Private Colleges???

tfleuter, BSN, RN · Apr 28, 2009

I know byu is not nln accredited which can be detrimental for furthering your career or going to grad school out of state...

According to this thread ( https://allnurses.com/nursing-faculty-nursing/ccne-vs-nln-76354.html ) and others, more and more BSN and MSN programs are moving towards CCNE accreditation (which BYU has) instead of NLN. In what way is CCNE detrimental to your career if this seems to be the trend of higher institutions?

I know BYU, Utah Valley Univ, U of U and Weber are competitive based (no waitlists that I'm aware of) and yes it is difficult to get in, but if you can pull the grades, then you have saved yourself a lot of $$ in tuition fees. Since I want to eventually move onto an APN position, I prefer to keep my undergrad fees as low as possible. I know for others, that is less of a concern. To each his/her own :specs:

CPhT2RNstudent · May 9, 2009

I just finished my third semester at SLCC. I applied in Dec. 2005 and had a start date of Fall 2009. In actuality I will be graduating when I was scheduled to be just finishing my first semester. The health admissions office says the scheduled start date is fall 2014 right now for new applicants. Believe me, people drop off. I didn't move up on the list for my first year, then all of the sudden I got a call that I was in. The other nice thing about SLCC is the load of nursing school is lighter compared to a BSN program so you can focus on your GPA, etc. Then you can do you RN-BSN and hopefully have a great GPA when you graduate. You can be working while you finish the RN-BSN. To avoid the wait list work for one of the following U of U, IASIS, or IHC who all have their own nursing program through SLCC that they pay for. You will have a guarenteed job and no debt. They do require a 2-3 year contract (3 for the U of U). I would say at least get on SLCC's wait list as a back up.

Edit: SLCC has their own math class that is not offered elsewhere that is a prereq. Also they are likely going to require CNA before you get on the waiting list soon.

nurseman78, BSN, RN, NP · May 9, 2009

I would up being accepted to Davis Applied Technology College's LPN-to-RN program (gives you an ADN from Weber State University after the RN year), so in my case, I won't have to worry about Westminster until Master's degree time, many years from now. But best of luck to those still applying. I definitely recommend you check out DATC and Ogden-Weber Applied Technology College. While I was turned down from Weber, I was accepted to both of these.

tfleuter, BSN, RN · May 9, 2009

Congrats on your acceptance! I won't know about UVU for another 2 months! I hate the wait.

For anyone checking this thread out, it should be noted that UVU is going to change their application process very soon here. For one, in the Spring of 2010 they will increase their enrollment from 40 to 60. Also, they are no longer going to allow students to retake any pre-req course more than once. Apparently, one of the reason's the gpa average at UVU is so high (3.85 past 2 semesters, expected to increase for this application period as well) is that applicants would retake a course as many as SIX times in order to get an A in it. That seems pretty ridiculous to me, considering that by the time you have taken a class that many times, you probably could have been through SLCC's waitlist or at least near the very top. This will for sure drive down the gpa requirement. The school is also requiring that all students get a B or better in the pre-reqs instead of a C.

nurseman78, BSN, RN, NP · May 9, 2009

Frankly, six times retaking a class raises the eyebrows a little, IMHO. I can see having a bumpy semester once, but if it takes you six times to pass A&P, Chem or Patho for example, it makes me wonder how that student will fare in actual nursing classes, where you only can take them once. At the DATC, for example, if you get below an 80% on your tests, that's it. Out. So I think UVU's decision to allow students to retake the classes only once is a very good thing. It helps them see who can really handle the program.

tfleuter, BSN, RN · May 9, 2009

I completely agree. I personally feel like if you have to take a class more than 3 times to get an A in it, you don't really didn't do "A" work in the first place or shown mastery in the subject. May ruffle some feathers with that, but just how I see it.

nurseman78, BSN, RN, NP · May 10, 2009

Ruffle feathers? I think it's completely justified. They give A's for a reason. And, honestly, nurses have it a titch easier when it comes to retaking classes than doctors. If you retake a pre-med class, med schools simply don't count your re-take grade, but they average the two together.

utah_nurse1 · Aug 5, 2009

I dont know where people are getting their info, last semesters pass rates were 96% and this semester is 95%. I dont know where people are getting 30 or 60%. Ameritech has come a long way over even the last year, and accreditation is only a matter of time, its a long process. I graduated from Ameritech and would recommend it to anyone looking to get in and out of school without being on a waiting list FOREVER! I had my preceptor and other nurses that I would work with in clinicals tell me that they were totally impressed by the students and that I was the best student they had ever worked with. Being a good nurse doesnt depend on the school you go to, being a good nurse means putting in all the time and effort to study hard and learn the stuff! Also credits will transfer to different schools, not all but there are quite a few options if you want to go further.

nurseman78, BSN, RN, NP · Aug 5, 2009

Utah_Nurse1, thanks for clearing that up. I think sometimes people have a tendency to bad mouth private colleges because of the price and because of the lack of some accreditation. I work with some nursing students going through the Stephens-Henager program, for example, and a common complain is accreditation and the exorbitant price.

However, I think if the NCLEX pass rates are good, it should be a serious option to consider. It also depends on what your long term goals are, such as whether or not you want to get your Bachelor's, have the option to get a Master's some day, etc.

testpilotb · Aug 6, 2009

Again I think that someone should be careful with Ameritech. They are on probation and are under the microscope by the Utah Department of liscening and the NLNAC. While they are improving, they are still below the national average with the NCLEX exams(This is right from the DOPL website). Until Feb, their pass rate for the NCLEX-RN(not LPN) was extremely low. For 2008 the NCLEX RN pass rate was, in fact, just 60%(again from the DOPL website) I personally left Ameritech because of a number of issues I found there. I know for a fact that I would have passed the NCLEX there, but it would not have been because of a focused and positive educational experience. I personally had conversations with BOTH the NLNAC and DOPL that were less than positive. Furthermore, when I had instructors at the school urging me to leave, that told me alot. I hate to be negative, but I think that people need to see all sides of the issue. I am sure the program works for some, and I applaud those that went through the program and I am excited that they have done well. To those that are considering any private colleges, crunch the numbers, an extra year wait and you will have far less debt and the ability to go on in your schooling if you choose.

Thanks for listening to my rant.

nurseman78, BSN, RN, NP · Aug 6, 2009

Also, a lot of schools don't have waiting lists, such as Weber State, Davis Applied Technology College (where I'm going) and Ogden-Weber Applied Technology College. They are all great programs, and select via a point-based system. Plus, the tuition cost, and the great amount of grant money they give you, makes it much less of a hit on the ol' pocketbook.

aloha2you · Oct 8, 2009

There is a private school in South Jordan with a BSN program. They are called university of southern nevada. they're accepting applications and the counselor told me that they do not have a waitlist for the Spring 2010 class.