"Prestige" Nursing Schools

[meanmaryjean]

I am noticing an increasing number of posts lately by soon-to-be graduates (or prospective students) casually mentioning that they are attending a 'prestige' school. I'm not sure where this is coming from. (Besides bragging of course)

Just know that nursing school rankings (if that's how you are determining the prestige of your school) matter not a whit to the overwhelming majority of employers. What employers care about is:

Did you pass NCLEX?

Can you do the job?

PERIOD

Dropping $80 - 120K on a 'prestige' school when you can get the exact same degree from your state university for half the price is just plain foolish.

[~Mi Vida Loca~RN, ASN, RN]

Why would that matter, though? I have several friends that go to multiple different nursing schools. But my point wasn't necessarily that the "prestigiousness" (probably not even a word lol) probably doesn't really matter when applying to jobs. But it is the amount of opportunities that such schools often have for students, any student, that will be beneficial for us in advancing our goals and careers. Of course, this only matters if you actually pursue these opportunities. Many people don't, and that's fine. I agree that simply saying you went to a certain school on your resume may not affect your job opportunities (although this is something I see debated nearly everyday). I just find it's the other opportunities these schools thrive on that help. But yes I agree, 80-120 thousand dollars would not be worth it to go to a "prestige" school unless you are very wealthy.

This post here is a much different "tone".

It matters because your original post was very misleading and read more as you were actively going to one of those prestigious nursing schools (like as an actual nursing students) and you were going on about how hard and competitive it was, and how much it is going to benefit you and all it is affording you in terms of research and opportunities. So to then see that you're not even close to being in Nursing school and your prestigious non nursing school isn't even in the united states??

Which I am not saying that the US is the only country with good schools. Far from it. But again seems misleading when you're talking about one of these prestigious schools and your school is one of the best in the country, highly sought out and world travelers are coming just to attend. It would be nice to know you're talking about another country.

That said you are absolutely entitled to your opinion, no matter how invalid I might personally feel it is. Best of luck to you in your endeavors.

[blackberrymousse]

How do employers decide who to hire if, hypothetically, there are several candidates vying for a nursing job and they all passed the NCLEX and can do the job? GPA? Personality? Something else given that what school the candidates did their nursing program doesn't matter? Hypothetically, if I've passed the NCLEX (not the case haha, I haven't even started nursing school yet!) and I can do the job, what should I work on that will set me apart and help me secure the job compared with other qualified candidates? I've heard there's no longer a nursing shortage, in many areas and cities there is a surplus, so I'm already nervous about job hunting.

[~Mi Vida Loca~RN, ASN, RN]

How do employers decide who to hire if, hypothetically, there are several candidates vying for a nursing job and they all passed the NCLEX and can do the job? GPA? Personality? Something else given that what school the candidates did their nursing program doesn't matter? Hypothetically, if I've passed the NCLEX (not the case haha, I haven't even started nursing school yet!) and I can do the job, what should I work on that will set me apart and help get secure the job compared with other qualified candidates? I've heard there's no longer a nursing shortage, in many areas and cities there is a surplus, so I'm already nervous about job hunting.

I would be willing to bet that it comes down to your interview. When you sit in the office to interview with HR and then the nursing staff (if done separately) you have to sell yourself. Not your school, not your grades and study habits. They want to mesh with YOU and see your passion and why you're "in it". Because at the end of the day not only do managers have to think about which person is going to be smart enough, they want to know which one is going to work well with others, be a team player and patient advocate, know when to stand up and question things and no when to bite their tongue. Which person is going to equate to good patient experiences.

[caliotter3]

Throughout my career, since most of the time I have initiated the contact rather than responding to a posting, I've felt it depended on whether the employer could use another worker at that point in time and how much they felt I would fit the bill. In one case, when I was still in school, they hired me as much for my increased value when school would be over. Essentially, they always cared about me having a clear license and experience. As my experience increased their attitude was more positive about hiring me off the street so to speak.

(This response was meant for blackberrymousse, missed the quote.)

