leahmdavis

Hi. I go to Capella University, enrolled into the RN-MSN program. I'm reaching the end of my first year, and I love the school's curriculum. I have really been torn between 2 specializations: nursing leadership (which what I chose) & informatics (which I just switched to a few days ago). Capella's informatics program will allow you to t take the board certification after you complete the program, which one of the reasons I decided to switch now. Otherwise, I would have stayed in the leadership specialty & take the informatics certification program after. Another reason I switched is because there's nurse informatics position in where I work, and I'd like to convey the message that it is a field I'm interested in. I have minimal experience in being a super user but that's unfortunately because of the patient care unit where I work (I do agree that some experience in the field helps to acutally get you in it.) There's no guarantee I'd even be considered for an interview, but I have nothing to lose. I am in the MSN program & I have my job either way. My professional goals is another reason I decided to pursue an MSN over a BSN; and no, I do not have a target position to reach. I do think though that with all the changes in nursing, health care, patient population & conditions, we have to get better at what we do & influence what governs our practice. For a nurse, I think it's important for you to choose where in that you belong & why. By the way, any graduate program is heavy on writing papers, so if you decide to go for it, it's better that you come to accept this fact about. Goodluck on your goals & journey.

Hi. Congrats on your acceptance to the program. I'm enrolled in the RN-MSN program & will be starting my 4th quarter. I'm glad & can relate to your enrollment experience. I am happy with my learning experience so far & I hope the same to yours. Welcome to Capella University!

Hello Biscuit090, I'm in the RN-MSN, Leadership & Administration specialization, since 1/2015. I truly enjoy & feel accomplished with how the program is and what I've learned so far. How is it going with you?

Please check out Capella University. No GRE required. CCNE accredited. DNP is offered. All professors hold a doctorate degree. I'm currently in the RN-MSN program & highly considering continuing on to DNP after.

11:21 am by Tree5981, ADN Hello Everyone! I am currently enrolled in the RN to BSN/MSN track. I have one more semester and I will have my BSN. Hopefully I can shed some light on this school for you and answer some of your questions. There are no tests at all. This was the main reason I went to this school. It is all discussion questions and writing papers. Some of the classes are structured where you write papers throughout the 10 week course that are completely separate papers. Then other classes have it where each paper builds up to one final paper. It is a lot of researching and writing, but I work full time and take 2 classes at a time and it is doable. Someone mentioned "fluff" classes and I can sort of relate to what they are saying. There are a couple of classes that seem redundant to other classes I had previously taken at Capella. Mainly the subject of cultural sensitivity and competence. I had 3 classes already where I had to talk about a specific cultural group and what diagnosis they are most prone to, the barriers they face in healthcare, and write about how a nurse would deal with this situation (ex. patient teaching, sensitivity, communication, etc.). Besides papers, there is the occasional project. I had one class where I had to do a physical assessment on a person and have someone watch me do it, and sign off on the papers. Another project was called a "windshield survey" where you drive around and look at a specific community and write about what you see. The great thing about this school is they give you templates to help you with your papers and projects. They ease you into writing the papers and give you links to help with proper formatting. One of the things I dislike about the school is the tech support. I felt that they weren't very helpful at times. I had a couple of instructors who I felt were never "present", but for the most part I have had great instructors throughout the program. The biggest appeal to me for going to Capella was the fact that they transferred all my credits, and I didn't have to take extra pointless classes at the local colleges and drive there. I really didn't want to take chemistry, statistics, and other required classes. In doing so I would have had to take a bunch of extra classes to take those classes, costing me the same amount of money to go to an online school and finish within a 1 1/2 years. Hope this info helps. Tree

Congratulations tmbeddow! I applied to the RN-BSN @Capella university & would have started in 11/2014 but I decided to just go ahead and go for the MSN.I start the MSN 1/2015. I'm excited quite a bit actually.

I have the same dilemma as yours. I have been an RN ADN for 8 years. A year ago I decided to pursue my BSN online with Kaplan university with the plan to maybe continue with MSN after, but I came across Capella university with a much better curriculum for BSN. I've decided to transfer but that would also mean starting almost all over again since I haven't taken much at Kaplan. I thought of staying for the sake of time since I've already started there but at the same time feel that I'd have a better gain in knowledge and competence after graduation if I went with Capella. But to save time and $, I had to figure out if I'm really going for MSN after. To answer my question, I have to really look at my long-term goals and see which track would be best appropriate to get me there. The answe is MSN. Though I'd like to have my BSN, which won't mean as much if I'd have to go for MSN for my goal anyway, then there's no point for pursuing BSN. It won't be the most time efficient & cost effective way to reach my goal. So now it all comes down to transferring to Capella & enrolling to RN-MSN program. I hope you've figured out yours.

Hello! I would like to check in with all of who attended RN-BSN and RN-BSN/MSN program at Capella. I am thinking of transferring there and highly considering MSN-Administration/Education track. I would appreciate if you could share your experience in either programs. How has it been so far. What type of assignments, other than paper and discussion, are there? Anything requiring footwork? How is their curriculum or at least the way it is designed different from other programs you may have heard of? Thank you for any feedback.

Hello everyone! I know this thread is about a year, but I am wondering how everyone enrolled RN-BSN/MSN, any specialty but especially administration/educator, is doing? I just came across Capella Univ last week, and I'm enticed by how I interpret their programs are ran. I'm currently enrolled in an online RN-BSN program in another school, and yes it would be a waste if I transferred, but I'm thinking about it. Capella's nursing programs seems to have a different type of approach (or at least that's how I interpret their advertisement). Can anyone please share your experience in the tracks you have chosen to take. What's the workload like; the expectations, support & feedback from instructors; nature of assignments (type of things you have to turn in other than paper); are all class materials needed provided?; are you really learning in a way that you feel impacts/improves your competency? Thank you and good luck to those who have started and working your way through (you should be proud of yourselves) and congratulations to those who are in the final stretch!