The Top Five Reasons for NOT Getting a BSN…BUSTED!
This is hilarious!
Lord knows I have entered the realm of stupidity many a few times in my life!
And let me tell you, there is no cure for stupidity, only an acquired resistance after multiple bouts of dumb behavior!
I wish I had invented the “I Can Has Cheezeburger?” website.
I am about 2 cats (and twenty years) short of qualifying for “crazy cat lady” status, and there are “itteh bitteh kitteh committeh” meetings in my house around the clock!
Love it!
******************************
If you are writing about EMS in any capacity you want to send me your posts for inclusion in the “Handover” carnival edition I’ll be hosting April 24th! I must say – I’m getting some great submissions!
Change of Shift will be here next week! You have a great post on your blog, yes, I’m talking to you, and you know you wanna send it to me, like yesterday. Better yet, go into your archives and send me what you consider your best post. Hey, now that is a great idea if I say so myself! Be sure to tell me why you chose the older post and I’ll put it in CoS.
******************************
Ah, the vaunted Bachelor of Science in Nursing.
The path to enlightenment.
The epitome of achievement, without which you must fight for your right to be called a professional.
So, why don’t you have it?
Why would you even want it?
*****
I know all the excuses because I gave all the excuses!
Why the hell would someone want a BSN?
Not me.
Are you serious?
Well, here are the top five reasons I (and perhaps you) used to give for not getting a BSN.
I list ‘em.
Then I bust ‘em.
*****
1. I don’t have the time.
Who said you had to take it head-on, full-time? Chances are you don’t have all the non-nursing courses required for the BS degree. You know, a humanities class, ethnic studies, world culture. You can dip your toe in by taking one class. One. Doesn’t even have to be a nursing class, at least at first.
Check out a few BSN programs. Find out what they require outside of the nursing classes. Then take that class at your local junior college; make sure the units are transferable.
One. Class.
I bet you can take them online, too, giving you even more flexibility.
If you have the time to read this post, you have the time to read an assignment.
Seriously.
2. I don’t have the money (aka: In this economy? Are you nuts?)
Oh, I feel your pain here, fellow nurses. Trust me.
But there are ways to work around it.
Take your non-nursing requirements at a junior college. I’m taking both my ethnic studies requirement and my world culture class online from my local junior college, and both are transferable to the UWGB. I paid a whopping $100 for both classes, six units. Had I gone to the university level, I’d have paid $360 for one unit.
Most hospitals have something available for continuing education, and classes toward an advanced degree count. It may not be great, but it is something. Parlay that into a future benefit by taking a class that will count for something other than just CEs.
As far as choosing an educational institution, you will save money if you can stay in-state. The tuition will be much lower. I’m an “out-of-state” student at the University of Wisconsin, Green Bay, and while I think it is a fantastic program, my checkbook shows the difference.
And remember, you can work at your own pace. If that pace is dictated by the checkbook, that’s okay.
3. It will take too long. (AKA: It’s too much work!)
What is “too long”? Time is going to pass whether you take a class or not. You might as well have it pass with some units to show for it at the end. That’s the beauty of getting a BSN in this day and age. You work at YOUR pace, you take your time, with classes that fit into YOUR schedule.
By the way, have you taken any classes for anything since your nursing graduation? Did you take an art history class? A music appreciation class? A literature class? You might be shocked at how much credit you have sitting in your life experience. I took two paralegal classes once, just for fun. “Intro to the Legal Profession” and “Litigation I”, through Cal State Hayward’s extension program.
They both counted as upper division electives toward my BSN. And I had taken them twenty years ago.
4. I’m too old (AKA: Oh god! I’ll have to take statistics!)
Oh, puhlease. I’ve got half a century behind me and, God willing, half a century in front of me. You’re too old for what? Did your brain put up a barrier to any future educational input? Have you bought into the notion that “older” means slowing down?
