The Radford University online Registered Nurse to Bachelor of Science in Nursing (RN to BSN) program has been ranked third in the state of Virginia by registerednursing.org.
The website provides resources and information to those interested in nursing careers from the research phase to enrollment to landing that first job and beyond. It is staffed by registered nurses interested in helping those who want to pursue nursing careers make the most out of their educations.
According to registerednursing.org, more than 15 institutions in the commonwealth offer RN to BSN programs, but that number is growing each year as the demand for nurses with baccalaureate degrees increases. A BSN degree can open the door to better employment opportunities and higher salaries for nurses. Online programs, like the one offered at Radford, make it convenient for nurses to continue their education anytime, anywhere while continuing to work.
To determine the best online RN to BSN programs, registerednursing.org used data from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS); the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES); the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE); and the Council for Community and Economic Research.
The organization then assembled its ratings based on the following criteria: whether the institution is accredited; whether the institution offers online programs; the ratio of total nurse program completions vs. total program completions awarded by the institution, sorted from higher to lower ratios; the annual tuition and fees adjusted for each county’s cost of living, sorted by lowest to highest; the ratio of instructional faculty that are tenured; the acceptance rate percentage for the college or university; and the graduate rate at 150% of normal time.
Once all the points were totaled, registerednursing.org ranked the schools from highest to lowest total points.
According to registerednursing.org, the RN to BSN online degree program offered at Radford University is ranked highly based on how students learn to apply scientific principles, strengthen their clinical decision-making, and improve patient and colleague communications when they progress through the program. In addition, the ranking comes from graduates’ ability to become patient care advocates and champions of the profession.
The website also highlights that the program costs less than $10,000 a year, has a liberal transfer credit agreement, and offers six different potential start dates for cohorts each year.
Mark Lambert
Radford University