TUITION: ABSN/Accelerated Nursing Cost

Nursing Students School Programs

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Specializes in Pediatric Nurse.

Hi everyone...

I was recently accepted to an accelerated nursing/ABSN program. I am writing because although I have already made my deposit to secure my spot, the price is haunting me and I can't tell if I am making an irresponsible decision. 

I have $18k in loans from my first degree- not terrible, but noteworthy. I have some money saved to pay for the cost of living while in the program, but I will need to take out at least a few thousand dollars more to get by without working (it's a 12-month program, and I don't want to sacrifice doing poorly in my classes to work). 

All in all, it looks like the cost of tuition, books, program fees, and some $$ for cost of living comes out to $70,000 total (!!) Also- only about $30k would be federal loans, and the remaining $40k would be private. And yes, I have looked into other schools! All 3 that I've considered going to are $60-100k. It seems every ABSN program is ridiculously expensive. 

Short story long- is it worth years (potentially decades) of working extra and putting most of my income toward paying off these loans? Or would it be worth it to go to a community college to get my RN license, then maybe work as an RN while doing the BSN portion online? I've been weighing the pros and cons but I would love some insight. Thank you!

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I think that you are very wise to double think this plan... please consider that 88$ thousand is a huge amount of debt as you start out your career... and 1/2 of that is going to be private loans that do not always offer the same protections and advantages as federal loans may such as income based repayment plans, forbearance if a life event makes it difficult to make payments, public service loan forgiveness if you happen to work in a participating facility during your repayment period..

Also have you looked into qualifying for 40k in private loans? Have the credit score necessary and most will require a co-signer.. have someone willing to take on this responsibility on your behalf? 

There is nothing wrong with taking the longer (more cost effective) route to your goals... I myself changed careers in my late 40's... attended a 2 year BSN program at a local state university then also went on to earn my FNP (again local state university)  both these degrees combined did not cost me 70k and I was able to pay cash with planning and saving --- continue to work PT.. and tuition assistance provided by my employer.. Today I'm working full time... enjoy my job... and have no student loan debt hovering over me.

Think it through -- as it is evident you are doing -- then make the best choice for you based on facts and not emotions.

Best of luck.  

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Specializes in Pediatric Nurse.
5 hours ago, 203bravo said:

I think that you are very wise to double think this plan... please consider that 88$ thousand is a huge amount of debt as you start out your career... and 1/2 of that is going to be private loans that do not always offer the same protections and advantages as federal loans may such as income based repayment plans, forbearance if a life event makes it difficult to make payments, public service loan forgiveness if you happen to work in a participating facility during your repayment period..

Also have you looked into qualifying for 40k in private loans? Have the credit score necessary and most will require a co-signer.. have someone willing to take on this responsibility on your behalf? 

There is nothing wrong with taking the longer (more cost effective) route to your goals... I myself changed careers in my late 40's... attended a 2 year BSN program at a local state university then also went on to earn my FNP (again local state university)  both these degrees combined did not cost me 70k and I was able to pay cash with planning and saving --- continue to work PT.. and tuition assistance provided by my employer.. Today I'm working full time... enjoy my job... and have no student loan debt hovering over me.

Think it through -- as it is evident you are doing -- then make the best choice for you based on facts and not emotions.

Best of luck.  

Thank you so much for such a thoughtful response. This is definitely why I have been so torn.

I have looked into qualifying for private loans and luckily I have a great credit score so I qualified for $40k at a 6.5% interest rate. Not terrible… but obviously, a good chunk of cash. All in all, I would be paying $1k a month for 10 years or $2k a month for 5 years. Lots of money for sure. 

As far as taking the longer route to a BSN, it’s a little frustrating because I am in Oregon and really don’t have any local state schools nearby that offer a BSN. Only private, expensive universities. My significant other is in northern Washington so I have considered going there, but the 2-year BSN programs (out of state) end up costing as much as the ABSN program so it would be a community college. So all in all, going that route would take about 3 years to get a BSN. I’ve been trying to calculate the time/money difference- as in if I got my BSN in a year and started making a nurse salary would make up for the additional 2 years living on a CNA salary, if that makes sense.

I would want to get my FNP at some point as well, probably in WA when I eventually became a resident. A lot to think about and I REALLY appreciate your input

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Make sure to research and apply for the HRSA scholarship. If you can get this then you may not even need those private loans  :)

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