Check for Nursing School Accreditation

There are a lot or nursing schools that have opened up offering RN and BSN programs. There are also a lot or prospective nursing students looking to get accepted into a nursing program. Some schools are harder to get into then others. Here are some things to consider when applying to a nursing program.

• Make sure that the school where you applying to have an accredited nursing program by the board of nursing. The last thing you want is to happen is to go through (what you thought was) an accredited nursing program and only after you graduate you find out that you are not eligible to apply to take the NCLEX because the school is not accredited. According to the California Board of Nursing, ” The Board cannot qualify an applicant to take the NCLEX, or to be licensed, after completion of a California based unapproved nursing program” Source: https://www.rn.ca.gov/pdfs/education/unapproved.pdf
• Check your board of nursing website to see a list of colleges and universities whose RN program is accredited.  The California Board of Nursing lists all of the of accredited nursing school. https://www.rn.ca.gov/education/rnprograms.shtml

Community College vs Universities vs For-profit Schools

The type of degree that you earn upon graduation, the amount of money you will pay for tuition, and the length of the program will vary depending on the nursing program and the type of school.

Community College

• Tuition fee is cheaper compared to  Universities and For-profit Colleges
• May take a long time before getting accepted unless you are really lucky
• Earn an Associates Degree in Nursing (ADN) upon graduation
• A generic RN program generally can take up to 2 years
• A bridge program from LVN to RN can generally take about a year

Public Universities

• More expensive than Community Colleges but can be cheaper than some For-profit Colleges
• May have more admission and recency requirements for classes
• 4 years of nursing school to earn a Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing upon graduation
• May or may not have a bridge program from LVN to RN or RN to BSN

For-Profit Schools

• Admission into the program is easier and faster compared to Community Colleges and Public Universities
• May be the most expensive route to get a nursing education. You will most likely need to get a student loan when you enroll at a For-Profit School
• Graduate with a Bachelor’s degree upon graduation
• The length of the nursing program can be shorter than a Public University
• May or may not have a bridge program from LVN to RN or RN to BSN
• If you are applying to a For-Profit College, double check on the board of nursing website to make sure that they are accredited or approved by the Board of Nursing
• There have been instances of For-Profit Colleges abruptly closing down with no notice to their students. https://nurse.org/articles/education-corporation-of-america-close-nursing-sch/

RN Program requirements

Different schools may have some differences in the requirements for admissions for the RN program.

• Most nursing programs now have a recency requirement for science classes meaning the schools want you to have taken your Anatomy, Physiology,  and/or Microbiology classes within a certain time frame. Some schools have a recency requirement of 5 years while others have 7 years.
• Go through the list of requirements for each school before sending in you application.
• If you have a foreign diploma or have taken classes at a University abroad, you will need to have your transcripts and/or you diploma evaluated for equivalency. There are several organizations that provides this service. Ask the admissions and records office at your school to find out which organization they prefer to use for the transcript evaluation. These organizations will not keep your records forever so request for multiple copies of the evaluation. This can cost a pretty penny but you will need multiple copies of your transcript to apply and re-apply to multiple schools.

RN Program Criteria for Admission

Different schools will have different criteria and admissions process

• Some schools will require you to attend a workshop for application to their RN program. During the workshop, the requirements for application, requirements for graduation, and the date when you need to come back to submit your application will be given to you.
• Some RN programs have a waiting list for admission. For example for  Los Angeles Trade Tech there is a 2 year waiting list. As long as you have met the requirements,  you can apply for admission and then about 2 years after you will get admitted into the program.
• Other community colleges have a point system, where applicants are awarded points for meeting certain criteria such as GPA average, TEAS or HESI exam score,  if you already have a Bachelor’s degree or an Associate degree, if you are fluent in foreign language, if you have experience working in the healthcare field.

TEAS vs HESI exam

• Some schools may require you to take the ATI TEAS exam or the HESI exam. You can take the TEAS exam multiple times but some schools will only consider your first TEAS exam score. Check your schools requirements to make sure that you are taking the correct version of the TEAS exam. If you take an older version of the TEAS exam, your school may not accept it.
• There are some schools such as Azusa Pacific University that does not require their applicants to take the TEAS nor the HESI exam.

Start Saving Money Now

The RN program is intense. Simultaneously working and going through the RN program will be even harder. It’s not impossible to do both but it will be very difficult. Focusing solely on the RN program increases your likelihood of passing the program. I understand that most people have financial responsibilities and can’t afford to quit your job for a year or two while in nursing school. In most cases, if you are still planning to work, you may have to reduce the number of hours that you plan to work so you would have enough time to go to class, to go to clinical rotations, to study and to go over the reading materials. 

There are other costs associated with your nursing education. Besides the tuition fee, you would also need to buy your uniform and other equipment for your clinical rotation. Your school may also require you to purchase a subscription to ATI or other software programs.

If you are applying to a Private College then you may get accepted right away. Granted that you will be paying a lot of money with private colleges. If you choose to go through the Community College or University route you may have to keep trying a couple of times before you get accepted into the program. There are times when people gets accepted to an RN program on their first attempt to apply for an RN program but most people are not as lucky. In some cases you may have to keep trying for a while. Getting accepted into an RN program may take about a year or two. While you are waiting for that acceptance letter or email, plan to save up some money.

Apply for financial aid, fee waivers, and/or scholarships. Every bit of money helps so go to your schools financial aid office and find out how you can get financial aid