Private Loans / Nursing as a 2nd degree

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Hi there. My title should tell it all. I have a bachelor's degree and decided i did not want to branch into health communications after all. I've looked at so many schools in my area..weighed pros and cons including my age..25 and i really want to get into the field as quickly as possible. I have 3 more pre reqs.. I'd much rather get my bsn through with so I'm not stuck with transferring credits and doing a full bridge program. I have dreams of working as a NP or in administration one day.. Anyways private loans are looking like they may have to be an option somewhere through this nursing journey... Clearly bc im almost done draining federal aid.

Just wanted to know how anyone has done it without a co signer... ? And not much extremely built credit... Any other resources..besides scholarships? I've heard sallie Mae gives loans...but i think it would be smart to start paying on my fed loans now to show i will pay back ss soon as im finished. I've been looking at Chamberlain in Atlanta.. Its close to me.. Its accelerated but its private :-/ . I'll be attending their open house july 11th to see if realistically its something i would want to pay for. I do know that it wouldn't be the whole 80k they ask for bc i have practically all the pre reqs completed.

Any solid realistic answers would help

Thanks all!

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Specializes in Critical Care, Education.

Straight talk here -- don't shoot yourself in the foot. It's bad enough to incur private loans, but opting for a super-expensive commercial (investor owned) school like Chamberlain will make it soooo much worse. Faster is not better in the long run. Faster means less time to focus on learning & socialization into the profession. Faster means more difficulty maintaining a high GPA & more likelihood of failure. Faster means no ability to work while in school to offset some debt.

If you do plan on moving ahead to a graduate education, you'd be much better off choosing a traditional undergrad nursing education from a well-respected program.

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Specializes in Prior military RN/current ICU RN..

You do not state what you already owe. I have seen breakdowns on here of 100K of loans being over a 1,000 a month. Also you will be paying interest so 100K ends up more like 130K. You will be paying that for YEARS. It is a huge burden. I am of the belief the more you owe the more it owns you.

At the least figure out exactly how much you will owe and how much you will need to pay each month. Do not live in the "well I think it will be about". Get the truth then you can make actual legit decisions. I got my BSN in 06 and I know a lot of people I went to school with are not even nursing now. They hated it or burned out. One of my friends got married and teaches a yoga and said "no way never again" to nursing.

Just get real data and make your decision. Good luck.

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