Any responses to family who think a 4 year college makes a better nurse than two year college & BSN after?

Question

I am taking my prenursing classes at a local university. I am then going to a 16 month nursing school and hoping to get a job as an RN so I can finish my BSN with tuition reimbursement through the hospital I work. I have a family member who insists that they are better because they went to a four year college and got their BSN. Is there a difference? I am tired of feeling belittled for doing the best I can.

Answer 1

The most important determinant of skill in nursing is experience. Knowledge is necessary, but learning to apply knowledge to a real-life situation is the most important skill for a nurse. With your program, you'll be doing more of this sooner. You'll be studying while you are actually working, so the knowledge you learn will be more meaningful and relevant to you; you'll be more likely to remember the things you learn, because you'll be using your knowledge every day.

Also, you will end up with exactly the same degree and the same opportunity for career advancement (and pay rate) as your family member. And finally, it sounds like your plan makes more financial sense because your workplace will be paying your tuition and you won't have to take out loans.

Answer 2

If you want to be involved in management, you'll need the BSN. However, I know of many nurses who start with the ASN, then use the hospital's tuition reimbursement place to get the bachelors and than the masters. If planning to go that route, you're best working at an academic university hospital which has a college of nursing.
I find experience is what makes a good nurse, and not intrinsically education.

Answer 3

I did my nursing education as your family member did, BUT I agree with you.

I do think it's wise to get your BSN in a timely manner, but what you describe is fine. For all that you learn in any type of nursing program, you still need to increase your experience while on the job and by reading professional journals, going to continuing ed, etc. And, as my mentor did her Ph.D. thesis on, what's most important about being a good nurse may not be able to be taught the way some subjects can be. Compassion, integrity, being conscientious, "policing yourself" to do your best/being responsible, besides basic skills competency, count for so much.

Health care changes fast and there are always new particulars to keep up with. No one can master everything that they'll ever need to know in nursing even in four years and stay current. But you can master the basic skills, and grow from there as a nurse and as a person with something to offer, having been through any type of RN program.

Even your family member, if push came to shove, should be able to admit that the so-called "smartest" and "best educated" MDs and RNs are not always the best overall. Yes, basic competencies are important. The depth of knowledge you'll get with your BSN is important. But the BSN is NOT the make-or-break aspect of who is a great nurse and who isn't, and people who make you feel that it IS just might not be as good nurses -- that is, not as kind and open-minded -- as people who have those good qualities.

Best of luck with your studies, and don't base too much of your self-esteem on this person's input. Unfortunately, both family members who are in health care, and fellow professionals in general, make each other feel bad this way far too often. It's invalid and not constructive. Write me if you like at [e-mail]. I've felt the same because I'm an RN/BSN who has often done "just" direct patient care on a floor or in patients' homes, compared to my ICU RN BSN sister. I no longer feel "less than," because a prestigious job as such doesn't make you better, nor a BSN as such.

Answer 4

Clearly you have made a decision and part of being an adult is sticking to those pesky little decisions we make...would it be possible to make this individual be less than a carping complaining human being? It is not necessary to PROVE what you want to do is the best of all possible worlds; all that needs to be said is that it is the best for you...end of story.

Ultimately you will be making money sooner, have senority sooner. Frankly, I do not know that a four year RN ever makes more money than a graduate from a program with fewer years...I have a sister -in-law who went to junior college and is the head of nursing in a huge city hospital. Unless you plan on teaching what is the point and then you would need a Master's anyway ,sssooo? I am back to my original premise: do what is best for you.

Answer 5

Your BSN nurse is an idiot!

Each nurse is individually better or worse than the other. An ASN can be better at the job than a BSN, even an MSN.

Bedside nursing is one thing. Management, teaching, research, writing, are something else.

Get you ASN degree. Then use your RN income to pay your way through the MSN degree, starting with your BSN. You will be more versatile in the long run with your BSN and MSN, but a better nurse? It depends!

Answer 6

You have to know the same info to become certified. As long as you get the certificate then you are both equal. You may even get a better education because you will have more on the job experience from which to learn and that you will still be able to discuss with your professors. What is more important than what path you take to get your certification is how diligent you are about your studies and your practicum. The best nurses keep learning throughout their career and are compassionate and strong with their patients and the doctors they work with.

If your family member is belittling you, they may just be worried about you and not communicating that very well. Or they could simply be too competitive. Try to be patient and not take it personally. It will be good practice for when you are dealing with crabby patients.

Answer 7

Neither option is necessarily better than the other...just do what you feel you want to, regardless of what others may say! People seem to have the mentality that 4 year universities are always better than other schools, but that's not true.

Answer 8

Yes you will finishing sooner and you will have greater benefits because the hospital you will be working for will be helping you.

Answer 9

Please try: http://www.nursingmasters.com They have lots of good information on various nursing degrees both Bachelors and Masters