Just finished the MSN-Ed!

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I just finished the MSN - Education focus this past week!!

I did it very quickly (4 months) while working a full-time hospital job and a part time adjunct job. I credit a couple things for it to be possible for me to be so productive:

1. I have a procedure job and the schedule waxes and wanes. During times of low census, I would be able to work on school work at my desk.

2. I love to write and it is a strength of mine. I had no problem pushing out 20 page papers in a few days. I calculated a total of 250 pages worth of papers I wrote for this program.

I know when I was thinking of enrolling, I did a lot of research to find out as much as possible about WGU and the program, so I wanted to contribute my experience.

- It's not too good to be true. I was pleasantly surprised. Everyone I encountered along the way was professional. My student mentor who I talked with every week or two throughout the program was amazing! The course mentors, who are nurses with PhDs or DNPs, love to talk with the students and are decently easy to schedule a time with on the phone. The tech support, library staff, etc was easy to contact with questions.

- One tip I have is just to be smart in your topic selection for papers and projects. We all want to save the world and solve a problem, but if you pick a topic that has not been researched much before, it's going to be time consuming. I made this mistake early in the program and struggled with finding adequate research to support my topic. After that, I found topics that I was interested in that were also well-supported by research. This saved me a lot of time and headache.

- Talk to your student mentor about the capstone project early in the program. I wasn't sure what it would entail. Once I knew the expectations, I had that in the back of my head. While I was completing an assignment in an course earlier in the program, I identified an area of need at my institution and it turns out it was appropriate for my capstone project. It saved me time and energy when it came time for capstone!

Ask me any questions if you're curious. Honestly, this program inspired me to continue my education and I'm going to start studying for the GRE in hopes of moving on to a PhD program :)

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Congratulations! I start May 1. Although I don't think I'll be able to match your pace, I hope to accelerate as much as possible. Thanks for the tips!

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Good luck! It was a great experience for me. Each class had me feeling like I could really do something - conduct research, change a policy, etc.

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Specializes in LTC Management, Community Nursing, HHC.
I just finished the MSN - Education focus this past week!!

I did it very quickly (4 months) while working a full-time hospital job and a part time adjunct job. I credit a couple things for it to be possible for me to be so productive:

1. I have a procedure job and the schedule waxes and wanes. During times of low census, I would be able to work on school work at my desk.

2. I love to write and it is a strength of mine. I had no problem pushing out 20 page papers in a few days. I calculated a total of 250 pages worth of papers I wrote for this program.

I know when I was thinking of enrolling, I did a lot of research to find out as much as possible about WGU and the program, so I wanted to contribute my experience. ........

FOUR months?? WOW!!! Congratulations! That's amazing. You must be highly motivated!

I noticed on their website they state that the MSN - Leadership option is 2 years, and that it's possible to complete it in less time. I'm assuming that it's similar for the Education track as well (2 years as the average program length). Are you finding that employers want to know how you completed your MSN in 4 months? Just curious as to how potential employers would view that.

I'm checking out MSN programs at present but I haven't made up my mind as I think I may like to continue with my education and get a Doctorate in Nursing, so I'm wondering if a 3.0 in an MSN program is sufficient for that? It's highly competitive, and if I remember correctly, some schools require at least a 3.5, while others are OK with a 3.0 I've heard that at WGU it's pass or fail, and a pass corresponds with a 3.0 and nothing more.

Any thoughts on the above? Thank you!

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Specializes in Outpatient/Clinic, ClinDoc.
FOUR months?? WOW!!! Congratulations! That's amazing. You must be highly motivated!

I noticed on their website they state that the MSN - Leadership option is 2 years, and that it's possible to complete it in less time. I'm assuming that it's similar for the Education track as well (2 years as the average program length). Are you finding that employers want to know how you completed your MSN in 4 months? Just curious as to how potential employers would view that.

Any thoughts on the above? Thank you!

I'm not the OP but I can chime in on the time thing.. I did my BSN in just over three months and my MSN in two. I don't say anything about how long it took me and I leave dates off my resume. And even if I did have the dates, my three WGU degrees are two years apart. The only people I chat about the timing with are those in specific WGU groups that 'get it'. :)

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Congratulations! I started May 1st and am hoping to be done in six months. This definitely inspired me that it can be done.

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Congrats! What a great role model. I am thinking of starting the MSN - Education program. Can I please ask you a few questions? How do you "pick a topic that has been researched a lot" - how do you know - does your mentor help you with a good topic? And can you tell me a but about the capstone experience. Does this have to be presented to a certain committee at your place of work, or it is done in conjunction with a leader/manager at your workplace? Is it a presentation, or a paper, or both? Thank you. I really look forward to hearing from you. What are your plans now that you have your MSN?? Thanks. Belinda

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I just now am seeing this so sorry for the late reply, but I will answer for any future reference...

I also don't put explicitly that I finished my degree in 4 months on my resume. I put "March 2017" because that's when I got it, and my BSN was in 09 so they probably would just assume. However, if anyone asks me, I will just tell them that I can balance working two jobs with 20-30 hours of school work a week, so I'm dedicated and efficient :)

As far as the Doctorate question, I never really intended to pursue a doctorate but after I finished my MSN, I started considering it. I am applying for PhD programs this year. I asked a couple of schools if they had any objections to the Pass/Fail grading system I had at WGU, and the reply was no - they consider the whole application package. Especially for a PhD, a lot has to do with your research interests, GRE scores, personal statement, etc. There is a website that shows a list of schools that students report they got accepted to after attending WGU.

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Congrats! What a great role model. I am thinking of starting the MSN - Education program. Can I please ask you a few questions? How do you "pick a topic that has been researched a lot" - how do you know - does your mentor help you with a good topic? And can you tell me a but about the capstone experience. Does this have to be presented to a certain committee at your place of work, or it is done in conjunction with a leader/manager at your workplace? Is it a presentation, or a paper, or both? Thank you. I really look forward to hearing from you. What are your plans now that you have your MSN?? Thanks. Belinda

In the program, you have access to research databases and as part of the assignments, you will be looking into the evidence that exists already. You can pretty much determine on your own if you are finding a lot of results or not.

The Capstone - for Education, you have to create education. It can be written, verbal, etc. It can be educating patients, staff, etc. I created written education and worked with a patient education nurse to have it formatted correctly for our institution. You write a paper and also do a verbal recording of a Power Point to turn into WGU.

Good luck!

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Have you applied for any jobs that require an MSN degree yet? I have applied to the MSN-Leadership and Management program at WGU and also to the same program at University of MD. Im nervous that future job prospects will not offer me the job if it is a lesser known university without the "big name." but WGU could be done in half the time for 1/5 of the cost. I also hear positive things about the program and how it prepares you. What would you advice?

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I think it all depends on what you want to do. You should research the type of job you want and see what the desired qualifications are. In my experience, most places just want that check box for the degree. I was just accepted into a Nursing PhD program with no questions asked about my Master's at the University of South Florida.

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Do you think it matters where my MSN is obtained if I want to teach nursing? I know WGU is accredited, but I just am not sure if the school I want to teach at is concerned with that. I'm considering WGU, but am trying to think of questions like this before I actually commit to a school.

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