Having a BSN in nursing is important because it can empower you to earn a better salary, be a more competitive hire and increase better patient outcomes. A BSN makes you more marketable and increases your eligibility to be hired at Magnet status hospitals.
Given the growing emphasis on higher education, it’s easy to see why having a BSN in nursing is important. One of the biggest benefits of a BSN degree is, simply, eligibility for employment.
As hospitals and healthcare providers push their current RNs to earn their BSN degrees, they’re also becoming more selective about hiring only candidates who already hold BSN degrees.
If you’re considering a career in nursing, now is the time. Registered nurses are currently in very high demand — so much so that some employers are offering big incentives to new hires. In fact, the nursing field is growing at more than double the pace of the U.S. job market overall.
Before picking a nursing program, it’s important to understand why having a BSN in nursing is important and the benefits of a BSN.
A BSN Creates Career Opportunities
Today, most registered nurses hold a BSN degree or higher, reflecting a growing trend toward higher education. Obviously, this isn’t to say that every RN starts out with a BSN degree; however, the percentage of RNs entering the workforce with an associate degree is declining.
Why? Industry pressure is one major factor in the shift toward BSN degrees. When the Institute of Medicine (IOM) issued its landmark report, The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health, in 2010, it set off a tidal wave of change. In its report, the IOM stressed that a more educated nursing workforce is required to best serve the needs of patients in a rapidly evolving healthcare environment.
Thus the 80% by 2020 initiative was born. The goal of this initiative is for 80% of registered nurses to hold, at a minimum, a bachelor’s degree in nursing by the year 2020.
The impact of this initiative was quickly felt throughout the industry, with many healthcare providers requiring their RNs without BSN degrees to earn them within a certain amount of time.
In fact, for a hospital to receive a Magnet® designation, all of its nurse managers and nurse leaders must have at least a bachelor’s degree in nursing. Magnet® status is essentially the “gold standard” for nursing excellence, and to work at a hospital that holds the distinction, you’ll need your BSN.
Earning a BSN degree from Madonna University sets you up for more opportunities in the future, whether you plan to enter the workforce or use your BSN to earn an advanced nursing degree.
Earning your BSN may only be the first step on your nursing journey. If you feel the call to continue your nursing education after completing the Madonna ABSN program, check out this blog on how to leverage your experience to become a nurse practitioner.
A BSN Is Expected
Given the growing emphasis on higher education, it’s easy to see how one of the biggest benefits of a BSN degree is, simply, eligibility for employment. As hospitals and healthcare providers push their current RNs to earn their BSN degrees, they’re also becoming more selective about hiring only candidates who already hold BSN degrees.
This does not mean ADN-holders will not be able to find jobs. Not every provider is going to hire BSN degree-holders exclusively, nor will every provider have the luxury to hire only RNs with associate degrees.
However, in a field increasingly populated by BSN degree-holders, a baccalaureate degree will make you more competitive. It’s also entirely possible that at some point in the not-so-distant future, all nurses will be required to hold a BSN degree.
Did you know?
New York has already moved to require new nurses to earn a BSN degree within 10 years of initial licensure in order to continue working in the state.
Additionally, to be eligible for promotion beyond an entry-level RN position, many organizations, including the Veterans Administration and the United States Armed Forces, require a BSN degree. Not to mention that the American Nursing Association requires that all nurse managers must have a BSN degree.
A BSN Can Help You Earn a Better Salary
Then there’s the issue of pay. Per the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average salary for a registered nurse in Michigan is $80,010.
To put this in perspective, according to PayScale, an RN with ADN and BSN degrees will start out with different pay based on their education levels, with the BSN making around $86,520 compared to $70,700 for the ADN.
Additionally, the RN with the BSN will see his or her pay increase faster and by a greater amount than the RN with the ADN. For example, an RN with a bachelor’s degree in nursing and five to nine years’ experience can generally expect to make more than an RN with the same level of experience and an associate degree, depending on geographic location.
What’s more — RNs are in such high demand that some hospitals are offering five- and even six-digit signing bonuses, as well as other great benefits, such as free housing, according to CNN Money.
A BSN Can Result in Better Patient Outcomes
Of course, it’s not all about greater opportunities and earning potential — though who could blame you for taking these important factors into account? After all, one of the key findings of the IOM report behind the 80% by 2020 initiative was that more nurses with BSN degrees mean better patient outcomes.
The American Association of Colleges of Nursing agrees with these findings, citing a number of studies showing that having more nurses with BSN degrees results in reduced patient mortality and failure-to-rescue rates.
If you’re interested in earning your BSN through the Madonna ABSN program, here’s everything you need to know about going back to school for nursing.
Earn Your BSN from Madonna University in as Few as 16 Months
Whether it’s higher pay, greater job opportunities, better patient outcomes, or all the above that matter to you most, it’s important to have a BSN because the benefits outweigh any initial convenience provided by earning an associate degree in nursing.
If you have at least 60 credits from a regionally accredited college or university and meet the additional program requirements, you may be eligible to enroll in Madonna University’s Accelerated BSN (ABSN) program. Blending the convenience of online learning, hands-on skills and simulation labs, and clinical rotations at some of the area’s top healthcare facilities, we designed our accelerated baccalaureate nursing program to prepare you for a future in nursing.
Offering three start dates each year and no waitlist to get in, you can earn your BSN degree and be ready to sit for the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX) in as few as 16 months with our ABSN program in metro Detroit. To find out more, call one of our admissions representatives at 844-319-2107, or fill out the form to have someone call you.