Both apparently are great ways to get your foot in the door towards a career in Nursing. However, i noticed that when it came down to Canadians, many opted to go the Pre health Route instead of PSW and i never understood why.
After reading many post regarding the American Nursing Forum, it seems as if CNA which is the American equivalent to PSW, is the more popular route for Americans; where as in Canada its Pre Health. Lets not forget that most PSW programs in Canada are basic enough where you can take pre req courses for BSCN or RPN while in the program.
I understand that here in Canada many PSW programs are 12 months and expensive. However, the experience you gain working as a nurse aid is worth the price in my opinion. You not only gain clinical experience working along side nurses, you get the basic theory component of nursing, which will help prepare you for the RPN program or BSCN program.
There are bridging programs tailored to PSW's wanting to go into RPN. George brown has one that is only 1 semester long and after completion you can apply to January start year of the RPN program. You also have the option of taking pre req for the BSCN program while in PSW school. That way once you're done, not only do you have a job in the nursing profession, you have the credits necessary to go directly to BSCN or RPN program debt free! (average pre health school is 4000 when you can get the same credits for free at night school or 40$ through ILC online)
So my question is why don't Canadians see the benefit of taking PSW program instead of Pre health? It seems to me that Pre Health program is a money scam..
I hope that i helped at least someone when it comes to seeing the benefits of taking the PSW program because its really underrated here in Canada and Pre Health is such a money scam.
Also on a side note you can get pre health courses where you don't have to pay tuition. It's not free but the cost is covered by the government. I did pre health at Durham College in Oshawa Ontario and I didn't have to pay the tuition. I had to fill out a couple of forms but it was considered CE or something.
They had a pre health with tuition as well so you have to look around
Call Durham and speak to their continuing education department and ask about pre health.
I used that pre health certificate to meet the requirements to apply at Durham, George Brown College and Centennial College (I'll be starting at centennial in September)
Though BSCN and RPN students are eligble to be employed for PSW jobs, preference will be given to those who already have PSW certificate. Secondly, Hopsitals and Long Term Care homes are usually looking to hire someone who has a certificate over someone who doesn't. Thirdly, your information is very dated, in this current economy BSCN students are competing with appilcants who have a PSW certificate and most PSW that work in hospitals have a PSW certificate. I worked in a Hospital I know what i am talking about. Again, you and the few students you know most likely got lucky on the job. Call any hopsital and see if they will hire a BSCN grad over someone that holds a PSW certificate and is in RPN or BSCN school. The smart thing to do for any student considering this route is to obtain your PSW certificate and take night school pre req's for the RPN or BSCN program (which is free at Mississauga Adult Education school) so that once you are in the program you will have a higher chance of getting hired at a hospital. In THIS economy you NEED to stand out as an applicant to get hired at a hospital or even long term care facility and having PSW certificate will give students the upper edge. How many months and years did it take those BSCN's to actually find work? probably a lot longer then a BSCN or RPN student who already has their PSW certificate.
I work in a hospital as a nurse now, but while I was in school worked as a psw both at the hospital and at a long term care facility. I had no issues getting hired. In fact, there ate several psws that are nursing students at the LTC home. I know what I'm talking about.
For some of us, especially if we're older with a family that needs our income, having your PSW and working might be the only way to make your dream happen. For me, taking a year to do pre-health was not an option financially. I went to one of the Adult Learning Centres...and wow, that place isn't for everyone. It was a very humbling 8 months for me to get my pre-req's to apply to RPN school. I finished my first semester and was hired by a home care company in January as a PSW. I was then hired by a county owned LTCF and spent the summer working as a PSW. It was an eye opening experience, truly the foundation of nursing. I know that my time spent as a PSW will help make me a better nurse in the long run. When in clinical I was fumbling with changing a brief, now?? LOL NO PROBLEM!
This thread seemed to become a little more heated than was intended (I think). For some of us, we just don't have the finances to take pre-health AND RPN or BScN.
Woah do claws come out on this topic....eek. I have to say that in my opinion, I agree with you OP. Many nurses I went to school with were PSWS and it greatly helped them. Myself, I was a CSW in school as I did not have the certification as a PSW. And ironically, it did help with my nursing.
