Healthcare Peeps!

[ilovelamp]

So I've done my research and stuff but I wanted to ask some people who know first-hand. I am going for my RN at a smaller school so I can hurry up and get done ASAP. It's called Bryant & Stratton, it's fully accredited, I loved the smaller class sizes, no wait list, etc. I picked it over a big college because even though I have great grades, it's so hard to get into nursing programs in my area. Even if I could get in at a University, I wouldn't be able to start until next fall as opposed to this fall at B&S.

Only problem is that it's for your Associates not Bachelors. I am planning on going right back to school while I'm working as an RN, probably at an online bridge program.

Anyone have experience doing RN->BSN? Heard anything about B&S? Getting hired with only an Associates? Any input would be lovely. Thanks!

[nsl]

I'm not in healthcare, but my sister recently finished an Associate's program in nursing, so I've heard a few things about choosing programs through her. I'd want to know exactly what their pass rate on the NCLEX is and what percent of their graduates find nursing jobs within 6 months of graduation before I signed up.

FWIW, my sister had no trouble finding a job with an Associate's, but she was already working as a tech at the hospital where she was hired so she had an "in" when a position opened up.

[MrsAggie]

I got my bachelors first and then went back for my associates of nursing. I just graduated in May. I had my first interview in April and got hired on before I ever even graduated. You'll hear different things from different people but here's what I have been told: if you plan on being a bedside nurse (as in not go on for your masters as an NP or something) then the BSN is unnecessary. I got hired on faster than quite a few BSN grads that I know. There's rarely a pay difference and if there is, it is usually no more than 25 cents.

I used MyCAA to pay for my tuition and MyCAA doesn't cover anything higher than an associates degree. Bottom line: I paid an obnoxiously less amount of money to have the same job title and same job. Once you get a job, your hospital will usually help pay for any further education that you seek in exchange for owing them years of work. As PP said, it's good to know what your school's NCLEX pass rate is. My school has a solid program that usually has close to, if not a 100% pass rate. We have had one girl fail already but she got married within the week before NCLEX so she was just kind of stupid for scheduling it so early knowing that she had other stuff going on.

Let me know if you have any questions!

ETA: Just for reference, more RNs come from associate programs than bachelors programs.

[krista]

You won't have a problem getting a job with an ADN. But you're definitely smart to go right back for your BSN. If you eventually want to advance beyond bedside nursing, you will need it.

[meltoine]

My mom got her associates in nursing in the late 70s. She worked bedside and private duty throughout the 80s and early 90s, and she's been working in admin ever since. She is just now going back to school in an RN-BSN program.

Like PPs said, I don't think you'll have trouble finding a job with an associate's degree, but if you want to cli the ladder into admin, definitely look into a BSN and even an MBA.

[ilovelamp]

Thanks everyone. I honestly wish I had made this decision to go for my associates vs. bachelors years ago. I have wasted time & money doing unnecessary pre-reqs for BSN, but at least I am better prepared than I was before (if anything I have brought my GPA up!)

I know the NCLEX pass rate was around upper 90-something for my school. And job placement was good as well.

I possibly might go back later to become a NP (it's a long time from now but I would like to have the option), but for now I will be happy with ADN.

[basilosaurus]

One thing to think about, while ADNs are getting jobs, with the push for magnet status, it's harder, especially as a new grad.

In addition to NCLEX pass rates, ask about clinical placements. At my school, also a small no-name without a wait when I enrolled, ADNs pretty much got screwed. BSNs got priority on hospital slots, and ADNs were stuck with leftover longterm placements.

[ilovelamp]

Stupid question: what is magnet status?

[MrsAggie]

I disagree. Maybe it depends on the area but here in Texas, ADN grads have had no more of a problem finding jobs than those with BSNs. I know a girl that graduated from Texas A&M with a BSN at the top of her class and went almost a year without getting hired. I got hired on into my top choice in a specialized area. Only a handful of classmates took medsurg jobs and the rest are in specialized areas as well. There are some hospitals in the major cities that require BSNs but there's still tons of hospitals that hire ADNs. With 60% of the RNs coming from ADN programs, there's no way ADNs can get stepped over to that degree.

[basilosaurus]

It definitely does depend on the area. In Denver there was a major hiring freeze, for years. Plus, there were a lot of magnet or magnet seeking hospitals.

I'm not anti-ADN in the least. Quite often, I think it makes the most sense, especially if there's a year delay in starting school like lamp's case. But all the ADNs I knew at my school regretted it b/c of clinicals and subsequent hiring issues.

Magnet status is a credential related to certain nursing benchmarks to get and retain good nurses. It includes minimum ratios of adn:bsns. It also has to do with things like management style, work environment, and a whole bunch of other things.

[ilovelamp]

Is there a rookie period when you first get to your new hospital? Do you have to earn your place (aka do you get treated like shit)?

[krista]

Jun 20, 2012 18:35:36 GMT -5 ilovelamp said:

Is there a rookie period when you first get to your new hospital? Do you have to earn your place (aka do you get treated like shit)?

In my experience, and I've been in healthcare for almost 15 years, no, there's really no hazing. Unless you go in like you already know everything. You will be treated like you have a lot to learn, but that's true. You will have a lot to learn for years to come. Where you will get shit on is in scheduling. The least senior staff tend to get the least desirable shifts.

[MrsAggie]

Jun 20, 2012 18:45:26 GMT -5 krista said:

In my experience, and I've been in healthcare for almost 15 years, no, there's really no hazing. Unless you go in like you already know everything. You will be treated like you have a lot to learn, but that's true. You will have a lot to learn for years to come. Where you will get shit on is in scheduling. The least senior staff tend to get the least desirable shifts.

This. I don't know how new grads can go in acting like they know everything because even veteran nurses always encounter new situations and are always learning. I'm grateful for the guidance provided to new nurses because I would really prefer to not kill anyone. Also, one hospital that I did clinicals at would put new nurses on night shift automatically. All hospitals are different but as a new grad I've accepted that a night shift is a possibility. You get paid more on nights and do less work (for most floors with sleeping patients) so some people really love working nights.

[ilovelamp]

I think I would like night shifts. I say that now but we will see. And I can't imagine going into my first hospital acting like I know everything. That's like the last thing I would be doing!

[Dory1988]

Not all hospitals will pay you more for nights though. We make the same regardless of shift unless it's overtime or a holiday at my one hospital. At the other we get shift differential but only on weekends.