Excelsior Nursing Program

[Mrs_Him]

Hi, I'm new to the forum and need a little guidance. I was recently accepted into Excelsior's Nursing program, but before enrolling I would like to CLEP as many exams as possible. Although I will be enrolling in their AS program I plan on continuing on to their BSN, so my question is for the additional GenEd requirements for their BSN can I CLEP those credits or must the additional GenEd credits be upper level?

[publius2k4]

Can you provide some background? What credits do you already have? What certification did you have that granted you acceptance into Excelsior's nursing program?

[KittenMittens]

Hi, I'm new to the forum and need a little guidance. I was recently accepted into Excelsior's Nursing program, but before enrolling I would like to CLEP as many exams as possible. Although I will be enrolling in their AS program I plan on continuing on to their BSN, so my question is for the additional GenEd requirements for their BSN can I CLEP those credits or must the additional GenEd credits be upper level?

I wanted to warn you that Excelsior's Nursing program has some major and particular pitfalls to be wary of.

Please read: Class Action Suit Hits at Core of Popular Online Nursing Program - Higher Education

Nursing students sue Excelsior College | allnurses

You should read the comments if you can too.

Not to dissuade you from doing the program, but keep in mind that current pass rates for the CPNE are about 52% (& 47% the year before) and overall of 60%, but you can find that the pass rates have been going down over the years . If the trend continues the rates may go down even further.



As you may or may not know, the CPNE is the final clinically based practical that take at the end of the program and there is a lot of criticism about Excelsior’s Nursing program to the point that a class action lawsuit was filed against them about a year ago. I read on several websites that this CPNE exam is the main concern. The other thing is, and I'm not sure if there are any perceived savings through the program, but the Excelsior CPNE costs $2,225, plus fees of air travel or a + study workshop + car rental + hotel + and other miscellaneous fees [B][U]can go up to $4,000 - and that's with a ~50% first time pass rate [/U][/B]. Spending around $3,500 - $4,000 to have a ~50% pass rate does not sit well with me especially if you have to take it a 2nd or 3rd time doubling or tripling your cost to $8,000 - $12,000. You could do an entire associate's in nursing program through a traditional program through community college for about $4,000 - $8,000 total and that will definitely get you a job starting in an average city around $50,000 - $70,000. It is possible then you may not end up saving as much as you hoped and/or may less favorable employment prospects compared to nurses from typical institutions Keep in mind that where you do your CPNE matters just as much. Apparently there are some test centers that are more lax than others & you’ll have to research that if you are committed to this path and understand the risks going in.

Always consider the pros and cons of going this way versus doing a traditional nursing program through a community college. I would probably steer you towards doing an established nursing program than through a traditional brick and mortar institution. In the latter situation you don't have to do a "CPNE" exam in difficulty and rigor so it likely more straightforward. Online education is pretty established for many programs like business admin or liberal arts, and that has a lot to do with the nature and easier standards of these non-science programs, but has a long way to go for science based curriculum where you can't test clinical and lab skills as easily, so you end up as a "guinea pig" of sorts in these programs. In the case of Excelsior College's Nursing program, there remains a lot to be desired. Also, many hospitals now want BSes in Nursing and as time goes, are less likely to be hiring Associate’s level nursing.

Whatever you do, just make sure you are aware of the risks going in (if you didn't already). Do a lot of google searches, read allnurses forums, read comments of people, and see what the general consensus is in opinion and go from there, but again, I would urge you or anyone to go for a traditional program instead. Nursing is a great career and a lot of your success will come down to the quality of your education - don't hinder your chances of doing so for any anticipated convenience of doing it online which comes at a big cost. I don't even think you'd save that much money if any at all given how expensive that CPNE test is and/or its abysmal pass rates. The only slight benefit from this program is that you can do online coursework or exams I guess, but that comes at a big price.

"Feb 26, '14 by RN34TX
I'm an EC grad of 2003 and have mixed feelings on the matter. I joined AllNurses a few months after graduating and felt like I was the only one who "passed" who didn't sing the praises of EC.

It seemed in those days that if you dared to speak out against EC that you were labeled as bitter or sour grapes for not passing.

I even expressed my concerns about the exam after I took and passed it on EC's own "Electronic Peer Network" as it was called back then and was immediately shot down by EC staff.

But I did pass (the first time around) and more than 10 years later will still state that yes, it is most definitely a very subjective exam and was not consistent across the board in its testing practices.

I believe that any traditional nursing program has potential for favoritism and subjectivity and any school can have the potential for having students who have futures that are at the mercy of unethical and biased instructors.

I am very thankful for the opportunity to have had EC as an option and have enjoyed a very successful nursing career since graduating.

