I am a pre-nursing student trying to gather as much information and opinions as I can. I have already taken my HESI, submitted transcripts and GPA to a school that is a 3 year, pre-reqs included Accelerated BSN that costs $87K.
About me: 27 YOF, single, self-reliant. I have been a medical esthetician for 10 years in Southern CA and burnt out on my career and lack of advancement opportunities. My current company may also be acquired in the next few years and I am concerned about job opportunities in the future as I was laid off in Aug. 2013 and it took me 8+ months to find full time work in my industry that would pay me what I could survive on in Southern CA. My school is located in NV - so I would be relocating alone, for cheaper cost of living.
So my question is... is it worth it to take out $87K+ in loans for a quick way to obtain my BSN and start working sooner rather than later? I am concerned about this financially however my future is uncertain in my industry if I were to decide to take 2-3 years for my pre-reqs at a community college, get on a wait list for other programs and then take 2 years to complete those nursing programs.
I go to the College of Southern NV. Prior to moving to NV I already had a majority of pre-reqs done. After moving to NV, I was accepted into the nursing program after 1 ½ years.
I failed my first semester and had to re apply and it took me two years to get back in due to series of unfortunate events. I considered going to private schools that tried to convince me that my education was an important investment but I decided to wait it out. CSN usually accepts the majority of those who apply. I believe the first time I applied they accepted around 108 students and only 112 applied. The only thing about CSN is that the curriculum and requirements are changing as of fall 2017. It seems like it'll be easier to get in but having your CNA will now be required.
I looked up Chamberlin a while ago - reason is because a male nursing student who got a job quickly after graduating went there (I'm in NYC). He was bilingual though and make so I think that helped him get a job a lot. I did some digging and found they're not accredited in NYC just NJ and as a previous poster said v new and no NCLEX Pass rates posted yet.
i felt similarly to you before I got some results for my prerequisites I felt is failed and was v worried, I thought maybe I'd do better at NYU where prerequisites are part of the generic nursing route and everything's spoon fed to you/ more support. That would have a similar price tag to Chamberlin $80k-$90k I think. Keep in mind I'm in NYC and in the city new grads can start on $85k if they're lucky enough to score a job in the city (not easy without 2 years experience or being bilingual English/Spanish). However I thought it over and realized the debt would be a lot. I then got my prerequisite results and found I scored an A in Chemistry, I'm at one of the cheapest CUNY colleges in NYC - not too much support there, but after a period of self doubt I realized once you get back into the grove of studying and figure out what is required in terms of time put in, and study habits you can do these prerequisites at almost any college in my opinion. Just avoid online colleges for prerequisites.
You in can get this done just as fast at a community college - you just need to be in top of registration dates and make sure you register for required classes on the dot. I am online the moment registration opens - everytime so I have best chance of getting my required classes. As a nursing major registration opened for me a day earlier than other students also which was helpful (I have 90 credits as I'm a second degree student - only just starting pre-reqs though). I would persevere with a community college if I were you and try to live with your folks during this period to save money, if you can do that.
Maybe I missed something, but I'm going to take a stab.
In short, NO. I wouldn't do this. Can you not take your pre reqs 1-2 at a time (I take mine two at a time online) while you are working? You will have to make enormous sacrifice in terms of social life, but I would bite the bullet. There are days I want to quit and I question if it's worth it, but I know it's short term. I work about 50 hours a week, am married with a husband who works crazy hours and I'm taking 1-2 sciences per semester so I can get my classes done within a year.
Is this your first bachelor's degree? I'm confused why it's so expensive.
Go to a community college for the pre reqs. Schools don't care where you get those.
To put it in perspective, 90k is astronomical. I know you have calculated 87K, but it will honestly likely be more than you anticipated. My husband took out 120k total for his undergraduate and masters (he is a surgical PA now). He graduated in 2013 and his loan payments were over 1000 a month. He completely gave up lifestyle, drove old cars and lived with his parents for one of those years and did nothing but work and pay loans. 3 years later, we hit "submit payment" button for the last time. I cannot imagine doing what he did on a nurse's salary. Seeing what we had to go through to get that paid off, I would never sign up for it again.
As Dave Ramsey says, "Murphy" often comes knocking. Expensive things happen. Over those 3 years, my husbands 15 year old car died. Our dog ate a tree nut and got a $1000 stomach ache. My husbands grandparent died - over 1k in airfare to attend the funeral. We had to move - moving fees and new apartment bills. I have a heart condition - $800 scans. It seems small but these things add up when you are trying to pay off a debt.
When I got married, I thought our household income would make it very easy to live. Don't get me wrong, we didn't go without, but we really, REALLY had to buckle down to put our resources into this. Having the high debt is a risk when at any moment any one of us can get cancer and have to leave our jobs, get in a car accident, hit someone else with our cars and get sued, etc. I'm not saying to live in fear or anything, but 90k is really just way too much for comfort. Student loans can't be forgiven.
