Too many online NP programs

Nursing Students NP Students

Published

I will be applying Fall 2015 to an FNP program but am noticing just how many schools have gone to online/distance education only. WHY? I want to sit in a classroom, get to know my professors, and go to clinicals in the area of the school, ESPECIALLY if the school is affiliated with a large university hospital system. Is this too much to ask? I think the nursing profession is selling itself short by creating so many online NP programs. How are people going to take us seriously if this becomes the normal way to pursue our education?

Please, this is not a personal attack on nurses attending online NP programs. There are reasons people do online (personal/family responsibilities in home state, can't leave job, etc) but for people that CAN and are WILLING to move to attend an FNP program full time (and I do think this should be the normal and preferred way)...why aren't these available anymore?

I would love to discuss this trend and read the opinions of traditionally educated vs. online-educated NPs.

Specializes in Internal medicine/critical care/FP.

And if I was 18 again I probly would have done trade school instead. Avoid the looming "education bubble" which is soon to pop due to these said online degree programs.

World needs more more good plumbers.

Specializes in Adult Internal Medicine.
And if I was 18 again I probly would have done trade school instead. Avoid the looming "education bubble" which is soon to pop due to these said online degree programs. World needs more more good plumbers.

In the past three years my wife and I have had baby and bought a beautiful big house; I really thought we were ahead of the game in our mid 30s. Then I look at the kids I graduated with from high school that are trade professions and have four kids and big beautiful houses years before we did. So I hear you on the trade school route.

Specializes in Adult Internal Medicine.
Writing papers on nursing theory and ensuring it is in proper APA format does not build skills as a clinician.

It was mindless busy work during my BSN and I imagine it will be mindless busy work for NP school as well.

Being able to write a paper in APA format is important for the profession, and ultimately practice. Nurses, and NPs especially, need to be contributing to research. Part of my masters degree involved publishing and independent research study and it has continued in my DNP program. This is an important part of the future of the profession that, sadly, is being lost.

How do you know if publishing improves practice as a clinician? For me it has improved my practice. I have written three major chapters of NP texts and the process absolutely improved my own practice.

You can't extrapolate RN school to NP practice.

Specializes in Outpatient Psychiatry.
Writing papers on nursing theory and ensuring it is in proper APA format does not build skills as a clinician. It was mindless busy work during my BSN and I imagine it will be mindless busy work for NP school as well. Writing pathophysiology papers or papers on why and how a specific drug class works, sure, that would be great. But the "write a 20 page paper on how Maslows Hierarchy of Needs plays into nursing" doesn't offer much of anything on how to diagnose and prescribe, which is what should be the core of NP education.

Personally, I learn best by case studies. Case study/paper hybrids would be fine as long as they are clinical based.

I think case studies are great as well because they provide a forced application of what we've learned and require us to learn what we haven't. You're equally correct on nursing theory. Frankly, I feel "nursing theory," in its attempt to legitimize the profession, actually makes nursing, at an academic level, appear shallow.

Specializes in Psych/med-surge.

There are many hybrid programs available. I think we need to make a distinction between online verses for-profit. Online does not necessarily mean for profit. Many public institutions offer NP tracks. This being said, I went to Chamberlain for my RN-BSN. Chamberlain was no cake walk, and it prepared me well for graduate school. Chamberlain has a B&M campus. It does not have an associated medical center. I would be very wary of going to a NP school that does not have a medical school. I am a PMHNP, and yes I went to very good program for my MSN. But to each his own.

Specializes in Internal medicine/critical care/FP.

