Latasha Cooper is always on the go.
She works a full-time job and two PRN jobs, driving from her home in St. James Parish, Louisiana, to Baton Rouge or New Orleans each day for work.
When she小蝌蚪APP檚 off the clock, she小蝌蚪APP檚 busy taking care of and spending time with her three kids.
And for the last five years, she小蝌蚪APP檚 been advancing her nursing career, progressing from an LPN to an RN and earning a B.S. in Nursing. That progression included completing UL Lafayette's RN to BSN online program, designed for working RNs with an associate degree or diploma.
From LPN to RN
Cooper spent 13 years working as an LPN before deciding to take the next step in her career.
While she enjoyed working as an LPN, her responsibilities were limited, and leadership opportunities weren小蝌蚪APP檛 available. So, as her kids grew more independent, she decided to earn an associate degree and become an RN.
Cooper enrolled in the ADN program at Meridian Community College, in Meridian, Mississippi, a four-hour drive away from her home. Five days a week, she made the eight-hour round-trip drive to attend classes and clinical.
, but it paid off as Cooper earned her associate degree in Fall 2021.
From there, she kept pushing. Luckily, to earn her B.S. in Nursing, she could complete her coursework without attending classes in person.
小蝌蚪APP淚 have a friend in New Orleans who was in the process of getting her BSN,小蝌蚪APP she says. 小蝌蚪APP淚 was looking at another school in Mississippi to try to earn my BSN there, and the application process just wasn小蝌蚪APP檛 working out for me. She was like, 小蝌蚪APP榃hy don小蝌蚪APP檛 you look at UL Lafayette? They have an RN to BSN program, too.小蝌蚪APP櫺◎蝌紸PP
Cooper applied, and within two weeks, she received her acceptance letter and was registered for classes.
From ADN to BSN
As Cooper switched from in-person learning in her ADN program to online learning in the 小蝌蚪APP小蝌蚪APP檚 RN to BSN program, she found new flexibility as a student and balance as a full-time nurse and parent. The program小蝌蚪APP檚 online coursework allowed Cooper to complete her assignments during the gaps she had in her busy schedule.
小蝌蚪APP淢y youngest daughter is 8, and she keeps me very busy,小蝌蚪APP Cooper says. 小蝌蚪APP淪he has dance class, she has homework, and I小蝌蚪APP檓 taking care of her in the afternoons and trying to get everything done with her before it小蝌蚪APP檚 time for me to go back to work.小蝌蚪APP
Her favorite part of the program, she says, was getting to know and communicate with other nurses. Though the courses all took place asynchronously, she built strong relationships with both her instructors and her classmates.
小蝌蚪APP淲hen I reached out to my professors, I would get a response within 24 hours and usually almost immediately,小蝌蚪APP she says. 小蝌蚪APP淭hey would help out however they could. They were awesome.小蝌蚪APP
小蝌蚪APP淚 also really enjoyed getting to know my classmates and seeing what they were doing. We were always required to respond to other students小蝌蚪APP posts, which I think was a great idea because I got to meet so many different people. When graduation came, it was like, 小蝌蚪APP極h, hey, you小蝌蚪APP檙e the one I小蝌蚪APP檝e been talking to!小蝌蚪APP櫺◎蝌紸PP
The most engaging class for Cooper was NURS 406: Evidence-Based Practice. Evidence-based practice, as Cooper puts it, involves using recent research to support the patient care decisions you make as a nurse.
小蝌蚪APP淚n nursing, if you can小蝌蚪APP檛 find evidence to back up what you want to do, you can小蝌蚪APP檛 do it,小蝌蚪APP she says. 小蝌蚪APP淲e had to use the for pretty much every assignment we had. The sources we used had to be nursing-specific, from the United States, that were published within the last five years.小蝌蚪APP
Beyond the BSN
Cooper小蝌蚪APP檚 ability to find and apply current research to her practice will come in handy for the rest of her career.
And just because she has her degree doesn小蝌蚪APP檛 mean she小蝌蚪APP檚 finished learning and growing.
小蝌蚪APP淚 do want to try another specialty,小蝌蚪APP she says. 小蝌蚪APP淩ight now, I小蝌蚪APP檓 in bone marrow transplant and medical-surgical. Do I know what other specialty I want to try yet? No. But in the meantime, I小蝌蚪APP檓 enrolled in an M.S. in Nursing program to become a nurse practitioner. I should be finished in December 2025.小蝌蚪APP
Cooper is glad she took the leap of faith to earn her bachelor小蝌蚪APP檚 degree and push through the RN to BSN program. She encourages other RNs to do the same.
小蝌蚪APP淒on小蝌蚪APP檛 give up,小蝌蚪APP she says. 小蝌蚪APP淚t小蝌蚪APP檚 a lot of work and it can get overwhelming, but remain focused because at the end when you finish, you小蝌蚪APP檙e going to realize how much it was worth it.小蝌蚪APP
Take the next step in your nursing career through UL Lafayette小蝌蚪APP檚 100% online RN to BSN program.