Let me tell you, education is wasted on the young. Find out what it is like to get an education and appreciate it! I appreciated nothing when I was nineteen. Not the fact I had been chosen for the nursing program right out of the gate, not the fact that it was FREE back then. I didn’t know what I didn’t know. If I knew then what I know now, I’d have run my instructors ragged with questions and picked their brains until they were as dry as the Mohave.
You are sitting there with decades of hands-on nursing experience behind you. You have so much to contribute to classes, to your colleagues….
About the only reason this excuse works is that you intend to retire in a year. And if you are, your 401K is in better shape than mine…..
(PS – if you can add, subtract, multiply and divide, you can do statistics.)
5. I don’t get any benefits from having a BSN (AKA: I’m already a good nurse without it!)
Well, if you are defining “benefit” as a tangible increase in greenbacks, I can’t argue with you there.
While earning a living as an RN is great no matter what your education level, there are intangible benefits to the BSN. As my colleague who is thisclose to her PhD said to me, “It won’t change the way you practice, because you already practice at a high level. It will, however, change the way you think about how you practice.”
Anytime you can increase your knowledge and blend it with your experience, you are “benefiting” from it. And so are your patients.
The nurse my patients get now is not the nurse they would have gotten three years ago.
Oh, I’m a good nurse. Always have been. Safe, caring, knowledgable. And proud of my ADN and the program that produced it.
But I’m a better nurse now. Not because my degree may be higher than the nurse working next to me, but because I, personally, have a deeper knowledge of my profession than I had before. A better understanding of why I do what I do as an RN. An increased ability to think critically about patient care and what I, as an RN, can provide.
More money? Nope.
But the intangibles are worth every cent I’m paying for the BSN. Every drop of blood, sweat and tears.
And I’m not even done yet.
*****
If you have ever, ever considered going back for your degree, now is the time to start.
Do it for yourself.
Do it for your patients.
Do it for your career. For flexibility.
You never know what opportunities will come in the future, but barring a few exceptions, I can pretty much guarantee that opportunity will require at least a BSN.
Nurse K
April 8, 2009 at 3:47 pm
If you don’t plan on getting a graduate degree or work in public health, sorry, it’s not worth the money. It cost me $80,000 plus tuition and addt’l loans to cover living expenses (80K = the difference in salary over two years between my college waitressing job and nursing). It MIGHT be worth it if you have a specific job in mind that requires one, but if you’re happy in your current job, it doesn’t do you much good. Just my 2 cents.
Nurse K, RN, BSN (from the beginning)
Lynn
April 9, 2009 at 7:54 pm
Thanks for the encouragement. It took me years to come to some of the same conclusions and it’s good to read them (plus a few new ones) from someone else.
Sam
April 10, 2009 at 12:16 am
As a nursing student, I see no real incentive to complete my BSN. Every job I intend to apply for and every job I have been offered do not require it. I know my capabilities and a acquiring a BSN will only keep me in a classroom when I could be helping patients.
Its no different being a paramedic? « Medic999
April 10, 2009 at 8:02 am
[...] no different being a paramedic? Kim over at Emergiblog has been talking about progression in the Nursing profession and Happy Medichas been writing about [...]
Nurse Bettie
April 11, 2009 at 9:08 am
“More money? Nope.”
While I agree in principle with what you have said regarding the benefits of higher education, (I am four months away from my AAS in nursing after 19 years as an LPN) I have to wonder if any profession not dominated by women would settle for not having any real financial reward for higher levels of education. I fear that we nurses have “nurtured” ourselves right into a hole (or kept ourselves there) with this attitude. We’re really good advocates for our patients, but not for ourselves.
allison
April 12, 2009 at 7:09 pm
Maybe it’s not an issue in other parts of the country, but here in Southern California, we are seeing insurance companies threaten to stop reimbursement if certain hospital positions are not filled by nurses with BSN or higher education. At least one hospital I know has set forth a “get educated, or a new job” for charge nurses and managers to avoid such problems. Again, maybe it’s not an issue where you work now, but something to consider…
Nursek
April 12, 2009 at 11:36 pm
Seriously, BSN is something that I have slowly worked up to. I did the take one class at a time thing and wouldnt you know I graduate next month!!!
