ADN vs. BSN. Which Nursing Program You Should Choose?

When you think of entering the nursing field, one of the most important decisions you need to take is which nursing program to pursue. Selecting between ADN and BSN program is a major choice for prospective nurses to make. However, both the programs have its own set of benefits and limitations. The decision to select one depends upon your nursing career goals.

To make the decision-making easier for you, here is a quick comparison of both the programs to help you decide which path matches your goals.

	BSN Program	ADN Program
Duration	A BSN is a Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing a much lauded, comprehensive program that typically takes 4 years to complete. This degree takes more time to complete but gives better job opportunities in the long run.	An ADN is an Associate’s Degree in  Nursing and it takes comparatively less  time to complete such as 2 years. The  advantage of taking an ADN program is  you wrap up your degree in less time  and become employed sooner.
Course Content	In this comprehensive course students cover every aspect of nursing such as adult health, psychiatric nursing, Gerontology nursing, areas of surgery, obstetrics, gynecology and exposure to practice theory and clinical and nursing research.	The program focuses on foundational nursing education covering clinical education and some training. Students learn about basic patient care, various nursing theories, adult health, fundamental human anatomy and physiology. In addition, the course also provide students clinical training.
Job Scope & Responsibility	Students who possess BSN degrees get more opportunities to achieve higher positions such as a nurse manager, administrator and are given greater work responsibility with more scope of career growth.	This course gives students a short and swift way to enter into nursing field however with ADN students get entry level positions in the nursing and chances of reaching higher positions are also limited.
Employment Opportunities	Nurses with BSN degree can work in a variety of healthcare settings such as: Hospitals, Community centers, nursing care facilities, clinics, home healthcare companies, physician’s offices.	Nurses with ADN also enjoy more or less same work options and can be employed in a variety of healthcare settings from general hospitals to clinics, physician’s offices, nursing care facilities and more.
Salary	As per a survey conducted by state of California, BSN prepared nurses have a mean income of $75.017	As per the same survey, ADN prepared nurses have a mean income of $70.804.
Specialization	Nurses with BSN degree have brighter opportunities; they can pursue a master’s degree later stage or a specialization in the area of their interest when they are seeking to enhance their career. They can enter into any advance degree programs in any of the fields. For instance nurse midwife, nurse practitioner, nurse anesthetist and more.	To pursue master’s, they need to acquire a bachelor’s degree first, however they can do certificate courses in their area of specialization to enhance their nursing career.

INSCOL offers one year BSN program at BPP University, London (UK) and Deakin University, Melbourne (AUS) with clinical experience. INSCOL also offer MSc Nursing & Healthcare at University of West London (UK) which is a 2.5 years program enabling Diploma Nurses to directly get an MSc Degree in Nursing. 

More information regarding the Nursing Programs can be found on the following link: INSCOL Nursing Programs.