1. PSW program prepares students for the BSCN and RPN program because it gives them clinical experience working along side nurses (such as bedside care), you also learn the basic theory component of nursing...
I was just curious...does anyone know what the "basic theory component of nursing" is that you learn from a PSW program? I've never been to school to be a PSW, but I am in school to be an RPN, and there is A LOT of theory to learn!
Wow, everyone completely missed the point and misconstrued what OP was saying. Catty! She wasn't say "this is the only way to get into nursing". She was asking why people prefer pre-health science programs over PSW combined with independant learning courses.
And for the record.... ILC courses/night courses are free! Talk to the hand.
I am currently in the position described here. I am debating whether to
a. To take a PSW program offered in my home town while working away at my ILC studies, or
b. Taking off to a different town to take a pre-health science program that I was accepted to.... and stressing my family financially in the process.
The benefits of have a PSW certificate are that I could work as a PSW through nursing school. I would also incure much less debt if I opted out of attending the pre-health science program and just continued with ILC. I know people are saying "you could work as a PSW in first year anyway" but...I don't think people realize that personal support work is becoming more and more regulated and preference is given to those with the certification. Being a magical, mythical first-year nursing student will not cause this to be over-looked.
OP makes very valid points. This is a good route for some people and a great way to quickly gain experience working in healthcare settings.
Just because 1 option (for ex. ILC) is much cheaper than option 2 (pre-health) doesn't make it free. By that logic does that mean my $1 coffee I bought today is considered "free" compared to buying a more gourmet coffee at $5?
I'm not being "technical", just stating a fact. I rather give readers accurate information so they can make an informed decision. I have spent $340 so far with ILC (that includes a graphing calculator for a math course) Yes, that is still a lot cheaper than prehealth, but far from being $0 (free)
I'm not being "technical", just stating a fact. I rather give readers accurate information so they can make an informed decision. I have spent $340 so far with ILC (that includes a graphing calculator for a math course) Yes, that is still a lot cheaper than prehealth, but far from being $0 (free)
You are right. I also misread your post. I wasn't aware that in other areas of Ontario you had to pay $40 for EACH course.
My perception was scewed because in my county they are provided free minus a ten dollar one time registration ("educational assessment") fee. To me in terms of value that looks like 0.50 vs. 1,000.
Ok then.... just because you feel ILC is free because it's a lot cheaper than other options doesn't make it free (most people equate free to being $0). I'm taking ILC courses because it is a lot cheaper than going through pre-health, so I agree with you on that. However, there are other reasons why people take pre-health over doing ILC. Some people choose pre-health because they rather be in a classroom setting learning things hands on and they don't have access to an adult/alternative school. I live in rural eastern ontario and there are no night schools. Doing correspondence through ILC isn't for everyone, you have to wait usually 2 days for a question to be answered through email and units take at least a week to get marked (it's a very slow process). If you're getting close to deadlines to apply for school, they will not mark your work any faster (check out the ILC facebook page)
If you decide to do psw and do ILC courses, they're not bad. I'm doing the U level courses and they're really straightforward. Good luck with whatever you choose :)
Talk to the hand.
just because you feel ILC is free because it's a lot cheaper than other options doesn't make it free (most people equate free to being $0). I'm taking ILC courses because it is a lot cheaper than going through pre-health, so I agree with you on that. However, there are other reasons why people take pre-health over doing ILC. Some people choose pre-health because they rather be in a classroom setting learning things hands on and they don't have access to an adult/alternative school. I live in rural eastern ontario and there are no night schools. Doing correspondence through ILC isn't for everyone, you have to wait usually 2 days for a question to be answered through email and units take at least a week to get marked (it's a very slow process). If you're getting close to deadlines to apply for school, they will not mark your work any faster (check out the ILC facebook page)
MizzMo
63 Posts
Also on a side note you can get pre health courses where you don't have to pay tuition. It's not free but the cost is covered by the government. I did pre health at Durham College in Oshawa Ontario and I didn't have to pay the tuition. I had to fill out a couple of forms but it was considered CE or something.
They had a pre health with tuition as well so you have to look around
Call Durham and speak to their continuing education department and ask about pre health.
I used that pre health certificate to meet the requirements to apply at Durham, George Brown College and Centennial College (I'll be starting at centennial in September)