Do employers care where you went to nursing school?

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

Employers don't care where you went to school as long as it is an accredited, brick and mortar school. What they're interested in is your LICENSE. If both schools have similar NCLEX pass rates, choose the one that is less expensive/closer to home.

Going to UMass isn't going to give you an "edge" over other new grads. If you want to go to UMass and can afford it, that's where you should go. But don't choose it thinking that it's going to somehow give you an advantage over other new grads.

Student loans are a millstone around your neck until you pay them off. It is feasible to pay them off on a nurse's salary, but like everything else you make tradeoffs. I wasn't able to buy a house until after I'd paid off my student loans, and the debt made me decide against doing some things I would otherwise have loved to do. Borrow as little as you can get away with and repay them as quickly as possible.

Getting a BSN is a good plan, and I'm glad I started with a BSN. But I have dear friends who started with diplomas or ADNs and then got the BSN with tuition reimbursement.

[NICU Guy, BSN, RN]

If both schools have a good, quality program, local hospitals will not care. Once you leave your local area, having your RN is all they care about. I went to a state university and it wasn't an issue when I was hired at a hospital 3 hrs away from school.

2. Will going to UMass, a highly acclaimed program and one of the best in the country

"One of the best in the country" is subjective and usually touted by the school making the claim. There are plenty of high quality schools that most hospitals never heard of because they don't brag that they are "Top 10 School" or "Nationally Recognized".

There is a big thread about "Does the prestige of the school matter".

[Not_A_Hat_Person, RN]

In my area, recruiters tend to favor local schools because they're more likely to see the students in clinical. Otherwise, as long as your degree is from a reputable school, it shouldn't matter much.

Recruiters around here can be pretty insular. I talked to a nurse who moved here for a job. Apparently, her recruiter had never heard of Cleveland Clinic.

No reputable hospital will hire a U Phoenix grad as ICU director, regardless of what the commercials say.

[ruby_jane, BSN, RN]

Assuming PBA is a butt-in-seat school as well.... when you get out and work for a year nobody will care.

I got the current gig (in part) because the guy who hired me also went to the school where I got my nursing degree. In order to get to the guy who hired me I had to go through two other people and neither of them cared where I got my degree.

So...if you're looking to exclusively stay in Massachusetts, UMass *might* help at some point. But only because an alum hiring you likes your sweatshirt.

[caliotter3]

Employers care whether you have a clear license to practice nursing and they care about your solid nursing work history. Very few positions will be influenced by your academic credentials beyond the fact that you graduated from an accredited program.

[Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN]

Generally, I don't think they care as long as the school is accredited.

However, school reputations may matter more on a local scale. When was in nursing school, there were a couple of nursing programs in the area with less than savory reputations. Graduates from these programs often had a more difficult time finding work in the area than graduates from the other programs.

[akulahawkRN, ADN, RN, EMT-P]

I would tend to agree with the statement that local employers care where you went to school, if you're a local grad and you're reasonably new. Once you're no longer a new grad, they'll look for a clear license, that your program was accredited, and what your recent work history as a nurse is. This isn't something limited to just nursing. Your employers care that you earned your education from a legitimate source and your work experience backs up what you say you can do.

[umbdude, MSN, APRN]

It doesn't matter. Choose a program that has strong clinical placements and 1:1 senior preceptorship. If possible, find out from graduates of the programs where they end up working. Personally, I would choose the cheapest program that is not a for-profit program.

#3 Yes, it's feasible. But do you want to pay off a huge loan over many years when there are cheaper options?

[applewhitern, BSN, RN]

Yes, some employers DO care. We've had bad experiences with a few nurses from one specific school. These nurses were woefully ill-prepared, yet managed to pass boards anyway. We avoid hiring new grads from this school now.

[verene, MSN]

Which one has the better reputation local to where you plan to work? If they are both well regarded locally it won't make much difference.

My own experience going to a locally respected, but not nationally well known public university, is that staying local to the school, the school name did help me get interviews. I don't know that it would carry the same clout if I moved across the country to a place where no one had heard of the program, but locally managers were familiar with graduates of the program and generally pleased with past hires from the school.

[NICU Guy, BSN, RN]

Yes, some employers DO care. We've had bad experiences with a few nurses from one specific school. These nurses were woefully ill-prepared, yet managed to pass boards anyway. We avoid hiring new grads from this school now.

Local school's reputation matters to local employers. Nationally, hospitals don't care if the new grad came from Duke University or Idaho State. After 2-3 yrs experience, experience is all that matters. What school you graduated from is irrelevant.

[nursemaryzzel]

I find that employers don't care where you went to school, so long as it is accredited and you have good recommendations from qualified professors. UMass Amherst, IMO, is overhyped. Just because it has a low acceptance rate does not mean the program is top notch. My cousin did nursing school at Umass Amherst and HATED it. I have seen the facilities and there are better ones in my local community colleges, which speaks volumes for a public school so outrageously expensive for out of state students. It's a no brainer for me.