Hi, all! Is attending a Community College for 6 years total ridiculous?

I'm on the waiting list for Nursing and I'm still working on my prerequisites. I've attended for 2 years, the waiting list is 2 years, and the actual program is 2 years. It's a great school known for its nursing program. I guess I'm just "depressed" because altogether, earning my Bachelors will take me 8 years (6 at community college and 2-3 at a 4 year college). The transition from my community college to my 4 year college will be smooth (everything's transferrable and alot cheaper). I'm just wondering if I'm doing the right thing. In the long run, it's cheaper, but I'm I wasting my time? Thanks for any answers I get. This is my first time using Yahoo Answers. I hope it works out :)

it sounds like you really put a lot of thought into this. one suggestion i would make would be to apply to other nursing schools that won't put you on a waiting list. there are a lot of great nursing programs out there and with your prerequisites out of the way you could finish a 4 year nursing degree. there are also options such as short-track and long-track that will allow you to pace yourself. waiting too long to get off the list might steer you to do something else. if you don't get in to another program, then just do what you are doing. keep up the good work!

If that's how long it's going to take - and it's the best you can do given the limits of your life outside of college... then it's the best you can do.

Nursing is a wonderful career choice at this point -- HUGE demand for it and I don't see that lessening at any point in the near future.

Even if it takes you six to eight years - at the end of that, you'll be easily earning a near six-figure salary working your buns off four days a week.

Yeah I do understand that you are a bit concerned of the time you have to spend in total but do know that you really are saving a lot of money. I go to a university and often i regret not just attending a JC then transferring to the college of my dreams, which isnt where i am right now.
YOU CAN DO IT!

It's cheaper, but if you could do it in 2 less years by spending more money, would the money you would be able to earn with the degree make up for that?
Sometimes it's worth more to just spend the extra money to get on with your life...
who knows what your circumstances will be in the future.. you might get married, start a family.. do things that would slow your progress down..

If its what you know you want to do, then its definitely not a waste. Like you said, you will be saving a lot of money by going to community college first. The key is to also gain practical experience in the meantime, by either working or volunteering at a local hospital. This way when you do graduate, you will have a strong resume. Good luck!

No, it's not a waste of time. The most important thing is that you learn as much as you can from both college and on-the-job training. If it's your dream to be a nurse or employed in the medical field, then it's worth the wait. As long as you get the career of your dreams in the end, and you learn as much as you can along the way towards that goal.

In the long run, it's not cheaper. Let's assume that as an RN you'd earn $25 an hour. That's $52,000 per year. That extra two years of not being an RN already will cost you $104,000 in lost wages. I'm betting that you're not saving $104,000 by going to a community college first.

If you've attended for 2 years already, you might want to see if you can get into a BSN program as a new student (not RN-BSN); you'd be done with most of the core and would only need about 3 years of major work.

What you must determine is which way is more cost effective. in other words, How much will it cost for 2 years at a 4 year college. And how much for 4 years at the community college. If there not a big difference I would go with the 4 year college. When figuring cost be sure to add all expenses like will there be a commute at the 4 year college, room & bord etc.

Well, yes...6 years at a community college is a veryyyyy long time. TYpically, I would say it's silly and the student has some serious problems about what they want fr their future.
But in your case, you know what you want adn you're just waiting, which is ok. Ya gotta do what ya gotta do, right?!
It'll all be worth it in the end! Good Luck!