Top Rated Accelerated BSN programs

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Howdy! I recently graduated from college (with a non-nursing B.A.) and am now thinking of going back to school for my BSN. I am planning on enrolling into an accelerated BSN program and have been searching high and wide for some details, such as:

*which schools are included in the top ten for nursing programs?

*which accelerated BSN programs are considered the best?

*how much of a difference will it make to have a degree from a well respected school given the shortage in the nursing field and relative need of emplyers?

*is it worth spending the money to go a a top school for a BSN or would that money be better utilized later if/when I choose to get a Master's in a specialized area?

I would be quite appreciative of any and all advice from those of you who are surely so much more knowledgeable than I....

Thanks a million for your time.

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There aren't enough programs to merit U.S News & World Reports notice. While U Penn has the best rep in nursing in Philly, only & Jefferson had accelerated programs. As long as your undergrad GPA & GRE's are high enough you can get into grad school.

Trust me, you can find a job. Grads at my program pick & choose. Imagine that.

Look carefully at whether you really want to be a nurse. Shadow some folks & lurk on this board. My program costs $22,000 in tuition & $2,000 in fees for one year. You don't want to shell out big money & decide nursing isn't for you. Do some volunteer work first.

Good luck deciding. And don't ask me about Drexel, yet. It is only the second week of class.

---

Caroline

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I just graduated from an accelerated BSN (the same one Caroline is going to now), and I would say it doesn't really matter about the name of the school as long as it is a good fit for you. US News rankings really have to be taken with a grain of salt anyway. However, because accelerated BSN programs seem to be popping up all over the place, I would recommend NOT going to a program in it's first year in operation. I was the second class to go through my program, and it was still a little disorganized. Also, you might want to consider the length of the program, they range anywhere from 11-16 months. Consider how long your commute will be, living expenses, where you will have to travel to do clinicals, etc. These things matter much more than the name of the school.

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Specializes in critical care; community health; psych.

I hear a lot about accelerated BSN programs. I'm an ADN student who hopes to get my BSN while working. Would I be looking for an accelerated BSN program after graduation or is it strictly for someone who already has a bachelor degree in something else? Please forgive the ignorance but these are the first feelers I'm putting out about this subject.

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I think what chalkmonster is talking about are accelerated BSN's for people who already have a bachelor's degree and want to change careers in a short amount of time. It's basically just the nursing courses, you have to have all of your prereqs done before you start. :)

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I don't know about others, but UMD Baltimore is in the top 10.

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we have two top colleges here. One costs 20,000 or more a year. I bet loans and grants both would not be enough to pay for it all. The other college cost 12,000 or little more.

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RN KittyKat-- ADN's b/c you guys already become RN's would go to a RN--->BSN program, not an accel BSN program. All of us accel BSN's have BA's in other things. Not sure how ADN's become BSN's, but if you came here you'd laugh at us. We are often pretty clueless about nursing.

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Specializes in L&D.
Originally posted by RNKittyKat

I hear a lot about accelerated BSN programs. I'm an ADN student who hopes to get my BSN while working. Would I be looking for an accelerated BSN program after graduation or is it strictly for someone who already has a bachelor degree in something else? Please forgive the ignorance but these are the first feelers I'm putting out about this subject.

Hi, I know of a person (In Michigan) that has her RN but is working on her BSN through University of Phoenix - Online! UOP is considered a private college, but also accelerated. 5-week courses. You might want to check into them. But again...extremely expensive.

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Specializes in Float Pool, ICU/CCU, Med/Surg, Onc, Tele.

I second that motion on not going to a program in its first two years. Lots of kinks and that's all I'm gonna say. :stone

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Specializes in OB, lactation.

Do you guys with previous BA's get to skip any of the BSN classes? I have a previous (non-science) BA and am in a regular BSN program, but I don't know what I'd be able to skip for an accelerated program if I had done one. Is it just faster/more credits crammed in the time or are you getting to skip stuff? Does that make sense?

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Specializes in Float Pool, ICU/CCU, Med/Surg, Onc, Tele.

If you've taken a required course for the new program, in your old program, you can skip it. Make sense? For instance we are required to have general psych and child psych for our program. I'd taken general psych with my first degree (business) and then I took child psych independently the summer before I started my program. Now I don't have to take any psych courses while I'm in my program, in order to graduate. I've actually done this with quite a few of my courses. Basically the only courses I'm taking in this program are actual nursing courses (Med Surg, OB, etc).

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