Why Are So Many Students Worried About Expensive Tuition

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I was reading other threads and I came across students who were accepted to private nursing schools but declined their acceptance because of the tuition.:nono: If nursing is your passion by any means necessary you should do everything to accomplish your goal. In NY, nurses start off with 70K+ a year:yeah:, so in a rough estimate its possible to pay off large loans within 5-10 yrs. The cheaper schools are much more competitive to get into. If you get accepted into NYU, PACE, LIU etc. just go for it. Is anyone with me on this?

You're way out of line man. You're saying that because I earned my BSN at a private university where the tuition was $32,000 a year I must be less qualified than you, right?

Wrong. There are a lot of reasons people choose to go to a private school for nursing and accept higher tuition.

I was changing careers after several years working in fire/rescue and EMS. I wanted to make the change as quickly as possible, and travel wasn't an option. The private university I went to was less impacted (probably due in large part to the cost) and thus had a space for me. It was close to home too. Also, their NCLEX-RN pass rates were higher, the class sizes were smaller, and they had better clinical placements.

Don't for a second think it's okay to generalize students at private universities as buying our way in. It's incredibly insulting and ignorant.

I agree, I'm attending a "reasonably priced" 22,000 a year private university where the overall class sizes are much smaller and the NCLEX pass rates are higher than the state schools in the area. Travel was not an option for me either. When I compared schools I factored in price, as well as other things like NCLEX pass rates, accredidation, class size, clinical placement, etc. Everyone is different, their needs are different, things they need to succeed in school is different, so to say that students are "buying" their way into private schools as a whole is not only ignorant, but very insulting to someone sttending a private university.

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Thanks, hiddencat. I actually started taking courses at a private college when I was about 15 (long story, but I was taking them while in high school), but I didn't find her comment offensive. It seems to me that that prof is kind of like a nurse who says "I worked in oncology for a while but eventually I just couldn't take all the sadness and death (or insert a generalization about cancer patients' attitudes). I really found my niche in the OR." Certainly, it's not that the oncology patients don't deserve care, just that this particular nurse prefers the OR (insert any specialties you choose). Professors, just like students, are allowed to favor certain types of learning institutions and environments. She liked teaching students who reminded her of herself when she was growing up -- I get that. I've spent many years in private schools and I like that environment, but I definitely see a benefit to public universities and CCs too.

I feel like my little brother, who often says, "Can't we all just get along?" I just wish we could all try to see others' perspectives and allow other people to have different options or experiences without judging them or resorting to sarcasm. Private BSN programs, public BSN programs and ADN programs all have pros and cons, and there's so much variety within those categories I don't think you can ever say that one type is definitely better than another. It all depends on the particular schools in your area, your personality and your life circumstances.

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With all respect to you, no patient I have ever had asked what nursing school I graduated from....It is nice to have but most jobs do not care either. All they want to know is if you have those two initials at the end of your name....RN

If the latter statement were true, then Brown-Mackie and Ace-Truck-Driving Close-Cover-Before-Striking School of Nursing would run every "spoiled rich kid" school out of business. The latter schools would then find a way to cut costs (and curricula) to come to within a thousand or so of the CC's (perhaps by relying more on correspondance courses?). As long as some of their students could pass the NCLEX, no one would care how they got the RN.

...And here's a thought: If, as some are implying here, all schools are the same: Are all Nurses the same? After all, if a patient sees "RN," isn't that enough for them? Heaven knows a patient would never prefer one Nurse over another...

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If the latter statement were true, then Brown-Mackie and Ace-Truck-Driving Close-Cover-Before-Striking School of Nursing would run every "spoiled rich kid" school out of business. The latter schools would then find a way to cut costs (and curricula) to come to within a thousand or so of the CC's (perhaps by relying more on correspondance courses?). As long as some of their students could pass the NCLEX, no one would care how they got the RN.

...And here's a thought: If, as some are implying here, all schools are the same: Are all Nurses the same? After all, if a patient sees "RN," isn't that enough for them? Heaven knows a patient would never prefer one Nurse over another...

All schools are definitely not the same! However, that doesn't mean that the local private BSN program is always better than the local ADN program. In some places, the local ADN or diploma schools always have higher NCLEX pass rates and produce nurses who are hired first. In other places, it's just the reverse. For some people, cheap tuition is the most important thing, for others, the school's name is important, and for others, the type of degree conferred is. All of these things are potentially important depending on your circumstances and goals.

Just because the quality of my local schools along with my goals and values lead me down one path doesn't mean that my path is the "best" path or that it's right for others.

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Thanks, hiddencat. I actually started taking courses at a private college when I was about 15 (long story, but I was taking them while in high school), but I didn't find her comment offensive. It seems to me that that prof is kind of like a nurse who says "I worked in oncology for a while but eventually I just couldn't take all the sadness and death (or insert a generalization about cancer patients' attitudes). I really found my niche in the OR." Certainly, it's not that the oncology patients don't deserve care, just that this particular nurse prefers the OR (insert any specialties you choose). Professors, just like students, are allowed to favor certain types of learning institutions and environments. She liked teaching students who reminded her of herself when she was growing up -- I get that. I've spent many years in private schools and I like that environment, but I definitely see a benefit to public universities and CCs too.

