ACCREDITATIONS??

[flyfish108]

Hello,

I am presently in the process to enroll in Nursing school, the school that is top on my list for my ADN is Fortis College. I am concerned about the accredidations, it is an accelerated program where you can acheive your degree in 24 months, but I am concerned about my future and transfering to a University to obtain BSN. What accreditations should I look for? How important are they? I am in a position where I am 30 year old Male, laid off, have 3 kids and I need to finish as quickly as possible, but I want an education that is recognized by employers and universities.

PLEASE HELP... Thank you,

Dave

[happy2learn]

You will have to retake your gen ed courses if you want your BSN. Unless, you get your BSN from another for profit school.

I believe Fortis is nationally corrected (correct me if I'm wrong anyone), so you will be able to sit for the NCLEX. However, the Fortis by me has their accreditation under review. So make sure you look them up on the nlnac.org website. http://nlnac.org/Forms/directory_search.htm

It seems like if you switch from nationally accredited to locally accredited(local university), then you have to retake the gen ed courses. But if you stay with nationally accredited, then you should be okay.

I only know this because I'm in class with people that went to for profit schools, some of which went to Fortis, and they have to retake their gen ed classes.

[flyfish108]

Happy to learn,

Thank you! That is very interesting.. Fortis college campus is very impressive, but they do not have NLNAC accreditation yet.. This concerns me as I am on the brink of pulling the trigger to enroll. I want to do it right, I want what is best long term for my career. It is a stressful situation trying to find the proper school to enroll at.

Dave

[happy2learn]

If they are not accredited at all, I don't suggest you go there.

"Some nursing schools are approved by their state board of nursing but are not accredited by a national nursing accreditation body. You should exercise caution in considering attending a non-accredited school.

While it does not mean that you will not receive a quality education or that you will be ineligible to sit for and pass the NCLEX examination, it generally does imply that you will not be qualified to attend an accredited nursing school in pursuit of additional education (for example, an RN-to-BSN or a master’s degree program). That, in turn, might limit your progression in your professional nursing career."

It is best to avoid non-accredited programs and schools, even if they are less time-consuming, more available, and/or less expensive than accredited programs. Attending a non-accredited school is risky at best. What is more, non-accredited programs are not only risky for the nurse aspirant, who may find them to be a waste of time and money when applying for jobs in the field. They are risky for the patients she or he will serve.

A non-accredited program means that financial aid, grants and scholarships will not be available. What is more, as one climbs up the nursing education ladder, a non-accredited program might not be considered strong enough to allow one to ascend to the next rung.

Should I attend a non-accredited school? - Nursing for Nurses

Accredited vs. Nonaccredited - Nursing for Nurses

Non-accredited schools - Nursing for Nurses

[llg, PhD, RN]

Check with respected universities in your region and see if they accept Fortis credits without any restrictions or exceptions. That will tell you a lot.

There are multiple levels of accreditation and it is difficult for people new to the world of higher education to sort it all out. That's why I recommend you talk with people from the best universities in your region to see if they'll accept Fortis College credits.

Academic colleges/universities are accredited as educational institions by regional accreditors, not national ones. Such schools often will not accept credits from "vocational schools," "trade schools," "career colleges" etc. that don't use the same system of regional accreditation.

The discipline of nursing has 2 national accreditors (run by the NLN and the AACN) that evaluate nursing standards are being met. They address the quality of the nursing education. Some employers and some schools will only accept graduates from schools accredited by one of those 2 organizations.

So ... you really need to consider BOTH types of accreditation -- the institution's accreditation as an educational instution and the nursing program's accreditation as a provider of nursing education. Without both of those being good, you may have trouble getting your credits to transfer to another school.

Third, the State Board of Nursing has to approve the program so that graduates can be licenced. That's a separate issue -- but certainly, one of equal importance.

[llg, PhD, RN]

I just thought of another big question you need to ask:

What happens if you get half-way through the program and then quit? Will your credits transfer in that case? Some of the universities in my area will accept a student into their RN-BSN programs from a "career college" IF (and ONLY if) the student graduates and passes NCLEX. If they want to transfer before graduation NONE of their coursework is transferable.

I have known people to pay a small fortune to a major career college in my area and then have to drop our for some reason half-way through (or fail an exit exam). They acquire HUGE student loan debt and end up with nothing. None of their credits transfer -- but they stll have all that debt.

At an academic college/university ... or at a community college ... at least the credits can transfer. You may have to repeat key nursing courses, but things like English, Psych, etc. might not need repeating -- and even the nursing credits can count as electives in some majors. Even if you drop out or flunk out, the credits you have earned (and paid for) can transfer to some extent. Find out if that is true of Fortis College credits before you pay big bucks for those credits.

[nurse2033, MSN, RN]

The two organizations that accredit nursing programs are NLNAC and CCNE. They are equally accepted. Additionally you can check the college accreditation. I would say this is highly important. I would not spend my time and money on a school that didn't have it.

[ASmith2012]

They are Nationally Accredited. The credits will not transfer to other colleges especially Regionally accredited. They did accept all of my transfer Gen. Ed classes. Will not accept any Nursing transfer credits though. They do not have NLN accreditation even though the guy told me they did. I transferred out of this school. Read my post on this site about the college. HORRIBLE experience. Hospitals do not look favorably at Fortis grads. Fortis has a horrible reputation in this area. Try other schools first.

[shanoviah]

I talk to someone from Fortis today and they told me that they have a contract with the Denver School of Nursing to get your BSM. They say it's completely online.