Private college or Community college for nursing school?

If daycare was $1000/mo, wouldn't it be cheaper to go to CC for the day program? CC's tuition are usually very cheap ($10k for the whole program). Plus, classes are about 9 months out of the whole year. You do the math.

$22k for LPN is ridiculous...........that's like my tuition for BS at a University (non-nursing). The ADN program I will enter is about $2k a semester. If I were you, I would go straight for the RN. More job opportunities and a significant higher pay than LPN.

There's no way I'd pay $22,000 to go to an LPN program. Especially with the low market for new LPNs in my area.

Night school could potentially save you some out of pocket money, but when would you study, Studying will take up a great deal more time than actually sitting in a classroom...and studying with 3 kid at home isn't for the faint of heart. Coming from a mom of a 9, 4, and 1 year old :-). The people I've know who tried the night NS route with kids have either had seriously suffering grades or stayed up until 3 am every night or ended up paying for daycare so they could have study time anyway. :-)

I would take all my prereq in the cc then I would go to the private college to get my BSN in a shorter amount of time. By then your kids would be a little bit old older and it might be more easier for you to study more. By doing it that way you won't have to take out as many loans. If you decide to go to a private school for your LPN mostly all credits won't transfer so you would have to take your prereq's over.

22,000 for an LPN program? That's outrageous. JMO, but I would never do it unless there was absolutely no other option.

Community College definately!!!!

LPN's are becoming "extinct" anyways. Especially where I'm from. In the south, LPN's are losing jobs left and right. If I were you I would do the RN option. Go to a community college for the ADN program.

The cost between the two probably wouldn't be that different once you factor in day care cost. But if the community college program is only 9 months and you can find a job after, then CC would be MUCH cheaper. However, if you can't find a job as an LPN because it's becoming "extinct", neither option makes sense.

I agree, community college. $22 k is not a good investment, especially if you can take classes at a community college for much less!!

Clarification - There are basically 2 kinds of higher education (college): Not for Profit (nfp) & for-profit (investor owned or commercial ventures). Traditional (nfp) schools can be either public (tax supported) or private (not tax supported) but their primary mission is education, along with research for 4-year schools. Conversely, the primary goal for commercial, for-profit schools is to make money for investors and owners.

The two most visible differences in the two (nfp and commercial) are cost & marketing. Commercial schools engage in very high profile marketing, including aggressive pursuit of anyone who even makes a casual inquiry. These marketing campaigns have been found to be very misleading - providing false information about jobs obtained by their graduates & likelihood of a successful career with the degree/certification obtained. Their tuition is much higher than nfp public schools, and can be as much or more than 'tier one' prestigious private universities. There are several US legislative initiatives underway to curtail Federal aid that is currently being used by students at for-profit schools, particularly those with dismal graduation rates & higher levels of loan defaults.

Accreditation is not dependent upon the type of school... all types of schools can become fully accredited but regional accreditation is very important in order to transfer credits from one school to another and nursing programs must also be accredited by NLNAC or CCNE. In order to achieve and maintain full accreditation, nursing programs must meet very strict requirements, including the ratio of qualified instructors/faculty to students & this is usually the most critical factor that limits class size. Nursing programs can lose accreditation for violating standards or falling below acceptable NCLEX pass rates for their students. Traditional schools employ full time faculty who have chosen to become career educators and supplement as needed with adjunct (part time) faculty. Commercial schools have very few full-time faculty... with most classes being taught by adjunct staff who are paid a set amount for each class they teach.

So for the sake of clarity, I would propose calling for-profit schools "commercial" and the nfp's either "public" or "private".

I'd say getting your LPN now is a poor decision, like others have said. The future of nursing is BSN degrees, which many places are now requiring their nurses to have. I agree with taking your prereqs at a CC and then transferring to a BSN program. Just make sure you talk to the school prior to assure they will transfer.