| "You are going to school online?!?" This was the | | | | reliable and competent asset. |
| response I received the day that I told my | | | | Most important to all of us is family. With traditional |
| grandmother that I enrolled in a non-traditional | | | | schools, time with family can be compromised. With |
| Paramedic to RN bridge program. My grandmother is | | | | nontraditional schooling, students can be with their |
| an old-fashioned person that believes people should | | | | families without having to worry about being to class |
| complete their Master's degree in a classroom setting, | | | | on time or sacrificing their job or lifestyle. Whether it be |
| work in the field of the degree completed, then get | | | | a new baby or the grandparents in the nursing home |
| married and have children, in that order precisely. | | | | that helped raise their grandchild whom is now trying to |
| Despite this belief, I did the opposite. When I got | | | | attend college are able to spend priceless time with |
| married and my husband and I decided to have a child, | | | | each other that, in other circumstances, "the traditional |
| I thought I was going to be working on an ambulance | | | | school setting", could not be spent. |
| for the entirety of my life and did not need to continue | | | | Another thing to consider is that when data is |
| school. After being a full time Paramedic and loving | | | | compared, the nontraditional students are just as |
| every moment of my career, I decided that I wanted | | | | competent and reliable as traditional students. Statistics |
| to further my education so that I could help my | | | | show that 76.3% of community colleges offer distance |
| community in more ways than working on the | | | | learning (nontraditional). 88.6% of these colleges state |
| ambulance. | | | | that they expect a moderate-to-large increase in |
| After speaking with different schools and many | | | | enrollment in the nontraditional programs. These |
| different non-traditional students I found the program I | | | | statistics do not include the major universities that also |
| was looking for. The program allowed me to study on | | | | offer nontraditional education including Harvard, Duke, |
| my own and at my own pace. When I felt ready to | | | | and Penn State. The fact that these major universities |
| test for each concept, I would take a trip to my | | | | offer this should say something in itself. In a study done |
| nearest testing center to take each exam. Before I | | | | by the National Research Center for Career and |
| knew it, I was "NCLEX eligible" and the reality kicked in. | | | | Technical Education, research proved that there was |
| Wow! I had made it through all my nursing exams with | | | | no variation in achievement rates between traditional |
| a newborn baby and two full time jobs. How did I ever | | | | and non-traditional students. This studied showed that |
| make it this far? | | | | the passing rates for national boards were passed on |
| I am often asked why I chose to do an online | | | | the first attempt in students that attended |
| Paramedic to RN bridge program instead of going to a | | | | non-traditional schooling. |
| traditional classroom setting? I think of all of the | | | | As time goes on and more people are attempting to |
| parents, full time career-minded people, and people that | | | | further their education and the demand for |
| do not have a traditional RN institution around them to | | | | nontraditional schooling will significantly increase. Studies |
| attend and know that they are in the same boat as | | | | and research have proven effective in the use of |
| myself. Traditional programs have their benefits and | | | | these schools. The fact that certain fields, especially |
| depending on the type of student may be beneficial. | | | | medical, are in demand for help is reason enough to |
| For so many of us out there though, the non-traditional, | | | | consider online education as a formal and accurate |
| online program is the preference. | | | | means to continue the process of nontraditional |
| Nontraditional programs are self-motivated and | | | | schooling. |
| convenient in so many ways that the future of many | | | | So to answer everyone's question as to why I chose |
| careers may depend on these programs. The fact | | | | an online Paramedic to RN bridge program instead of |
| that students must perform studies at their own pace | | | | a traditional RN program, my answer is that I had to. It |
| goes to show that these people are motivated and | | | | fit my lifestyle and I now have my RN degree, the |
| fully enthused about their education and career choice. | | | | same degree that traditional students hold. |
| This ensures that once hired, the employee will be a | | | | |