Online RN to BSN - how to chose school?

[ladybugsea]

I am having a hard time deciding on an online RN to BSN program... I think I am over thinking this, does the school really even matter? So far I have narrowed it down to URI, SNHU, and UMass Boston. They are all similar in price, but vary in semester length, time to complete, curriculum, etc.

URI - Pros: Next start date March 1; large nursing school that has been around a long time; terms are 7 weeks; no clinical. Cons: Program is brand new this past fall; program only has 18 nursing credits, which seems odd (others all seem to have 30+) - but you still need to take 30 credits at URI to graduate, even if you have previous degrees and don't need them - the extra courses would be gen ed classes, which can include stats and pharm.

SHNU - Pros: They have well seasoned online programs and have clear assignment deadlines and syllabi across classes; next start dates are Feb 8 or April 11; terms are 10 weeks; no clinical. Cons: Will require a 'diversity' class unrelated to nursing; may not accept my Grad level statistics course; curriculum is heavy on healthcare/finance/technology which is not something I plan to pursue; brick and mortar school has been around for a long time, but school now has bigger reputation locally for online, accelerated degrees.

UMass Boston - Pros: curriculum looks the most rigorous, may have the best reputation/connotation locally of the 3 (I could be wrong!); only have to take nursing courses; I like that the courses are 6 credits instead of 3 credits. Cons: Next start time is not until the fall; clinical component required; traditional semesters means it will take 2.5 years to take five 6 credit classes; I would need to study for and pay for 2 NLN exams (Pharm and Nutrition).

I have focused on schools that are in my area (URI is a stretch!) - if I am going to spend all this time and money on it, I don't want to be treated like it is just a paper degree that I 'bought' (because clearly anyone thinking that about ANY of these accredited programs would be wrong). My gut feels like UMass Boston is the best program; but it will take the longest and I wouldn't be able to start until the fall, plus I would prefer not to have to do a clinical. Any thoughts? I know there are many other programs out there (one good example is Texas at Arlington) - should I not worry if a school is local to me or not? Thank you for reading, I just need someone to bounce ideas off of to help me figure this out! :)

[kmstamper]

I went for an in-state school (because it has a good reputation, was recommended, and was MUCH cheaper than anything else I found), which is online ONLY (research based clinicals, no in class ANYTHING, etc) and that I could manage while working full time, plus my PRN job. The school has a regular 2 year program and an accelerated 15 month program, but I went with the 2 year. I do 1 class every 8 weeks. I already have a bachelors degree, so all of my pre-reqs were met (except statistics, which I took online last summer). So far, so good! Just focus on what is most important to you, whether it's all online, hybrid, shortest length of time, price, etc... and go from there! :)

[GadgetRN71, ASN, RN]

I was considering either SNHU or URI and ended up going with URI..URI has a good reputation, the program is accredited and the price per credit was reasonable. I like it so far...