Should I pay more money to graduate earlier with the economy the way it is?

[sixthwannabe]

I am in the process of applying for various nursing schools which I have a very good chance of getting into. So excited

HOWEVER, one is very expensive (think 43-50 k/each years for 2 yrs) and the other is much cheaper (16 k/ yr, 3 yrs). These numbers include tuition, board, room, transportation, books, health insurance...

I am already a junior in college done with pre-reqs and don't want to spend forever in school. I have friends that are paying enourmous amounts of money to graduate BSN summer 2010 and intend to work in California (think private schools similar to Touro in Las Vegas/Denver colorado school of Nursing in Denver). They say it's worth the mountains of tuition cost b/c they'll be graduating earlier and making $$$. But is it really worth it becuase if the Calfornia Economy continues the way it has been then they won't really get jobs to offset graduating ealier?

SHould I graduate Winter 2011 at a more expensive school or late summer/fall 2012 at a cheaper, but equally good, nursing school (high NCLEX passing for both, and great clinicals so quality is not a factor here)?

Is it even worth graduating earlier if the economy hasn't picked up? Norcal for example is not really hiring new grads . I know people who graduated in May and Still can't find jobs .

When do you guys think the economy will pick up enough and new grads so that us new grads will have a very good chance at getting a job right out of college? I'm also thinking about giving crna a shot...that means ICU. How has the economy affected ICU hiring rates?

What do you guys think?

money, what a headache!

P.S. Do you guys think prestige matters for nursing fields? I know somebody that is going to John Hopkins (55k a year, good lord) that turned down San Francisco State (i think 17 k/year?) he wants to be a crna or do management.

[Kyrshamarks, BSN, RN]

First of all I cannot imagine paying 55k a year for nursing school. Thats just plain idiotic. As for you dilemma. Look at it this way...2 years at just 43k is 86k that They will have to pay. for 3 years at 16 you are only paying 48...the cost of just one year at the other school..no brainer there just to graduate 6 months earlier you will pay 40 thousand more? That makes absolutely no sense to pay more for finishing a bit faster ion this situation. Think long term also.. The interest on a loan will be alot less for the lower amount, you will end up making more in the long run than your friends would if you were working side by side. You get to keep more of your take home pay than they will....

[dishes, BSN, RN]

sixthwannabe

This is a big financial decision, to make it easier, ask your self how much you can afford to risk for the sake of graduating in 2011 vs 2012. Maybe the economy will improve in 2011 and dip in 2012, but that is a gamble. Are you able to afford an $80,000 + gamble? Do you have a back up plan for making payments if you did not find work in 2011? or 2012? What kind of payments could you manage if there is still a recession in 2011 and 2012?

dishes

[nclady31]

I agree with Kyrshamarks,

I don't know what the average starting salary is in California, but if you graduate a year earlier with at least $38000 in loans, that will negate a majority of your take home pay for the first year. That is assuming a starting salary of at least 50k. So the year you have a head start, you would technically only be paying for the difference to graduate the one year earlier. Good luck!

[elkpark]

Although I think it would be hard to make the argument at any time (that it would be better to spend a lot more money to finish sooner), I think it's an especially bad idea right now. If it were me, I'd want to give the economy as much time as possible to recover before starting jobhunting, and taking on more debt than necessary (I assume you're talking about student loans, not paying cash for school) seems like an even worse idea right now than it usually is.

[llg, PhD, RN]

I agree with the others. The loans you will need to take out and the long-term accumulation of interest that you will have on them will negate any salary you might earn in that first year out of school.

Also ... it's often true that compressing education can decrease the learning a bit. "Taking your time" in school will give you a chance to fully digest your nursing education. It may even give you the opportunity to engage in some more in-depth learning experiences that will enrcih your education. Finally, it may give you the opportunity to either work part time and earn some money or do some volunteer work that will help you to make contacts that will both enrich your education and help you get hired into a good job after graduation.

Don't rush it ... and make the most of the extra time you will have as a student.

[SlightlyMental_RN]

Goodness sakes....I just graduated w/my ADN, and it cost me around 5 thousand total. I'm working as an RN, and I'll go do a BSN completion program next year. I can't imagine dropping that kind of cash. It amazes me what schools will charge and especially young students (that don't realize the burden of student loans) are willing to pay. Yowza.

[JomoNurse]

Don't go the expensive route! I went to a junior college and even got help from FAFSA. I only had to pay about $200 per semester in tution fees. With everything (books, etc) I was probably about $500 a semester. That's only 2,000 dollars TOTAL for my RN. It's just not worth it to spend as much as those other schools want to charge. Oh, I didn't factor in gas money... that probably was a lot hauling myself to and from places at least 4 times a week, plus work. Totally doable though. I was debt free when I graduated... try to be the same way! :) Right now I think that you are "blinded" by just wanting to get it over with and aren't really absorbing how much money that is. That's a HELLAVA lot of money to pay for student loans. If you go the cheap route, you'll be able to put all of your money towards a new car, a new house, clothes, and even more clothes. I started working as an RN about 1.5 years ago and started out at about 85,000. It was so nice to apply all of that money towards things I wanted and NOT a loan repayment program. The only problem is that the government takes out more than 1/3rd in taxes from my paycheck - yikes!