Moving to Philly.Need help with programs

U.S.A. Pennsylvania

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Hi everyone

I'm trying to figure out where to apply for school once I get to PA. I was actually going to apply to harcum but Ive heard such bad things about it on this forum. I was also thinking about Delaware CC for the ADN program and then Applying to for the RN-BSN.

Someone said something about one of the BSN programs only being 6 months longer than the harcum ADN??

I'm so confused on this and have no idea where to go. I'm looking for a full-time program and would really like to start working asap which is why I wanted to do the ADN first. I may going all the way to anesthesia which is what I really want to do but it all depends on how long it will take and how burnt out ill be.

I just want to make sure I get into a good program whether its ADN or BSN. I'm starting from scatch so I would think id have a better chance doing my prereqs at a CC or even both my prereqs and ADN then transferring out.

My thing is the quicker the better but I don't want to sacrifice going to a crap school just to get out faster either.

Please any advice would be great.

Also do they have any schools that contract you to a hospital once graduated? They do that here in FL

Hi everyone

I'm trying to figure out where to apply for school once I get to PA. I was actually going to apply to harcum but Ive heard such bad things about it on this forum. I was also thinking about Delaware CC for the ADN program and then Applying to Drexel for the RN-BSN.

I personally would suggest avoiding Harcum, not so much because of the unfavorable reputation of the program but because it is very expensive. Harcum will run well over $25k while community college (Delco, Montco or Philly) will be well under $10k.

Someone said something about one of the BSN programs only being 6 months longer than the harcum ADN??

I'd think the difference is more like 12 mos than 6. It is very difficult to get through any ADN program in 2 years - most will take closer to 3 yrs because of all the prereqs. Since you can get through a BSN program in 4 yrs, this may be the better choice from the overall time perspective.

I'm so confused on this and have no idea where to go. I'm looking for a full-time program and would really like to start working asap which is why I wanted to do the ADN first. I may going all the way to anesthesia which is what I really want to do but it all depends on how long it will take and how burnt out ill be.

I just want to make sure I get into a good program whether its ADN or BSN. I'm starting from scatch so I would think id have a better chance doing my prereqs at a CC or even both my prereqs and ADN then transferring out.

My thing is the quicker the better but I don't want to sacrifice going to a crap school just to get out faster either.

Please any advice would be great.

My advice is to pursue the BSN. It's become the new standard as the minimum educational credential needed to get hired - you will find getting a job as an ADN very difficult in many parts of the country and certainly in Philly. I've heard that something on the order of 75% of my 2010 graduating class from DCCC have not been successful in finding a job. That figure is much lower for BSN's from Temple and and lower still for those from 'Nova and Penn.

That said, from a cost standpoint, getting your ADN from a local CC and doing your BSN on-line will be the least expensive way to go. As pointed out earlier, an ADN from CC will set you back less than 10 grand. The RN-BSN programs at Ohio, Wyoming, Texas and a number of other places are also less than $10k. So you could get your BSN for around $20,000. Drexel, Villanova, Widner - any of the private schools in Philly - will run more than double that and probably over $50k. Even Temple will be in the $30k range.

Also do they have any schools that contract you to a hospital once graduated? They do that here in FL

Not likely here unless you're talking about a diploma program (there are still 5 in the Philly area). Employment for all new grads is tough and hospitals are not eager to take on new nurses as was the case in the recent past.

http://www.ariahealth.org/default.aspx?pageid=3330

aria health school of nursing is a diploma program but its on its way to becoming a bachelor program affiliated with penn state. you can get your associates degree with penn state with this program if you choose too. its also in the process of moving its present location next year 15 minutes from where it is now. good luck

Thanks so much for the info.

This is so confusing because I keep getting conflicting advice. I have a friend who is a doctor in Philly and him along with 3 other doctors continue telling me I will have no problem getting a job after graduation even with an ADN. He continues to say there is a huge shortage and there's a lot of jobs open and will be in the future.

Then on the other hand I continue hearing the opposite on this board!!

Thank you for the advice to go for my BSN especially do to the fact that it will take 3 years to complete my ADN with prereqs and only another year to complete my BSN. I guess it would make sense to go all the way in one shot. If was going the RN-BSN fast track, it would take another year anyway so I guess it's the same thing!

I always thought if I had to take all the prereqs prior to my program it would be 1yr plus 2(for ADN) and 1 yr plus 4 (for BSN). But you're saying the BSN includes the 1 yr of prereqs so the total would be 4 years, not 5. ?

If I choose to go the BSN route where would you suggest I apply?

I'm not as concerned with price as I am with education level and time. I dont want to end up in a program where I'll end up failing the NCLEX.

If I choose the ADN, would DCC be ok education wise?

Sorry for all the questions but I've already wasted time at a school that ended up being HORRIBLE in an industry I chose later was a waste. The last thing I want to do is screw this up again!!

whats the difference between the diploma program and the ADN/BSN program???

I think one of the problems in the Philly area is that there are so many options it's difficult to make a choice. Don't discount the Diploma schools--you get a more in depth clinical experience, and the employment situation is not as dire as some would have you believe. I have worked in the Philly area for 25+ years, and have never not been hired for any position I applied for (although maybe it's because of my fabulous personality ;) ).

