Posted: 8/23/2009 1:14:12 AM EDT
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anyone know what are decent programs? I looked at rue, excelsior, and the one in Arizona.
Its hard to tell if it is a rip off or not. the concept of making 80k a year and working 36 hours a week is tempting. I already have an AAS in EMS with five years field experience. The nursing programs are a bitch to get into. With a 4.0 gpa, it will still take 2 or 3 years to get in the local community college program. |
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I don't know about the others but Excelsior is not highly regarded in UT. My hospital won't hire an RN who got their degree from Excelsior unless they have a minimum two years RN experience somewhere else. I looked into the same program. Several colleges are now going to an online format for the didactic portion of the program. I believe it is a one day commitment per week for clinicals. I'm waiting to see how the first group fares on the NCLEX before applying. |
| I guess I need to move. I have a BS in bus mgmt, and went back and got my BSN from UNC-Chapel Hill. I work in the surgical/trauma ICU at UNC, a level 1 trauma center, and I can say for certain... I SURE AS HELL DO NOT MAKE $80G working 36 hrs a week!!! I assume cost of living and all that, but don't expect to get rich nursing. Don't get me wrong, great and rewarding profession at times and you'll make a decent pay check but don't expect to live a life of luxury... |
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Quoted:
I guess I need to move. I have a BS in bus mgmt, and went back and got my BSN from UNC-Chapel Hill. I work in the surgical/trauma ICU at UNC, a level 1 trauma center, and I can say for certain... I SURE AS HELL DO NOT MAKE $80G working 36 hrs a week!!! I assume cost of living and all that, but don't expect to get rich nursing. Don't get me wrong, great and rewarding profession at times and you'll make a decent pay check but don't expect to live a life of luxury... Yes, you need to move. My wife is an RN, every April I become a little more jaded. Her OT rate is insane. 
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Quoted:
You could make that much money and more as a paramedic if you work in the right place. Of course you won't be working 36 hours a week. I am not moving anytime soon. Probably another 30 years. I was able to get that out of my system when I was in the service. I know there are higher paying areas. But in my area the competition for the decent paying jobs is insane. The last time I applied for the city of Eugene's Medic unit. There was 120 applicants for 1 position. The job started at 48k and capped at 70k. |
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Quoted:
I don't know about the others but Excelsior is not highly regarded in UT. My hospital won't hire an RN who got their degree from Excelsior unless they have a minimum two years RN experience somewhere else. I looked into the same program. Several colleges are now going to an online format for the didactic portion of the program. I believe it is a one day commitment per week for clinicals. I'm waiting to see how the first group fares on the NCLEX before applying. I have seen that on some of the online EMS forums. I have been part time at a hospital for about five years. My boss has told me to get my RN so they could hire me as one. Which is a nice confidence boost. We discussed the options and she said that a liscense is a liscense. |
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If you're near a major university, they may have an accelerated BSN program for medics and/or people who already have their bachelor's (takes care of all the gen eds). The other gag is that some of these are partnered with local hospitals that will pay your tuition in exchange for an X-year commitment (2-5ish). Beats 28k tuition, IMO. |
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Quoted:
If you're near a major university, they may have an accelerated BSN program for medics and/or people who already have their bachelor's (takes care of all the gen eds). The other gag is that some of these are partnered with local hospitals that will pay your tuition in exchange for an X-year commitment (2-5ish). Beats 28k tuition, IMO. I've thought about that, but after doing a lot of digging on Excelsior's program for the last 24 hours, I don't know that it'd be a good option for me. However, if anybody has personal experience, particularly with the timeline, I'd be interested in IMing them. |
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Quoted: I guess I need to move. I have a BS in bus mgmt, and went back and got my BSN from UNC-Chapel Hill. I work in the surgical/trauma ICU at UNC, a level 1 trauma center, and I can say for certain... I SURE AS HELL DO NOT MAKE $80G working 36 hrs a week!!! I assume cost of living and all that, but don't expect to get rich nursing. Don't get me wrong, great and rewarding profession at times and you'll make a decent pay check but don't expect to live a life of luxury... Going from Medic to RN usually doubles your hourly rate. When I worked hospital based EMS, Medics started @ $8/hr, while the RNs in the ER started at $20/hr. Plus they got paid extra for things like their CEN, and night and weekend differential. That was in podunk East Texas and I'm sure here in DFW the pay is higher. Additionally, there is a lot more chances for advancement in nursing. You can get specialized certs or go to management. |
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Sorry to top an old thread. I am an Excelsior grad. It's certainly not a program for everyone. You need to be highly motivated. It helps if you are working in an acute care setting (hospital) as opposed to strictly field work. I had no trouble getting a job and was actually selected for an ICU position over several experienced Telemetry RN's.
If anyone has any questions about Excelsior I would be happy to answer them. Chuck, RN, CCRN, EMT-P |