Cost vs benefit of BSN at middle age

wattsup · Jul 18, 2018

Hi,
Have been lurking for many years...I had to join so I could reply to this post
I have been a nurse for 22 years from ltc to critical care. I have achieved a lot with ASN but have gone as far as I can I think. At 59 years old I am in the second term of WGU RN to BSN. Highly recommend the program.
I will most likely be 60 years old when I finish and will probably continue at WGU for MSN

thanks @nursebert for the WGU recommendation. i've been looking of their program too.

amzyRN · Jul 18, 2018

I know 3 nurses who work in a level 2 trauma center who only have an ADN in the LA area, one in ICU. One of them is in the process of getting their BSN. It does limit some choices, but there are hospitals that make exceptions. Sometimes there are discounts offered through an employer and tuition reimbursement offered. I would do it because it will open more doors and you might want to switch to something less physical as you approach retirement.

brandy1017, ASN, RN · Jul 18, 2018

I would be leery of going back for your BSN unless your retirement savings is on track. How much do you currently have in student loans? How much tuition reimbursement is your hospital offering? My hospital was only offering $2,000 a year for full time employees and that amount would be lucky to pay for one class a year if that.

I think the fact that you are living in a rural area will protect you from needing a BSN, but it's not a guarantee. Also rural hospitals are under alot of financial pressure and some of them have had to close. Still I'm sure there are other places that need nurses like nursing homes, home health, clinics, outpatient centers and day surgeries.

If you do decide to get your BSN I'd advise doing the cheapest online RN-BSN you can find and use your hospital tuition reimbursement. WGU is the cheapest option I'm aware of and can do as many classes as you want for a flat fee, so you could save a lot of money if you were willing to spend all your free time on completing your BSN ASAP. I would take the reimbursement if I was going to get my BSN, knowing it's free money if I stay and being prepared to pay it back if I decide to leave. I wouldn't discount it just because of the contract because what if you stay there till retirement anyway then you are losing out on free money!

As to getting your MSN for teaching, most college teachers are adjunct faculty, paid by the class, which in reality is less than minimum wage. It is not a decent paying job so I wouldn't advise it. Very few professors are tenured these days. Only the tenured faculty make halfway decent wages, the rest of the adjuncts juggle multiple classes at several universities if they are able to piece together an income, many don't even get health insurance and find themselves on food stamps! Granted nurses have the option of working part-time at a hospital to make up for the poor pay of teaching, but would you want to get into a field that pays so little that one can't make a decent living at it! I sure wouldn't!

Oldmahubbard · Jul 18, 2018

The main positive I can offer is that you might be able to work a less physically demanding job, and thus extend your career by several years, or even more.

I would not go into substantial debt for it.

brownbook · Jul 18, 2018

I took some BSN classes when I was 45. Some classes were great, organic chemistry, physical assessment of the human body, some were not so great, something about the history of nursing, nursing theory, one class we watched the movie Shirley Valentine and wrote about it!!!!!

I just couldn't handle writing any more papers, plus other things were going on in my personal life, and dropped out.

What helped me the most in my nursing career, from med/surg, to management, to working in the wonderful world of outpatient surgery (no nights, no weekends, no holidays), with only my ADN, was my willingness to float to all units in the small hospital I worked in.

I think would have been hard to stay in med/surg, nights, every other weekend, etc., as I got older. But I was willing to float to different units, and ended up with great hours in a relatively easy job. Which had nothing to do with my degree.

Does your hospital have some kind of outpatient surgery unit? Does it have a gastroenterology unit? Some area, some unit, that is a little easier on the body and easier on the "life style" than med/surg? You could potentially move into those areas? Maybe even a management or education position may not require a BSN.

But that is just me, my story. I hate to discourage anyone from getting more education

EDNURSE20, BSN · Jul 19, 2018

You still have plenty of time. You've only just started working, there's no reason why you need to rush this desicion. Get some experience for now. In a year or two you might be wanting to go for your bsn. Or in 10 years time you might still be happy without it. You don't need to decide right now. If your happy where you are, why change things?

Trauma Columnist · Jul 19, 2018

I was working at a Magnet hospital when they decided charge RNs had to have a BSN - got mine at age 46, went right into the MSN, got that at 47, post MSN-Adult CNS at 48, post-MSN Peds CNS at 52 and have been an APRN for 12 years. Have never regretted it.

Would I do JUST a BSN in my 40's - nope, not worth it. However, the MSN IS worth it IMHO.

AnnieOaklyRN, BSN, RN, EMT-P · Jul 19, 2018

Also BSN would give you an easier avenue to become a midlevel provider down the road if you decide you want to do that.

Annie

AJJKRN · Jul 19, 2018

Would you get a BSN if it was not required?
I am a middle aged (if I live to be a hundred) new ADN nurse. I work at a smallish hospital in a rural area that does not require a BSN. The hospital has no plans to change this policy. They do offer tuition reimbursement for nurses that want to purse a BSN, if that nurse is willing to sign a contract to work for the hospital 5-7 more years after obtaining the degree. They also pay a (whopping) $1 more an hour to nurses who have their BSN.
I hope to work about 15-17 years before retirement. I would love some thoughts about the benefits, or lack thereof, of spending the money and time pursuing a further degree given my...ahem....advanced age.
I recently ran into one of my former instructors and her opinion was that, in our area, the BSN wouldn't really pay off unless my interest was in management (it's not). She brought up MSN and teaching as an option. (We are also home to a community college with a great nursing program.) I told her that I am still dreaming of the day when I get through a shift confident in my skills as a nurse, can't imagine that teaching someone else would ever be a reality.

Like others on this thread, my hospital didn't require a BSN...until it did. Magnet helped roll out the requirement for new nurses to have their BSN in five years upon hire. I would have been exempt but really would I if maybe I got hurt on the floor and needed out of bedside.

I could see the trends. Managers with 20+ years of management experience were stepping down because they were near retirement and didn't want to go back to school and take on unnecessary debt. It was very eye opening for me.

I second looking into WGU. Awesome and very reasonably priced education as long as you stay on point.

I look at it as job security either way.

walkingon, CNA, LPN · Jul 20, 2018

I'm a LPN in this position. Would love to get my RN, but my employer doesn't offer tuition reimbursement. I went to the local community college to check out their transition program and was told I would basically have to start nursing school over because my vocational school credits wouldn't transfer. Can't fathom running up thousands in student loans for 15, maybe 20 more years of work, but I would go back right away if I could somehow get it paid for, at least in part. Maybe I just need to find a new job.

kbrn2002, ADN, RN · Jul 20, 2018

Normally I would say if you don't need it don't get it. The only thing that would change my opinion is the tuition reimbursement. How good is it? If your employer is willing to foot the bill and you don't plan to leave their employ before the required time is up then why not let them pay for you to get the BSN?

beekee · Jul 20, 2018

I am a second career nurse. I finished my ADN in my mid-40s. I have never had any desire to go into management. Heck, I don't even want a cushy desk job. I'm totally fine with med-surg bedside work.

However, I quickly realized that the pace and physical requirements are likely more that my body will be able to handle in 10 years or so. Even if my body survives nursing, every time I have an unsteady patient trying to walk to the bathroom, I think about how one fall could end my career.

So, I got my BSN as an insurance policy. I went to WGU and completed the RN-to-BSN program in one term, so about $3500. Granted, I think completing in one term is the exception, not the rule, but it is possible (or at least it was, as the program is continuously changing). You may never need that insurance policy, but if you do, you'll be so glad you have it. Just be sure to get the cheapest "policy" you can find.