[OCNRN63, RN]

I think before you go on and on about how you go to one of these prestigious schools the OP is talking about (which they are talking about those in Nursing school going on about their prestigious nursing schools) and it's known to everyone in the country, so prestigious that people come from all over the world just to attend, and you argue that your school is going to be a huge asset to you after you're done with nursing. You should clarify that you're not in the US and haven't even applied to or been accepted into a nursing program yet, and the earliest you think you'll be starting is another year and a half away.

Wait...what?

[blackberrymousse]

Thank you very much for the advice, it makes a lot of sense!

[HermioneG, BSN, RN]

Wait...what?

In response to the OP, AspiringNurse talked about their prestigious school and how they believe it will be an asset in their nursing career because of the many opportunities presented there.

Mi Vida Loca pointed out that AspiringNurse is currently finishing their nursing pre-requisite classes and plans to apply to nursing school in like a year and a half or something.

It turns out that AspiringNurse was talking about the prestigious school where they're doing their pre-req classes, which happens to be in Canada. It doesn't mean that what AspiringNurse said was in valid, I (and many others) just didn't know that AspiringNurse's prestigious school was not a nursing school.

Super confusing... it took me several re-reads to understand what was going on lol.

[~Mi Vida Loca~RN, ASN, RN]

We all wipe the same ass when we graduate whether you went to a "prestigious" school or a no-name.

Sorry but I already established (with actual research I obtained from Gomer Blog) that if you graduate from a prestigious school, you get the better smelling poop and vomit and your overdose addicts don't smell bad. All urethra's are clearly labeled to make foley's easily inserted, all patients can use the restroom on their own when it comes to having a BM. The con is they are allowed to push their call lights once every 18 seconds and you have to fluff pillows hourly and have their Evian water chilled. Small price to pay though for the perks. I even heard you even get tips.

[~Mi Vida Loca~RN, ASN, RN]

In response to the OP, AspiringNurse talked about their prestigious school and how they believe it will be an asset in their nursing career because of the many opportunities presented there.

Mi Vida Loca pointed out that AspiringNurse is currently finishing their nursing pre-requisite classes and plans to apply to nursing school in like a year and a half or something.

It turns out that AspiringNurse was talking about the prestigious school where they're doing their pre-req classes, which happens to be in Canada. It doesn't mean that what AspiringNurse said was in valid, I (and many others) just didn't know that AspiringNurse's prestigious school was not a nursing school.

Super confusing... it took me several re-reads to understand what was going on lol.

Yea that was my bad. It was one of the few times my post was literally directly to that specific poster and something only they would understand. I didn't think about the fact that it wouldn't make sense to anyone else. I couldn't go back and edit when I realized I should clarify it to be a more general reply.

I was curious what school the poster was going to the way they went on about it being the top in the country since we have like 10 in the US that try and take that claim. So I looked up her post history and their recent post was tips about staying positive or something in Nursing school and how they plan to apply in Sept. 2018, then they recently said she thought about going to PA school but there were only 3, and in that thread I realized they were in Canada.

[bgxyrnf, MSN, RN]

I go to a "prestige" school and this "prestige" is noticed by ultimately everyone in the country. It is due to both the difficulty of the courses and the extensive medical research that takes place. The atmosphere itself is also extremely competitive since people from around the world come to study here. Also, Some of the most notable groundbreaking medical discoveries have been made here. I believe this is the main area where the "prestige" is. Although it may be true that we may all end up with a BSN and become a registered nurse (assuming we pass the exam) no matter where we go to school, the OPPORTUNITIES available at each school differs. In the above-mentioned school, I have the opportunities to participate in research at internationally reknown institutions/hospitals. This will help me advance in my nursing career or any medical-related career I pursue (ie., Masters degree, nursing research, etc). I have SO much on my resume that I would not otherwise have gotten if I didn't go to this school.

Sorry to burst your bubble but...

I've sat on several hiring committees and I can assure you that the degree-granting institution isn't on our list of considerations... it's not low, it's just not there. Sure, I've probably heard of your university but I can also assure you that the admissions criteria at our local state college are also very rigorous... many matriculants with >4.0 gpas, bilingual, previous health care experience, ample volunteer time, and prior degrees.

Competitive atmosphere? Given that nursing is not a competitive endeavor but rather one of extreme cooperation and teamwork, I'm not sure that having the "atmosphere itself (be) extremely competitive" is a positive... quite the opposite, in fact.

