avoid for profit, nonaccredited schools

[GinaR]

I taught undergraduate nursing courses for one term at a for profit, nonaccredited college. My students were bright young people seeking a BSN. One of my purposes in joining allnurses.com is to alert readers to avoid considering this type of college as a place to get a nursing degree. As a faculty member, I saw how the only goal of the college administrators was to make as big a profit as possible, collecting all the cash they could from students' financial aid sources.

I left the college after one term because I became extremely uncomfortable at the dishonesty of college administrators, who deceived students into thinking that soon the college would be accredited and that they would have no problems attending graduate nursing programs. The college was far from ever being ready for accreditation, because accreditation was a minor interest of administrators as long as good profits could be made from students.

I heard college deans and college administrators minimize the difficulties that students would face trying to get into graduate school with a nonacredited degree. Only when students were nearing graduation and making inquiries at graduate schools on their own, did they realize that no graduate program that they were interested in would consider them as a student because of their nonaccredited degree. Much disappointment and anger followed. I think that the students could find jobs as RNs, but those who wanted to go on for masters and doctoral degrees, found that all doors were closed. What I saw them doing was applying to another accredited college for another undergraduate degree, taking on even more student debt, so that they could use that second undergraduate degree from an accredited college, to go to graduate school later.

To put it most bluntly, individuals who run for profit, nonaccredited schools of nursing are unscrupulous people who are making huge amounts of money taking advantage of naive students who are unaware that these college programs are scams. Stay away from them, even if it means a long wait for a place at an accredited college. A diploma from an unaccredited school is worth nothing when it comes time to apply to graduate school.

[aachavez]

Accredited by who?

There are so many different accrediting agencies out there, many schools have some that others do not have. Could you be more specific about which accreditations a school should have?

[Georgia peach RN]

Ccne or nlnac are the ones i have noticed that graduate program are looking for you to have graduated from a nursing program accredited by one or both

there are regional accreditation agencies like the sacs that accredit the college in general

[GinaR]

The post above is correct. Accreditation by the NLN or CCNE is needed; regional accreditation too.

Take a look at the requirements for admission to any graduate school you are interested in. You will see that accreditation is needed.

[Patti_RN]

Also, look at your state's BON website; most states have a list of approved schools (with the school's address and phone number so there is no confusion). It's also important to note that the school must be accredited when you graduate, not six months or a year later. I've heard of schools promising that they will 'soon be accredited' and students are also told that their degree will be 'grandfathered' after the school gains accreditation--this is not true. States specifically ask on the NCLEX application if the school was accredited when the student graduated.

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

If a school constantly needs to advertise on TV for new students, it is most likely because the tuition is horribly expensive and too many of its graduates would never recommend the place by word of mouth. For-profit schools advertise continuously on daytime TV. That should tell you something.

Think twice before you utilize any good or service that advertises heavily on daytime television. The businesses that purchase airtime on daytime TV really think you are poor and dumb, which should be enough to insult anyone's intelligence. If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.

[PacoUSA, BSN, RN]

Honestly, I have to say that I don't feel sorry one bit for anyone who chooses to attend one of those for-profit unaccredited programs and end up feeling screwed. Due diligence is in order before you invest your money into a nursing degree. Most people go into these programs out of desperation ... they are tired of waiting to get into legitimately accredited programs.

