Is it Worth it?

I actually have two questions:

For those who have gone back to school to obtain their Masters in Nurse Educator, is the time and money worth it? I have previously worked as adjunct faculty with my BSN and enjoyed it, however some of the professors complained that they were not making much money, even less than floor nursing, and worked more than 40 hours/week. If I'm going to invest in another degree I want it to be worth my time and money. I would like to make more than I currently do as a BSN RN, but as long as I made the same amount and had better hours/less stress/and felt passionate about my work, I would be happy.

Next question is:

Has anyone completed the Capella flex path program for Nurse Educator and if so what are your thoughts on it?

Thank you in advance!

6 Answers

Specializes in Pediatrics, Burn/Trauma, Med-Surg, Nurse Education.

I completed my MSN in Nursing Education, with a desire to teach in academia. I originally started out FNP but realized that was not what I wanted to do. Being that I wanted to work full-time in academia, I knew that HAD to get a Master's. My program was more intense than the average MSN (Nurse ED) route, I've discovered. ?

I will say that is is worth it if you consider more things than dinero. I definitely don't make as much money as I did in clinical practice. And at first, to be honest, I was like..."WTH?!!". BUT I had to consider things like:

1. My schedule outside of the times I teach (couple times a week) is VERY VERY flexible. The schedule flexibility pays big time to me because I was so used to clocking in 1845 and clocking out 0715. I come and go as I please once I'm done with my work...on any day.

2. I get about 10-14 days off every 4mths (when students are out); no holidays, no weekends.

3. I attend conferences of my choice yearly; there are always opportunities for professional development.

4. I have my own private space (office) and it's cute! LOL....excuse me...I've never had an office before!?

5. Did I mention FLEXIBLE schedule?!

6. Most of all (bc I had to mention this at some point), I have the privilege of teaching our future generations of nursing professionals. This has been challenging (no lie) but rewarding simultaneously.

Specializes in Critical Care; Cardiac; Professional Development.

For me it has been VERY worth it. However, I do not work in academia, but rather am in education in an acute care setting. I make six figures and have wonderful work/life balance. Four day work week, weekends and holidays off.

Specializes in Education, Skills & Simulation, Med/Surg, Pharm.

I did get my MSN in Nursing Education from Capella, but before the FlexPath was an option. I enjoyed my program. I do work as an educator in a BSN program full-time. Sometimes I am working 40+ hours. My annual pay isn't great. BUT! I have 4 months out of the year off work. If you took my salary and equated it out over the 12 month a year equivalent, I'm actually making more than I did as a bedside nurse. I am only on campus 2-3 days per week. I love my job. A lot of my colleagues still have PRN nursing jobs and end up picking up shifts to equal full-time over the summer when they're off from teaching. I'm so grateful for my career and I will never go back to anything else.

Specializes in Nurse Residency, Education.

I have my MSN in Leadership & Education. I work in a nurse residency program under the clinical learning department of my health system. Great pay, low stress, rewarding work, excellent work-life balance! I was able to use tuition reimbursement and scholarship resources through my employer. It is doable (I worked full time and was a single mom to a toddler at the time) and it can be worth it depending on what you want to do!

That sounds like another interesting type of nursing education. I’m glad to hear there are other options and you have good work/life balance and are making good money. Thank you for your input!

I just finished the flexpath program in nursing education. I found it to be an economical and efficient way to get my MSN as I was able to complete the program in less than a year at an affordable price. I had to bust my buns to do it, though. I liked the flexible deadlines and I loved that there were no group projects or mandatory discussion board posts. I feel like I learned quite a bit from the assessments but it required a lot of independent learning. I didn’t interact much with online faculty during the program except for when they graded my assessments and that was pretty minimal. There is a course tutor (sort of like a TA) who is available to answer questions and clarify assessment questions. There were no friendships or relationships made during the program since it was all independent work. At the end of the day, employers seem more concerned that I have the degree and less concerned about where it came from. I do have some concerns about being able to get graduate credit for my Capella courses if I choose to enroll in a more traditional DNP or PhD program down the road, but I’m still undecided about whether this is something I even want to pursue.

Getting the MSN for me felt equivalent to the hoop-jumping I did for RN-BSN. I was able to teach as an adjunct with just a BSN, but the MSN opens more doors for me in education. I lined up a clinical adjunct teaching position for the spring semester at a more reputable school than my last adjunct job. The pay is less than my hourly base pay at the hospital so I’m not sure that I’ll give up my bedside job for full-time academia any time soon.

TLDR: Capella’s Flexpath was an efficient means to an end for me and nursing education is just my side hustle right now, not my main career.


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