Second Degree BSN (Bachelor of Science in Nursing Programs)

High unemployment and shrinking professional career opportunities in the United States have led many bachelor’s degree-holding individuals to seek career changes in recent years. The most cursory glimpse at projections by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reveals that there will be increased demand for new nurses at least through the next decade. One innovation to help alleviate the nursing shortage is a fast-track BSN program that is geared towards people who already hold a bachelor's degree in a non-nursing field.

Depending on the discipline area of the degree-seeker’s first bachelor’s degree, a fast-track BSN program can enable career changers to achieve a BSN degree in about 12 to 18 months, depending on school, program type, and course load. Some programs give “life” credit; others seek only to require nursing-specific course content.

The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) reported in May, 2010 that there were 230 accelerated BSN programs in existence, up from only 31 in 1990. Also in 2010, 33 others were in the planning stages, and the accelerated second-degree BSN program was the fastest-growing segment of nursing education. These new RNs work in hospitals, doctors’ offices, public health, home health, and any other area where RNs are needed.

Second-degree BSN programs offer online classes, but at least some of the program’s instruction must occur in the physical setting as degree candidates practice the various physical activities required of Registered Nurses (RNs). Of course new RNs must know the mechanics of giving injections and managing IV lines and machinery, but they also must be able to execute the processes.

One caution for the second-degree BSN candidate is to select an accredited program for the fast-track BSN. It is possible to gain a sound education and a bachelor’s degree at an institution that is only academically accredited, but securing a fast-track BSN degree from a school accredited either by The National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission (NLNAC) or by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) could facilitate any future decision to seek a graduate nursing degree.