Your honest opinions please....

cursenurse · Jul 5, 2006

Hello All...
Well OK..here is my situation...
I am about to enter Nursing school in October. It is a PN program from a private school here in NC. Its 12 months in length and over-all not too hard to get into ( .i.e..no waiting list!!) Anyway, after passing the entrance exam, submitting all the required paper work etc, including a 500 word Essay , Having the Interview and so on...I'm in...The down side is that this school is VERY $$$,..I'm talking to the tune of $19,000. ( Its all inclusive,.meaning books, uniforms etc)
The local CC here has a waiting list so to speak, so I'm looking at another 1-2 years easily...I don't want to wait that long!! Plus I found out that NONE of my 33 credits will transfer simply because they ( the CC) has a 5 year rule I was told that I would have to start all over from scratch....By the way my credits were from 8 years ago..ugh! I'm ticked too because the local CC here is only minutes from my home while the school in Raleigh is a good 1 hour + each way...
Anyway my concern is paying for or shall I say "Investing" in this PN program... In addition to other financial aide, I am sure that I'll also have to take a student loan to help cover some of the cost....I don't have all the final "numbers" ( financial aide wise), but I am fairly sure there is no way grants will cover 100% of the cost and the thought of owing so much after-wards kinda worries me...
My question ( and concern is..) Is the cost really worth it? I mean if I were to have a debt of $10,000+ for getting my RN,...that would be fine, but for getting my LPN...well I just don't know... One thing I do want to add is that once I finish my PN, I plan on working and then going the Excelsior route for my RN....
Anyway time is running out and I really need to make a firm decision....I Love coming here and value your opinions...Please share the "pros and Cons" from your point of view......Thanks so much!!
Anna

speaking as a person who has done both PN and RN(ADN) courses, i say do not pay 19000 for a PN course. both of my courses combined did not come to half of that! i say, try to get into a BSN program, you may have better success getting your credits to transfer. i know that a university i have considered going to for rn-bsn said that there was no time limit for credits. i would pay 19000 for a bsn, but for a PN i think that is totally excessive.

midcom · Jul 6, 2006

I'm in a very similar situation except my costs will be around $14,500 & credits for my gen ed courses transferred. I too am looking at a 2 year waiting list to go to the community college. I am being laid off from my present job where I make somewhat more per hour than an LPN but I've been looking in the want ads & there are no jobs in my area or interest that I am qualified for that pays half what I've been making. I am taking the amount difference I will be making in a year(as a LPN) compared to "Wal-mart Greeter" pay into account when I compare the costs. I figure that in just one year I will have made up the difference in pay so the high tuition doesn't seem so bad. I'm going for it but it does make me angry that my costs will be double what it would be if I went to the community college.

Dixie

mercytech · Jul 6, 2006

My two cents...don't do the PN program. $19,000 is a ridiculous amount to pay for a certification. I know the idea of being on a waiting list sucks, but in your hurry, you might be putting yourself in a situation where you could be worse off than in the beginning. Depending how this PN program is accredited, you could be wasting the time and money if your credits don't transfer.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with PN, but if your ultimate goal is RN, I say go directly to it.

You didn't say what type or the name of the school, but I know around here (Cincinnati) there are several different public vocational schools that offer the LPN program at a fraction of what one of the private "colleges" wants to charge. I definitely think your money would be better spent gaining college credit that would go without a doubt toward your ADN or BSN.

Thanks for listening, and I hope our replies will help with your decision.

catlady, BSN, RN · Jul 6, 2006

I'm in a very similar situation except my costs will be around $14,500 & credits for my gen ed courses transferred. I too am looking at a 2 year waiting list to go to the community college. I am being laid off from my present job where I make somewhat more per hour than an LPN but I've been looking in the want ads & there are no jobs in my area or interest that I am qualified for that pays half what I've been making. I am taking the amount difference I will be making in a year(as a LPN) compared to "Wal-mart Greeter" pay into account when I compare the costs. I figure that in just one year I will have made up the difference in pay so the high tuition doesn't seem so bad.

Yep, it's known as the "opportunity cost." If you wait or go into a longer program, you have to factor in the money you didn't earn by going to school sooner or finishing sooner.

Any chance you could get your CNA and then have an employer provide you with tuition reimbursement, so at least it's not totally out-of-pocket? I also understand that there are places that will provide loan forgiveness for new graduates (wish they'd been around before I retired my loans!)

But honestly, the amounts you folks are quoting--I didn't pay that much for my undergraduate, graduate, and nursing degrees combined. Yessiree, I'm old...

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Jul 6, 2006

I paid $20,000 to attend a private LVN program and have absolutely no regrets about the decision I made nearly two years ago.

I started working in February 2006 and, by July 2006, I have already earned $23,000. That's $23,000 earned in 5 months, which breaks down into $4,600 monthly. Contrary to popular beliefs, I have had relative ease in finding employment. I live in a brand new, beautiful house that is completely paid for (no mortgage), drive a car that is paid for (no car payments), and have a nice-sized rainy-day fund for emergencies. I plan to attend an RN bridge program within the next few years; however, my LVN license has done wonderful things at the moment.

nurse4kiddos · Jul 6, 2006

Am I missing something? You have made $23,000 in five months and have paid your entire mortgage and paid off a brand new car? I realize you may have a spouse who contributes to this, but as that isn't stated in your post I'm just assuming that. Otherwise you would be the most frugal human being on the planet! I don't know anyone that can stretch $23,000 that far.

Midwest4me · Jul 6, 2006

I wouldn't risk investing that kind of money for an LVN program. Shop around; the ADN or BSN program would be a better bet for such investing.

To "The Commuter"---that's very good money made in 5 months! Are you doing loads of overtime or do you have a husband's income too? I know you didn't say it was a brand new car, but how great you must feel to have it paid off as well as the house! Good for you!

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Jul 6, 2006

To "The Commuter"---that's very good money made in 5 months! Are you doing loads of overtime or do you have a husband's income too?

I've never been married and do not have a boyfriend or serious man in my life.

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Jul 6, 2006

I realize you may have a spouse who contributes to this, but as that isn't stated in your post I'm just assuming that.

I've never been married, nor do I have a boyfriend.

I sold my house in California and used the profit to purchase a cash house in the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area.

nursemike, ASN, RN · Jul 6, 2006

$19K seems like an awful lot for LPN school. I do think, if one has the time, LPN can be a great way to enter nursing. But I'm not sure it makes sense, financially, if the tuition is that high. Where I live, the local school board offers adult education programs, including one for LPN, for around 2600/yr, plus books, uniforms, etc. Even that isn't much less than my ASN cost at a community college.

You don't mention your age, but if you have 8 yr old credits, I gather you may be in your mid-to-late 20s. If so, you might consider using the time you would spend on a waitlist to get support courses out of the way. Nursing school is tough, and the less time you have to spend on English or Psych, the more you'll have for careplanning. Or you might just bite the bullet and go for a 4yr BSN, if you're able. In some cases, they can be a bit easier to get into, since so many want or need to do a 2yr program.

Where I live, hospital LPNs get paid rather poorly--$12-13/hr. Long-term care pays better. Some LPNs in LTC make nearly what a hospital RN starts at.

I do know some LPNs working toward RNs through Excelsior. It looks like a pretty good program, but it ain't cheap. (Of course, I'm comparing it to state colleges in WV, which are still quite a bargain.)

NaomieRN · Jul 6, 2006

Education is the best investment you can make. You can buy a car for $19,000 and 10 years or more later the car may not be good anymore, but you education is always going to be with you.