The Benefits And Drawbacks Of Private For-Profit Schools - Page 5

unfortunately, there are a lot of places out there like this one. my mom went to one for her ma and couldn't find a job at all, even with the school saying they offer job placement assistance. i tried telling her that, and told her not to even waste her money, but she did and got nothing out of it, except who knows how much debt. she finally went to a place that taught cna classes and now has her cna. i don't know who approves these schools, and i don't think this should even be allowed.

I currently attend a private for profit ADN. Total cost is $50k for the 2 year (full 24 months including prereqs). The school does not advertise its rn program at all, although its other programs are heavily advertised on tv. the only way you would know about the program is from the brn or word of mouth.
It was an easy decision for me to make to attend. The junior colleges in my area (southern ca) are on a 3-4 year wait list . Thats not including 2 years of pre-reqs or 2 years of the actual program. 7-8 years for an adn is just rediculous to me.

I'll have to admit the $50k is more than intimidating, but I thank Uncle Sam that he's paying for almost half of it through financial aid. ((I would not have signed up if it wasn't for substansial financial aid, $50k is a lot for an adn especially for a young single mother)) The for profit I attend is very competitive and its not exactly easy to get accepted. They admit 40 students twice a year. For the group I applied into there were 1200 people trying for those 40 seats. Theres a 6 month process of entrance testing, an essay, and interviews. The students who get accepted are not typical trade school students. Most are either already in the medical field as an lvn, cna, paramedic, or emt. and there are others who have a degree in another field.

The school is not regionally accredited, which is the largest downfall to me, but i do have a few options for bsn. the school does have "candidate status" for nlnac, and is fully accredited from the CA brn.

Our clinicals are all at regular hospitals. we see students from the jcs and universities at these same hospitals. The program is vigorous. if you fail, you fail, and then you are out. We can't pass each term or graduate unless we pass an exit hesi in addition to regular finals. the hesis are tough, but they are to help students pass the nclex. The previous grads have had no trouble finding employment with their for profit degree.


There are cons: not regionally accredited, disorganized to some level (we dont find out our next term's schedule until the week before the term actually starts!), the corporation has rules in addition to the ones set by brn (we cant pass meds or start ivs without an instructor present, even though brn says we can pass meds as long as there is any rn present, not specifically our rn instructors) , Oh an lets not forget the price tag.

for me it came down to simple math: 2years of rn school(including prereqs) for a little less than $30k orrr 7-8 years at the jc with somewhere around $10k.

Just think long and hard before making a big financial decision. profit or non profit the decisions are going to impact the rest of your life someway. My route to do for profit made sense for my life, but it wont necessarily be the right decision for others.

Senate report finds large cost gap between public, for-profit colleges

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August 7, 2012 | Erica Perez


Senate report finds large cost gap between public, for-profit colleges | California Watch