Competition to Get into Nursing School

Most people are aware that the demand, as well as job prospects, for nurses is attractive in the United States. This demand for nurses is higher compared to past instances, and the shortage of nurses is projected to increase manifold in the coming years. This is why several recruitment initiatives are motivating students to consider this profession and are coming forward to bear much of the cost linked to nursing school.

But, when it comes to nursing school admissions, it’s a different scenario. Getting into a nursing school is really competitive. Some students are finding themselves wait-listed for years, during which time they are asked to wait for a nursing program to open up for admittance. Some may be denied admission in spite of their outstanding grades and experience in healthcare. Now the question is, why it is so hard to get into nursing school? Why are colleges and universities not graduating more nurses when there is a shortage? Let’s discuss this here.

In the United States, there is a lot of demand as well as good prospects for nurses, and compared to the past, the demand has been increasing for nurses to be part of the medical industry. This is why there are several recruitment initiatives that are motivating students to try their luck in some form or another. Getting oneself into nursing school in itself is serious work, as some students have found themselves placed on a waiting list for several years, and some are denied admission to the nursing school even after waiting all that time. It is widely agreed that a nursing career is one of the most trusted professions, and the programs for nursing are mostly aimed towards getting an individual trained in various clinical settings. This profession also demands nurses to have an in-depth knowledge on the biological front as well as in other social sciences. Because of all this mandatory information, nursing school students are loaded down with heavy course work in various challenging subjects; apart from the clinical exposure they receive, these courses include pharmacology, anatomy, pathophysiology, and microbiology. From this, it is easy to see that nursing is a tough area of study, which makes it difficult for an individual to enter pursue in the first place. One of the reasons for the rise in competition is that most nursing schools tend to be dependent on their community partners, which can be local hospitals or clinics, to provide the necessary clinical exposure, and so these nursing programs have limited space for prospective students. It is important for there to be a proper ratio between the faculty and the students for this training to be effective. Since there is a huge number of students who want to be admitted to nursing school, the schools have become very selective in their process of admission so that only the brightest, highest performing students are allowed to be part of their program, which limits certain students from entering the school. Another reason for the increasingly strict admissions process is a shortage of qualified faculty, which is a general problem across the country. One of the reasons for the shortage is that private organizations are paying higher salaries to nursing-related staff than the educational sector, and so people prefer to take the more lucrative job offers. This shortage of quality staff has led to an imbalance in the student-to-teacher ratio, so nursing schools are also reducing the intake of students to their programs.

No two nursing programs offer the same thing, so it is important to properly investigate the program in the area where you are located or where you want to attend school and then check for the admission requirements. A few schools require entrance exams, whereas others prefer their students to first undergo certain courses. Take some time to explore all the various options and then determine the best nursing school that would best fit your goals.