sailaway

Turning away qualified nursing candidates is a terrible shame and I am not convinced that this problem is going to be remedied in the short run. Those people most qualified to leave the bedside and take a position as a nurse educator cannot quit their present position to attend a residential graduate program. Many online programs set up unreasonable hurdles like requiring a minimum number of courses per term, requiring residential stayes, etc. We have just launched a Master of Nursing Education degree at the University of St. Augustine eliminating all of these hurdles. We have a lot of interest in the program but even we are not going to graduate enough nursing faculty to do anything but put a small dent in the problem. It is my personal opinion (and probably not a very popular one) that the NLN and the CCNE continually increase the threshold requirements for nursing faculty at the same time they are crying about the lack of people who are coming into the role--it just does not make sense to me!

The answer to this question can get a bit complicated but please feel free to send me an email. I will share with you the ins and outs of the various practice acts - as well as the exceptions to the rules. Peace. Dan