Don't forget, too, that once you become an RN (balancing expense and speed with quality of education), your further nursing education--BSN, MSN, Certification, etc.--is TAX DEDUCTIBLE!! Also, you might be able to get your employer to contribute. I have also been reading about more higher nursing education grants and subsidies related to the Economic Stimlulus and Healthcare Reform laws.

But, foremost, as soon as you get here, eat a cheesesteak and a tastykake krimpet (preferably butterscotch), and relax and enjoy our crazy city.

Good luck

Dave Dunn, RN

Haha will do!!

Yes there are so many! In miami there are like 3. Haha.

Do you work at a hospital in the city? Did you go to school there?

Ill have to research this diploma thing more. I know nothing about it.

I am an old coot (56), and have been a nurse since 1984. I went to Albert Einstein Medical Center School of Nursing, which closed a few years after I graduated, which is a real shame since it was an excellent nursing school. They had a ver y high graduation and board-passing rate, but the best thing about them was that their philosophu was to bend over backwards to get people through the program, and to become good community nurses. I hate to hear from so many students these days how their programs are just itching to fail them out.

The year I graduated was the year DRG's came out, which basically meant that hospitals were paid by the patient's diagnosis, no matter how much was actually spent, a cholecystectomy got paid the cholecystectomy rate, and so on. The hospitals went into a panic, and didn't hire many nurses that year, and the only places that were hiring were the "less desirable" places like nursing homes, and the local (huge) state mental hospital. I tagged along with a friend for her job interview, and the DON saw me in the waiting room and offered me a job, too--no resume, no background check, references or anything. It was one of the best jobs I ever had experience-wise, because it was known through the city that if you could survive the state hospital you could survive almost anywhere.

Ever since then, I have worked about 4 -5 different places (all psych-related), almost always increasing in salary and "perks" when going from 1 job to another. I have never not been hired for any job I applied for, even with "only" a diploma.

As to current diploma schools in Philly, I haven't really kept up with them, but I think there are at least 2 or 3 left. They now tend to be affiliated with one of the many local universities so they can offer transferable credits. The advantage of a diploma school (at least to me), was that it offered the most thorough clinical experience, and the science classes were tailored for nursing needs. I had several acquaintances who were in AD or BSN programs at the same time I was in school, and their clinical program was crazy--one guy I knew was on a peds rotation before he had ever made a bed or given meds! My diploma clinicals started at the basics--ADL's, hygiene, bed-making, vital signs, then basic adult med/surg, progressing on to more complicated scenarios like ob/gyn and peds.

I'm starting to babble too much, but I'll leave you with something our instructors used to tell us:

What's the difference between a BSN, an AD, and a Diploma Nurse? A BSN does 5 care plans and asks the head nurse for help, the AD nurse looks it up in a book, and asks the head nurse for help, and the Diploma nurse already knows what to do and does it, and then helps the BSN's and AD's with their patients.

Dave Dunn, RN

Diploma programs have the most clinical time over any other school. Bachelor programs have the least time. A couple of my teachers used to be managers and they said they would higher diploma program grats over anyone else in a heartbeat. Because they have had the most hands on time.

At Aria, you can still graduate as an RN without an associates or bachelors. But nowadays, no one does that anyway. Everyone I go to school with is going for their associates at Aria, from Penn State, and will go to Penn States RN-BSN program online after they graduate. U can get it in like 9 months. It all depends on how many classes you got done while in the program.

I entered Aria with my associates degree from my community college already. So I am already taking classes towards my BSN from Penn State now.

Its kind of complicated and i'm trying to break it down for you. Aria is an intense school and they have a great reputation. I am thrilled I ended up there, and im glad I didn't decide to go to Jefferson or anywhere else.

So true about the care plan thing. I'm just finishing up my second semester (at a 'diploma program')and I ended up doing 8 or 9 careplans total. I know someone in a community college (ADN) that will only be doing a total of 2 careplans in their whole semester, compared to mine.

Aria is a tough school, they keep you SO busy. Theres no doubt in my mind I will not pass the nclex.

Aria is a 2 yr 10 month program. BUT that depends on how many classes you have coming in, and how many you complete during.

Like i said earlier, i already had my associates. So that cuts me down 2 semesters. So I will be done in 2 yrs and 8 weeks. The 8 weeks is called a capstone course. You spend 2 months working side by side with an RN and u follow her schedule. My teacher said it will count as experience on your application after u graduate.

Here is a link of classes

http://www.ariahealth.org/default.aspx?pageid=3515

Illl stop talking your ear off now.

Aria all the way!!! :D

So true about the care plan thing. I'm just finishing up my second semester (at a 'diploma program')and I ended up doing 8 or 9 careplans total. I know someone in a community college (ADN) that will only be doing a total of 2 careplans in their whole semester, compared to mine.

Aria is a tough school, they keep you SO busy. Theres no doubt in my mind I will not pass the nclex.

What are the programs there? How are admissions? Is it hard to get in?

You mean there's no doubtyou WILL pass it right? Haha I hope that's what you meant!

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