D is going to go to nursing school for a BSN. We live right outside Philadelphia. D wants to go ‘away’ to college which is understandable. All her siblings are going ‘away’ and really enjoying it and thriving. The nursing major and her GPA/ACT scores is making it more challenging (financial and academic fit - direct entry programs) as there are fewer of the right fit programs.
She was originally going to attend Rutgers Camden - it is a financial fit and an academic fit and the clinical opportunities are over the top fantastic. Her other ‘fits’ are in more remote locations - Buffalo, E. Stroudsburg PA, and a small college outside Pittsburgh- which does also have great clinical opportunities (but I think it may be way too religious) for example. I have encouraged her to keep considering Rutgers Camden because of those opportunities. She is seemingly determined to go ‘away’ for school.
But I am wondering if she gets a BSN, and does well, and she comes back to find a job near us – will it matter that she went to school in Buffalo or whatever?? I know this may be best in the nursing forum but it tends to a tad slow. Am I making something out of nothing or not?
I think that she should apply to multiple schools including Rutgers and see where she gets in and what the costs will be. I am probably biased since I have studied/worked with a few students who came from Rutgers and all have been top notch. However, avoiding debt for a BSN (or almost any degree) is a good plan.
If she lives on-campus, then she could attend a university which is 5 miles from your house and it will still feel like a completely different world compared to living at home. If she is waking up in the morning in a dorm surrounded by students, it will feel like “away”.
@DadTwoGirls I told her that about living on camput!! Somehow she isn’t buying it. I know that Rutgers is top notch and honestly if she lives on campus it will cost ME a bit more than the other programs and her the same – she will take GSLs no matter where she goes, hubby and I will pick up the rest.
We have a critical shortage of nurses right now throughout the country. No one will care where she got her BSN as long as she passes the exam and is licensed to work in the state.
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@shortnuke She is also going for the critical care type nursing – she is already an EMT in our town and has attended a camp at Drexel University for aspiring medical students; she is likely to be sought after
@toomanyteens, has she already done an overnight visit at Rutgers? If not, maybe that could help her get a feel for what it would be like to live there, and she could see that it’s not like living at home.
Perhaps if you also told her you would plan to have visits similar to your other kids who went to school farther from home she might feel more comfortable knowing she’d have the same kind of independence that her siblings had. She might have an idea that you would drop in on her without warning or expect her to come home more often than her siblings did, and if you make it very clear that this won’t be the case she might come around.
@traveler98 We did do a tour including the dorms but didn’t stay overnight. I already told her I have zero intention of dropping in and no expectations of her running home all the time but she is being very steadfast about it all.
Living on campus is being away if she doesn’t go home. However, it seems like your preference is that she stays somewhat local. Are the net costs of all the schools affordable? Did you let her siblings pick or did they take the least expensive option? I’d give her the same choices that you gave your other children.
I don’t think where she gets her degree matters. My sister got her nursing degree in Upstate NY a decade or so ago. She’s a homeowner in a remote area so she has to travel to work. She signed up with an agency so she wouldn’t have gaps between jobs, and they’ve found jobs all over the country for her. Nobody seems to care where she got her degree, just that she has one.
It won’t matter one iota where she gets that degree. Nurses in nursing school have to learn the basics, and those are pretty similar at the level 1 or the regional hospital. “Fantastic” student clinical opportunities are not all that common because students are busy learning to start IVs on stable patients. The fabulous clinicals at big name hospitals are often more marketing than substance.
She also doesn’t go to nursing school for critical care or any other specialty. She takes and passes the NCLEX, a test that determines a minimum standard of knowledge and safety (that makes it sound simple, but believe me, it is not). Nobody gets bonus points for finishing faster, with fewer questions, or “better” questions and then gets better job opportunities. It’s just a pass/fail test and schools will make sure she has a very solid foundation so she can pass.\
Your daughter needs a school that has a high first time pass rate on the NCLEX. If she can find a reasonably priced school that lets her go “away,” by all means let her go and don’t get too hung up on the clinical experience. They are all pretty thoroughly vetted by the state licensing board.
@austinmshauri my preference isn’t about locality - it is about a good education and good clinical opportunities and the relationships that can lead to a job. The siblings didn’t all take the least expensive option-- we weighed with each of them many factors including what they were studying and one of them in a college athlete so that was also a consideration-- AND Rutgers Camden is not the least expensive option for her either. None of them had carte blanche choices.
If she does well in nursing school she should have plenty of opportunities in any state she is licensed to work in. There is a shortage of nurses. She should apply to the different schools and you can see how the acceptances and finances work out.
FWIW my S went to college close to home and lived on campus and it worked out wonderfully well. Before he chose the school we had a long talk and we (parents) agreed to never “pop by”, not to expect him to run home for minor things etc. and he (student) agreed to not using being close to home as a crutch or to be lazy (ex. no coming home to do wash etc.). A few times his being close was handy (ex. when his computer died I drove down with an old laptop he could use while his was being repaired etc.) But in general, we all held our end of the agreement and he had a wonderful and full life on campus.
@ordinarylives that is very helpful, I was thinking that maybe the people they meet in big hospitals may help them with jobs. I do know she won’t go to school for a specialty just pointing out that is her interest. One of her top choices of school had a 95% pass rate in 2016-- also a 95% graduation rate from the beginning of sophomore year for the class of 2017 - that seems pretty positive.
@toomanyteens my daughter did have an offer from a hospital where she did her externship (not affiliated with her school) but chose to work at a level 1 where she’d never even had a clinical (just applied). Your student will not do a whole lot of interacting with the people who hire at the hospitals (unit managers). Students work under their clinical supervisor and with the floor nurses. As you’ve been hearing, it isn’t really difficult for a BSN to get a job. I wouldn’t let the possibility of meeting someone who could get her hired at a big hospital be the deciding factor in where she goes to school. Chances are, she can work where she wants.
@compmom I know she may NOT come back to where we live, but even she knows there is a ton of opportunity here. She is also looking to go further to nurse anesthetist and several good programs are in Philadelphia. But yes you never know what path she will go.
I am not sure how ‘away’ she wants to go LOL – she is very interested in East Stroudsburg University right now; it is about 2.5 hours away from our home and she seems okay with that. So we will see!
Yes…you are creating a conflict that is not necessary…because she can get her BSN at ANY school…pass her boards, get a job, and pursue advanced programs after that. The location and name of the school don’t matter.
Has she looked at Pitt Greensburg, it is supposed to be the same curriculum as Pitt main, but a few thousand less tuition I think. They might have scholarships too.
Also Cleveland State and Duquesne might be worth looking into, if she gets merit there.