I need some advice...please!

[Dibbadee]

Hello,

First off I would like to start by saying that I am VERY new to this website..about one hour old. So if there is a thread regarding my question, please by all means redirect me!

I am currently taking A&P II during a six-week program that my community college offers, and yes, it is crazy and action packed. Most of my classmates are REALLY competitive as well (I don't get it). I digress, I am taking these science pre-reqs in hopes to transfer into a nursing program that will eventually allow me to receive my BSN and RN after I take my NCLEX. My dream school is Villanova, because of their BRAND NEW (three years) facilities and their job placements at CHOP , HOP and other Mainline Hospitals. They have credibility around the country as well. They have a really great 'mission' that they are there to help the needy and this is exactly WHY I am getting into nursing. I don't want to be a nurse for the job security, although it is a bonus, I am doing it because it's the only way I can imagine myself caring for people. Unfortunately, Villanova is 42K a year and as I may be a regular middle class 20 year-old, my parents and I just can't afford it (that's if there is no crazy scholarships). I have talked to advisors at Nova, and they said if I keep up my grades (3.89) that I will, 'with out a doubt,' get into their program. So that's a no go for now.

Where I am running into a problem is figuring out whether or not the other school I am looking at is good. I am looking at Thomas Jefferson University, and although it seems nice and it's a big hospital school, I don't know how to gauge its credibility. The program is just about the same at Villanova's but I just can't but feel that Jefferson will provide me with a lesser education. Also, Jefferson's price is 33k. Please excuse my bluntness, I do not mean this in a brash way. I just want others' input. PLEASE by all means give me some info, or advice. It would be GREATLY appreciated.

Thanks so much for reading!

-Dibbadee

[tootsie2184]

Jefferson is recongized by the COUNTRY for his excellence. I highly recommend Thomas Jefferson without a doubt. The admissions department is so nice, and as a prospective student I really think that says a lot about the college. If I could afford TJ, I would definetely have gone there. I understand you are set on Villanova. Have you looked into student loans or government grants? If you want something badly, you will get it with the right motivation.

[chuckster, ADN, BSN, RN, EMT-B]

While Villanova is recognized nationally, in my opinion that has more to do with the success of their basketball team than anything academically related. I tend to agree with Tootsie with respect to TJU - it is one certainly one of the most respected health care learning institutions in the country and at least in the medical community, is as well known as 'Nova. There is probably just as good a case to be made that the TJU program is superior to Villanova but in reality, neither is better or worse than the other.

With respect to cost, I strongly advise that you take this into account no matter where you attend. While grads from Villanova and TJU may have an easier time finding nursing jobs than those from other schools (and even that's debatable) that is relative. While you may read about a "nursing shortage", that is much more myth than fact. The reality is that all new RN's in most parts of the country are finding it difficult to land nursing jobs. If you look at the data, you will find that in many areas, very few new nursing jobs are being created at the same time that thousands of new nurses are entering the job market. This situation is particularly acute in Phila where there a lots of nursing programs (23 in the city and surrounding counties) who produce lots of new nurses (2,142 new RN's in 2009) who have to compete in a very tight job market (a total of 80 new RN jobs between 2008 and 2009 - the 2010 data is not yet available from the BLS).

This is not meant to discourage you from nursing, only to alert you to the reality of the workplace. I'd ask any school that you're planning to attend what their placement rate for new grads is. I know that you said that job security is not a motivator for you but I strongly suspect that you would not enjoy the stress of desperately searching for nursing job immediately upon graduation because you need to start repaying $50k or more in loans within 6 months.