But I sometimes think that fellow graduates will defend the program to the end because they are afraid that negative remarks about the school will be a reflection on them as RN's who graduated from that program.

Having said that, when I enrolled in 1999 it was most definitely clear in the nursing catalog and student handbook exactly what was expected of me and the CPNE pass rate was 57% at that time and it was clearly stated."

[Puttlesbridge]

There is a great Facebook page - Let's Conquer the CPNE Beast Together, it will provide lots of info on the CPNE. allnurses.com is another great site.

[smf6824]

Hi, I'm new to the forum and need a little guidance. I was recently accepted into Excelsior's Nursing program, but before enrolling I would like to CLEP as many exams as possible. Although I will be enrolling in their AS program I plan on continuing on to their BSN, so my question is for the additional GenEd requirements for their BSN can I CLEP those credits or must the additional GenEd credits be upper level?

Congratulations on being accepted. I realize that certain members or should I elaborate, member may persuade you to not attend and seek a more traditional program. I hate to say I agree that it may be wiser to accept a more traditional program; however, the only person that can decide if you become a good nurse or not is you. There is no easy path to becoming a great nurse, that I hope you are aware of and no one should get into the profession purely just for money because you can never be paid enough for what you will experience. During this process you need to take time to learn and not be in such a rush. You should volunteer for any learning experience possible and listen to those with experience. I am all for you doing CBE for traditional courses such as English; however, I personally would defer to take traditional nursing related courses. Remember that no matter how much aptitude you have for the healthcare field until you gain the knowledge and experience you can pose a danger to patients so all I can say is learn and volunteer for any and all clinical experiences possible. Even if the clinical experience is a sad case, go for it because the healthcare field isn't as happy as people make it out to be. The healthcare field is full of death, sad stories, illness, etc... As a nurse you will be on the front lines against something you can't win against; however, you will save some. Those few that you save, even if it is only temporary, make the profession worth it. So Good Luck and get ready because this is a life altering change you are partaking in. You will never be the same again.

[Exfactor]

Hi, I'm new to the forum and need a little guidance. I was recently accepted into Excelsior's Nursing program, but before enrolling I would like to CLEP as many exams as possible. Although I will be enrolling in their AS program I plan on continuing on to their BSN, so my question is for the additional GenEd requirements for their BSN can I CLEP those credits or must the additional GenEd credits be upper level?

There are not many if any nursing students on this forum. Most of Excelsior nursing students can be found on the allnurses forum, you can find an abundance of students there who are pursuing their A.S and B.S degrees. The school of nursing at Excelsior is a little different from the school of liberal arts, especially when it comes to outside sources of transfer credit. I would advise you to post your inquiry over there, along with informing your advisor at Excelsior of your plans, as they can create a plan of credits/exams that you need to take to fulfill your degree requirements by the methods that you desire. There are currently over 19,000 students enrolled in the nursing program at Excelsior, and based on some nurses I know, its difficult in the real world not to "find" an Excelsior grad of the school of nursing working in some sort of setting within their field.

[SuzanneD]

Just want to encourage you. I know four people who have gone from lvn to RN through excelsior. One of them failed her cpne the first time and had to retake it. The other three passed with no repeats. It can definitely be done. All of them agreed controlling your nerves is key. Don't be deterred by naysayers. Make sure they are good with your state's nursing board and go for it.

[Exfactor]

Just want to encourage you. I know four people who have gone from lvn to RN through excelsior. One of them failed her cpne the first time and had to retake it. The other three passed with no repeats. It can definitely be done. All of them agreed controlling your nerves is key. Don't be deterred but naysayers. Make sure they are good with your state's nursing board and go for it.

Great points.

[smf6824]

Lol, the irony is you have already tried to insult me or try to make a jab at me and I called you out on it. I've never found the need to stoop down to your level by making personal attacks. I don't take you seriously not because I'm judgmental but because you wanted to start a flame war, and make a personal attacks against me and for no good reason. Good job derailing the thread because of your anger against me. You very clearly stated, “I hate to say” that you agree with me as if there is something intolerable about agreeing with me. You also tried to not so subtly imply that I have mental issues despite the irony that you entered the military and can't restrain yourself from remaining civilized.

You didn’t respectfully do it and over the last several convos you and your goon squad including the perpetual poster Sanantone have gone out on a limb to try to discredit me whether in private or publicly. I’m not the one who’s on this forum day in and day out for years with 5,000 posts and calls to censure people when they’re called out for having inadequate plans. It is not I who is out to prove that I am better than anyone else - it is you guys who are on here each and every day in and day out. It’s not that I am argumentative, it’s just that many of you forum regulars are emotional and generally unable to come up with cohesive arguments where many of you are so egregiously wrong or flawed in your reasoning that it can't be helped to be pointed out. But that’s not a surprise given the calibre or lack thereof of some of the people around here, yourself included.



