How to Make a Quick Career Change into Nursing - Part 1

There was a time when college graduates stayed in a field their entire career.  With a degree in history or economics you went into politics or law school.  A degree in elementary ed saw you teaching in an elementary school; business students gravitated to business opportunities.  So there was a natural progression from school to work.  And once you entered a field, your family usually expected you to stay there.  After all, isn't that why you studied a particular area within college?  How else could you justify those student loans facing you or your family?  Even if the career turned out to be not what you envisioned, what could you do about it?  Many people simply felt stuck or that they had made a mistake they simply had to live with.  But that need not be the case.  

We change as we mature and likewise our career interests evolve as well.  Due to fast-track career options and direct admit graduate fields, it is possible explore a number of career paths and/or change careers after obtaining that initial college degree.  Let's talk about one opportunity - the ABSN.

ABSN stands for Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing.  This is a fast-track degree that usually takes anywhere from 14-18 months to complete, depending on your school.  The idea is simple -- the college takes your existing college bachelor's degree in any area and gives you credit towards a second degree - but this time the degree is in nursing.  

You graduate with a new bachelor's degree and are eligible to take the national nursing board exam (NCLEX) and upon passing you can work as a registered nurse (RN) anywhere in the United States.  

Close to 300 ABSN programs are offered throughout the United States.  Tuitions vary wildly, as do class sizes.  The curriculum is fairly standard but since the NCLEX is known as a very difficult exam to pass, you want to attend a program that will give you the best shot at success.  How do you know which program to choose?

1 - Pick a program that has an entering class of less than 40 students.  Otherwise it is easy to get lost in the crowd.  You want a school that will give you the individual attention you need to be successful.

2-  Check out the faculty.  Do they have terminal degrees (meaning, do they have DNP or PhD degrees)?  You should apply to schools where the majority of nursing faculty have doctorates and where many have recent nursing experience.  You don't want to be trained by dinosaurs, rather you need faculty who are first rate and at the top of their profession.  What are their areas of research?  Do they still work at the area hospitals part time?  Do they have connections that can help you?

3 - What clinical sites are being offered?  ABSN curriculum consists of three parts:  lectures, labs and clinical.  Since nursing requires you to think on your feet and become confident in a wide range of settings, you want to be trained in a number of various healthcare settings -- both large and small.   Clinical experience at a small community hospital is wildly different from clinical at a 900-bed hospital and you need to understand and live the difference.  You want a program that offers both.

4 - Ask about the lab experience.  What manikins do they have?  Nursing lab experience has evolved to the point at which many state boards of nursing expect students to spend a significant amount of time training on manikins before ever entering a hospital setting.  This means the manikins must be capable of advanced simulations.  There are manikins we call "task trainers" where students learn basic nursing skills;  then there are high fidelity manikins that can mimic a number of serious healthcare and emergency situations.  You want a program that provides a significant amount of lab time with newer state-of-the-art manikins, so don't be shy about asking faculty to tell you about their manikins -- what do they have?  How old are they?  What types of experiences can be demonstrated and can be learned in their labs?  

See Part II of this blog article for more information on ABSN programs and prerequisites.