Most nurses start their careers right after completing the Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN). With your ADN, you can sit for your National Council Licensure Exam for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN) and become a Registered Nurse (RN). Since the degree usually takes less than two years to complete, it is one of the fastest and best pathways to becoming a nurse. However, after a certain point in your career, it may start to feel like you have hit a plateau in terms of growth. A great way to break through this plateau is to get an online Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree.
While the thought of returning to school after so long may seem taxing and unnecessary, there are many benefits that an online BSN degree can bring to your nursing career. An ADN may have given you the necessary foundational training to becoming a competent nurse, but the degree does not include the formal education learned in a BSN. Therefore, if you’re looking for a way to boost your career, here are seven reasons you should opt for an online BSN.
Remote Learning
The biggest concern that comes to mind when you think about returning to school is having to quit your job, which is not financially feasible for some of us. Fortunately, with online accelerated BSN nursing programs, you can keep your full-time job as the entire program is taught online.
That means you don’t have to worry about class timings, commuting to the college, or any additional living expenses. You can gain an additional qualification from the comfort of your own home while continuing to work as a nurse full-time so that your career does not suffer.
Flexible Studying
The second issue people with a job have when pursuing an additional qualification is their inability to work around a fixed schedule. With work and other responsibilities, it can become difficult to meet school deadlines and attend classes.
With an online BSN, you don’t have to worry about any of that because you can study at your own pace and within your own schedule. Some programs give plenty of advance notice to prepare and submit your work. The best part is that if you opt for an accelerated program, you can complete your degree within fifteen months. That means in less than a year and a half, you will return to your current routine but with a valuable degree added to your profile.
Expand Professional Network
A great thing about online education is that you get to meet and be part of a diverse group of people from around the country. This is a fantastic opportunity to build a professional network outside your city.
A professional network helps you in many ways. For one, you have an entire team of fellow nurses to turn to for advice if you ever need help. Further, being part of a network allows you to gain early knowledge of opportunities in the field. This can be helpful for you when you want to switch jobs and find a better opportunity.
Formal Education
An online BSN will teach you formal skills such as management, leadership, nursing theories, and informatics. You can be an excellent nurse, but unless you possess the formal skills needed to navigate a healthcare organization, your professional growth will always be limited.
Organizations may hire nurses at higher positions and pay due to their higher qualifications—even if they have similar years of experience to yours. With a BSN, you can prove yourself to be an efficient administrator who can climb the ranks and lead a team of professionals. With this, you can assert yourself as a qualified candidate for upcoming opportunities within your organization.
Better Job Opportunities
The job market today is highly competitive. Hence, it is important to find ways to improve your professional profile. It is a fact that hiring managers tend to prefer candidates with higher qualifications. It is a universal rule that applies to every sector.
Moreover, a higher qualification also can come with a significant pay raise. As per the Payscale website, the national average salary for an RN with a BSN is $91,000, while for those with an ADN, the figure drops to $74,000. Therefore, if you want more financial stability, an online BSN will help you achieve that.
New Career Options
An ADN opens up the path for you to become an RN, but a BSN brings so many more career options. With an online BSN, you can opt to be a nurse administrator and look after staffing and scheduling at a hospital. Alternatively, you can choose to work in research and development as a nurse or even teach other nursing students.
There are many other career pathways that you can pursue with an online BSN other than traditional nursing. This way, a BSN will allow you to switch to a new career if the pressures of nursing ever become too much for you to handle.
Improved Patient Care
The most important responsibility of nurses is to look after patients and ensure that all their needs are met. While an ADN will give you the skills to become a good nurse, a BSN will teach you the intricacies of medical science and nursing that will help you improve patient care.
Nurses with a BSN are great at diagnosing and monitoring patients and are more capable of handling emergencies. Hence, if you want to give your patients the best care, an online BSN will equip you with the necessary skills and knowledge.
Find Words
Nursing has its fair share of challenges, much more than most professions. Dealing with patients, surviving in the high-pressure environment of a hospital, and the long, grueling work hours can get overwhelming. However, the dedication of nurses keeps them going despite all the difficulties. With an online BSN, you will not only become a better nurse but also grow as a professional and achieve success in your field.
The Editorial Team at Healthcare Business Today is made up of skilled healthcare writers and experts, led by our managing editor, Daniel Casciato, who has over 25 years of experience in healthcare writing. Since 1998, we have produced compelling and informative content for numerous publications, establishing ourselves as a trusted resource for health and wellness information. We offer readers access to fresh health, medicine, science, and technology developments and the latest in patient news, emphasizing how these developments affect our lives.