I learned this lesson though in a different way:

When I went to law school, I went to the first school that accepted me (in hindsight, it was desperation), and it was a publicly-funded school so my tuition was cheap, I thought I had it made. Had I spoken to lawyers before I attended? Not once. I just figured this was a good career path. My conscience during my first semester was telling me to quit now, but I ignored it and surged forward. After graduation and passing the bar, little did I realize that WHERE you go to school was more important in getting a job than HOW you did as a student. Locally, the school had a fine reputation (and it has a decent one nationally, nothing to brag about though), but I did not want to stay in that part of the state, so 60 miles beyond the perimeter of the school, I was on my own. Thankfully, I was only laden with a fraction of the student loans other students had. Even though I had average grades and was a competitive candidate for associate-level jobs at the law firms, the bottom-ranked students at schools like Harvard, Yale and Columbia would always trump my resume. It got to a point where I would see job announcements specify "Top 25 law school grads only." I ended up doing "document review" which is a fancy word for "temp" in the legal field. Sure, the $$$ is nice and so are some of the perks (car home after 10pm, meals paid by client, nice hourly rate, lots of OT), but eventually that burns you out, and if you're in it long enough, you're no longer marketable for anything else (it's a dead freaking end for your career as a lawyer, and most of these gigs offer you no benefits either). Thus, I made my break from it once I found that nursing is where I should be.

In stark contrast, I did my due diligence for nursing. Spoke with many nurses, volunteered over 500 hours in a hospital, did my prereqs, spoke to professors. For nursing, went to another publicly-funded school, but one with a great reputation among nurses in the metro area, one that was properly accredited and one that would grant me a degree that would be readily accepted at any respectable graduate school. And I have never been happier. I got a job right after graduation and never once have I had regrets. My law degree? I am "retired" from law practice, but the degree helps me stand out among the rest, at least it's still worth something, and later on I am sure.

Moral of the story: Fully investigate schools that you are considering before you leap!

ETA: Where you go to nursing school is not as important as it is in law. By this I mean that you don't have to go to Columbia or Yale to get a fine nursing education. In law, I am sorry to say, that's just the plain truth, and I tell pre-law students: get into a top 10 or it's nothing. Top law firms want graduates from the top schools on their staff, period. In nursing, make sure the school is CCNE or NLNAC accredited, and consistently kept it up for several years at least!

[sdlane]

Paco69 is right on. Make sure the school is accredited. Don't be desperate to get in any school without doing some research on the program.

[CrazierThanYou]

I know several people, including a few relatives, that are attending these predatory "schools". Of course, you can't tell them a thing. They hear only what they want to hear and downtalk about their school isn't something they want to hear.

[CrazierThanYou]

If a school constantly needs to advertise on TV for new students, it is most likely because the tuition is horribly expensive and too many of its graduates would never recommend the place by word of mouth. For-profit schools advertise continuously on daytime TV. That should tell you something.

Think twice before you utilize any good or service that advertises heavily on daytime television. The businesses that purchase airtime on daytime TV really think you are poor and dumb, which should be enough to insult anyone's intelligence. If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.

Right? I have ALWAYS said I thought it was suspicious for a school to advertise on television.

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

I know several people, including a few relatives, that are attending these predatory "schools". Of course, you can't tell them a thing. They hear only what they want to hear and downtalk about their school isn't something they want to hear.

Yes. Unfortunately, many of the people who attend these proprietary schools are their own worst enemies. They are more willing to defend the school than even the school's own employees.

[Patti_RN]

I know several people who attended for-profit schools, some were military wives who believed they had no other option because of the constant risk of being transferred, others who couldn't get accepted to respected colleges. Only one of these people (who are now graduates) has found a job, but she is seriously underpaid and underemployed (considering that she holds a degree in her field).

I also have friend who used to work for one of the major for profit universities. He describes a corporate culture of deceit and greed. If you Google the names of the top for profit schools you'll find (after their many paid advertisements) articles describing unscrupulous business practices. One school failed numerous times to gain accreditation so they purchased another private college and inherited the accreditation from that school. It was a legal, but underhanded way to achieve what they failed to do on the merits of their own programs.

Sadly, when people are desperate and uninformed, they are easy victims of scam artists. These schools make promises and offer hope for people who often have no alternatives. I am very critical of these schools (and anyone) who prays upon vulnerable people, but I would never criticize the vulnerable and desperate person who is enticed with false promises to attend these schools. These students have my empathy; they are victims.