Does what school you go for your FNP matter?

Specialties NP

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In terms of finding a decent job or acceptance as a NP?

Just curious ANPGNPFNP - what area of the country do you live in? I know different regions certainly do have different takes on APNs.

I live in Texas.

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I'm not passively doing anything. I'm stating my answer to the question. I'm surprised that the vast majority of the general public (certainly the people I know) strive to get their children into the best schools possible. Why wouldn't NP's strive for the same? I've gone to 4 state universities and one private college and I definitely got a better education at the private school. My daughter feels the same way. She got her undergrad degree at a private college and now she's working on her Master's at a state school. The professors at the private school were far more accessible and went out of their way to help her, but now she's just a number.

I think really it is a small group of people who are pushing for their kids to go to Harvard, Yale, etc. The same group of people who are caught up in the pursuit of image and names in other parts of their life.I value excellence and education just as much as the next person........I'm just at a point in life where I see that those can be found in a myriad of places and are not exclusively linked to a name.

We have a local private university in our town. Parents from all over the country consider this school an academic center of excellence and let me tell you, they pay out the wazoo for that reputation. We regularly have these students at our hospital to intern in a specific program (nursing and another discipline as well). Oh my word.......these kids have NO clue. They are invevitably shocked to know that their fellow students in the same program at a state university regularly trump them for jobs in this field. In fact, just looking at the name of the university alone, I would pick one from the state program over one from this private school.

I do know that some prestigious schools got that way for a reason and I totally respect the name. But please don't think for a minute that most patients care. They do not.

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I live in Texas.

Me too! Are you going to relocate to an Ivy league school for your NP program? There sure aren't any here! Surely you aren't talking about TCU? I know the professors there are accessible and they "help" the students a lot, but in IMO that is a huge part of the problem. The students come out with no critical thinking skills and lack virtually any ability to apply what they have learned. They are also missing some critical courses. (I'm not talking about their nursing program.)

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Specializes in ER, ICU, Education.

I have to side with anpfnpgnp, Although the quality of the education in some cases may be equal, other things come into play here.

School name recognition and the presumed quality of an education - does care weight when one is looking for a job. Many of the well known private schools, State Schools, or ivy league schools, have better resources (due to available monies and influential alumni).

These schools also attract the best faculty (because they can do cutting edge research and are compensated better), these factors of course, flow over to the students, in terms of educational opportunities. In addition, the network that is associated with these schools is usually stronger and more viable.

We might not like it, but it is true.

This exists in all professions. Why would you think that it doesn't apply to NP schools? I think in this case, the old saying you have to invest money to make money applies.

You better believe that I have applied to the well known/respected schools over the local state school for my NP. BTW many of these programs now have distance learning opportunities - Duke University is an example of this.

I know that I will get an excellent education, plus I will have the credentials and connections to compete in a tight job market upon graduation.

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Specializes in Emergency, Cardiac, PAT/SPU, Urgent Care.

Many of the well known private schools, State Schools, or ivy league schools, have better resources (due to available monies and influential alumni).

Now, I can see your point here - and I can agree with most of what you are stating, especially since you acknowledge other schools and not just the Ivies. I'm sure most people have heard of University of California or Penn State and would consider them good schools - and they both provide for research opportunities and attact top professors. I think those of us here who disagreed with ANPFNPGNP did so because she/he was only referring to the Ivies as providing the best education, and wasn't considering public institutions at all as being capable of providing the same.

I would also add that in my area of the country, there are several public, state institutions that are highly respected - especially when it comes to nursing programs; and NP graduates of these programs would be highly considered or even recruited for a job just like an NP grad from Penn or Columbia would. Some of these state schools also have very small class sizes, and professors do know students by name, not number. Maybe it does come down to wear you live where an Ivy league school name on your resume would make the difference - but I have yet to see that in nursing in this part of the US.

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I think what ANPFNPGNP is trying to point out is that among docs the school that other docs went to is very important to them. Graduating from Harvard Med is different in the eyes of many docs than graduating from State U Med. So why are people surprised when they use this same yardstick when it comes to APN's? In theory, if docs are presented with two APN's, one from an elite school and one from unknown school, which one would they pick? 9/10 times, it will be the elite school. However, this rarely happens. Docs probably will pick among individuals from schools they have only vague idea about.

I think this depends on the area. One thing about physicians is that the med school really doesn't matter. What really matters is the residency or fellowship. If someone did a residency at Mass Gen or JHU thats different than a residency no one ever heard of. Especially within their fields the physicians know what the outstanding programs are. The public may be impressed with Harvard medical school but the physicians aren't.

