Chamberlain vs Vanderbilt

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Two vastly different schools. I am looking for a school that will give me a good education and is doable working full time with two teenagers and a baby. Childcare is covered if I chose Vanderbilt, but will the workload be too much since it is a one-year program? Time wise, with start dates, graduation would only be six months later with Chamberlain and the price is a little more for Vanderbilt, but the name is better. I have asked multiple HCP in my area if the name of the school matters and everyone says no unless I plan on going into research, which I am not. So....opinions fellow nurses?

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Will both schools provide your preceptors? I wouldn't enroll in a school that did not find your preceptors for you.

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They assist but do not find preceptors for me.

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Specializes in ER/ICU.

If you can manage Vanderbilt, I would definitely go there. As you said, the name alone could open doors for you. Vanderbilt was my first choice for FNP, but the traveling would be too much for me (I'm in middle GA) and I'm not in a position to move right now. Good luck to you!

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I will be working full time and have two kids so I am worried about the demands of the Vanderbilt program. Can anyone tell me about the difficulty of the program? I finished my associates program with honors and was very active on campus while working and will be graduating my online BSN program with a 4.0 as long as everything stays on track :-). So I work hard, I just don't know if I can work as hard as Vanderbilt requires.

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Hello,

I am in a unique situation, I transferred from a state NP program to Vanderbilt. All I can say is that I am SO much happier! Yes, it is a ton of work, but the instructors are there to meet you half way. I love having live lectures each week, and going to campus about every 4 weeks... it makes me feel included and not so alone in a distance learning program. This is my 2 cents, and you need to do what's right for you and your family.

Good luck!

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Specializes in Pediatric Critical Care.
Two vastly different schools. I am looking for a school that will give me a good education and is doable working full time with two teenagers and a baby. Childcare is covered if I chose Vanderbilt, but will the workload be too much since it is a one-year program? Time wise, with start dates, graduation would only be six months later with Chamberlain and the price is a little more for Vanderbilt, but the name is better. I have asked multiple HCP in my area if the name of the school matters and everyone says no unless I plan on going into research, which I am not. So....opinions fellow nurses?

Vanderbilt is do-able, if you don't mind your life sucking for a year. I knew one person who did the one-year program who is married with 3 school-age kids; she and her husband both worked full time and they also had a horse farm. Several of her classmates also worked, and one had a baby half-way through the program and finished as a single mom.

They seem to "assist" with you finding preceptors very little. It can be really hard to find placements...you have to know your own resources because they don't provide much help as far as I could tell.

It IS a good school, and has great name recognition though. Good luck!

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