As an RN, you have selected an important, lifelong career that will impact the lives of patients for years to come. If you have an associate degree, either an ADN or ASN, you may be considering that next step in your career — earning a BSN.
Texas nurses with an associate degree can now earn their BSN in as few as 12 months through Texas A&M International University (TAMIU). Although TAMIU is located in Laredo, the RN to BSN program is 100 percent online, and students can take the courses from anywhere. The program provides nurses the flexibility to earn their degree while working and taking care of family responsibilities. It’s an accessible, affordable way to gain more career opportunities and responsibility in different care settings, and have higher salary potential.
You can earn your BSN online through TAMIU within 12 months by taking two classes at time for each 7-week session. However, you also have the option of customizing the number and flow of courses according to your schedule. Each course is seven weeks long. If you already have general education courses from other institutions, they may be transferable. To make the program even more flexible, they offer six start dates per year.
Taking Your Career to the Next Level
To serve the needs of patients today and into the future, nurses will need advanced knowledge and skills. The Institute of Medicine (now known as the National Academy of Medicine) and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation issued a milestone report in 2010, The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health. The report called for 80 percent of the nation’s nurses to have a BSN by 2020. Many hospitals are now adopting that guideline by hiring more BSN-trained nurses. The report also included key takeaways to guide nursing practice into the future:
- Nurses should practice to the full extent of their education and training.
- Nurses should achieve higher levels of education and training through an improved education system that promotes seamless academic progression.
- Nurses should be full partners, with physicians and other healthcare professionals, in redesigning healthcare in the United States.
- Effective workforce planning and policymaking require better data collection and information infrastructure.
Providing Safer Care
A widely quoted study published in the March 2013 issue of Health Affairs found that hospitals with higher percentages of BSN-degree nurses had lower rates of patient complications and death. To enhance patient safety and also to gain a competitive advantage, many hospitals now require newly hired nurses to have a BSN. Since 2013, in order to qualify for Magnet recognition from the American Nurses Credentialing Center, 100 percent of a hospital’s nurse managers must have a BSN or MSN, providing more incentive for hospitals to prefer hiring nurses with a BSN.
Why a BSN from TAMIU?
Throughout your nursing career, you will be faced with a greater number of patients who have high-acuity illnesses and comorbidities due to the aging population. Medical technology also continues to advance at a rapid pace. The BSN program at TAMIU is designed to enable you to care more confidently for patients with complex health problems and adapt to new care approaches.
TAMIU’s BSN program includes coursework such as comprehensive health assessment, nursing research and cultural determinants of health behavior. The program also prepares students to take on nurse leadership roles and sharpen their skills in communication, conflict resolution, ethical and legal decision-making, and improvement of care quality and safety. With a BSN degree from TAMIU, you may have opportunities to work in a variety of inpatient and outpatient settings, community health centers, long-term care facilities, and schools.
While there are many online BSN programs to choose from, not all are accredited by a recognized agency such as the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN). The TAMIU RN to BSN program has ACEN accreditation and is designed specifically for Texas RNs. It offers supportive faculty, accelerated coursework, affordable pay-as-you-go tuition, and the ability to complete the program in as few as 12 months.
Learn more about TAMIU’s online RN to BSN program.
Sources:
Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing
