Time to go back for my BSN

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Specializes in Med-Surg/home health/pacu/cardiac icu.

I've been out of school for 2 1/2 months. I am bored out of my mind because I am not going to school and working full time. I've cleaned and organized my house, started a garden, watched all the shows that I Tivo'd while I was in school, gone swimming, fishing, camping and anything else I can think of. I have four kids and I have been spending a lot of time with them because I work 3- 12's.

My four year old told me today that "we are spending too much time together and I need to go back to school because I am getting on her last nerves.!":) I guess that's a good excuse to go back to school then.

I have been considering getting my BSN. I have narrowed it down to two schools. Chamberlain College of Nursing and Florida College of Health Sciences.

I've read all the posts on this website concerning either school. I like the price of FCHS but I don't like having to be in a scheduled class at a certain time, because I work a rotating schedule. However, Chamberlain seems really fast but I don't like the price.

Any helpful ideas, suggestions, tips?

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Maybe get in touch with LunahRN. She did a spreadsheet on several programs with lots of info before she decided on Chamberlain. There is a thread here somewhere with a link to it. Good luck with your decision.

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Specializes in Med-Surg/home health/pacu/cardiac icu.

Thank you. I had looked at those and I still can't make a decision. I keep weighing the pros and cons of both. It does seem like most people have been equally satisfied with both programs.

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Lunah and others have said that the Chamberlain program involves lots and lots of paper writing. That and the cost would rule them out for me. I've had about all the paper writing I want to do for a couple of lifetimes.

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Specializes in Med-Surg/home health/pacu/cardiac icu.

The paper writing doesn't bother me. The cost does. I don't know that it justifies taking out student loans just to pay for my BSN. Where I work does not pay more for a BSN. However, a BSN could be useful in the future if I want to pursue other areas.

FCHS is a lot cheaper, a lot of paper writing, a couple of projects. However, I would have to take a couple more classes and they have an online discussion the same time each week.(They have about 10 different times you can pick.) I work a rotating schedule and I don't know this requirement would work with my work schedule.

I guess my decision is cost vs. convenience and time.

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Specializes in EMS, ED, Trauma, CEN, CPEN, TCRN.

Like I've said elsewhere, I did the math ... while one program might be cheaper per credit hour, they may also require you to take more credits. My next choice of program (U of Wisconsin-Green Bay) was less expensive per credit hour, but was going to require that I take about 15 more credits, which put its cost at nearly the same as Chamberlain in my case -- there was about a $1K difference.

Does your employer reimburse you at all?

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I'm doing Chamberlain, also.

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