Nursing theory is totally just a push to try to make nursing as respected as medicine. All of our theory instructors were nit picky old ladies who would like nothing better to write a 1000 page manual on how wiping front to back is superior to other butt wiping methods. Way to over complicate things bored old ladies. Get a life

I really think there needs to be a distinction between for-profit online programs (which I think are not good for the profession for a myriad of reasons) and traditional, well-know universities that offer online programs that are quite rigorous. I currently attend an online program, and I really don't think that it would be anymore helpful to sit in a classroom and listen to the professors in person than have them do the same lecture live over the internet (which last for three plus hours, blah!). I obviously went to a B & M school for undergrad, and feel like the online program is actually a better, more efficient way of educating people. Of course, clinical placement is a whole other ball of wax that both online and B & M NP programs need to address. I live in Pittsburgh, which has probably too many NP programs, and a coworker of mine is attending a highly respected NP B & M program. I was shocked to learn that all of his exams are open-book!! Our tests are all proctored and closed book....this made me question the whole damn thing! I think instead of getting hung up on physical location of the student and school, there needs to be more conformity in more important things such as if professors are giving open-book exams to graduate students who are expected to prescribe medications and make diagnoses upon graduation. I must admit I am highly jealous of those who can take open book exams ;), but I do not think that it is fair or helps the legitimacy of NP programs.

Specializes in Psych/med-surge.

Megan,

I have a co-worker that went to the University of South Alabama. The way she describes that program, it is much more rigorous than my hybrid program. I went to a public intuition, the University of South Alabama is also a public institution. Both have associated medical centers/programs. I wish I had looked into other public institutions that offer NP tracks online. I feel like I spent too much time driving back and forth to school that could have been used studying or spending time with my family.

Specializes in Internal medicine/critical care/FP.

Only open book exams? Lol. So they determine people are safe to practice how? By simply passing the aanc or aanp exam. Man no wonder we aren't respected by other providers. rofl

I really think there needs to be a distinction between for-profit online programs (which I think are not good for the profession for a myriad of reasons) and traditional, well-know universities that offer online programs that are quite rigorous

In addition to this distinction, people also need to distinguish between online-synchronous class VS independent / on-your-own online learning. The former is more rigorous. I agree with "synchronous" online learning. There are not much distinction between sitting in class and meeting online. But there needs to be some form of "synchronous interaction" to foster learning. Technology nowadays, allow students and faculties to interact efficiently online in real-time setting.

There are good school that have the mixture of on-site exam and class with some online "synchronous" class at specific time and date which allows student to present their case and interact with faculty and other students using online classroom technology. This is acceptable.

On the other hand, I do not believe in non-synchronous, independent learning. Posting on discussion boards and writing papers are not sufficient for a good learning experience. Maybe for other degrees in foreign language or other field.. not in healthcare. Unfortunately, some schools use this method because it is "flexible" for their students. They don't need to commit to the time for being in class. I know that students want the maximum flexibility and do not want any commitment or time but I think they missed out a lot due to the lack of real-time interaction. I know we all want this..look at how many posts that we asked about whether there are online programs with minimum classrooms involvement... but going back to school need some sacrifice...

I was told by my preceptors that she did not want to precept online students anymore. She feels that knowledge base is lacking. She observed that the students at the local students at the on-ground prestigious (partially-hybrid synchronous course work) programs outperformed the online students / distance-learning student.

Specializes in Psych/med-surge.

I don’t exactly agree with this. Two of the top graduate schools for PMHNP now deliver a completely online format. Rush and Vanderbilt are in this format…not synchronous, either. Actually, Rush and Vanderbilt are ranked in the top 5. I know my co-worker “knows her stuff”. Some people may not be as affluent as you are, having kids and the like that they want to spend time with. Going back to school requires sacrifice and money. I went to an ADN for my RN, a for profit for my RN-BSN, and a hybrid program for my MSN. None of the three were easy. I doubt Rush and Vanderbilt are either. For profits are not currently offering the PMHNP track online.

Specializes in Internal medicine/critical care/FP.

Eh oh well. Many of the online only peeps will be like ZOMG I CANT FIND JOB PLZ HELP ME IM PRO AT WRITING PAPERS HIRE ME PLZ two years down the line. Bummer.

+ Add a Comment