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.
Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.
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!
I'm not surprised at all. It's a ridiculous amount of money to borrow for something that does not have a value anywhere near the cost.
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!
Probably because taking that much out is not sound financial advice. Like I said, it's really recommended to not take out more student loans than you would make your first year of work.
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!
If you read on the previous page, I commented and told you how much sacrifice it took of 3 years of living like a college student on a salary much higher than a nurses at 120K in student loans.
What are you looking to get from this?
It's a lot of money. It's borderline crazy if life comes at you hard in the next few years and you are down on your luck. I'm not sure what more you need people to tell you.
We would never do it again unless it was for an MD, or a profession that paid at least 130k/year or more. Do you not want my advice because it wasn't for nursing? Debt is debt. It doesn't matter what you do to get it.
Hi Doglady, I actually did not see your post at all until you told me you commented. Which I went back and read, and thank you for sharing. I agree with you on the Murphys law, and it seems my life tends to go in that direction constantly. The past 5 years I have had 4 family members pass away, I have lost a full time job of 5 years, 2 car accidents, moved 3 times... so yes, I get it. And most if not all of these situations are not due to my lack of work ethic, paying bills, paying attention while driving etc etc. Just to give examples.
Some of the posters here are definitely getting upset with me, or at least coming across that way, so I hope no one feels like I am disregarding what they are saying or wasting their time....
Anyways, thank you for your sound advise. I appreciate it.
Also I should add... I am basically starting from scratch as far as my schooling. I do not have a Bach. degree in anything else, which as been mentioned to me a few times now. I only have a few english, math, humanites etc etc
Some of the posters here are definitely getting upset with me, or at least coming across that way, so I hope no one feels like I am disregarding what they are saying or wasting their time....
The upset is less with you, and more with the nature of for-profit programs such as Chamberlain that charge these ridiculous prices for a nursing education. A lot of threads like these happen frequently, so a few posters can come off a little brash.
Obivously, we cannot 100% make the decision for you, but I just wanted you to have enough information in your back pocket to make an informed decision.
I think people are forgetting that getting an ADN is often more competitive than a BSN.
I think this is a good point. In CA, IIRC, the wait list for ADN can be years, and that is AFTER all the prereqs are complete. Is it worth it to you to get the ball rolling now? Only you can answer.
I will say that debt is what you want it to be. Some people want fancy cars and homes... others want an education... Unless you're wanting to live with no debt, or as little as possible.. if you're willing to trade fancy cars and large homes for the next 15-20 years.. it may be worth it to you..
I've heard other states have long wait lists. Some of the schools here might have you on the wait list for a year if you don't get in the first year. But some have no wait list and take everyone that applies. A poster on another thread just mentioned yesterday that she chose to enroll in SEARK because they had no wait list. That's a small 2 year community college with an associate RN program located in the same town with a big university nursing program. So there are plenty of options for cheap schools located in cheap areas to live if you really want it. I went to a university an hour away from that one, and a lot of my classmates lived on their student aid or only worked 10-20 hours a week because the tuition and room/board are pretty cheap compared to other areas.
Your comment about posters being upset with you probably stems from my post, and others similar. I feel no way towards you, good or bad. I merely think the even considering this idea is stupid. Does that mean you are stupid? Probably not. Just likely going to make an incredibly poor life choice by the sounds of it. The fact that you already applied means you pretty much have your mind made up and are looking for validation, which you will not find an abundance of here.
You never answered why you are so stuck on taking only 1-2 classes at a time when you admit that you literally dont have anything tying you down. Single. No kids. Just one job. I have 2 kids, a husband, and a job, and managed to go to school full time. I see absolutely no reason why you cant take 3-4 classes a semester and just give up some of your social life for a couple years to save tens of thousands of dollars in the long run.
You also are pretty set on moving to save money. Thats a great idea. You should then also be looking at community college and university options in NV that are not 90K in tuition to attend. Or come out here to AZ. The community college system does have a wait list, but if you take the BSN pre reqs along side the ADN pre reqs, you can apply to the CEP program and get you ADN alongside the BSN degree while paying a substantially lower tuition amount. Even the universities are affordable. They have a competitive entry but are not as severely impacted at CA universities. The cost of living out here is much lower that CA and pay is higher than the national average and much better than many other states as compared to the cost of living.
There are a lot of options you are completely over looking because you are so blinded by your own lack of knowledge and just want to jump right into the first option without looking at more affordable options.
What worst is that after all the advice you are getting here, I can already tell you will very likely end up at this school anyway and live pretty broke until close to retirement. So, good luck in you endeavor.
Rose_Queen, BSN, MSN, RN
6 Articles; 12,057 Posts
I'm not surprised at all. It's a ridiculous amount of money to borrow for something that does not have a value anywhere near the cost.