Do a lot of nurses start out as a CNA and work there way up to RN?

Or does a CNA just take the prerequisites and apply to RN program…. because my friend is considering doing the bridge programs(CNA to LPN to RN)…so she can work and go to school while getting work-related experience also…but is this a common route for mant nurses or should she just finish prerequisuites and apply to RN school? ANY ADVICE would help greatly?

You don’t “work your way up” to RN. You need to go through an RN program. You can either go straight into it, or become an LPN first and then do an LPN to RN bridge program. Most RN programs require that students have their CNA license, but not all, and you don’t need work experience, just have the license. Some people debate over whether it’s necessary to have work experience as a CNA, I say it is helpful but not necessary. They teach you CNA skills at the start of your nursing program, and honestly, being a CNA is SO completely different from working as an RN, CNAs only do one tiny part of what RNs are trained to do, so it’s not like you really get an accurate representation of what it’s like to be a nurse by being a CNA.