Accelerated 2nd Degree Nursing Programs: The Quick Way To Be Professional Nurses
A growing number of nursing schools are answering the anticipated demand for over one million substitute and new registered nurses in the health care industry in the United States by 2016.
They are developing various programs designed to attract students, train and continue educating a nurse practitioner while at the same time maintain the integrity and quality of nursing education.
One of the most popular approaches to educate and quickly provide nursing training and experience are accelerated 2nd degree nursing programs. These programs, also called accelerated nursing programs, allow an individual who have a baccalaureate degree in other discipline from an accredited college or university to hold a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree in less than four years.
Accelerated 2nd degree nursing programs are offered at both BA and master’s degree (MA) levels.
Under the second degree program for BSN, all the course units that you have completed in your first degree will be credited. Typically, a second degree program can be completed in a year or a year and a half.
Meanwhile, the MA second degree program is designed for graduates of non-nursing degrees. It usually takes about three years to finish the MA program.
Accelerated 2nd degree nursing programs are your option if you want a change of career. However, not all are well equipped to follow a second career path in accelerated nursing as the administration and pace of the program can be quite challenging.
Instruction periods for an accelerated nursing program can be intense. Students in the second degree program are given the same number of clinical hours as those in traditional nursing programs. However, clinical hours in accelerated nursing are compressed to fit into the short period of time it takes to complete the degree.
That it is why people who want to pursue a nursing career through an accelerated program should both have the perseverance and commitment to complete the degree.
Here are some things to consider when applying for accelerated 2nd degree nursing programs:
· If you want to apply for an accelerated nursing program, you must meet nursing schools’ high admission standards and stringent requirements.
· Make a formal application to the accredited college or university of your choice.
· Prepare your college transcript which will be reviewed by schools to make sure that all requirements for an accelerated nursing program are met.
· Expect a personal interview with representatives of the nursing school’s Department of Nursing.
Some nursing schools are offering subjects that are prerequisites for the accelerated nursing program before the start of the course. These include accounting, social science, arts and natural sciences.
When you have successfully completed the accelerated nursing program, you are eligible to take the NCLEX-RN, a licensing examination for registered nurses. The Board of Nursing requires all nursing graduates to take and pass the NCLEX-RN licensing examination.
Currently, there are 56 MA programs and 205 BSN programs in the country. And the numbers are expected to keep on growing as more and more people are turning on accelerated 2nd degree nursing programs to provide them job security in this time of economic recession and at the same time help the health care industry address the nursing shortage.
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