I feel like my little brother, who often says, "Can't we all just get along?" I just wish we could all try to see others' perspectives and allow other people to have different options or experiences without judging them or resorting to sarcasm. Private BSN programs, public BSN programs and ADN programs all have pros and cons, and there's so much variety within those categories I don't think you can ever say that one type is definitely better than another. It all depends on the particular schools in your area, your personality and your life circumstances.

Well, for some reason you directed your response to Hiddencat, but are obviously speaking of my post...so I'll go ahead and reply.

I find it amusing that calling young students at a private school names is better than reacting to a comment with sarcasm?

I agree, it's better to not be judgmental....that's why I was so surprised a Professor would make those comments about her former students. You didn't say she reported that she like the environment, you said that the Prof called her former students spoiled and then judged their desire to be there. Very different from saying there's a lot sadness and death on an oncology floor. An analogy of the difference would be like saying that someone didn't like working an oncology floor because the patients were whiny & depressing (I'm not saying that, just trying to show what I mean)....do you see what I'm saying? She didn't characterize the nature of the school, she judged the students in it with a sweeping generalization of both their behavior and intention.

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All schools are definitely not the same! However, that doesn't mean that the local private BSN program is always better than the local ADN program. In some places, the local ADN or diploma schools always have higher NCLEX pass rates and produce nurses who are hired first. In other places, it's just the reverse. For some people, cheap tuition is the most important thing, for others, the school's name is important, and for others, the type of degree conferred is. All of these things are potentially important depending on your circumstances and goals.

Just because the quality of my local schools along with my goals and values lead me down one path doesn't mean that my path is the "best" path or that it's right for others.

lol, U of Mammon talked me Out of going BSN (drat; I wanted to use fenderal funds to improve my golf game) because of my age. And I would caution against using NCLEX rates because of what my soci text terms a "spurious correlation." If only one out of 50 applicants to CC gets in, they are not likely to choose the one least likely to pass tthe NCLEX...of course, in Arkansas, they still point at airplanes, so I'm not sure that statement holds true in that environment.

I also wholeheartedly with your position on career path. U of M will cut me a 50% discount on my Masters if I do my undergrad there...which is wonderful unless, as I suspect, I get seduced by my Psych rotation. This would mean going out of town for the Masters.

...and this leads us back to the original post: I think our esteemed friend was questioning whether many of us had put a false premium upon price and neglected to consider other factors.

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Well, for some reason you directed your response to Hiddencat, but are obviously speaking of my post...so I'll go ahead and reply.

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say she was addressing me because I defended her post and told you you are over-reacting to it. Which I think you are. You have no idea what her professor experienced, and her comment sounds like it was a reaction to the types of students she had at the previous institution she taught at. How you are getting to a mass dismissal of all private school students everywhere from this, and that 83studentnurse is passing judgment on all private school students in the world...just seems on the verge of hysteria to me.

The posts about students going to private colleges for nursing school buying their way in b/c they couldn't get in to the less expensive programs were way more offensive. That was the big sweeping generalization that included all of us going to private school. 83studentnurse's professor was talking about 1 school she taught at.

Simmer.

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I'm going to go out on a limb here and say she was addressing me because I defended her post and told you you are over-reacting to it. Which I think you are.

I get that you think me saying a Prof judging her students and then sharing that judgment is over-reacting. I just obviously disagree with that sentiment. I'm not upset, I just think that what the Prof did was wrong....sorry I thought this was a discussion board, where we discuss what we think...my bad.

You have no idea what her professor experienced, and her comment sounds like it was a reaction to the types of students she had at the previous institution she taught at. How you are getting to a mass dismissal of all private school students everywhere from this, and that 83studentnurse is passing judgment on all private school students in the world...just seems on the verge of hysteria to me.

Doesn't really matter what the Prof experienced, I didn't say anything about her experiences. I said:

I agree, it's better to not be judgmental....that's why I was so surprised a Professor would make those comments about her former students. You didn't say she reported that she like the environment, you said that the Prof called her former students spoiled and then judged their desire to be there.

I didn't say anything about a mass dismissal or that 83studentnurse is passing judgment on any private school. I said, repeatedly, that I don't think the professor demonstrated unbiased behavior and that she made a judgment about the students she taught, then shared that judgment with another student....and that I think that is not appropriate.....and amazingly have had to defend that statement (I say amazingly because I'm assuming this is a misinterpretation of some kind and that you can't really think that a Prof sharing an unflattering judgement of her students to another student is really a good thing).

The rest is your interpretation....perhaps your hysteria?

I did use sarcasm....sorry, I'm a NY'er it's my native toungue. My apologies if you were somehow offended by my sarcasm.

