Paramedic to RN Bridge: Letter From A Paramedic
Over the weekend I've answered questions from several Paramedics interested in the online Paramedic to RN Bridge program, and I had the pleasure of getting to know one very nice Paramedic during our phone conversation, and took time to answer another's questions via e-mail. I thought I'd post Eric's e-mail questions, and my response to them here in order to provide them for a wider audience and open discussions up for readers who may have questions of their own as well.
Eric wrote and asked the following: "I'm was wondering if you are accredited by the national league of nurses. I also had some questions about going though online RN classes. Does going online as opposed to the traditional brick and mortar school affect marketability? How does getting my clinical time in work? Is there assistance in finding hospitals to do it at? Thanks for your help!" Read on for my response...
Dear readers, I ask your forgiveness in advance for all grammatical errors, other boofoos, or flights of ideas that I may have experienced when composing my response, since it was done before 0600 and without a first cup of coffee! *lol* Ok, here's what I wrote back to Eric:
Yes Eric, the online Paramedic to RN program is NLN accredited, and graduates of the program are eligible to sit the NCLEX-RN exam. New grads are eligible to work as grad-RN's before passing the exam, and since it is accredited, the credits you earn in the program are transferrable to other accredited institutions should you decide to go on for additional education at a later time, such as taking an RN to MSN bridge program, or even going on to become a Nurse Practitioner should you choose to.
Yes, your online program advisers will help provide you with convenient local placement for your clinicals. As far as acceptability of an online degree versus a degree earned at a campus based school let me say this, it won't be a problem.
In fact, nursing was one of the earliest professions to embrace distance education, and all of the hospitals that I'm familiar with, or have worked at, actively encourage nurses to advance their education through online nursing degrees and even provide tuition assistance programs to help pay for it.
Why?
Traditional campus based nursing schools have both long wait lists and set class times that make it extremely difficult for working nurses to attend without quitting their regular job (or dropping down to part time work) to do so. This problem was recognized both by the hospitals and by early distance education innovators as far back as the late 70's - early 80's. I remember that the University of Phoenix became a fixture in hospitals back then by working with nursing administration to provide advanced nursing degrees to the hospital's nurses via televised lectures, and small group instruction offered in the nursing lounges in such a way that make it possible for the nurses to attend as they could to be able to earn a degree around their work schedule.
Many of the people now in positions of authority at hospitals earned their own degree in a similiar fashion "back in the day" and understand full well the value distance, or online education brings to the nursing profession. "Distance Education" has come a LONG way since those early days. Now, it's not something "different", but rather mainstream to have earned your degree online. Heck, all the top schools are offering online nursing degrees these days - (Harvard, Villanova, Gonzaga, and you name it).
Earning your nursing degree through an online program like the Paramedic to RN Bridge Program is NOT going to decrease your marketability one bit! If anything, it demonstrates that you have the motivation and self-discipline to achieve a degree without needing a structured environment and fixed class schedule to do it. If you had that sort of determination to get your degree they know you will make a highly motivated employee that is determined and self displined enough to put in the effort to achieve any goal you want to, and believe me, that's the sort of employee that employers desire the most when making hiring decisions!
Please join the discussion by adding your questions, comments, or personal experiences with the Paramedic to RN online bridge program or any other online nursing degree program in the comments field below:
Learn More About The Online Paramedic to RN Bridge Program
Paramedic`s earn your RN license in as little as 18 months and start enjoying better earnings, increased responsibility and authority, more job options, and far more opportunities for career advancement. Request additional information to speak with a program adviser: Request Online Paramedic to RN Bridge Program Information
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