Spring is the time when high school seniors (and their parents) make final decisions about college for the fall. Students who are considering a career in nursing have multiple options and pathways to become a nurse. So, which path will you choose?
Traditional BSN Students
Traditional students who enter East Carolina University as first-year students devote two years to pre-requisite courses before they apply to the College of Nursing. Admitted nursing students begin taking nursing classes in their junior year. Students who bring in transfer hours or Advanced Placement hours may apply to the nursing major early.
FPNLLV: Making ECU Feel like a Small School
Traditional first-year ECU students may apply to live in a learning community for intended nursing majors. Future Pirate Nurse Living and Learning Village students live in one residence hall and are registered for several pre-requisite classes together. Students say the village-model helps them adjust to university life and makes the university seem like a much smaller environment. Registration is now open for the 2013-2014 FPNLLV, and the Future Pirate Nurse Living and Learning Village application is available on the College of Nursing web site.
RIBN
ECU also offers RIBN (Regionally Increasing Baccalaureate Nurses), an option that allows students to enroll at the university and an area community college at the same time. In this partnership, students take classes at both schools and earn an associate degree and a bachelor degree in four years. RIBN is often less expensive than attending the traditional on-campus program at ECU.
RN-BSN Option
The RN-BSN Option is for students who complete a two year associate degree nursing program in a community college and return to school to get their bachelor of science in nursing degree. RN-BSN students are Registered Nurses who are seeking the BSN. The curriculum is 100% online, allowing students to work while they go school.
Even though there are several pathways to become a Pirate Nurse, all of the options guarantee that students will have a first-rate experience at a university with a strong record of nursing excellence. ECU graduates more new nurses than any school in North Carolina, and our graduates score high pass rates on the NCLEX-RN national licensure exam.
Which path will you choose?