Community College or University?

Around here, the community college has a better reputation for our prereqs (certainly a better anatomy lab!). I took everything at the community college then transferred for my BSN program. I don't think there's any reason I would have been "pushed harder" to learn had I taken these courses at the university.

I'm certainly glad I didn't spend the money on university tuition when I didn't have to.

It sounds like you'd be able to live at home, from your post- that's a huge savings as well.

Just FYI, if you're not an RN yet (which I assume by this post that you're not), you aren't allowed to have "nurse" in your screen name. You can change it yourself through your settings. :)

I won't give you a list but I can tell you why I choose Community College...

I am in my mid 20s, married, and I live in a small town. Going to a community college allows me to pay less tuition money, stay at home with my hubby, limits my commute time, and I go to a school with a smaller professor/student ratio. I will be doing my clinicals in the surrounding community that I will live in after graduation and feel that it will afford me a great opportunity to network for a job. An ADN program will take me three years (1 year for prereqs and 2 years for the actual program) to complete versus four with a traditional BSN. Although there is a push, even in my small town, for Nurses to have their BSN so I do plan to enroll in an online RN-BSN program the fall semester immediately following graduation. The choice for ADN to BSN comes down to your personal situation. Both train you to be a nurse, both must be accredited by your state board of nursing, and both prepare you to pass the same NCLEX test to become licensed. In fact the school I plan to attend had a better NCLEX pass rate for 2013 than several area Universities. I believe I will save about $20,000 (that is a conservative estimate) going this route :)

Can someone give me a list of pros/cons for going to a community college then transferring to a university VS just going to a university. Both to get an BSN. Here's my basic list Community college first Pros: Save lot's of money Able to stay home (Saves more money) Less rigorous apparently? Able to get an job Cons: Some say you won't get your best education you could of got. University right away Pros: Pushed harder to learn (Could be good or bad) Cons: Money money, money.. Any more? Thanks![/quote']

I was in your shoes about two years ago. I chose the community college route for prereqs, then I transferred to a university for the nursing program (BSN). I will be starting the program fall 2014. The university is also close to home.

I chose CC because it was down the street from my house, way cheaper, and I had no desire to have the "go away" experience.

It's disappointing that people think they are just getting a sub par education at CC. I have felt challenged during my coursework, even after my many AP classes in high school. I guess it really just depends on your instructor. But I'm extremely happy with my decision.

It seems the CC instructors are much more helpful than the ones at the university. My friend who took her prereqs at the university said that many of the prof were unapproachable and seemed to try to weed out students from their class.

In the end, I wouldn't change my decision if I had to do it all over. I may have missed the student life aspect of my first two years of college but I'm very close to my family and friends.

To put it into perspective... My two years (60 credit hours) of CC education cost me $5,500. $5,500 pays for a little more than one semester at the university. Now I will have less stress about paying for my last two years.

I wish I went to a community college instead of a university. I went to a REALLY small high school & wasn't prepared for how big the university would be. You're completely on your own at a university & it's pretty much sink or swim. Because the university professors have 100s in their lectures, it's not personalized. Unless you seek help out, no one is gonna help you.

I guess that's why I prefer a community college, because the class sizes are smaller you can get better help; you're not just a number. It is always a bonus to save money by taking pre-reqs at a community college.

The learning aspect, I think you can get a great or terrible education from both. It all comes down to the professor. That's why you need to ask around as to what professor teaches subject X the best or who is the worst.

Good day, SeattleNurse711:

The education you receive at good community colleges is equivalent of good universities. At the community college I attend, hard core science classes (i.e. AP, Microbiology) typically have 24 or less students in the class vs. 100+ in a university. Talk about more individual attention if you need it. The largest classes I've had (sociology) had 35 students in the class room (compared to 100+ in a university).

Furthermore, you get what you put into it!!! If you give it your best, you can do well at either; so save money and go to a good community college.

Thank you.

Unless you want the whole "college experience" doing your prereqs at a community college is the best idea. This is exactly what I'm doing and basically the first 2 years of my college education is already paid for. I'll be transferring to the university in the fall to start the BSN program and by the end my degree won't say anything about starting at a CC.

I chose cc because it is cheaper and it's not as far of a drive for me (15 min vs 45min). My cc I am going to go has a partnership with one if the Cal States where I could start my BSN during my ADN as long as you are doing well in the program and you have all the pre-requ done.

Since the Bsn at a cal state is about 3 years long and the ADN is 2 years plus one year to get your bsn(full time) it would not save me any time going straight to a state university.

My tuition for my ADN plus the bridge program to get my bsn will be between 10-15k, if I would go straight for my bsn it would be around 20-25k.

I doubt that that you will get a better education at a state university, at least not in my area. All the CC have a better nclex pass rate than the cal states.

To sum it up, I think going to a cc and then bridge to a bsn program is a better financial decision. However, going straight for your bsn saves you the hassle of reapplying to a universities then waiting to get into a bridge program.

What ever you choose everything is better than a for profit school.

No it is not less rigorous !! You pass the same test and are expected to do the same job in 2 years instead of 4!! The biggest pro is that you're making money as an rn in 2 years at the community college and also it may be easier to get in. Most hospitals however do want you to have a BSN or to be working on one .. There are tons of 2+2 programs right now.. My school and many others partner with universities to help you finish your degree. That's a cheaper way to do it since community colleges cost less.. So as I say you'll need to expect to get your bachelors no matter what.. (To be competitive and get the best jobs and pay.) The route you take to get there does not matter. I recommend the 2+2 route. That's what I did/ am doing (I'm on my second 2) so may be a little bias. Please excuse my lack of editing.. Cell phone post!

ps: looks like I'm in agreement with the others here!

Totally agree on valeries point as well.. I went to a big university a while back as a small towner. It's really not very fun. My community college was very helpful with everything from financial aid to getting better grades.. We had a 96 percent board pass rate because they really helped us succeed and make our money worth it!!

Now that I think back I wish I had take prereqs at CC and then transferred. Good thing I went to state university though so I have no regrets. But if I had known in high school how nursing major is, I would have gone to community college. Its just that the pressure of seeing all your friends go to top notch universities makes you feel like a loser going to community college. But then you look at yourself a few years later and realize how stupid it is to compare school brands. Everyone takes different routes in life. The goal is to get to the finish line, nobody cares how you started.

So make it easier on yourself financially while you still can as an undergrad.