are private school more lenient on their admission requirements?

nekozuki, LPN · Dec 27, 2013

There's a private-for-profit BSN program in southern California that charges $132,000 in tuition for a traditional BSN program. The desperation of some people to obtain a nursing degree amazes me at times.

The business model is genius, and I can see why so many people fall into that trap despite the crushing debt and permanence of student loans.

Instant gratification + no upfront payment = willing participants.

krisiepoo · Dec 27, 2013

For-profit schools are more lenient. And by lenient, I mean, if you have a pulse, you'll likely get in. Although, the ease of admission is offset by 60k in loans.

That's an awfully broad statement you just made. I went to a "for profit" and it was very hard to get in and I don't have anywhere near 60k in loans. I went to this one because it was the only program in town offering night classes, good thing I had a pulse so I could get in!!

INN_777, BSN, RN · Dec 27, 2013

Yes, I just wanted to clarify that private ABSN programs in this area are by NO means easy to get into. They are also very demanding and competitive. It's just that state schools are even more so. Crazy stuff...

My husband, looking at me killing myself to get As, could not wrap his mind around why all of a sudden you need to be darn near a rocket scientist to get into nursing.

**NickiLaughs, ADN, BSN, RN** · Dec 27, 2013

I did a private lvn to rn. It was easier to get into, but the loans are much harder to get. However with the extent that these programs exist now, You need good grades connections and previous healthcare experience to stand a chance at a job now. There is so much more to it than just "get through school". What's the point in completing if you can't find a job?

elkpark · Dec 27, 2013

My husband, looking at me killing myself to get As, could not wrap his mind around why all of a sudden you need to be darn near a rocket scientist to get into nursing.

It's purely about the increased demand. When I went to nursing school in the early '80s, my school accepted perfectly ordinary young people, fresh out of high school (no prerequisites; they were built into the curriculum), and turned them into excellent nurses. Nowadays, everyone and his sister wants to become a nurse. If you have 40 "slots" in a nursing program and 200 or 300 applicants for those 40 slots, what criteria do you use to decide? You can't use subjective things like "nice" or "bright" or "seems like someone who will make a good nurse." Schools have to use objective, measurable criteria for making admission decisions because they get sued if they don't. That means elaborate "point" systems and GPAs. So everyone has to have top grades on their prerequisities to have a chance, and everyone knows that.

The last time I taught, in a state uni BSN program (respectable but nothing special), I taught one of the prereq courses. The uni's practice was to admit 4 times as many "pre-nursing" majors each year as they had space for in the actual nursing program, and the students in my class were well aware that only one out of four of them was actually going to make it into the nursing program (and that didn't even factor in people who were applying for the nursing program from other schools). They were killing themselves to get all A's, but also knew that everyone else in the group was killing themselves to get all A's. The desperation in the air in the class was palpable.

INN_777, BSN, RN · Dec 27, 2013

Yes, elkpark, all true. It just seems crazy to a person looking from the outside...as it very much should.

I myself made a decision to switch to nursing after volunteering at a hospital and had no idea what it entails nowadays until I started on the applicaiton circuit. Even with all the effort, I am still amazed I was able to pull off getting into an ABSN program. Starting in Jan and keeping my fingers tightly crossed for surviving this accelerated year and for a job at the other end.

flyersfan88 · Dec 27, 2013

Private or For-Profit? Private....no. I never understood where that misconception came from. For-profit? Absolutely. Private and for-profit are not necessarily interchangeable terms.

brandy1017, ASN, RN · Dec 27, 2013

I think many are because public schools are cheaper and more people apply to them for that reason, therefore, they raise the GPA standards as a way to weed odd the overwhelming demand to a manageable level. GPA usually becomes the deciding factor on admittance. Whereas there are just so many more private colleges available to choose from and they can be easier to get in since less demand due to the extremely high cost. Also if I chose a private college I would go to a non-profit rather than a for profit. For profits have higher rates of default. PBS has done some expose on private colleges. I know someone attending a profit college and they turned around and changed the rules on her and now are telling her she needs to go for the medical assistant program before she can do the RN. Obviously this is to maximize tuition at her expense and apparently this for profit classes won't transfer easily to other colleges leaving her feeling stuck and taken advantage of. I'm sorry I can't remember the name of the college. I would just be very leery of for profit colleges and stick to a private non profit if I couldn't get into a low cost public college.

ANnot4me · Dec 27, 2013

However easy to get into, it may be a different matter getting out. Accredited schools need to maintain a certain pass rate on the NCLEX or face losing that accreditation (or so it was 20 years ago). You can teach to the NCLEX until doomsday, but it is a very well-designed exam and I cannot see anyone passing it without a good understanding of nursing.