With many baby boomers retiring, there is a large nurse shortage growing by the day. The demand for nurses will create over a million new jobs, and is already lifting nursing wages. Studying nursing online allows you to improve your career and salary with flexible hours that work around your current schedule.
University of Phoenix - - Certificates, Associate's, Bachelor's, Master's, & Doctoral Degrees. Known as the leader in the online education space, U of P offers flexible online courses that help you work around your career.
Kaplan University - Certificates, Associate's, Bachelor's, Master's Degrees. As one of the biggest names in education, Kaplan has taken their coursework and testing expertise and applied them to online courses, making degrees available in as little as 12 months.
Capella University - Bachelor's, Master's, & Doctoral Degrees. Capella is known for offering a wide array of graduate level online nursing programs.
Walden University - Master's and Doctoral Degrees. Walden specializes in post-graduate learning, offering a variety of Master's level education programs.
North Carolina is fortunate to have a number of highly regarded university medical and nursing programs. Duke and UNC are considered world-class medical Meccas, top research hubs, as well as hectic and exciting Level 1 Trauma Centers. It’s no surprise that thousands of nurses, of every degree level, flock to jobs in hospitals like these also located in appealing metro areas that offer diversions-galore.
But there are good nursing schools dotting the state, from mountain to sea. Find a waitlist at your top pick and the best advice is to explore a few others. Don’t overlook the very good online nursing programs now offered by many of the schools on this list. Consider these convenient and flexible educational levers that allow working nurses and career changers the same opportunities at a nursing education as those of college age students.
For Practical Nurse and Associates degree seekers (ADN or ASN) stick to the community colleges and technical colleges on the list. If you’re committed to earning your BSN then explore the NC colleges and universities; and for post-grad and doctoral nursing degrees, you’ll want to check out the various programs at the major medical universities.
Tip: True, the Associates degree in nursing, available from most community colleges, remains the most popular pathway to a nursing career. However, increasing numbers of NC hospitals are urging new grads to come to them with BSN degrees. Why? RN vacancies are becoming common in areas that require a bit more advanced knowledge—ED, Trauma, Critical Care. Also decision makers in nursing and healthcare believe that a cornerstone to nurse retention is education.
If you’re considering nursing school in NC part of your planning process should include trolling the state sources for any financial aid you can find to ease your tuition bills.
Use the North Carolina Board of Nursing as a primary resource when you need official answers to questions regarding your nursing practice: