Guess what RN's, you didn't need that college degree!!

[welnet66]

This Sunday's Parade Magazine featured their annual report "What People Earn." Always very interesting but...if you look on page 4, there is a colorful box listing jobs that do not require a college degree. Here's the list: Sales Representatives, Translators, Dental Hygienists, Registered Nurses, Insurance Adjusters, Transportation Workers, Athletic Trainers, Auto Technicians, and Legal Secretaries. Shocking to say the least. I hope I won't be the only one writing to this magazine to correct this terrible misconception.:angryfire

[RNsRWe, ASN, RN]

A degree is just a name given to the student for a completion of a series of classes. So , lets just say, it's too bad that you don't have a diploma. Our hospital based program was just that. The classes were , for the most part, at class rooms at the campus beside the hospital. We went to the university for classes that needed special labs etc. We went to other hospitals for peds etc. So be sure you know what your talking about before you say it.

I know what I said, and it's correct. A degree is bestowed BY a college or university for the completion of a specific curriculum. It's an A.S., an A.A., a B.S., a B.A. It's not just a series of classes, it's a specific designation, and THAT'S what people mean when they ask on a resume for your degree. As for the snide comment that "it's too bad you don't have a diploma", nothing was meant AGAINST any diploma grad at ALL. Just a clarification of definitions that got blurred.

If you read the article, it seems to say that nurses can go to a high school tech school and get the same training.

It doesn't "seem to say", it SAYS: 'no degree required'. It says nothing about high school, tech schools, etc, and that's the point I was making. People are reading INTO that stupid blurb what isn't there. And I see it continues.

[Holly27]

i was kinda put off by this story telling what people made and what jobs you can get without a degree.

http://www.parade.com/articles/editi...-2007/wpe_lead

this is the insert that made me mad. no wonder people think you can be any joe blow off the street to be a nurse!g

the hottest jobs (no college degree required)

registered nurses

an aging population ensures demand for years to come: $48,000-$74,000

then i checked out the website and found this "editor's note"

editor's note: we apologize for the error in the "the hottest jobs (no college degree required)" box. the copy should have read "personal trainers" not "athletic trainers". we also regret any misunderstanding that may have been caused by the inclusion of registered nurses and dental hygienists in the box. while non-college diploma and certificate programs do exist for these occupations, the majority of rns and dental hygienists have college degrees and additional levels of training. we appreciate your bringing these matters to our attention.

hmmm. wonder if they will print that correction in next week's paper. doubt it.:angryfire

oh and please read all the comments on their site as well.

its not the point of a degree or diploma. its the point that it doesn't tell you that you still have to go to school, take a state test and keep your license current and in good standing. how it reads to me is that "oh no degree? well anyone can become a nurse without an education" i have my diploma but it still involved me taking college courses at a university. it makes it sound as if no college required at all and that is so so untrue. i just think the article does a disservice to all nurses degree or not.

[RNsRWe, ASN, RN]

I don't know why everone is getting so bent out of shape over this. The article is accurate.

If you're one who loudly and defensively resisits the entry BSN movement, you really have no right to get all up in arms when a national magazine very truthfully points out that you don't need a bachelor's degree or, in fact, any college degree to do this job. I read how many of you are outraged and embarassed by this supposed "misconception." Yeah, it is embarassing and it's also very true. Gee, I wonder however we could change that???

Can't have it both ways. .

PS. Please stop posting on the Parade.com site. Some of you sound ridiculous and are in no way advancing our trade, er, profession.

I don't want to venture into the ADN vs BSN or Diploma vs Degree debate at this time, but the fact remains that you are right. Someone just posted angrily to me that I didn't know what I was talking about, that's fine, but the fact STILL remains: the article was correct. I too don't like that it gives the impression that it's an on-the-job training similar to that which McDonald's might offer, but since when is Parade a source of actual journalism??

[Heloisea3]

We apologize for the error in the "The Hottest Jobs (No College Degree Required)" box...We also regret any misunderstanding that may have been caused by the inclusion of registered nurses and dental hygienists in the box. While non-college diploma and certificate programs do exist for these occupations, the majority of RNs and dental hygienists have college degrees and additional levels of training. We appreciate your bringing these matters to our attention.

What ignorance! I'm not even a nurse yet, and it puts me off. I don't understand why anyone would infer that nurses do not have to have any type of degree or "additional training." Ugh! Obviously, journalism doesn't require any additional training.

[RNsRWe, ASN, RN]

You know what, everyone? Let's say that five hundred people reading that article think "hey, no degree needed, I'll just go apply for that job!" When they are told that they have to have a license, which can be obtained only after passing a national exam, which can only be taken after completion of an accredited nursing program, which takes anywhere from a couple of years to several years......I'm guessing what they think about that original article won't matter much!

[RNsRWe, ASN, RN]

LOL at the "athletic trainers"...to be honest an image of a jock strap came to mind!

Somehow I can't see a website that has message boards from personal trainers freaking out about the distinction.

[sirI, MSN, APRN, NP]

Threads merged for continuity.

[teiladay]

i was kinda put off by this story telling what people made and what jobs you can get without a degree.

http://www.parade.com/articles/editi...-2007/wpe_lead

this is the insert that made me mad. no wonder people think you can be any joe blow off the street to be a nurse!g

the hottest jobs (no college degree required)

registered nurses

an aging population ensures demand for years to come: $48,000-$74,000

then i checked out the website and found this "editor's note"

editor's note: we apologize for the error in the "the hottest jobs (no college degree required)" box. the copy should have read "personal trainers" not "athletic trainers". we also regret any misunderstanding that may have been caused by the inclusion of registered nurses and dental hygienists in the box. while non-college diploma and certificate programs do exist for these occupations, the majority of rns and dental hygienists have college degrees and additional levels of training. we appreciate your bringing these matters to our attention.

hmmm. wonder if they will print that correction in next week's paper. doubt it.:angryfire

oh and please read all the comments on their site as well.

its not the point of a degree or diploma. its the point that it doesn't tell you that you still have to go to school, take a state test and keep your license current and in good standing. how it reads to me is that "oh no degree? well anyone can become a nurse without an education" i have my diploma but it still involved me taking college courses at a university. it makes it sound as if no college required at all and that is so so untrue. i just think the article does a disservice to all nurses degree or not.

oh brother, lets stop whining already. * first of all, the dog gone newspaper article was right. its not a publication's job to go into detail about all the ins and outs in reference to any specific job they mention. that is your job if you want to be a nurse, dental hyg, etc.

i wouldn't have changed the article if i was the editor. its just down right silly that people get offended over something so freaking simple.

sure, you don't have to have a 4 year degree to be an attorney in the u.s., but your options might be far limited (especially if you take one of the distance j.d. curriculums in california). a person who is mature enough to go through law school darn well better be mature enough to see what is actually required for them to sit for the bar in whatever state they wish to practice (to include checking reciprocity options, etc.)

just because your aunt martha or uncle jed obtained a degree to become a rn, dental hyg., attorney, etc.. doens't mean they had to.

a newspaper's job isn't to coddle nor explain things to a point where some sensitive people aren't offended.

1. the bottom line is that a person doesn't have to have a 4 year degree to become an rn, (nor dental hyg for that matter)

2. i dare say that most rns don't have a bsn nor ba/bs in another field.

3. yes, there are many with their rn gained through a associates of science program (adn, etc.) at a community college or a like program, but generally speaking here in the u.s., when you say "degree", people are talking about bs/ba or higher.

the truth was not misleading to any "learned" individual who has general common sense.

when was the last time that you whined about teachers telling kids that they can be an astronaut or the president of the u.s.?

* do teachers tell kids that without calculus iii and several courses in university physics coupled with several semesters agonizing over organic chemistry chances of becoming an astronaut is virtually about the same as winning the lotto? of course not!

* do teachers go into detail telling kids that to be president, you have to realistically raise literally millions of dollars just to compete with a decent campaign? without which your chances of even running is virtually nil? of course not!

be reasonable..

[time4meRN]

I don't want to venture into the ADN vs BSN or Diploma vs Degree debate at this time, but the fact remains that you are right. Someone just posted angrily to me that I didn't know what I was talking about, that's fine, but the fact STILL remains: the article was correct. I too don't like that it gives the impression that it's an on-the-job training similar to that which McDonald's might offer, but since when is Parade a source of actual journalism??