Within the physician community I doubt that any of them know which NP programs are good or bad unless they have worked with a particular program. Here a "name" school may help. On the other hand I know of at least one "highly ranked" NP program that has a local reputation for being long on theory and short on common sense. In this case going to the "highly ranked" program would actually be a hindrance. I would generally agree with Siri's original post. Most of the time it doesn't matter. Experience is going to get you an interview. How well you fit the practice and how well you interview (as well as what your previous employers have to say about you) gets you a job.

As a student the important thing to find out about a program locally is how do the physicians view the program. As a new grad this directly affects your ability to get a job (if you stay local).

David Carpenter, PA-C

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I think this depends on the area. One thing about physicians is that the med school really doesn't matter. What really matters is the residency or fellowship. If someone did a residency at Mass Gen or JHU thats different than a residency no one ever heard of. Especially within their fields the physicians know what the outstanding programs are. The public may be impressed with Harvard medical school but the physicians aren't.

Within the physician community I doubt that any of them know which NP programs are good or bad unless they have worked with a particular program. Here a "name" school may help. On the other hand I know of at least one "highly ranked" NP program that has a local reputation for being long on theory and short on common sense. In this case going to the "highly ranked" program would actually be a hindrance. I would generally agree with Siri's original post. Most of the time it doesn't matter. Experience is going to get you an interview. How well you fit the practice and how well you interview (as well as what your previous employers have to say about you) gets you a job.

As a student the important thing to find out about a program locally is how do the physicians view the program. As a new grad this directly affects your ability to get a job (if you stay local).

David Carpenter, PA-C

Usually the first 3 seconds of an interview is where the largest part of the best first impression is made... Usually the name of your school is not tattooed on your forehead :)

Brand name school vs non-brand name??? Unless one is looking at a very specific job at a very peculiar place probably won't make a difference.

Here in Georgia the program to train rural doctors is at one of the most expensive schools which is also private.. Kind of beating the purpose... I know a few doctors that has come out of the program. Great doctors one WAS a nurse, most all came from old money...

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I think those of us here who disagreed with ANPFNPGNP did so because she/he was only referring to the Ivies as providing the best education, and wasn't considering public institutions at all as being capable of providing the same.

quote]

I was referring to "top tier" schools and used a couple of Ivy League schools as an example. Obviously, not all Ivy League schools even have nursing programs.

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Me too! Are you going to relocate to an Ivy league school for your NP program? There sure aren't any here! Surely you aren't talking about TCU? I know the professors there are accessible and they "help" the students a lot, but in IMO that is a huge part of the problem. The students come out with no critical thinking skills and lack virtually any ability to apply what they have learned. They are also missing some critical courses. (I'm not talking about their nursing program.)

I graduated from Vanderbilt with my MS degree and received a post-Master's certification at UTHSC-Houston. Both NP programs are ranked in the top 20, but none of the docs have ever mentioned my UT education. Having the degree from Vanderbilt has definitely helped me land contracts. Maybe it's because Vanderbilt is a top ranked school overall and not just in nursing. I'm sure I'm not the only one who has experienced this.

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Specializes in CTICU.

I chose the school that was the best fit for me. It's not the cheapest, it may not be the most prestigious. However, I have worked with grads and admire their knowledge and skills, the school worked with me to sort out my international undergrad admission issues for grad school here, the money is doable, and it's convenient to where I live. They have excellent certification exam pass rates, associated clinical sites and are ranked highly for nursing education.

I did my undergrad nursing in Australia and I don't think my employers give a hoot - they hired me for the skills and experience I've developed over the past 10 years of practise.

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I think this depends on the area. One thing about physicians is that the med school really doesn't matter. What really matters is the residency or fellowship. If someone did a residency at Mass Gen or JHU thats different than a residency no one ever heard of. Especially within their fields the physicians know what the outstanding programs are. The public may be impressed with Harvard medical school but the physicians aren't.

However, to get that residency at Mass Gen or JHU or to get into derm, plastics, etc, it sure helps you a lot if you go to Harvard Med or JHU Med. To get into Harvard Med, it helps if you went to an Ivy for college. Not saying it's impossible to get into a great residency from State U Med, but it's a lot more difficult.

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NP grad from top tier school does not mean she/he is a good NP. Trust me I went to NYU and Columbia for undergrad and masters/post masters APN. Most of my clinical preceptors/instructors I had, did not graduate from Columbia or Yale or Duke. The best preceptors I've ever had went to public schools...SUNY Downstate and CUNY Hunter college here in NYC.

I don't get treated better than my non Ivy grad NPs here at work. Most of the staff I work with have degrees from all over country and some even have from international universities.

We have two foreign NPs( one from Australia, and another is from England...god I love their accents!). I don't look down or feel that I'm better than them just because I got my education at NYU and Columbia. MDs and patients DO NOT care where you got your education. I work in a 800+ bed hospital that is nationally well known.

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