KellyRNBSN23
April 16, 2009 at 7:41 pm
I have been a RN, BSN for 23 years. When I started school, I did not know what a “hot topic”
the BSN vs. ADN vs. Diploma issue was (yes, there were still Diploma programs available when I started school). I just wanted to be a Nurse and my Mother wanted me to have a college degree, hence the BSN. I am so grateful that I went to a BS nursing program. It taught me how to critically think about everything I did as a nurse, be accountable for my practice, think of myself as a professional in the workplace, advocate for my patients and other nurses, mentor new nurses etc…I am not knocking any nursing degree. I have certainly worked with excellent ADN nurses and LVNs. However, if you are thinking of going to nursing school or advancing your education (and I hope you are-we 50 something nurses need to know there are good replacements in the workplace as we move toward retirement age) go the BSN route. You will never be disappointed with your decision.
Aura
April 17, 2009 at 5:18 am
It boggles my mind how many pathways to nursing you have in America. In Australia, we have an enrolled nurse (18 month diploma) or a registered nurse (3 yr uni degree with an option for honours year). So getting your degree over here translates to a definite increase in pay, scope of practice and autonomy.
We don’t get electives in our Nursing degree, at least not in the program I’m doing. It’s a straight Bachelor of Nursing with all nursing and science based courses. Another point of difference is the NCLEX that you guys have to pass. We don’t have that here, and boy am I glad! (Don’t need that stress.)
Congrats on furthering your education; there’s always more to learn, even after 37 years. And I think you hit the nail on the head when you said you now have a “better understanding of why I do what I do as an RN” and “an increased ability to think critically about patient care”
It’s actually refreshing to hear a long time nurse point out the benefits of uni based training.
KellyRNBSN23
April 17, 2009 at 6:20 pm
Aura,
Thanks for the comments and good luck in your studies.
Katie
April 22, 2009 at 6:25 am
It is all about the money . Where would I get the money to get a BSN
Katie
April 22, 2009 at 6:26 am
I already put 3 children through college and am still in tuition hell
Get Your Nursing Degree Online To Change Careers | Online Education & Distance Learning
June 28, 2009 at 7:03 pm
[...] The Top Five Reasons for NOT Getting a BSN…BUSTED! (emergiblog.com) [...]
Oneta Walker
September 19, 2009 at 7:04 am
I have been a BSN for over 30 years and the pay rate has never been different for me then for the ADN’s in the rural areas so I understand why manyof the nurses do not go back for their BSN’s however i still believe that it is very important to continually improve on their education for thier own educational improvement. Nursing is continually changing and research is continually learning something new and we need instructors all of the time and the BSN is needed for instructors to continue to get their MSN to teach so the continuation of education is necessary even though the need for nurses is out there and the ADN programs are prominent.
Scott
December 13, 2009 at 10:19 pm
I am finishing BSN only to go on to NP, otherwise, I would not have done it at all. I have been a nurse for 15 years, and I simply don’t see a need for BSN it it is not a requirement for future education.
1) How is it that BSN nurse’s feel they are more able to make critical decisions (the all-important critical thinking referred to by many). I can’t say that nursing research, multiculture nursing, community nursing, nursing of the family, or that outdated physical assessment class has any critical thinking value at all. What is a BSN-RN going to do in a hurry, write a care plan?
2) The “nursing in the community” model failed in the 1980’s. As it turns out, people don’t want to be helped in the community. That would mean changing their lifestyle, diet, and adherence to medications. They want to come to the hospital, have their problem fixed (real or perceived), and go home, preferably the same day.
3) The BSN is the only way to get up the ladder. Hogwash. I would venture to guess that more than half of the directors and above are not BSN. Probably a number in-line with the number of BSN nurses in the hospital.
