Which BSN school should I choose in Chicagoland area??

U.S.A. Illinois

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Hello Everyone,

I applied to a bunch of nursing schools and I got accepted to NIU for Fall '13 and Resurrection University for Spring '14 and Olivet Universities' Accelerated BSN starting this Summer and I am having trouble figuring out which school to accept to go to for my BSN degree!

I would like to go to NIU because they have a prestigious program and I will have an easier time finding employment but that will take 2-1/2 years and I wont graduate till Dec '15.

Resurrection University has an accelerated program that is four semesters without a break, and with that program I start in Jan '14 and I graduate May '15.

Olivet Nazarene University also has an accelerated program that is four consecutive semesters long and with that program I would be able to graduate before September '14.

Ideally Olivet Nazarene University sounds the most appealing in terms of the amount of time spent in school pursuing the BSN degree. But, I had never heard of Olivet Nazarene University or Resurrection University until recently when I applied to those schools after doing a google search of nursing schools. Has anyone out here been to either one, especially Olivet Nazarene University? Both Universities claim they are CCNE accredited.

Can anyone please share their experiences and tell me if those Universities are worth going to for the sake of saving time, especially if I plan on going to grad school. I would like to pursue the DNP program for Nurse Anesthesia after I complete my BSN.

Would Olivet Nazarene University get in the way of my being accepted into the CRNA program?

Do employers and Graduate Nursing Schools look at what university you got your bachelors from before offering you employment or accepting you into their grad programs?

Please help! Any advise to help me make my decision would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

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Congratulations on getting into NIU. When did you get your acceptance letter? I am still waiting to here. I haven't heard anything about Olivet University, but I believe Resurrection has a good program. I also do believe when looking for employment after graduation employers do consider where you went to school. But just remember everyone has to take the same state boards, so I would look at the schools that you are looking at to find out their pass percentage on the test. That may help you decide.

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Specializes in Leadership, Psych, HomeCare, Amb. Care.

Olivet has been around for years. Have you looked at St Xaviar, Loyola, Rush, Elmhurst, DePaul?

They all have well regarded nursing programs, but some may not include BSN entry level

IIRC, Resurrection was part of a 2year program at west sub hospital, then affiliated with a university in river forest, before going on its own

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I am attending Lewis University (Romeoville) in May starting the accelerated program there. I also looked at Resurrection and Olivet. Resurrection was just too far from me (I'm out by Aurora). Make sure you look at the prereqs required for Olivet. When I compared the actual nursing program between Olivet and Lewis, Olivet's was a shorter timeframe. But when I factored in the required pre-reqs, Olivet would have taken me 1-2 semesters longer.

Congrats on your acceptance as NIU! Good luck in your decision.

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Specializes in ER, IICU, PCU, PACU, EMS.

Moved to the Illinois State Nursing Programs forum for more of a response.

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Go with a state supported school like NIU or UIC. Why pay private for a RN degree unless you simply can't get into state school or you're rich.

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