If you were meaning instead to describe the admissions process as being very competitive... yeah, such as it is at most public colleges and universities... which doesn't really mean much beyond its reflection of the increasing pressure to find solid middle-class jobs. I'm quite certain that outside of a hundred mile radius, nobody has heard of my university and yet... I held two degrees upon matriculation (engineering and chemistry), had a pending patent, multiple meritorious scholarships from my baccalaureate programs, stellar references from the head of the chemistry department there and the head of the biology department and the Dean of the school of natural sciences. I used to tutor the nursing students in chemistry there. On the standardized finals from the American Chemical Society, I'd scored in the 99th, 99th, and 97th percentiles in general chemistry, organic chemistry, and analytical chemistry (respectively). Heck, I'd even scored 13/12/12 on the MCAT and progressed through the first two steps of admission at 2 of the (only) 6 medical schools to which I'd earlier applied.I'd participated in research projects. I'd become functionally bilingual through my own ongoing efforts after having only one year of formal foreign language instruction. I'd done extensive volunteer work. And yet there I was at the local Podunk U... studying nursing with 23 other students with impressive backgrounds who'd made it through the 1-in-25 admissions process. Why Podunk U rather than UCSF or Duke or Hopkins or Yale or Columbia? Location and money.

Students applying from all over the world? Nope, not at my school. The reason why is nothing about prestige and all about practicality... being a state university, they do not admit international students to their program because they're overwhelmed with applications from families that live in their service area. They don't even admit out-of-state students. They do, however, admit students from all of California's 53 counties comprising some 38 million residents.

Groundbreaking medical discoveries? Meh. I'm not looking for medical researchers, I'm looking for bedside nurses.

The opportunity to participate in research at internationally reknown (sic) institutions? Double meh. I'm not looking for researchers, I'm looking for bedside nurses. Frankly, I'd far rather see that you did work at the local women's shelter or vaccine education outreach or health screenings at the migrant camps or health education for the homeless or disaster planning at the university... all things which are (a) much more germane to bedside nursing and (b) which were done by myself or my cohort at Podunk U.

Perhaps one day, when you apply to grad school, they might care about your fancy alma mater. More likely, though, they'll care about what you've been doing in your community and your institution since you've graduated. They'll care whether you've been published as a professional nurse. They'll care about your letters of recommendation and your GRE scores and even your undergrad GPA... most probably won't care much that your undergrad came from Duke vs. Podunk U.

(and for Duke, feel free to substitute Yale or Johns Hopkins or any other name that you think is all that... FWIW, I've never worked with a Blue Devil but I hear it's a pretty solid hospital)

[bgxyrnf, MSN, RN]

I just find it's the other opportunities these schools thrive on that help.

For certain disciplines, sure. Getting involved in medical research as a nursing student would be a turn-off to many hiring committees. It simply screams that you're a short-timer at the bedside and not a worthwhile investment as a new grad.

But yes I agree, 80-120 thousand dollars would not be worth it to go to a "prestige" school unless you are very wealthy.

Which wealth is one of the primary determinants of matriculation to such schools.

You'll have to take my word for it (or not) but I would have been a competitive candidate at any university to which I'd applied. Why didn't I apply to any of the big names? I couldn't afford it.

And yet... I'm employed at a level 1 pediatric and adult trauma center affiliated with one of the top tier medical schools in the US and opportunities abound to participate in nursing research as well as medical research... and I earn anywhere from $160k/yr to $250k/yr depending on how much effort I put in to it.

All coming from Podunk U and starting my career at a rural level-none hospital.

Keep telling yourself that the big name matters. I think I have more credibility on the topic and I will rebut you point for point insofar as the name pertains to opportunities in the nursing field.

[bgxyrnf, MSN, RN]

I go to a "prestige" school and this "prestige" is noticed by ultimately everyone in the country.

when I read your comment I must say you really did give off the impression that you go to one of the "prestige" nursing schools that the OP was talking about.

Looking at the wording, I'd imagine that everyone did.

And while everybody is entitled to an opinion, those founded on experience warrant much more credibility than do those founded on expectation.

I've seen no evidence at all that the national prestige of the degree-granting institution has any bearing on one's nursing career.