Are For Profit Schools really BAD?

[Schneid1]

I am changing careers at the ripe old age of 40. I am working through my prerecs now but I honestly don't have years and years to work towards a) getting into a public school program, which in my area can take YEARS!

I have always thought poorly of "for Profit" education (now realizing I'm not sure why I thought that...) but as I am facing a mid-life career change I am thinking it might be the best option for me.

I am in the Denver area and could apply and likely graduate from Denver School of Nursing before I could even get accepted to my local community college ADN or AAS program (Front Range Community College)

My question is- are they really that bad? Will anyone want to hire me if I get a job from a "for profit" school?

THANKS fr your guidance!

[HalfBoiled, BSN, RN]

Only the cost of tutition is bad. The "for profit" colleges in my area has a great academic structure and superb reputation.

[caliotter3]

NCLEX pass rates are a poor way to evaluate a school. The NCLEX pass rate only tells you what percentage of their graduates pass the NCLEX. What you really need to know is what percentage of the people who originally enroll pass the NCLEX. Attrition rates in for-profit schools are generally high. If 95% pass the NCLEX but only 75% of the students who start actually graduate, that's not very good. Many schools, both for-profit and taxpayer funded schools give exit exams to manipulate the pass rate percentages. If you don't do well on the exit exam, you aren't allowed to graduate. This prevents weaker students from taking the NCLEX.

The other thing you want to know is how many students graduate on time, not just graduate. The accrediting agencies consider on-time graduation to be 150% of the scheduled program duration. If you take 6 semesters to complete a 4 semester program, technically you are considered an on time graduate.

A program that I considered had an excellent reputation as to quality of education, but what I didn't hear at first was that each and every class had a minimum of a 50% attrition rate. I spoke to people associated with former students. Their description of the environment said it all for me. I just did not care to be part of the wrong 50%. And I wanted to avoid "strong" personalities with little to no interest in my personal success, so I rejected the better program in my area.

[missmollie, ADN, BSN, RN]

The tuition is going to be higher, and there is the possibility that your classes won't transfer if you're getting your ADN, or if you're getting your BSN and plan to pursue a MSN. Apply to all local colleges in your area. There is no easy way into nursing, but you can definitely do it for less money.

Try a spreadsheet. Figure out how much money it will take to pay off a student loan from the for-profit college vs. the non-profit college. Is it more affordable to wait a year. If the answer is yes, then you do just that. I'm sure your real estate license is still active, and to be honest, you'll probably make more money in that field than in nursing. Think long and hard about what you're about to do.

[Schneid1]

Yes! This all sounds very similar to what we are faced with here in Colorado! People spending three or four semesters taking and retaking classes just to get more "points" to get in next time! It's brutal and I think I could have spent more in terms of time and money and lost income in this situation- hence the difficult decision re: going to a for profit.

[Orca, ADN, ASN, RN]

Many of these schools sprung up to take advantage of student loan money. Some are more scrupulous than others. The better ones provide a decent education, while the lesser ones want your cash and they don't care what you get back for it. All cost a lot of money. Personally, at 40 I wouldn't be looking for the quicker, but substantially more expensive, fix. You could earn more income by starting your career a bit earlier, but a lot of that income would be siphoned off by your student loan payments.

I went to a community college, paid for tuition out of pocket, and graduated with no loan debt. I was 40 when I finished, so I can identify with your situation.

[shanoviah]

Where do you stay?

[shibaowner, MSN, RN, NP]

Don't rule out nonprofit private nursing schools. These may seem expensive, but many offer generous financial aid. You won't know until you apply. I attended Johns Hopkins because even though I was accepted by UCLA and am a California resident, Hopkins was cheaper because I got more financial aid from them.

[smartnurse1982]

What is the difference between private,non profit schools and public,non profit schools?

[SummitRN, BSN, RN]

What is the difference between private,non profit schools and public,non profit schools?

Private Non-Profit = Yale, Stanford, Georgetown, Harvard

Public Non-Profit = University of Pennsylvania, University of California, your local community college

For-Profit = University of Phoenix, Devry, ITT Tech

[llg, PhD, RN]

What is the difference between private,non profit schools and public,non profit schools?

Public vs private:

1. Public schools are ultimately run by the state government. Keep going up the "chain of command" and eventually, you'll find government officials -- e.g. a Board of Governors appointed by the governor of the state ... the state legislature, etc. The state sets the general guidelines for running the school and generally provides a significant amount of funding, thus keeping the tuition lower for in-state students.

2. Private schools are not run by the state government and receive little or not direct funding from the tax payers of that state. They are run by organizations that are not government entities.

3. For-profit schools exist to make a profit for their owners/shareholders -- just like any other business. The product they are selling is and educational credential. And they pay taxes on that profit just like any other corporation. The corporation can be a private company with a very limited number of owners (even a single person) or a large, public corporation with thousands/millions of stockholders.

4. Non-profits schools are not allowed to make a profit by law. They commit to funneling any revenue they receive back into the delivery of services to their students/academic community. Most often, they are run by organizations/foundations that were created to serve the public they serve by delivering academic services to the community.

[G019, BSN, RN]

Do what you need to do to get your RN license. It's important that the school you choose is regionally/nationality accredited and in good standing with your state nursing board. In my area there were a few public schools who've had to shut down their nursing program due to low NCLEX scores.

Higher education is far more expensive now than a decade ago period. Evaluate your finances to know what debt you may be facing upon finishing.

I paid for my prerequisites out of pocket and then took out student loans (federal) for my program due to the demanding class schedule. Cut corners wherever you can financially like renting books etc.