Might anyone have any advice for someone in my position?

[Sudz]

Hi everyone!

I currently teach English in Vietnam (I've been for over 6 years). I really enjoy living in Asia (I live in Vietnam, but travel around a lot), and generally enjoy my job. However, I'm thinking of a career change down the line. The ESL path is usually a flat one :)

I'm 29 years old, and am looking for an ideal route into nursing school. I have a few questions/concerns:

First, many schools offer admittance into their programs based on either a high school background or a university background. I'm a little concerned with taking the university background route, as my second semester as a computer science major (almost 10 years ago) was unfavorable: I knew about half-way through the second semester that this course wasn't for me, but I missed the cut-off date to drop out. As a result, I have a fairly good first semester, with a pretty lousy second semester to back it up (I didn't have the good sense to really 'stick it out', and I really took a half-assed approach....totally my fault). On the other hand, I've completed 3 psychology courses (distance) through Athabasca University since then, receiving A's in each of them. I'm wondering: should I perhaps NOT mention attending college at all, and maybe highlight my Athabasca credits? Would it be easy for a school to track down my academic records? My high school marks were fairly lukewarm - not bad, but not at all stellar either - so I'm not convinced that I could get accepted based on those.

Second question: I don't feel quite ready to commit a full 4 year degree. I still like where I am, the work that I do, the friends that I have out here, and the traveling opportunities here in Asia. Might it be reasonable for me to complete the degree in segments? Perhaps complete a year (maybe 2 years) of studying, then take another year or two off to return to Asia, go back to school for a year or two (and so on and so on). I realize that the BSN is a demanding course.

Third question - and somewhat of a segue from the last question. Should I chose to continue living out here, would any of you recommend taking the online route? I'd like to focus on working in Ontario (though I'd be open to work elsewhere), and wouldn't want to compromise future job prospects by taking the distance route (perhaps doing such a degree from a respectable institution wouldn't even be a hindrance?) Is it possible to do most of the degree through distance education, then doing the clinicals in person (I could always come home for the summers.)

I do have some other questions, but perhaps I can save those for later :)

Steve

[mangopeach]

Well the good news is that unless those computer courses are part of the school's gen ed requirements, they may not count against you. They don't count towards the degree you will be seeking. Every school is different though so you really need to speak to an admissions advisor about that. I have a degree in another field, I made great grades in those classes, but they did not count towards my GPA for admission into the nursing program. You may also be eligible for academic amnesty for those old grades. Again, you need to speak to an admission advisor regarding that. Different schools have different rules.

You may be able to do most of your pre-reqs online. The science classes may be a lot harder to do online though since they require labs. However, I have heard of online labs. Not sure how they work though. Once you get into a nursing program though, its not possible to do it totally online. There is a clinical component that is required. You can't do that online.

Also, I doubt you will be able to start and stop when you feel like it. Completing a nursing program is unlike a lot of other traditional programs. My school only allows you to withdraw once from the program and start again. Even then, there is no guarantee once you withdraw that you will be allowed back in. Must be some compelling reasons, illness, death and such. A friend of mine withdrew this semester because she was having a hard time with the tests and she's not being allowed to come back.

Not sure how other programs deal with withdrawals, but I would bet they have similar rules and you won't be able to just stop and start again when you feel like it.

[Sudz]

Thanks for that!

As for not having the ability to stop/start the program as I please, might obtaining my ASN first and then doing an ASN to BSN program at a later date make any sense? My goal is to have a BSN...

Also (perhaps a tough question), would anyone be able to recommend a properly accredited online degree for someone planning on working in Ontario?