Can I become a nurse with a bachelor's degree in Biology or Pre-Med?

So, if I major in Biology or Pre-Med, can I take the licensing exam and become a nurse, or do I have to attend a specialized nursing school first?

And later, can I apply to medical school and become a pediatrician?

I'm a sophomore in high school, so it may be preemptive of me to ask this but I would like to have an idea of my future plans. Thank you for taking the time to help!

You are smart to begin your research so early. There's a lot to learn. Fortunately, thanks to the Internet, it's fairly easy to get information.

Here's a link that explains the process of becoming a physician: http://people.howstuffworks.com/becoming...

Every state has a Nurse's Association. Google (Your state) Nurse's Association and you will the web site for your state and all Nurse's Associations provide information about the nursing schools, license requirements and contact information.

While one would think there would be a natural progression in becoming a nurse and then a physician, the two careers are actually quite different. What's worse, the classes you take for one can't be transferred to the other, should you change your mind.

Many nurses do decide to go on to medical school. The good news is that due to the nursing shortage, hospitals have programs where you can work 2 twelve hour shifts per week and receive a full salary, which enables you to work and go to medical school. The bad news is that going that route is very difficult and while a person could do it for a while, it will take a toll on you.

It's also important that you understand that, if you decide to become a physician, that you don't have to choose a life science major in college to be accepted to a medical school. Historically, people majored in biology or chemistry to get into medical school. Because it's such a competivie process, medical schools inadvertently created a profile of a medical student who was a science nerd. The medical community realized that this didn't create the best physician and, in actuality, contributed to law suits because the nerd physicians didn't relate well with their patients. So, about 20 years ago the medical schools started to encourage applicants to major in other fields and just complete the core required courses, now known as pre-med programs.

In case you don't know it, you can actually go to medical school right out of high school. If your grades are good enough, you can actually attend college and medical school at the same time. These are six year programs that enable you to obtain your MD two years earlier than the traditional route. You should visit the Association of American Medical Colleges web site: http://www.aamc.org/ On that site is a link to the schools that offer the combined degree programs: http://services.aamc.org/currdir/section...

It may surprise you that you don't have to be an intellectual giant to become a good physician. Obtaining good grades in school is more a process of good studying skills versus a high IQ. If your approach to studying has been one of reluctance, you might as well consider another career. But if you enjoy learning and you are disciplined enough to hit the books, the path to medical school and medical school itself is not that difficult.

I hope this gets you pointed in the right direction.

I'm not going into nursing, but I'm pretty sure you need more than just a bachelor's to become a nurse and that you need to go to medical school.

You will have to go to a specific nursing program to become a nurse.

You generally need a pre-med or some type of science degree to get into med school - but each school is different and you need to go online to some of the schools, look up the degree requirements and see what they say specifically.

You will have to go through an accredited nursing program. The classes that include patient care, IV therapy, blood-drawing, medications, etc, are not part of an undergrad biology or pre-med program. Many schools do offer bachelor's degrees in nursing so you can get your R.N. along with the 4 year degree. Consider going on for a Nurse Practitioner degree if you are serious about a medical profession. Your 4 year degree may also contain most if not all of the prerequisites for med school. Make sure you take full level courses instead of the "baby" chemistry classes sometimes set up for nursing students. These are only one semester classes instead of two and have less content.