warning to all excelsior students- i want all potential and current students to know what happened to my girlfriend. take it for what its worth. my girlfriend was a california excelsior student for 6 long yrs (worked full time, supported and took care of her 3 kids) . she spent thousands & thousands of dollars for very expensive books, tests (about $200 per test). skills bags ($150), dvd ($130) , flashcards ($25), audio cd ($25), workshop ($700), and the outrageously expensive and outrageously easy to fail cpne (the 3 day clinical examination that must be passed to receive your rn degree). she failed the first cpne (as way more than half do). that meant another $1800 to retake that. of course, there were airline tickets (about $500 per trip x 2), hotels (about $450 per cpne) and car rentals ($250 per trip). all together she spent close to $20,000 to obtain what is essentially a worthless degree. not one of the 14 hospitals she contacted would hire her when she told them she was an excelsior graduate. are you hearing me? not one. so, when they tell you they're accredited, yada,yada,yada - remember it doesn't mean you can get a job. she tried to enroll in 3 regular, legit college programs. they all refused her because she already had her degree and rn license. so now, she can't even do that. excelsior knew years ago there was a problem. they had the opportunity to work with the ca board of registered nursing. they didn't. if you don't believe me - go to their site. type in 'excelsior' and see for yourself. also, go to georgia's nursing website. see the problems there. nurses are being denied jobs because they're excelsior graduates!!! don't let this happen to you. go to a respected and accepted college.
I chose Excelsior College after doing alot of research and finding a college that considered my years of experience in the Military and in the civilian field as a care giver. It worked for me, I checked with the state board of nursing and it was listed as an approved school for endorsement. So, If you did not do your research then it is your fault, not mine. Don't come knocking the route I chose if you haven't walked in my shoes. I chose the route that worked for me. I have to work my way through college and put my daughter through college at the same time. I still have one exam left and the CPNE to finish. But, the interesting fact is that I have already got offers from hospitals that know of me through physicians and other nurses I have worked with and yes I live in Georgia. We have no control over the GABON and I have to roll with the punches. I will make the deadline or I don't deserve to be licensed in Georgia. I know many do not have the option to move, but I do and I will if needed. So, don't come on here and start cutting down my College. If it does not work for you, then cut your losses and move on. There are many satisfied graduates, employers and patients who are happy Excelsior College is available to those qualified individuals who accept the challenge of the Excelsior Educational system.
This ish is getting really old. Take the old saying "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all.", unless YOU personally have had FIRST-HAND experience with Excelsior. I'm so tired of other people's negative opinions on EC that have never been a student. I'm sorry, actually I take take that back, unless you are a current or former student, or sit on a state BON, your opinion of the school, it's policy's and procedures really truly don't matter. This is old, tired, and dead, so leave it there.
Ok, I skimmed through these threads but did not find my question answered, maybe I did not look hard enough...Why does CA and a few other states not accept this school? Second, if they pass the NCLEX like everyone else in the entire country (EC student in Utah takes the same NCELX in California...how can they turn them away? Just wondering, confused
ok, i skimmed through these threads but did not find my question answered, maybe i did not look hard enough...why does ca and a few other states not accept this school? second, if they pass the nclex like everyone else in the entire country (ec student in utah takes the same ncelx in california...how can they turn them away? just wondering, confused
ca and other states officially either don't except or give extra requirements because they say that excelsior doesn't require enough clinical hours or that their clinical requirements aren't concurrent with theory. my personal opinion, nurses being nurses hating on each other. you know "she/he is {insert anything stupid here} so let's throw that itch under the bus" mentality that is prevalent in the nursing profession. and in addition to that the money that state schools lose.
**note** ec's nursing program has been around since '78, yes, 1978; and it has just been in recent years that these bon issues have risen, not because there has been an abnormally high incendence of violations, errors, or issues with ec nurses, but just because.
yes you do take the same nclex everywhere, but the nursing profession as many others is controlled by state law. we'll use california as an example in two cases. first, you can go to online two year law school, and sit for the bar exam in cali, but in my home state of louisiana you can't do that. the only difference here is that the bar exam isn't the same in every state, which leads to the next example. in cali a cna, yes a certified nurse aide, can sit for the nclex-pn and be licensed as an lvn with 5 years experience in specific areas, and a pharmacology course. could that lvn get reciprocity in louisiana, no. as a matter of fact, an lpn/lvn, in another state who origionally attended and graduated from an rn program, but decided to sit for the pn exam, could not gain reciprocity in louisiana either. that is because the louisiana board of practical nurse examiner's requires that a candidate for pn licensure in louisiana be a graduate of a pn program, similar to louisiana's pn programs. so you see, the state agency that oversee's that profession makes the rules.
now the question that someone should be asking the cali bon, is what makes a cna after 5 years and a pharm class, more competent to be an cali lvn, than a lpn, medic, rt, or midwive to be a cali rn, after recieving education from a ny state approved, nln accredited, nln designated center of excellence. but, hey that is just me thinking as i do in my own little world.
ca and other states officially either don't except or give extra requirements because they say that excelsior doesn't require enough clinical hours or that their clinical requirements aren't concurrent with theory. my personal opinion, nurses being nurses hating on each other. you know "she/he is {insert anything stupid here} so let's throw that itch under the bus" mentality that is prevalent in the nursing profession. and in addition to that the money that state schools lose.