I can't speak for diploma programs now but, I obtained the nursing diploma from the hospital based school that did all of the non nursing courses from a "real" college. The diploma was inclusive of our finishing the courses at that college with a B+ grade. If we did not do all of the courses outlined then we did not get the diploma. We went to school one quarter short of a four year degree program. The decision to go the the Diloma program was based on it's reputation for putting out good nurses. We, as with other schools had to be in the top 1/3 of our hs class to get in, we maintained a b+ average to stay,just as many other schools. It's kind of odd you complain about "snide" comments when someone makes them to you but, you seem to have no difficulty putting those comments out for others. ie: "fiery diploma grads" ! As a matter of fact, I have a minor in chem from my Diploma program. I agree that the article sounds like we ar trained on - the -job. But, don't lessen other RN's to make your point.

[RNsRWe, ASN, RN]

I can't speak for diploma programs now but, I obtained the nursing diploma from the hospital based school that did all of the non nursing courses from a "real" college. The diploma was inclusive of our finishing the courses at that college with a B+ grade. If we did not do all of the courses outlined then we did not get the diploma. We went to school one quarter short of a four year degree program. The decision to go the the Diloma program was based on it's reputation for putting out good nurses. We, as with other schools had to be in the top 1/3 of our hs class to get in, we maintained a b+ average to stay,just as many other schools. It's kind of odd you complain about "snide" comments when someone makes them to you but, you seem to have no difficulty putting those comments out for others. ie: "fiery diploma grads" ! As a matter of fact, I have a minor in chem from my Diploma program. I agree that the article sounds like we ar trained on - the -job. But, don't lessen other RN's to make your point.

It's not odd at all that I called you on a snide comment, as it WAS uncalled for. You made it personal, continually referring to me as not being informed (nothing in my statement suggested that), not knowing what I was talking about and therefore shouldn't be talking (wrong again) and of course, the "sorry you don't have a diploma" barb (I don't take offense, I'm proud of my education, but you intended it as a slap). You chose to take a generalized statement I made about this subject and make it personal. The comment *I* made that you just referred to was to avoid this very exchange: someone taking the generalized comment about how the article is NOT wrong, you DON'T need a degree, and the diploma was not a degree and turning it into "But *I* have so much more education, *I* am a diploma grad who worked very hard for the diploma, etc etc. I have been having many great exchanges on this board for years, long enough to know that even if carefully worded, someone will try to turn a general statement into a "what about ME" argument. So I tried to head that off with a "please don't do that" kind of statement. I wasn't saying all diploma grads are 'fiery' for goodness' sake, that's a reach, just that I didn't want anyone getting all up in arms about how THEIR education was not to be discounted, further missing my point (and I did no such thing).

And yet you responded exactly that way, telling me all about how YOUR program was so fabulous. Missed the point. Took it to mean that diploma grads aren't well educated (even though I specifically addressed that). And here you are again, informing me about how great your program was, and it's irrelevant to what I or anyone else was saying about that original article. And in no way whatsoever did I "lessen" other RN's education to make my point. I don't even see how you read that. You're angry that the article doesn't take into account how much education IS required to become an RN, but that's hardly my fault. The article, as written, was factual, and I stated as much.

If you want to get steamed up about how diploma programs aren't seen as valuable educations, that's one thing, and should be addressed in a different manner, such as "what can diploma grads do to tell the world we're well educated?" But don't get steamed up about an newspaper article that calls out the fact that such an education does NOT end in a degree, nor is ANY degree required on the road to becoming an RN. The fact is still the fact.

[PsychRN-Kris]

Wow. I read the article at work last weekend while on my lunch break. So...my 2 years of pre-reqs and my two years in a nursing program were to earn an ADN that really isn't a degree?! Gimme a break! :uhoh21:

[RNsRWe, ASN, RN]

Wow. I read the article at work last weekend while on my lunch break. So...my 2 years of pre-reqs and my two years in a nursing program were to earn an ADN that really isn't a degree?! Gimme a break! :uhoh21:

Yeah, I do kinda laugh at the idea that my Associate's DEGREE isn't a degree (I'm sorry, what was the second word in that designation...?). If people are referring to Bachelor's degrees as the only "real" degrees, well, that's a misinformation that I usually don't bother correcting. I know differently, you know differently, as do the countless numbers of people who HOLD Associate's degrees. It wasn't until I read posts along those lines on these forums that I had even heard that ANYONE thought Associate's degrees weren't "real", LOL.

Ignorance on their part doesn't constitute annoyance on mine. Don't get worked up about it--your academic designation is all yours :)