EARN YOUR MSN DEGREE

No matter, what the condition of the economy is now or in the future, there will always be a requirement for nurses and doctors. At present, according to government surveys there is a severe shortfall of educated and trained nurses in the health care field. The January- February Issue of Health Affairs has predicted a shortfall of as many as 760,000 to 800,000 nurses by the year 2020. The projected shortfall is so severe that President Barrack Obama has promised aid to those students who will take up nursing and related professions right after high school in an effort to increase the number of admissions.

But apart from financial aid, it’s also necessary that the existing pool of trained nurses study further to increase their skills and learning. RN’s or BSN’s have to study further to complete a MSN or a PhD as they can then teach in nursing colleges to train the next generation of native-born nurses. Apart from the cost of the course, in the year 2005, about 147,000 student applications were rejected simply because nursing institutions did not have trained post-graduate nursing faculty, clinical facilities or classroom space!

The condition is not as bad as you think, though! At present, there is an active recruitment process on to bring in foreign born trained nurses to fill in the deficit. The recruitment of foreign nurses and the influx of nurses who opted to study further relieved the deficit a little bit. But in the year 2005, 3,160 trained students were still prevented from entering post graduate course and doctoral courses simply because there was no faculty to train them!

But if you are already in the nursing field, then conditions are very right for you to continue your studies and take up postgraduate qualifications. The vacancies are already there. You just have to take up the challenge of studying further and completing your MSN as fast as possible!

Options Available

There are several methods by which you can enter into a MSN course. If you have completed your RN then you can continue your studies to become a LPN, a BSN and then continue into the MSN course. Most of the courses are approximately 18-24 months long and involve long intensive independent study. Apart from the full time study option, a few colleges also have part time courses where you can work your way through the course while still finishing your studies. This is the best option, as you not only get a lot of clinical exposure, but you also have a steady job and income that will help you while you pass through your course. Online study and distance education is also present with several colleges like Kaplan offering courses that will help you in your continuing education. Please ensure that you have sufficient clinical training with the online or distance education course and you are ensured good teaching with an accredited faculty and syllabi. There’s no use wasting your time with unaccredited courses, as no college will accept an accredited degree for a job or any further education!

Career Opportunities

There is a whole world of opportunities in the nursing profession for all trained staff that do have the qualifications. Every college that does take on postgraduate courses also offers you job placement when you pass out. Not bad, at all when you think of it, right!