**note** ec's nursing program has been around since '78, yes, 1978; and it has just been in recent years that these bon issues have risen, not because there has been an abnormally high incendence of violations, errors, or issues with ec nurses, but just because.
yes you do take the same nclex everywhere, but the nursing profession as many others is controlled by state law. we'll use california as an example in two cases. first, you can go to online two year law school, and sit for the bar exam in cali, but in my home state of louisiana you can't do that. the only difference here is that the bar exam isn't the same in every state, which leads to the next example. in cali a cna, yes a certified nurse aide, can sit for the nclex-pn and be licensed as an lvn with 5 years experience in specific areas, and a pharmacology course. could that lvn get reciprocity in louisiana, no. as a matter of fact, an lpn/lvn, in another state who origionally attended and graduated from an rn program, but decided to sit for the pn exam, could not gain reciprocity in louisiana either. that is because the louisiana board of practical nurse examiner's requires that a candidate for pn licensure in louisiana be a graduate of a pn program, similar to louisiana's pn programs. so you see, the state agency that oversee's that profession makes the rules.
now the question that someone should be asking the cali bon, is what makes a cna after 5 years and a pharm class, more competent to be an cali lvn, than a lpn, medic, rt, or midwive to be a cali rn, after recieving education from a ny state approved, nln accredited, nln designated center of excellence. but, hey that is just me thinking as i do in my own little world.
from the inception of excelsior in 1978 until the december 2003 policy change, the ca brn had no problem licensing ec graduates, as did the other states in the us, with two exceptions. i find it rather hypocritical that all of these states have "found" problems with the program over the years, when in fact, the ec program has tightened up its own requirements during this time period. ca, for one, has provided not one reasonable substitute for the ec program. ask people what they think about those strange ca requirements allowing off the wall licensure for rn and lvn, and you can really see the contradiction.
The problem with Excelsior started to appear around 2001-2002....it stemmed from a few shady publishing companies that got a few boards of nursing questioning Excelsior (the big one was in Utah). Some of the long timers on here remember the big ordeal. It has been a downward cascade since then. Those interested can research this and draw their own conclusions...it's a dead horse for sure. As a graduate of Excelsior I have the right to voice my dissatisfaction in how they managed dealing with some of the boards and shady companies...the intervention was a day to late in my opinion. If some of the early concerns had been nipped in the bud we may not have seen this backlash. I realize some of you are pretty new to Excelsior and have not followed the state by state sanctions over the past few years...I have. I started the program in 2001 and passed boards in 2005. I started when the only sanctions were the ones that had been around forever (Illinois was virtually the only state requiring experience and case by case decisions). Since around 2002 when a publishing company started some havoc in Utah, and then California banned Excelsior, the downslide has continued. Yes, Excelsior is an alternative that is so welcomed by many BUT I would not recommend it unless you have absolutely no other alternative. I started when there really were no sanctions and wouldn't start today with all the sanctions. I am pretty much grandfathered in all the banned states but would hate to be a new graduate and restricted...life takes you places you least expect. I don't knock the program because it worked for me but with today's knowledge I don't advocate it either. If you only have this alternative--do it and keep abreast the changes, if you can any way possible do another program--do that and not worry about all these board decisions.
Forgive me for saying, and I know a lot of excellent EC grads, but EC is effectively dead and closed its door on opportunity as well as all of its current/new students. Allnurses might have an additional category to Distance Learning for Nursing, like EC Venting and Pumping-a-dead-horse category on Nursing Student page. This is only a feasible suggestion, since rarely anything is discussed of interest on Distance Learning predominantly to new students who can read and reason.
IN-STATE DISTANT LEARNING PROGRAMS ARE EXPLODING EVERYWHERE!! And nothing but the EC troubles and an occasional expensive Indiana State post is all that you see on Distant Learning category ( That is real unfortunate that this information about In-State distant learning programs cannot be found on the number one nursing site IN THE WORLD!
If EC is the primary supporter of this site, forgive me. That was not clearly communicated. I am not knocking or faulting anyone: I am saying ain't it a shame :saint:
I am a current Excelsior student. I got my ADN from a traditional community college, and am working on my BSN through Excelsior. I have had to ask for assistance from my Nurse Manager to complete some of the assignments (such as video-taping an assessment in a clinical environment), and she has been very supportive. I am not going to have any trouble moving into another position at my hospital when I complete my BSN. But that statement is based on the fact that I know I am going to have my manager's recommendation and support, and I think that is going to be the deciding factor in my hospital, not where I got my degree. They know me here, the degree is just a formality.
