Private v. Public

kate930 · Dec 17, 2003

Funny you should mention this TODAY of all days.

I started talking to an admissions person at CCI about 3 weeks ago. Since then, I have taken the NET (scored 94 Math and 79 Reading), and finished all my enrollment paperwork.

Well......................

During the three weeks that I have been talking with the admissions counselor, I was told that in our area, they have had their first LPN class graduate. Of the 30 who started, 16 graduated. He also told me that all 16 passed the NCLEX on the first try.

Ok... so I'm impressed! (or rather.... I was )

Anyhow, he also misled me into believing they had an articulation agreement with other colleges in the area to do a bridge program (LPN to BSN). He also told me that NLN and the BON were the same thing. :rolleyes: At the time... I did not know that NLN and BON were totally seperate.

Fast Forward to today

Today, I meet with the LPN director, and she tells me that the lady I was sitting next to in the lobby was one of the people who had just graduated from their first LPN class..... AND she was going to be one of the first to take the NCLEX next month, along with 3 others from her graduating class. :stone (remember, the admissions guy told me that all 16 from their first graduating class had already taken the NCLEX and PASSED!)

Anyway, I made sure I heard her correctly when she was telling me about the upcoming test-takers.

Anyhow, I left feeling really deceived and wondered what else had I been lied to about, and had yet to discover.

Make sure you go in with as much knowledge as you can. Don't let them snowball you, nor let them sugar-coat the truth.

I've decided I'm moving on and looking for another option. I can't afford to waste a year of my life and $15K on a program that seems a bit fishy and obviously shady.

marshalbc77 · Dec 17, 2003

I wish you all the luck. I'm an alumni class of 2001. I"m an LVN at a Med-Surg floor and ER.

Sarah Kat · Dec 17, 2003

The LPN school I start in January is a trade school (the LPN program has been in operation since 1952, though). The main reasons I chose this school is that it's NLN accredited, 12 months long, and has a great reputation. If you want to find a NLN accredited program in your area, go to the NLN list of accredited programs. As long as the program is a good one, it doesn't really matter if it's a community college or a trade school. Good luck!

sierranic · Dec 17, 2003

I also looked into going to a tech school vs a cc or univ for my LPN, the cost was 16k vs 4k at the cc (Big difference in $$$ for a student) However, I was very interested because the tech school started new classes every 10 weeks, and there was no selection process, so I knew I'd get in there quick, vs the CC which has selection 9 month prior to the start date etc, etc, etc......

But before I was going to commit myself to 16k in debt I asked the local CC what they thought about taking LPN's from the tech school for the LPN to RN course. The Head of Directors from the CC stated that they would accept anyone who was a licensed LPN regardless where they went, but she also stated that I should look into the school a little more closely before accepting it. Come to find out, after talking to the tech school, I would pay my 16k and walk out with a LPN, but if I were to transfer to a LPN to RN program I'd have to retake the Anatomy & Physiology, Microbiology, so on and so on because those credits don't transfer... So yet again, I would not only pay the 16k for my LPN but I'd have to retake these classes again, paying again, before I could enter the LPN to RN, whereas if I went to the CC I wouldn't have to waste my time doing this.

So in my own opinion, I choose to wait it out, In the mean time I have been taking a majority of my BSN non nursing courses because I have all my non-nursing courses for the RN done. Then eventually I'll get in to a CC at some time hopefully fall of 04' but just incase I applied at another CC which will guarantee me a seat in fall 05'.......

So look into it real good before dishing out all the money.

There was another thing to which someone stated previously, their pass rates at my tech school were not all that great, my sister who is a nurse with BSN gets LPN from the tech school and complains up a storm about how she feels they don't know everything they should, whereas she feels like the CC and Univ LPN's have a little more knowledge......

Remeber this is your future, and only you can choose which route is best for you!! So best of luck to what ever you choose, just be smart and choose wisely!!

Sauni · Mar 6, 2004

Hi Everyone!
I was just curious for everyone's opinion on trade/technical schools. I'm starting Concorde Career Institute's LVN program tomorrow because I wanted to be able to finish within a year. Will it be significantly harder for me to get hired at hospitals because I chose this route?
Any information would be appreciated. Thank you!

Hi

I wanted to ask how did you like Concorde? Did it meet your expectations? Did you learn alot? any information would be appreciated.

