Why did you choose your nursing school?

I know that it's a good idea to look into NCLEX pass rates to see how well a nursing program prepares their students, but what other factors influenced you in choosing the school that you decided to attend and in choosing which schools to apply to?

I'm a 19 year old pre-nursing student, hoping to transfer to a university for my BSN. Naturally, at this age, getting that "quintessential" college experience is important to me. I want to experience life away from home and location is really important. For some other majors, like political science or film for example, picking a school based on its prestige or location seems to be much more important. However, my mom has told me something along the lines of, "Why would you move away when you could get the same exact degree at a state school, 15 minutes away from home?" I don't disagree with my mom, I know it's true. Am I just being silly for wanting to go to a school where I can thrive not only academically, but also personally/socially as well--even though it isn't entirely necessary?

How did you decide?

[SuperHelper]

I chose my undergrad school based primarily upon my ability to matriculate there.

I am firmly of the opinion that university is for studying and learning, not for socializing, partying, or finding oneself. It's much too expensive and too important for those activities which can be pursued elsewhere.

I firmly disagree with the "get a degree in anything" approach. Because of funding, many schools are either denying entry to 2nd-degree students altogether or charging them exorbitant per-unit fees. Additionally, a "degree in anything" is not likely to yield the academic success that one needs to be competitive in many fields.

Being close to home, or living at home, confers some huge advantages: Namely, when you're buried in your studies or prepping for finals, you've got people who will bear what burdens they can such as providing meals, doing laundry, whatever. Car breaks down, they're there. As one of our med students (who is local) told me, "When my computer died 4 days before finals, my dad just brought his over and plugged it in."

If you want to experience life on your own, move off, get a job, and support yourself for awhile while you're deciding what you want. When you're ready, go to school close to home - or wherever your can get accepted.

If this is in response to my comment, this is what I would tell MYSELF at 19. I was still very much unfocused and didn't have a career plan or goal, even though I was a very good student (still am unfortunately). If at 19 I knew without a doubt I wanted to be a nurse, then of course I would have tried to get a BSN, or majored in some sort of biological science for my bachelors. Because there are a lot of young 20-somethings with much better job prospects than me for no other reason than they got a bachelors in anything versus my associates degree and work experience.

[fbrlauren, BSN]

Smiling at the notion of a 19-year-old nursing hopeful lecturing someone 30 years their senior with more time in nursing than you had in high school.

Note that I didn't say that those things are trivial; simply that they're fully attainable outside of the university experience while the academics are not.

If you care not for my opinions in response to your question, I will happily keep them to myself.

Good luck to you.

I apologize if I made you feel like I was undermining your experience! Of course I value your opinion, as this is why I'm asking those who are currently in/already completed nursing school for advice. However, if I disagree with you because I don't fully understand what you meant, or if I'm just completely wrong, please feel free to clarify. I really was not trying to personally attack you as a nurse--This is why I was careful not to use "you" as a pronoun. But I do see how it might have come off that way, and I'm sorry for that! I was just speaking hypothetically--knowing that nurses do need to able to provide comfort, and knowing what I know about myself.

Here's an example: I currently have a 4.0 in my nursing pre-requisites so it appears that nursing may be a good career choice. Although I am confident in my study habits and the ability to learn and retain the academic knowledge that I will need to pass the NCLEX when the time comes, I am worried that I still won't be a great nurse just because I have always been a little shy. ***This is why I said earlier that good grades don't always make the best/comforting nurses.

I agree with you when you say personal growth can be attained outside of the university. And I know that the learning, both academically and personally, does not stop at graduation. But aren't some of these qualities important to already have when getting my first job as a nurse? I feel like I have the

very basic qualities to be a good nurse--empathy, patience, attention to detail, etc--so I think I'm fully capable to become the nurse I want to be some day and I think I've chosen a good career match. But I feel I may be lacking in the communication/interpersonal skills department. And personally, this is something that I feel I could work on best when I'm forced out of my comfort zone (away from home), as everyone learns differently. My school of preference would also allow me to be exposed to a much larger demographic. Learning how to communicate with a diverse group of people, I'm sure, is also very important.

Again, your opinions are very welcome and feel free to correct me if I'm wrong!

[Music in My Heart]

I firmly disagree with the "get a degree in anything" approach. Because of funding, many schools are either denying entry to 2nd-degree students altogether or charging them exorbitant per-unit fees. Additionally, a "degree in anything" is not likely to yield the academic success that one needs to be competitive in many fields.

If this is in response to my comment, this is what I would tell MYSELF at 19. I was still very much unfocused and didn't have a career plan or goal, even though I was a very good student (still am unfortunately). If at 19 I knew without a doubt I wanted to be a nurse, then of course I would have tried to get a BSN, or majored in some sort of biological science for my bachelors. Because there are a lot of young 20-somethings with much better job prospects than me for no other reason than they got a bachelors in anything versus my associates degree and work experience.

Mine was in response to yours and is also what I'd have told myself way back when. I'd have suggested joining the Coast Guard or Air Force (rather than the Marine Corps which I did) and seek training in fields which might interest me and then initiate self-study until I was ready to commit myself to university education in my chosen field.

Rather than earn a "degree in anything," I'd seek out trade skills, art skills, or even just get a job waiting tables and getting involved with Big Brothers/Sisters, scouting, Red Cross, whatever else it was that caught my fancy... learn to fly, learn to dive... learn to program, master Excel or VB or HTML, study Spanish, move to Mexico, whatever... just leave university until you're ready to dive in and power to the front.

Higher education is not to be trifled with, IMO.