I cannot speak to a new hire situation because I already had my ADN, RN, a good work history, and 15 years of experience before enrolling in Excelsior. If I were doing the hiring, I wouldn't hire someone who got their ADN through Excelsior. I don't think they have the clinical experience and supervision that they need. You can only learn so much from books and videos. Real-life patient care is very different. Excelsior tries to skirt the issue by saying that they require the student to have prior clinical experience (as a LPN, EMT, etc.) before accepting them for enrollment. An LPN I could see, but an EMT does NOT have nursing clinical experience. I'm sorry, it's just not the same. The state of Georgia is the only one that will not recognize an ADN degree from Excelsior, and it is because of the lack of a clinical component to the curriculum, not the content of the curriculum, and this is a new development, within the last year. I expect other states to follow suit, and this person's experience with job hunting in California is probably an indication that CA is going to jump on the bandwagon soon.
forgive me for saying, and i know a lot of excellent ec grads, but ec is effectively dead and closed its door on opportunity as well as all of its current/new students. allnurses might have an additional category to distance learning for nursing, like ec venting and pumping-a-dead-horse category on nursing student page. this is only a feasible suggestion, since rarely anything is discussed of interest on distance learning predominantly to new students who can read and reason.
in-state distant learning programs are exploding everywhere!! and nothing but the ec troubles and an occasional expensive indiana state post is all that you see on distant learning category ( that is real unfortunate that this information about in-state distant learning programs cannot be found on the number one nursing site in the world!
if ec is the primary supporter of this site, forgive me. that was not clearly communicated. i am not knocking or faulting anyone: i am saying ain't it a shame :saint:
this is not the fault of allnurses or anyone that posts here. i know of quite a few distance learning programs, for lpn, and rn. and i am not on staff here at allnurses but i would venture to say that ec is not a main supporter of the site. ec has prevalence because of it's format, and because it was the most viable option for many many people years ago. indiana is somewhat prevalent, ecause it is cali's alternative to ec for current lpns. decaoness or as it is now known chambelain was once very prevelant because it a program, that excepted people befre any type of licensure, and you could get your lpn or rn. it no longer provides those options. so the things that are discussed on this board the most, are the things that a majority of the students, are interested in or attending.
i know there are quite a few things that may be of interest to some, but not many. for example, the minnestoa online pn programs, that any one can get into. the only program is that you have to go there a few times a semester sometimes for weeks at a time for clinicals and skills labs. that is great for people in that area, worthless for the majority on here. another program, a few years ago was a diploma rn program for those with no previous licensure, where students would do clinicals in a community hspital near them all over the country.this program would have been of great interest to some, and not to other such as current lpns or medics, because the program didn't allow advanced placement. unfortunately this program n longer operates this way.
so yes they are many online options out there. and if someone asks aout something diffrent and i see the post, i'll share what i know, but i am in ec and that is what i (and the majority) of students on here are doing, so you can't expect us to search high and low for alternatives just to post on an. if we wern't here this board would be dead today,maybe tomorrow there will be something else, more viable, or accepted, and that will be the hot topic, but until then ec is it.
if people want an alternative sure, they can post here, and people will share what they know, but a person must take charge of their own education, and find an option that is right for them, if such an option exists.
I just graduated from EC's ADN program and just got hired at a Level 1 800 bed trauma center with an excellent reputation with my degree. All 3 hospitals I interviewed all the managers knew about the program and was more than impressed with my dedication for completing the program and offered me a job. So in the end, I got to pick and choose.
I really feel sorry for your views about EC ADN program. Why would you attend EC's BSN program and feel the way you do about the ADN program? I hope that once you become an manager or advance in your profession that you would not be so judgemental and more open minded when it comes to dealing with people from various educational backgrounds. I know people are entitled to their opinion but to go into a new position with preconcieved prejudices will not make you an effective manager. I am thankful for the numerous nurse managers around the country that are open minded to the EC RN graduate and willing to give them a chance. They are reaping the benefits for hiring quality nurses that give excellent care. Kudos to them!!!!!
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( That is real unfortunate that this information about In-State distant learning programs cannot be found on the number one nursing site IN THE WORLD!
:saint:
dsmithkazk
48 Posts
I chose Excelsior College after doing alot of research and finding a college that considered my years of experience in the Military and in the civilian field as a care giver. It worked for me, I checked with the state board of nursing and it was listed as an approved school for endorsement. So, If you did not do your research then it is your fault, not mine. Don't come knocking the route I chose if you haven't walked in my shoes. I chose the route that worked for me. I have to work my way through college and put my daughter through college at the same time. I still have one exam left and the CPNE to finish. But, the interesting fact is that I have already got offers from hospitals that know of me through physicians and other nurses I have worked with and yes I live in Georgia. We have no control over the GABON and I have to roll with the punches. I will make the deadline or I don't deserve to be licensed in Georgia. I know many do not have the option to move, but I do and I will if needed. So, don't come on here and start cutting down my College. If it does not work for you, then cut your losses and move on. There are many satisfied graduates, employers and patients who are happy Excelsior College is available to those qualified individuals who accept the challenge of the Excelsior Educational system.