Nearing the end of my BSN - Wanting to become an Acute Care NP

[Burks21]

Hi everyone

I've been working in a CCU for the past 4 years (6 years total nursing experience) and I'm nearing the end of my RN to BSN program. After working closely with our Acute Care NP's, this is the route I want to pursue. They've changed how we, the RN's, do our job and patient care has greatly improved.

I'm looking for an online program. Price really isn't much of a concern because honestly, doubling or tripling my current pay is totally worth the loans. I'm only at $15k in loans right now. Preceptors are of no concern, I know enough people to find those with ease.

What I'm looking for are these criteria:

- Online only. I do not mind traveling a couple times to the campus each year for skills and the like (such as Georgetown University requires).

- Fairly well known. (I was looking at Walden but they're ehhhhh).

- Little to no group work (I work nights in Ohio so trying to get with someone who works a different shift in California seems darn near impossible).

- 2 year program, 2.5 years at the most.

- Prefer rolling admissions so I can start 2017 and not 2018, but definitely not a MUST.

Any help is appreciated. I've looked into Maryville, Walden, and Georgetown University programs so far. Leaning toward Maryville (have a coworker in it, she says it's "OK"). Just want to exhaust all my options. My ADN GPA was....well...not fantastic but my BSN GPA is a 3.9xx. So I'm hoping these schools see me as someone who screwed around during ADN school but got my crap together in life, which I did.

[LessValuableNinja]

When deciding on the foundation for the rest of my professional life, I'm not sure I'd add an option I'd heard was "OK" to my list. I'd want to have the option I'd heard "prepared me for practice much better than most other new practitioners I meet."

[Burks21]

Totally agree, which is why I'm here. Most of the people I know going back to school are going the FNP route, something I'm not totally interested in (except maybe a dual degree).

I'm doing the same RN to BSN program she went to and she hated it....yet I don't mind it one bit. It's very self directed, they basically send you a list of classes and that's it. Everything else you do on your own with no guidence.