88keys

Thank you for your post, LilstrideRN. I will be finishing up my BSN in May at age 49 with the same CNM career goal and have been feeling a little concerned about whether this will all work out as I start to navigate the job search. It's great to hear stories of people who are successfully reaching their goals! Best wishes to you as you start your residency and finish you BSN!

I am a non-traditional student in a traditional BSN program, which will take me three years to complete since I already have a bachelor's degree in another field. Though there had been talk about adding an accelerated program for several years at my university, it didn't happen until the year after I started. The accelerated students will be finishing at the same time that I will. If I had it to do all over again (and if there had been an accelerated program starting the same year), I would have gone the accelerated route. First of all, the older I get, the more I realize how little time I will have to practice when I've completed my education. One year makes a big difference when you are looking at only having 12-13 working years left when you are finished with your program. I still have children at home, so I thought that going the longer route might give me more time with my family, but what I have found is that nursing school is like a gaseous substance ~ the work will take up all the available space in your schedule whether you go the traditional or the accelerated route. One thing that the traditional program has going for it is the opportunity for students to participate in externships during the summer. However, I don't know if those make you more competitive for jobs after graduation or not. I do know from talking to other students that the externship experience increases their confidence level in their last year of the BSN program. Frankly, it feels like we spend a lot of time "learning" things that most of us gain through life experience and I imagine this could be cut out of an accelerated program (whether it is or not, I don't know). I also imagine that they don't spend a lot of time warning the accelerated students not to wear sexy red underwear beneath their white uniforms. As for the difference in ages, the next oldest student in my group is the same age as my daughter. It's not a problem for me ~ I actually get along really well with all of my classmates, but I would not say that I am in their social circle, nor are they in mine. So it can feel a little lonely at times, but I do my best to just keep plugging away and staying positive. We have shared one course with the accelerated group so far, and I have to say that it was a little refreshing to have the older group in the class. So that's my experience ~ good luck in making your decision!