotations.

OK, so now I have the LPN 15 months after high school. Now apply to the university (and work part-time like one day a weekend as an LPN just to keep up to date on the work). Wouldn't you be an unusual college student!

So you take your university courses in biology, not nursing, except I guess you have to take some nursing classes so you get that BSN. But undoubtedly there will be some overlap, surely, because you aren't getting into the clinical rotatioin courses, you already had those, just the biology nursing courses.

So you are working briefly as an LPN (4 days a month) and you are a college student and highly motivated because you have seen the patients who have the conditions you are learning about in your BSN classes.

You will be so ready to get admitted to that nurse practitioner program after you graduate from the university. You will have had 4 years working as an LPN briefly, you will know where you are going because of that training, you have those courses under your belt.

Students just don't think about the LPN program as a stepping stone. They think it's for "retards", or poor folks. They just don't get that it is a fabulous back-door approach to nursing. And they are shocked to see all the university drop-outs in the LPN programs and how these girls may have had to learn the hard way, but they are going to all get their BSNs because they are college grad types, and a technical school degree in this case spells "smart and successful" as well as practical.