4) BSN is more of a professional. If professional means sitting at the desk writing care plans (or texting your boyfriend), then I guess that is it. But basic care of patients has deteriorated rapidly since the days that I worked as a PCT, long before my RN days. I found a dressing on a patient’s groin the other day that was placed there after a cardiac cath 2 weeks ago. The patient was on a ventilator in the ICU. I guess airway was more important.
5) BSN provides a better understanding of health. OK, ask your local BSN the difference between solu-cortef and solu-medrol. Or how about the difference between Plavix and Effient.
Sharon S
December 22, 2009 at 1:01 pm
It took me 5 years to get my AS, another 2 for my BSN and now I am on my way to NP. We all travel our own paths in our own time. If you dont think it is important or worth the time or money then I guess it isnt. But to those of us who do – it is worth all the late nights and sacrifices.
However, it is a messed up system where the bump in education does not merit a bump in pay, and I do agree with the person who posted that it is because women do not lobby for more money where as men do.
Paul
March 5, 2010 at 8:31 pm
The only way to get into the military as an RN is with a BSN – unless you want to be a Reservist. I have been a nurse for 8-years (Diploma) – have my PALS; ACLS; TNCC; Chemo Cert; etc – but my driving motivation to get my BSN is to become a Flight Nurse in the Air Force. True, I could get my CFRN and be a civilian Flight Nurse – and here in Alaska that would be a challenging job – but not the same as the opportunities that would open up to me as a Flight Nurse in the Air Force. So, if a BSN they want – a BSN they’ll get.
Susan
April 21, 2010 at 3:37 pm
Another reason I am facing–nursing may injure your back. Then your non BSN options are limited and you may want to get an MSN. I would have started with a BSN if it had been available where I live. I resent the wasted time it takes to get the ADN vs the BSN. They should articulate evenly. But ADN programs have to take more than 2 years to make an educated nurse… so frustrating. But bedside nursing I think my ADN program was excellent and was #1 in state of all schools for passing state boards at time. ” It taught me how to critically think about everything I did as a nurse, be accountable for my practice, think of myself as a professional in the workplace, advocate for my patients and other nurses, mentor new nurses etc…” I think anyone in my ADN program who did not learn that was out. I may have had a unique ADN program. Still I wish I had my BSN for the time commitment especially if I were starting from scratch!
lisa
May 11, 2010 at 4:38 pm
im 21 years old and i just finished my 4 year BSN in the philippines. i am a canadian citizen and after my graduation last week, i have moved back to canada. I will be taking my licensure exam in december but am taking review classes here in BC. in the mean time i am looking for volunteer opportunities in the medical field. now im just wondering what kind of jobs i could apply for in the medical field with my BSN. can someone give me any ideas. theres so many jobs out there and they all require certifications and diplomas, but none ever say “BSN”.
Dana
June 6, 2010 at 1:40 pm
I am now forced to get my BSN because our hospital wants all their RN’s to have a BSN. I have been a nurse for 16 years. The education I received from my diploma program focused on crital thinking, hands on experience and learning. The nurses that graduated with a BSN couldn’t even spike an IV bag let alone do a drip factor beacause they did not have to in their 4 year BSN program. I am going back for my BSN now due to get it or find another job.
Dawn
June 17, 2010 at 12:15 am
I already have a non-nursing bachelors and masters degree, but I am not happy where I am at. I thought about nursing a long time ago and even have some prereqs fulfilled already. I am contemplating either a BSN or MSN and would like some advice on the major differences between these two.
Edmond.
July 10, 2010 at 9:36 pm
In every universities here in Tx. they require you to have an MSN degree to teach, but in order to qualify you, you need to have a BSN degree. where as if you want to teach in a junior college BSN will do. i dont really see any difference between the BSN and the associate degree. and the MSN as will, if you are looking to be in the managerial position later then go to BSN or MSN.but if youre contented to be in the bedside care, then associate degree is the option. weigh what you want later on.