Thinking of training to become a registered nurse (RN)? Your skills and dedication are needed. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employers around the country will need to hire an average of 193,000 new RNs per year from 2022–2032 to meet rising demand for healthcare and replace RNs who retire.
As you research your training options, you may be wondering whether to earn an Associate of Science in Nursing (ASN) or a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN). Both pathways can prepare you to pursue licensure as an RN, and both have their advantages. This article looks at some of the reasons why you may want to begin your nursing career with an ASN—and the advantages of earning your ASN degree with Salem University.
What Is an ASN Degree?
An ASN degree is a two-year degree program designed to prepare students for entry-level bedside nursing roles. An ASN degree covers general education courses (including essential health science courses) and nursing courses.
Here’s a selection of courses Salem University ASN students take:
- Psychology
- Lifespan Human Development
- Anatomy and Physiology
- Pharmacology and Dosage Calculations
- Medical-Surgical Nursing I, II, and III
- Maternity and Neonatal Nursing
- Pediatric Nursing
- Mental Health Nursing
- Advanced Medical-Surgical Nursing I, II, and III
The end goal of the program is to prepare you to take the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN). Passing the NCLEX-RN makes you eligible to pursue licensure as an RN in West Virginia. Once you’re licensed, you can start looking for jobs.
What It’s Like to Earn an ASN Degree at Salem
At Salem University, our ASN program is offered in a hybrid format. This means students complete some coursework online and some in person. General education courses and some lectures take place online.
Hands-on learning experiences include patient care skill development in our advanced nursing simulation labs. These high-fidelity labs, located in the Benedum Learning Resource Center, introduce students to practical skills for monitoring, evaluating, and treating patients.
Our ASN students also complete clinical rotations with area hospitals, clinics, and other healthcare facilities. Clinical rotations are supervised by working, experienced RNs who help student nurses apply what they’ve learned in class in the real world.
Real-World Nursing Connections at Salem University
Salem University has a partnership BrightSpring Health Services to connect our nursing students with clinical rotation experiences and other opportunities. These partnerships also help us play a role in helping to meet the need for new nurses in West Virginia.
Our partnership with BrightSpring Health allows students to engage with patients in long-term residential and home care who have complex healthcare needs. BrightSpring serves patients in hospice, mental health and behavioral health patients, and more.
Advantages of Earning an ASN Degree
In recent years, there has been a push to encourage nurses to enter practice with a bachelor’s degree—a BSN—rather than an ASN. However, we believe that there are some advantages to starting your career with an ASN.
First, completing your ASN takes less time than earning a BSN. If all goes as planned, you can be ready to enter the job market in just under two years of study. This means less time spent paying for college and more time earning.
Earning your ASN and starting to work sooner also means you can begin building experience that will help you understand where you ultimately want to go in nursing. This way, when you do complete your BSN, you’ll have a better understanding of what your goals are.
The second advantage of completing an ASN is that you can immediately enroll in a BSN completion program, taking the remainder of your courses entirely online. If you complete 500 hours of work experience before enrolling with Salem University’s online RN to BSN program, you may be eligible for a prior learning assessment that could make it possible for you to finish your bachelor’s degree in as few as 10 months of additional study.
Affording Your ASN Degree
Salem University students have access to a range of grant and scholarship opportunities that can reduce the cost of attendance for those who qualify.
If you’re a West Virginia resident who is a recent high school graduate entering college for the first time, you may qualify for the West Virginia Promise Scholarship program (WV Promise) if you meet certain academic requirements. The WV Promise program provides up to $5,500 per year to help cover the cost of tuition. Learn more about eligibility requirements for the WV Promise Scholarship here.
Salem University offers a New Student Success Grant that reduces tuition for certain out-of-state ASN or online RN-BSN students to just $475 per credit hour. This represents a saving of $75 on our out-of-state tuition rate of $550 per credit hour. The New Student Success Grant is available to students who are residents of Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, or West Virginia. Learn more about Salem’s New Student Success Grant here.
Get Started Now
Find out more about earning your Associate of Science in Nursing in a convenient hybrid format at Salem University. Visit our ASN program page or contact an enrollment advisor today!