Thanks,

sauni

stnurse83 · Mar 9, 2004

I had a cousin looking at concorde, but it wasn't for nursing though. It was for their respiratory therapy program. She came out of the whole process very disatisfied. She went through all the admissions mess and interviews. When she went to her last interview they told her the program was not accredited. The admissions rep. did not say one word about it to her. On the folder that the school gives you, it said all the programs was accredited member of something. I read the folder myself. Come to find out all the programs was accredited but this one. I think it said something like- Our programs are accredited by such and such. Not obvious that the respiratory therapy program wasn't. Very misleading!!! She had gave these people $100.00 admission fee and I have no idea how much gas money she spent going back and fourth to the school. she also ended up paying ton's of money for daycare for all these times they met with her during the day. They kind of made sure to tell people at the last interview so they can talk people into it like telling them they can still get a job. She said next time she talkes to a school she will know to ask very specificly about the accredidation. :angryfire She said people she talked with that were trying to get through all the admissions stuff and interviews believed the program was accredited. Nobody from the school had told anyone about it not being accredited. They also fed the students some bull about the program could get accredited while you are in school and they would retroactivate the accredidation back 3 years. I told my cousin not to be fooled that easy because I knew a student one time that got fooled into something similiar to this and all the students came out with nothing in the end.

hopefully · Mar 10, 2004

Hi Everyone!
I was just curious for everyone's opinion on trade/technical schools. I'm starting Concorde Career Institute's LVN program tomorrow because I wanted to be able to finish within a year. Will it be significantly harder for me to get hired at hospitals because I chose this route?
Any information would be appreciated. Thank you!

In my opinon, private schools are easier than public schools. The reason why is that private school instructors want students to suceed. In public schools, there is a weeding out process and the instructors do not care.

airis · Nov 14, 2005

its probably too late to reply to u but now I am going to Concorde for respiratory therapy and if you go to Coarc or Caahep website concorde is not listed as accredited so I called caahep and coarc to verify and they said that concorde is under review and once you graduated from there YOU ARE ELIGIBLE TO TAKE THE LICENSE EXAM. I also called the respiratory exam center and they said that if a school is under review that school will be given temporary accreditation so that students who graduate from there will be eligible to take the exam.

airis · Nov 14, 2005

I had a cousin looking at concorde, but it wasn't for nursing though. It was for their respiratory therapy program. She came out of the whole process very disatisfied. She went through all the admissions mess and interviews. When she went to her last interview they told her the program was not accredited. The admissions rep. did not say one word about it to her. On the folder that the school gives you, it said all the programs was accredited member of something. I read the folder myself. Come to find out all the programs was accredited but this one. I think it said something like- Our programs are accredited by such and such. Not obvious that the respiratory therapy program wasn't. Very misleading!!! She had gave these people $100.00 admission fee and I have no idea how much gas money she spent going back and fourth to the school. she also ended up paying ton's of money for daycare for all these times they met with her during the day. They kind of made sure to tell people at the last interview so they can talk people into it like telling them they can still get a job. She said next time she talkes to a school she will know to ask very specificly about the accredidation. :angryfire She said people she talked with that were trying to get through all the admissions stuff and interviews believed the program was accredited. Nobody from the school had told anyone about it not being accredited. They also fed the students some bull about the program could get accredited while you are in school and they would retroactivate the accredidation back 3 years. I told my cousin not to be fooled that easy because I knew a student one time that got fooled into something similiar to this and all the students came out with nothing in the end.

its probably too late to reply to u but now I am going to Concorde for respiratory therapy and if you go to Coarc or Caahep website concorde is not listed as accredited so I called caahep and coarc to verify and they said that concorde is under review and once you graduated from there YOU ARE ELIGIBLE TO TAKE THE LICENSE EXAM. I also called the respiratory exam center and they said that if a school is under review that school will be given temporary accreditation so that students who graduate from there will be eligible to take the exam.

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Nov 15, 2005

I attended a pricey, private LVN program at a vocational college that was highly regarded in the Los Angeles area. In fact, the total cost was $20,000 and I made my first student loan payment yesterday.

The LVN program was NLN accredited for 19 years but lost that accolade in April 2005. Also, the school had been in existence since 1966. Private school instructors usually want you to pass the program because a grossly huge amount of money is at stake per student. If a student fails halfway through the year, the school receives less than half the tuition (a loss of more than $10,000).

airis · Nov 15, 2005

My husband goes to an LVN private school and he told me that if you are failing your class the school will set up a tutor for you and give you another chance to take the test or do some projects for extra credit. They dont do that at a public school. Once you fail, you are out due to so many students that are on the waiting list. Public school teachers are not going to waste their time giving poor students some tutoring because there are good students that are on the waiting list. Private schools want to make sure you will graduate to keep up with their reputation and also the teachers have to make sure you pass or else what does that say about their performance.

If you commit your time to studying and you make sure you will keep up with everything I dont see a difference between public and private except the money and time. Public- cheap but it will take you longer to graduate because of prerequisites or waiting list.

Private- $$$$ but no waiting list and no prerequisites.