Denver school of nursing and other schools that are not nationally accredited?

RN2bemommyof3 · Aug 22, 2007

I'm pretty sure that most if not all Universitys will not accept courses from a non-accredited school. That being said I believe that if they became accredited after you graduated the accreditation would be retro-active to all classes that graduated.(I could be wrong on this)

Good luck!

Kimberly

Blove86 · Aug 22, 2007

I wouldn't chance it. I would think about how hard Nursing school is and then to go thru all of it and then not have a valid degree to use for advancement. Depressing thought that is!

ICURNDENVER · Jun 20, 2008

I just got back from visiting some family in Denver and I came across the Denver school of nursing. It seems there is very little waitlist and they have an ADN and BSN program. Their tuition seems to be high and one of the "knocks" on them is that they are not accredited. If I chose to attend such a school and graduated before they became accredited, would I be able to pursue a graduate degree at a University? Is it really a big deal if the school is not accredited? Thanks for your help.

Hello, I saw your post as I was browsing. I am part of the first class to graduate from Denver School of Nursing (DSN). I understand what you are going through with trying to find a nursing school with a waiting list that is not 10 years long. However, there are some things to consider about a non-acredited nursing school. I don't want to discourage you from going to that school. It was an excellent program. I have a great job in the ICU and I feel like the program really prepared me.

However, DSN is not accredited by the NLN (National league of Nursing) or the CCNE (Collegiate Commission on Nursing Education). One of these accrediting bodies must review the school and give them an accredidation or not. It does not matter which, but your school must be accredited by one of them.

As far as transfering to a university once you are finished... It is nearly impossible. Your degree from DSN will NOT be transferable to any school EXCEPT university of phoenix. and lets face it, they take anyone. I am still researching this. So far I have been rejected by UNC (university of northern colorado). I am wondering though if it would be possible to transfer in my credits to university of phoenix and then transfer to a university half way through my program...

I hope this helps. The best advice I can offer is do you research. If moving out of state is an option, try rural areas. Maybe their nursing school lists are not as long.

Never2late1 · Jun 21, 2008

Hi David

I understand why accreditation is very important, but to me as long as I can become a RN faster, what else could I ask for? while nursing schools are getting harder to get in now. Since only the University of Phoenix accept the degree of DSON, I still have an option to go to higher nursing education, which is better than nothing.

AOX4RN, MSN, RN, NP · Jun 22, 2008

I'm pretty sure that most if not all Universitys will not accept courses from a non-accredited school. That being said I believe that if they became accredited after you graduated the accreditation would be retro-active to all classes that graduated.(I could be wrong on this)

Yes, you are incorrect as I learned. In SoCal one of the new Everest College ADN programs told me this would be the case, that accreditation after my graduation would grandfather me in. I checked with NLNAC about that before going any further and was told that grandfathering doesn't exist.

To the OP, DSON is neither nationally, regionally, nor NLN accredited. It's merely approved by the CO Nursing Board which is the base requirement for getting a license. They are very clever in their FAQ to point out what community college nursing schools are also not nationally accredited, but fail to state those community colleges ARE regionally accredited and will transfer right on through to the university level. I know this because my Arapahoe Comm Coll credits are transfering state lines without a hitch because it is regionally accredited; my nationally accredited midwifery school was not transferred. Not a single credit of 3 years education. Regional accreditation is the key, NLN or CCNE accreditation is icing. DSON says they approved and regulated by the "Colorado Department of Higher Education, Private Occupational School Board". The Dept. of Higher Education (state only) is different from the Dept. of Higher Learning (the regional accreditation body that oversees CO).

Good luck deciding.

jeeps · Aug 23, 2008

Yes,

It IS a big deal. If you don't believe me, do a search for recent news about Canyon College, where a woman spent $5500, supposedly got a degree and then was allegedly told she could face CRIMINAL charges if she tried to use that degree to get a job. The school was not properly accredited for the purposes of nursing jobs. Just search for them on Google or somewhere and read the media info, after you get past any websites promoted by Canyon College themselves. Read the facts.

revolution · Sep 29, 2008

What about schools that are accredited by a stage BON rather than one of the national bodies?

Trauma Columnist · Sep 29, 2008

What about schools that are accredited by a stage BON rather than one of the national bodies?

Actually the state board of nurses just certifies that the program meets the standards of the state. They have no say in accreditation. It is conceivable to graduate from a non-accredited school, take boards and then not be able to get a job and not be able to further your education. Its a risk few people would take.

sunray12 · Sep 29, 2008

Actually the state board of nurses just certifies that the program meets the standards of the state. They have no say in accreditation. It is conceivable to graduate from a non-accredited school, take boards and then not be able to get a job and not be able to further your education. Its a risk few people would take.

Well in looking for a nursing program, I just noticed there are some community college RN programs in my state that are BON accredited but not nationally accredited. I’m assuming that this is because they may be new and that they will be nationally accredited sooner than later. The classes in these programs are full as we speak so they are not lacking for customers. The curriculum is pretty standard in every cc program in the state so I’m not sure where the problem would be with transferring credits. I think the bottom line though is when in doubt about a school/program first check with the BON in the state where you intend to get your license to find out whether they recognize graduates of the program as eligible for licensure.

BellasMommyOBRN · Sep 29, 2008

my persoanl opinion is no way. very high tuition without being able to receive financial aid. i was scared away by the lack of accreditation. if you plan to stay as an rn than i wouldn't worry about it too much. i want to eventually be a crna so that school wasn't a good choice for me.

:twocents:

Snarf · Aug 15, 2009

In the past nursing schools in Colorado were never required to be accredited by the NLN or CCNE but all of that is now changing. The BON is mandating that all Colorado nursing programs be accredited...any program that fails to achieve NLN or CCNE will be closed. Accreditation is a costly and time consuming process but it is necessary to ensure quality nursing education. When looking for a nursing school, be sure the school is also regionally accredited by an agency approved by the Higher Learning Commission, otherwise the credits are essentially worthless. These proprietary schools like Concorde and Denver School of Nursing charge megabucks and you come out with credits that cannot be transferred to quality graduate (or BSN) programs. I know so many nurses who graduated from these schools with hopes of going on to be nurse practitioners only to find out no decent school would take them.