Ohio State or Case Western for Nursing

College Majors Nursing Major
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<p>My daughter has been accepted to Ohio State and to Case Western for nursing. My question is: is the additional cost of Case worth it?</p>

<p>The advantages to CWRU are that my daughter is already accepted to the upper Nursing college. At OSU, she is pre-nursing and will need to apply at the end of her freshman year. 49% of pre-nursing major applicants were accepted to the nursing college in 2012. She will also have significantly more clinical hours at Case. If she chooses OSU, she is not guaranteed to be accepted into the nursing college.</p>

<p>We do not qualify for any aid at OSU, but at Case, we will have to pay about $35k per year. OSU is $22k. Over the course of 4 years, I estimate the difference in cost to be about $25k total.</p>

<p>OSU has an excellent nursing program, but not quite as good as CWRU. CWRU also has an arrangement with University Hospitals that give CWRU graduates preferential treatment in hiring for nurse positions.</p>

<p>We are local to northeast Ohio, so college setting is not really an issue.</p>

<p>Any thoughts as to if Case is worth the additional cost?</p>

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<p>Personally, I think piece of mind knowing she will already be admitted to nursing, may be worth the extra cost. It all depends on how strong a candidate your student is. I am assuming she is a strong candidate to be accepted at both. Case must have given you merit aid. We are in the same boat considering quality versus cost. Does your student want a big school or a small one? Did they like both? Is cost a big factor to you? I do not know either program personally, so I cannot help you there. I would go with the one she would be happiest at, if cost is not the deciding factor. Best wishes!</p>

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<p>Thanks Marybee333. She likes both. Yes, my daughter is a strong candidate. She is a member of National Honor Society. 3.6 GPA, top 10% of her class. As far as program rankings, Case is 13th in the USA and OSU is 31st.</p>

<p>Cost is somewhat of a factor, but I am also trying to determine which will give her the best chance of getting a job after graduation. I have been reading articles where recent nursing grads are having difficulties getting hired because hospitals are wanting 1 year experience. Case, with its working relationships with University Hospitals and the Cleveland Clinic would give her a leg up.</p>

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<p>I imagine you were considering other factors but the 13K a year difference x 4 years would appear to be a $52K difference over 4 years. </p>

<p>If some of the difference could be made up using federally subsidized loans, that can be a reasonable total cost over time. However, if PLUS loans, unsubsidized federal loans or private loans would be needed to make up the difference, the total cost over time would be much much higher. Keep in mind that even federally subsidized loans are scheduled to go up to 6.8% for 2013-2014 and the following years, unless both houses of Congress approve a multi-billion subsidy per year. </p>

<p>To make an accurate comparison, look carefully at other cost factors. For example, does either university charge extra tuition or fees for nursing students in the last 2 years? Many universities do that, and you may have to search the fine print to find out. I imagine she would not need a car to reach clinicals in either Columbus or Cleveland, but that is a question worth asking - it can make a huge difference in net costs. Off campus housing costs (if needed in the last couple years?) can vary greatly - I’d guess that Cleveland might be cheaper.</p>

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<p>Charlieshm, Yes I considered other factors. In her senior year, we will have another daughter in college so she will get more financial aid that year.</p>

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<p>I’ve been researching nursing for D. I’m using the nursing board test results to help decide who prepares best, <a href=“Ohio Board of Nursing”>Ohio Board of Nursing. For 2012 Case had 54 people taking the test at an 89% passing rate. OSU had 227 taking the test at a 94% passing rate. Akron had 193 taking the test with a 94% passing rate. Personally I think it goes to OSU. A higher number of people in the program and a 5% higher passing rate, not to mention a lower cost. If you are in honors it is a direct admit, but it is risky if you have to wait until Sophomore year to to apply.</p>

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<p>Case Western is a very impressive school, both for undergrad and for their grad programs. They provide far more clinical hours than the osu. This is a world class Nursing program, with an unassailable reputation, next to three large hospitals. I just realized that I didn’t offer anything new here; sorry about that.</p>

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<p>JMPO…but people should take NCLEX pass percentages with a grain of salt. There have been a few discussions on this forum in the past about how those numbers can be manipulated. For instance some programs you may never have heard of have 100% first time NCLEX pass rates while Penn (University of Pennsylvania) has a lower rate. Does anyone believe that statistic means that Penn has a lower quality program?</p>

<p>My daughter considered both tOSU (I’m an alum) and CWRU. Even though she would have been a direct admit at tOSU she (we) thought CWRU’s program was considerably better than tOSUs. As mentioned…the difference in clinical hours is huge. </p>

<p>Also, if you live in NE Ohio there is something to be said for being within comfortable commuting distance of your daughter. She has her independence and you still have the ability to deliver essential <grin> items like seasonal clothing and pick her up for doctor/dentist visits and family “occasions”. You still have to get acclimated to “letting her go” but having her relatively close helps in making the parting a more gradual and gentler process. </grin></p>