Even if you work ridiculous overtime and are very well paid, this is going to be a bear. You don't want this monkey on your back for 20 years. Go to community college for classes. Get the ADN first if you have to, and work while you complete the BSN so you have some income. Be patient. I know it sucks, but be patient. You're young.
As several PP's shared, you can take your prerequisites at a community college. That's what I did; though I ended up staying at the community college for their RN program (which turns out to be the 8th nationwide for being among the best LPN/RN schools). After passing the boards, getting a RN job (which in my geographic area doesn't require a BSN), then (most likely) off to WGU for their RN to MSN program where you get your BSN along the way. If all goes well, I'll have the MSN for less than half of what the opening poster is looking at spending. Why go the very expensive route when there are so many economical routes available?
I was orig. enrolled in National Univ. in S. Cal too for my pre reqs and was going to apply to their BSN program after completion of my pre reqs, which was 2 years, 5 days a week. They only take 50 people per cohort, when up to 300 apply and you need close to a 4.0 and high 80s for your TEAS, which I think is common in CA. I was also told you only get 3 times to apply in your lifetime to their BSN program. It was $45K through them. At the end of it all, it did not seem worth it to me to risk the time spent re applying with the possibility of not getting in. In addition to that, I would still need loans to live on while in the 2 year BSN program. It is more expensive to take loans to live on when my rent alone is $1k in North County San Diego. I would be looking at more debt than by choosing a for-profit school.
I have not heard any horror stories about these schools actually. I went on to Instagram and searched "#Chamberlain" and other similar tags to find students in the country who were attending. I asked them what their opinion and experience has been so far... everyone had nothing but positive things to say about the program, their teachers, clinicals... Now, on the other side of that argument, I have a friend who did her pre-reqs at community college and did an Accelerated BSN in Vegas that cost $70K in debt. She was encouraging me to do the same as her since her school is highly regarded. She said that for-profit schools encourage you to pass, and thus not getting as good as an education as non-profit schools... so I really do not know what to think.
This same friend that I mentioned about, has over $100K in debt that she took out between federal loans and private. Her private loan is fixed interest. Her minimum payments are $500-$600/mo and she is paying $2K a month to get them paid off in 5,6 years max.
And yes, if anyone as any insight on Chamberlain... I would love to hear about it. Or even West Coast who charges $120K for 36 month BSN.
How long did this take you? It is very competitive in CA and many of the community colleges have wait-lists for their pre reqs, as well as for the RN program. That is what the majority of this conversation has been, just all the options in general an the pros/cons for all....
I've known people who got into that kind of debt for an MSW, a career path that can br notoriously low pay and hard to get started. It's insanely hard to get into public nursing programs in California, and waiting to be picked via lottery when you have no job does not sound like fun. I'm backing into my point, sorry, but it is this: only you know what you need. Do you need to get plugged in to a program, soon, with a BSN outcome? Are you willing / able to pay to have that need covered rather than live in some uncertainly? But: Do you know the school is reputable and good (what their NCLEX pass rates are, job placement rate, etc)? My opinion: First, you're young. Can you try out a cheaper route and then have this program as a fall back? To save funds can you move back in with parents / family temporarily while you do prerequisites at a CC, identify public programs and apply for scholarships? Lot's of people don't have family they can crash with or a partner who can pay all the bills for a while, but some do and it's a thought. If not, and you want to move forward: my opinion, that's not an unusual amount of debt for a college degree. Sad but true. And BSN's do get paid better and have better job prospects than many degrees. But it's steep, so it better be a darn good program with good stats. Make sure it's a good program and that they answer all your questions. Ask to speak to some current students and recent grads. Good luck! Don't give up!
Thank you 2soon2b... Yes all of the points that you make are exactly the ones I have considered, too. And sadly I do not have any family or a partner to help. I am flying solo in this life. : ) I also agree with you that it is about average, if not less, than some pay to attend 4 year college at $20k per year, or at USD in San Diego, $60K a year!
Thanks again for everyone's advice. I have not come to a decision yet. But I do have a pending application, and will find out at the end of the month if I am accepted or not. To add a twist, my job offered my a new position yesterday w/ possibly higher pay and flexible full time hours to accommodate my school. So I could then do my pre-reqs at the Comm. college here however at only 1 class at a time... it would take my years. Decisions, decisions....
I feel that it is pertinent to mention that $87K is NOT an average student loan debt in the US as some other posters are saying. It's much closer to $27,000-$37,000 (State by State Data | The Institute For College Access and Success), so $87,000+ is an extremely unusually high amount to take on. Even in CA where the average student loan debt across the state is around $21K.
I just feel like that is an important misconception about student loan debt that needs to be dispelled.
I am totally surprised that no one else has taken this much or more in loans out, or they are not commenting. I would love to hear back from anyone how has high loans to repay, is going to Chamberlain or West Coast please and thank you!
ThatBigGuy
268 Posts
Math:
The average student loan takes twenty years to pay off and carries a 6% interest rate.
At your current age and anticipated graduation date, you'll be 50 years old when you finish paying off this loan.
You'll have paid a total of $206,000.
PLEASE, spend some more time researching more affordable options.