3 Reasons Why Nursing Schools are Turning Away Candidates During a Nursing Shortage

Over 56,000 qualified nursing school applicants were turned away in 2017. You read that right - 56,000. This is happening while hospitals and clinics continue to report a nursing shortage. According to Becker's Hospital Review, some of these qualified applicants are graduating high school with a 3.5 GPA or higher. These are candidates that will likely be successful nursing students.

You may be wondering why this is happening in the middle of a nursing shortage. Let's discuss the statistics, reasons for the problem, and a few solutions.

The Statistics

Here are a few concerning statistics about the number of aspiring nurses being turned away each year by nursing programs:

• The National League of Nurses reported that up to 45% of ADN applicants and 36% of BSN applicants were turned away in 2014
• Cabrillo College in Aptos, California reported having hundreds on their wait list for a 60-seat nursing program
• Many schools are saying that applicants will be on wait-lists for up to six years and some schools are discontinuing wait lists altogether

The Reasons

To fix the problem, you need to understand why thousands of students are turned down each year by nursing schools across the country.

Not Enough Instructors

Nursing faculty positions go unfilled year and year. In fact, the American Association of Colleges of Nursing reported in their Special Survey on Vacant Faculty positions that the United States has an annual national nursing faculty vacancy rate of slightly over 7%. This equates to about two teachers for every nursing program out there. And, over 90% of these vacancies require or prefer the nurse filling the position to have a doctoral degree.

The survey went on to break down the vacancies by region. The most substantial number of vacancies can be found in the Midwest, with nearly 10% of all faculty positions remaining unfilled. Just behind that region was the South (9.7%), North Atlantic (9.5%), and finally the West (9%). If you look at the issue by type of institution - 9.6% of all vacancies are found at public colleges. And, one more break down tells us that the largest number of vacancies are in Baccalaureate programs (14.6%).

Do Nurses Want to Be Instructors?

Being a nursing instructor may be of interest to many nurses until they begin doing their homework about the position and salaries. Up to 18% of all faculty positions do not have a tenure system at the institution, and another 32.6% of the jobs just don't qualify. The amount of education required for these vacant positions appears to be another barrier. Over 22% of all vacant positions required a doctoral degree.

The special report by the AACN also reports that many schools have insufficient funds to hire new faculty. And, in some schools, the administration doesn't support the additional faculty positions, even though they are turning away potential students.

Clinical Space Shortage

All programs require a significant amount of hands-on experience in a clinical setting. Finding nursing units available for clinicals can be a challenge for nursing programs. If we had enough faculty, would they receive the training they needed? The answer is probably, no.

Many schools are reporting that there are a limited number of clinical spaces for students to get this experience. And, finding preceptors in specialty areas can be another barrier. This has further compounded the need to turn away qualified nursing school applicants.

Higher Clinical Nurse Salaries

As clinical nursing salaries continue to grow, nursing faculty salaries have not been able to compete. Up to 33.9% of schools with faculty vacancies reported that noncompetitive wages were to blame for the inability to fill the position. In fact, the AACN reported in March 2016 that a masters-prepared faculty member made an average of $77,022 per year. Compare this to a masters-prepared nurse practitioner salary of $87,000, and you can easily see why these positions are difficult to fill.

The Answers

Identifying the problem is only half the bottle. Let's explore a few solutions to this nursing dilemma.

Bridge Programs

Many nurses choose nursing as a second career. Or, they start out as an LPN or ADN and move up to a master's or doctoral prepared nurse later on in their career. Professionals can make these transitions with the use of bridge programs.

These programs allow qualified candidates to continue their education when it's convenient for them. These programs have adopted an online format over the past several years, making it even easier for nurses to continue to work and advance their education. With the help of bridge programs, some of these faculty positions could be filled.

Think Outside the Box for Clinical Sites

As our healthcare environment moves away from extended hospital stays, nursing programs need to consider new locations for clinicals. Instructors are now turning to rehab centers and nursing facilities to gain exposure to patients who were once kept after surgeries and other procedures.

Nursing jobs are changing too. Looking for preceptors in-home care, hospice, and other community-based settings is crucial for the future of nursing education. And, it gives students exposure to non-hospital nursing career options.

Create a Competitive Salary Structure

Teaching is such an essential career, yet, teachers across all industries seem to have lower paying salaries. There is undoubtedly a demand for more nursing instructors, so this needs to be rectified.

If you are interested in pursuing a career as a nurse faculty member - you can increase your earning potential based on the location and type of school. You may also look at roles, such as nurse education director, to improve your salary.

What are your thoughts about nursing schools turning away qualified applicants? Have you experienced a long wait-list or other issue related to starting your nursing education? We would love to hear your thoughts and experiences.