Picking a Program: Johns Hopkins ABSN VS USD MEPN?

[monzziesCA]

Hi!

I am looking for feed back to help me decide which of these two nursing programs I should attend. I was recently accepted into University of San Diego's MSN for Clinical Nurse Leader (a MEPN) and Johns Hopkins Accelerated BSN.

I am open to and greatly appreciate any feedback, knowledge, experiences, or opinions that you might have on this subject. Please forgive the length of the post!

Here is my run down on the two programs plus some questions. Feel free to ignore what I have written and just leave input. I tried to summarize what I like about the schools and some burning questions I have. Thanks!

University of San Diego MSN Clinical Nurse Leader (MEPN)- 21 months:

I graduate with an MSN, will have completed 1300 hrs of clinical (double the clinical hrs of ABSN programs). The program also offers students an opportunity during both years of study to travel to Haiti and Dominican Republic to gain relief work experience. With this program, I graduate as a Clinical Nurse Generalist and after a year of working as an RN I may sit for the Clinical Nurse Leadership certification exam. Overall it seems the program is similar to an ABSN but with a lot more clinical experience and masters level course work. I plan to eventually become an FNP so the more learning reinforced with experience the better. I value this program for several reasons. 1) I love that it is 2 years of learning with a large variety of clinical settings. This seems very thorough 2) I graduate with an MSN 3) I currently live in Oakland and San Diego is only a 1 hr 20 min plane ride for my boyfriend who plans to remain working as an RN in San Francisco. *The USD Graduate School of Nursing is ranked #50 in the country.

Johns Hopkins Accelerated Bachelors of Nursing- 17 months:

The school has an incredible teaching hospital, a great curriculum, and does a lot of community outreach both in Baltimore and internationally. This is important to me because my partner and I want to open a primary care clinic in Oakland. I am passionate about offering community health programs and classes. Due to JHU's history of serving marginalized communities, I think it would be a phenomenal environment to learn how to deliver such services. Getting my initial nursing experience in Baltimore would potentially provide me with more opportunity to grow my understanding of how to deliver health care services that are considerate of cultural, economic, and racial disparities. BUT the program is almost the same length as USD and I graduate with a BSN. Plus its a 6 hr flight for my BF which would make things harder. * The Johns Hopkins Graduate School of Nursing is Ranked #1 in the country.

Questions:

Is the MEPN MSN better than a ABSN in terms of education and clinical preparation?

Does anyone have any insight about either program?

To anyone with hiring experience, is there anything specific that makes you more likely to select one new nurse applicant over another?

Experienced nurses, NPs and anyone who has proctored new nurses.. any thoughts?

Does the name Johns Hopkins stand out to people who are hiring?

Part of me wonders if attending a big name school puts me higher on the list for consideration, especially in a saturated job market such as the bay area. Ive never been concerned with the status associated with attending a renown school. For me this is about getting the best education and setting myself up for the most opportunities to excel at being a nurse.

Thanks again!

[L&D Minion]

hey! i am in the same boat as you in deciding between USD MEPN program and NYU ABSN program and GWU ABSN program. have you gotten any insight or feedback from anyone regarding this topic?

[windsurfer8, BSN, RN]

I went to a good school and it made zero difference when getting hired. I work right alongside ADN nurses and we are all payed the same. The big thing is look into WHERE you want to live. The more flexible you are the better options for getting hired. When someone says they will ONLY work on unit X or at hospital X then they decrease the opportunities. I am not saying the "school" doesn't matter, but it is more important for getting into grad school etc. Bottom line is a new grad is a new grad. Do volunteer work etc. No one ever asked about my GPA or the school. They want to know are you willing and able to work nights and weekends. And is your nursing license in good standing. That is just my experience.

[gunrock]

I went to Hopkins and did their ABSN program (although mine was 13mo). There were a ton of people from California in my program, myself included.

One of the big reasons I went to Hopkins was their financial assistance, it ended up being cheaper for me to live in Baltimore and go to Hopkins than go to a local private school. If finances aren't a huge concerns then this might not apply.

Also, Hopkins offers a direct entry MSN program, where you would start your FNP program right after the BSN, not sure if you looked into that. Also if you go to USD, you'd still have to go through a post MSN FNP program or go through a FNP program.

If you'd like specifics about the program at Hopkins feel free to message me directly.

[monzziesCA]

I went to a good school and it made zero difference when getting hired. I work right alongside ADN nurses and we are all payed the same. The big thing is look into WHERE you want to live. The more flexible you are the better options for getting hired. When someone says they will ONLY work on unit X or at hospital X then they decrease the opportunities. I am not saying the "school" doesn't matter, but it is more important for getting into grad school etc. Bottom line is a new grad is a new grad. Do volunteer work etc. No one ever asked about my GPA or the school. They want to know are you willing and able to work nights and weekends. And is your nursing license in good standing. That is just my experience.

Thank you for your feed back! It seems your experience is shared by other nurses I have spoken with. Being open to going where ever the new grad opportunities are, seems to be the way to go. I have decided to attend the MEPN program because I get double the clinical experience of the ABSN and still will have time to volunteer (according to current USD MEPN students). May I ask how long it took you to get into a new grad program? Im hearing that some people start applying long before they have completed their programs. Thanks again!!

[monzziesCA]

I went to Hopkins and did their ABSN program (although mine was 13mo). There were a ton of people from California in my program, myself included.

One of the big reasons I went to Hopkins was their financial assistance, it ended up being cheaper for me to live in Baltimore and go to Hopkins than go to a local private school. If finances aren't a huge concerns then this might not apply.

Also, Hopkins offers a direct entry MSN program, where you would start your FNP program right after the BSN, not sure if you looked into that. Also if you go to USD, you'd still have to go through a post MSN FNP program or go through a FNP program.

If you'd like specifics about the program at Hopkins feel free to message me directly.

Thank you for your feedback! I would love to hear more about your experience at Hopkins. I wish I had applied for the MEPN at Johns Hopkins. I feel like I underestimated my application's viability for that program. In retrospect, I should have just gone for it.

I am 99% sure I am going to USD's MEPN, but I am looking at Hopkins or UCSF for their post masters FNP options. Surprisingly, the MEPN program is more affordable for me because I can apply as an independent with FAFSA. After I graduate I plan to work as an RN for a few years to build my knowledge. I think this way I also have more time to decide if FNP is truly the APRN I want to pursue.

Thanks again and any info you can share on your experience at Hopkins would be so helpful!