The posts about students going to private colleges for nursing school buying their way in b/c they couldn't get in to the less expensive programs were way more offensive. That was the big sweeping generalization that included all of us going to private school. 83studentnurse's professor was talking about 1 school she taught at.

Simmer.

I would need to heat up a bit to simmer, and it's warm enough around here...so I'll pass thanks. You read WAY more into my comment than I ever wrote. I agree that the idea about folks buying their way into any nursing program is offensive; what the heck does that have to do with what I said? Can only wildly offensive comments be commented on? Only comments that generalized an entire population? Just want to make sure I have the rules right for next time.

I hope you have a better day than it seems you've been having. I'm going to continue to sit and sip tea while reading internet forums. Cheers

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I'm not upset, I just think that what the Prof did was wrong....sorry I thought this was a discussion board, where we discuss what we think...my bad.

Well then I must be misinterpreting. You sounded pretty agitated to me. So I discussed what I thought about it.

And no, I guess I don't see a huge issue with a professor being candid with a student in private. I've gone to professors for advice on schools, career stuff, etc, and have always appreciated hearing what they actually think, not a politicky-say-nothing response. If it was announced to the class, then that would be bad, but that's not what happened.

....and in doing so gave a fabulous example of judging private school kids. No matter who she said those things in front of. I'm really glad she's teaching folks she deems worthy of learning now....

It was this post that seemed to me was making the professor's statement weightier than it was.

And you're right. I am having a bad day. I woke up to late to get an egg mcmuffin, and there's really no coming back from that.

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Well then I must be misinterpreting. You sounded pretty agitated to me. So I discussed what I thought about it.

And no, I guess I don't see a huge issue with a professor being candid with a student in private. I've gone to professors for advice on schools, career stuff, etc, and have always appreciated hearing what they actually think, not a politicky-say-nothing response. If it was announced to the class, then that would be bad, but that's not what happened.

It was this post that seemed to me was making the professor's statement weightier than it was.

Originally Posted by CuriousMe viewpost.gif

....and in doing so gave a fabulous example of judging private school kids. No matter who she said those things in front of. I'm really glad she's teaching folks she deems worthy of learning now....

And you're right. I am having a bad day. I woke up to late to get an egg mcmuffin, and there's really no coming back from that.

Well heck.....if I knew about the egg mcmuffin I would have gladly shared my PG Tips (the best tea in a tea bag, IMHO) and my hot buttered toast with you!

As far as the quote, I should have said:

a fabulous example of judging the private school kids she taught......that's what was in my head, just got lazy and didn't type it out.

I also enjoy Prof's being candid about their practice, conditions in the hospital, etc. But IMHO, the Prof could have shared differently and still been candid without speaking about her former students in a derogatory fashion, ie, she could have focused on the qualities that she enjoys in the students she's teaching now. Then she would have been candid while modeling unbiased & nonjudgmental behavior. How different is it to speak disparagingly about a former student and a former patient?

I hope your day gets better in spite of the egg mcmuffin!

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Specializes in ICU, Telemetry, Med-Surg.

I just read alot of these threads and my, my, we are an opinionated group aren't we?! I went to Duke for my ABSN and I'm not sure where people got the $28,000 figure. My loan for school was no where near that per term (although it probably has gone up since I was there). I did take advantage of grants, scholarships, etc.. I would agree with those who posted that alot is factored in when you decide to go to nursing school - your family, your previous education, what is going to work in your life and what are you willing to sacrifice to go to school because no matter where you go we all sacrifice something to get through nursing school!

I'm an older than average student and decided to go to nursing school in my 40's. I looked at the local CC program but I had a previous BS so going to an ABSN program just made more sense and got me through quicker which was a big factor for me. When I was looking at nursing schools my local CC was very competitive to get into. They had a points system with points for prereq's done, being a CNA, not getting in the year before, etc... Well I wasn't a CNA and so I knew that it didn't matter if I had a 4 pt on my prereq's, I probably wasn't going to get in. I didn't want to wait so I applied to quite a few ABSN programs and was accepted at Duke. It was an excellent program and I have no regrets. My student loan payment runs about $350 per month. I work out west where RN wages are higher so although it will take me longer to pay off my loan, it was well worth it.

I have been asked alot about my decision to go to Duke and the cost, etc. vs less expensive options. Again I do think there are alot of personal factors that weigh in on this decision with cost just being one. I don't drive a late model car, my van is 14 yrs old. I know people who go out and spend $25K or more on a new car and their car payment is far greater than my loan payment. My choice was to pay towards my nursing education which for me is a far better deal than a car.

Bottom line is that there are great nurses that come out of any type of program whether that is diploma, CC, BSN's and there are also not so great ones as well. I for one am very appreciative that there are multiple educational opportunities for people to go to nursing school, the trick is just finding the path that works best for you and coming out the other side as an RN!

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I just read alot of these threads and my, my, we are an opinionated group aren't we?! I went to Duke ...

Oh

My

(Deity)!!!

I'm sorry, but you just hit one of my two dream schools. If I ever find out Sister Mary Elizabeth is teaching there, I'd *walk* down there to get in.

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