As the healthcare industry grows, so do career opportunities for nurses in a wide variety of clinical settings. Graduating from an online RN to BSN program prepares nurses to succeed in many healthcare settings, including hospitals, home-based services, residential facilities, and specialty clinics.
Nurses earning a bachelor’s degree also prepare themselves for many roles within those settings, including careers in administration, clinical nursing, leadership, management, and nursing education.
Northern Michigan University Global Campus offers an online RN to BSN program that allows nurses to develop the skills needed to succeed in these positions. Students in NMU’s online RN to BSN program develop nursing and applied workplace leadership skills.
What Is an RN to BSN?
An online RN to BSN program offers licensed registered nurses who have already earned an associate degree the path to earning a bachelor’s degree. Students use the skills learned in an Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) program as a foundation for the new coursework.
When offered online, these programs allow nurses to learn the skills and knowledge needed to advance their careers while working. Employed nurses can apply what they learn immediately to their current position.
The American Association of Colleges of Nursing recommends all nurses earn a BSN. The association cites studies showing that nurses who earn a BSN perform their job better, earn higher salaries, and are better prepared to work in various healthcare settings.
Why Earn a BSN?
Each individual’s career journey will be unique, but the following list is a representation of the benefits of earning a BSN degree and why RNs choose to further their education.
Employers Require a BSN for Some Positions
A BSN is widely accepted as the standard educational level required for the best nursing jobs. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), nurses seeking positions in administration, research, consulting, and teaching are typically required by employers to have earned a BSN.
Expanding Skills and Experience
An RN to BSN program offers more education in the physical and social sciences, including additional clinical experience. As a student in NMU’s online RN to BSN program, you’ll actively participate in a variety of clinical experiences that can take place in your place of employment including:
– Indirect care,
– Direct care with a clinical partner
– Instructor online indirect assignments
High Demand
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projects the number of nursing jobs to increase 7% by 2029, with more than 221.900 nurses joining the profession.
Better Salary
According to PayScale, a nurse with an associate’s degree earns an average of $75,000, while a nurse with a BSN earns an average of $91,000.
Personal Accomplishment
While the career benefits are evident, graduates from the program also develop expertise in the latest approaches in treatment, further honing their patient care skills.
Additionally, graduates from an RN to BSN program are informed, well-rounded professionals. They not only attain the best nursing skills but also understand the connection between healthcare and societal issues.
Why Earn Your RN to BSN at NMU Global Campus?
Earning a bachelor’s degree through the online RN to BSN program with NMU Global Campus provides students with many advantages.
- As with other bachelor’s degree programs offered through NMU Global Campus, the RN to BSN program is 100% online.
- Students do not pay an application fee. (Use code GBSN when prompted in the application for admission).
- Accelerated courses allow students to complete the program in as little as four semesters.
- Nursing program advisors provide students with a detailed plan of study, upon admission to the program, which includes how previous credits transfer and how long it will take to complete the degree.
- Students receive 47 advanced placement credits with proof of an active, unencumbered RN license.
- Students engage in project-based clinicals in their place of employment
- The program offers an optional Leadership Certificate.
The curriculum in the program focuses on nursing skills, as well as leadership. Courses in the program include:
- Nursing Research and Evidence-Based Practice
- Nursing Care of Populations
- Nursing Care of Populations for the Practicing Nurse
- Nursing Issues Seminar
- Nurses also take courses that focus on nursing care for adults, women and the perinatal family, children, and adolescents.
- Professional nursing Practice
Additional optional leadership courses focus on effective communication, ethical leadership, assessment and diversity in the workplace.
For nurses motivated to reach the top in their profession, the online RN to BSN degree program offered through NMU Global Campus gives them the skills and knowledge needed to achieve their nursing career ambitions.
Beyond the BSN level, NMU’s Global Campus offers both an online Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) and Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) each with specializations as a Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP). The DNP program offers a BSN to DNP track and an MSN to DNP track.