<p>IMPO…both programs are good…but direct entry in CWRU would be the best choice.</p>

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<p>I’m not sure the difference in clinicals hours are “huge” OSU clinical hours total 1000 in junior and senior year, they mention they have clinicals in the sophomore year but don’t itemize them, lets assume 180 that year, total clinicals ~1180. [BSN</a> coursework | College of Nursing](<a href=“http://www.nursing.osu.edu/sections/academic-programs/undergraduate-program-overview/bsn-introduction/bsn-coursework.html]BSN”>BSN Curriculum | The Ohio State University College of Nursing)</p>

<p>Case quotes 1600 hours, but starts freshman year. I’m not sure there is anything useful that first year. That same amount of experience could be gathered volunteering or shadowing. <a href=“Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing”>Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing; So, considering the quality of the hours I truly don’t think it is “huge”. More - yes, huge no.</p>

<p>More important than hours would be what functions those clinicals entailed, and where they were performed - nursing home, free clinic, hospital… But, I don’t think you’ll find a legitimate list at either school because each will only market the high profile clinicals, not the mundain or those that had little experiential value but still counted for hours. Case quotes 200 facilities for clinicals but only mentions the top 4 names. Not how many hours are perfomed at any of them much less the whole list. Even if they did, it wouldn’t mean anything since the can’t gaurantee where a potential student will be placed.</p>

<p>Hence right or wrong my reliance on if the ultimate goal of the 4 years of prep was met, NCLEX. The list is based on verifiable numbers from an independent party. It can be analyzed and some results can be postulated on it. It may not indicate the experience leading up to that license, but in my mind, it indicates to a very good degree how well prepared the students were. Agreed it can’t be taken just at face value (% passage). But I consider if the sample size of the students taking the test is reasonable to make a prediction (at least 50 students), whether the number of students representing the class year over year is increasing indicating a growing program, and the consistency or trend of the passage rate. You mentioned Penn state. Looks like a great school, hit on all the marks I mentioned. Pitt, I’d be leary of anywhere except main campus because of sample size and consistency of the results. OSU class size increasing, scores consistently in the 90s. Case students taking the test are at a 5 year low, scores mid to upper 80s.</p>

<p>Again, I’m a Clevelander looking for the best place for D. I’m weighing location, cost, and potential outcome. I look at freshman retentivity, other degree offerings at the school should she change her mind, environment, where she ranks with respect to other students… Unfortuantely I’m an engineer and a parent. While quantitative values mean a lot to me, in the end it will be my daughter that chooses. As long as she chooses a place with a decent reputation I’ll be happy. Either of these schools would make me ecstatic.</p>

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<p>RN pass rates are also affected by the selectiveness of the students who are admitted to the program. Moreover, some programs with higher pass rates have high numbers of older students who enter the program with years of prior experience in health care. At least one college won’t let you take the RN test unless they are sure you will pass on the first try, based upon their pre-testing.</p>

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<p>charliesschm I agree with you 100%, the pass rates are affected by the selectiveness of the program. Given the choice of entering a program that is selective vs. an open enrollment, I think I’d take the selective. </p>

<p>By the way, Case is one of the colleges that can restrict you from taking the test unless you’ll pass. From [Bachelor</a> of Science in Nursing (BSN) Program: FPB School of Nursing at Case Western Reserve University](<a href=“Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing”>Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing) “The FPB School of Nursing has the right to determine a students readiness to sit for the NCLEX-RN examination and the right to restrict testing until the student demonstrates a readiness to pass this examination”</p>

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<p>I’m sure that Aglages was making reference to Penn, and not Penn State.
And the Nursing program at University of Pittsburgh’s main campus is incredibly impressive.</p>

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<p>The program where my daughter is headed said that if you don’t do well on the preparatory test for the RN exam, they can force you to take and pay for a test prep course. That is understandable and very different from saying they won’t let you have your degree if they don’t think you will pass on the first try.</p>

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<p>

Yes, the University of Pennsylvania is a different college than Pennsylvania State University. Thank you cecilturtle!</p>

<p>We’ll have to agree to disagree on whether 1600 clinical hours instead 0f 1000 is a huge difference or whether those hours spread out over four years provide “quality” experience. In my evaluation/opinion…they represent a HUGE amount of hands on experience that will be helpful to a future nurse. The fact that those hours start during the freshman year also (IMHO) helps the nursing students become involved in the nursing program and allows them to feel as though they are doing some “real” nursing (as opposed to only academic classes). JMPO…which BTW is what the OP (different User ID) asked for.</p>

<p>Interpret the NCLEX first time pass rates however you choose. My point was simply to point out that the pass rates don’t reflect purely on how well a program prepares it’s future nurses for the test but also by other factors as charliesschm pointed out in his post.</p>

<p>Best of luck to you and your daughter with her decision!</p>