Agree to disagree but your beliefs are shallow and naive. Money is and isn’t everything. Not making enough money will make you miserable, and no one will generally say no to making more money if given the opportunity. If there's a rule of thumb it's that for a single person, making $70,000 a year adjusted for cost of living course is around the level of income a person needs to live the happiest. After that, any more money earned has diminishing returns as far as happiness goes, so they say. Good luck doing that at minimum wage. Anyways, you’re just stating the obvious that everyone knows to do something you are interested in - a very trite and cliche argument at that.



Ha ha, that’s a lot of suppositions you’re making about me - you have no idea who I am. I’m sorry but in the face of racism, sexism, and people who whine about being disabled or have major academic deficiencies, and presenting reasonable and balanced counter-arguments and keeping a steady tongue, I hardly find that I’ve been unreasonable. You and your lynch squad calling to censure me are just upset for emotional reasons mainly. It’s not that I’m trying to prove my intellectual “prowess” it’s that some of you lack information and perhaps even a minimal reasonal ability in general. If you perceive it as me trying to appear better then them then that’s your perception of it. I would argue that you are just insecure and hate the fact that I am presenting very valid arguments that YOU hesitantly agree with (which you made a point of emphasizing). For the record, you should not be so insecure on your educational background, and if you do perceive some deficiency or setback from where you went, then maybe you should work on yourself. In reality, you shouldn’t be so insecure, nor should you be dishonest on your feelings about someone and then pretend that things are civil (i.e. being “tactful and respectful.”) If you perceive something as being “degrading” then point it out, and I’ll address it otherwise it’s meaningless. Quit trying to sound like you have the moral high ground as if you’re in the right somehow. I have always shown respect to others, but a few of you are insensitive do to your own personal insecurities about your own intelligence and educational background. That's your problem, not my own. I’m not here to entertain you or your squad of racists, and chronically obsessed posters on this forum who have nothing better to do than just whine about people disagreeing with them. If you don’t like what I have to say, then don’t read it. If something offends you, ignore it, and move on. You loathe the fact that there are people who disagree with you, and ironically to what you are saying, you don’t tolerate freedom of speech or opinion.

I hope that you are able to encourage and inspire proper constructive debate rather than express your feelings and frustrations towards me. You initiated this by trying to off-handedly disparage me, and I called you out on it. I would encourage you in the future to not appeal to emotion, and focus on constructive debate, which inevitably will offend those who have a closed mindset who I couldn't care less about.

This forum has a good resource in its test taker feedback, and flash cards, however, many of you have significant personal insecurities about yourself and panic over the slightest possible affront over your intelligence. That’s not on me, that’s you. This forum’s viewers are not all from the US, or nontraditionals who failed to do any higher level education at a younger age. There are plenty of people who are lurkers who do share a similar viewpoint, and my writing is for them, not you forum “regulars” that have nothing better to do than to bash anyone they disagree with. Get over yourself.

If all you've got is personal issues with me, know that I neither care for your personal opinion of me, and will be ignored.

Let's focus on the technical merits of the issue rather than get into a flame war that you initiated (as did the other ones). You became unprofessional by making a jab at me and for no good reason, and you were begging for a fight - not me, so let's stick to the topic.

To save you the trouble KittenMittens even though I know you thrive on arguments, I will not seek one. Actions speak louder than words. No one is out to get you and I am sorry you feel that way. No matter how much you antagonize the situation I will not give you the delight in seeking an argument with me. No one can change your mind and a debate is not worth it. Again I am sorry how you feel in regards to certain issues, and I hope you find peace. I hope you learn. Have a blessed day.

[rebel100]

Hi, I'm new to the forum and need a little guidance. I was recently accepted into Excelsior's Nursing program, but before enrolling I would like to CLEP as many exams as possible. Although I will be enrolling in their AS program I plan on continuing on to their BSN, so my question is for the additional GenEd requirements for their BSN can I CLEP those credits or must the additional GenEd credits be upper level?

My wife has applied and will try her first exam soon.

You need to understand all of the AA/AS/ASN courses and Gen Ed's are typically lower level. Lower level tends simply to mean those courses taken in the first two years of college and generally reflect 100 or 200 prefix courses. You can, as a rule test out of all the gen eds but they are lower level. You can also test out of the nursing prereqs, they accept EC exams, DSST, and Clep in unlimited numbers. They also accept ACE and NCCRS such as straighterline, aleks, and saylor but will limit those to 7 total credits for the nursing program.

I haven't looked at the BSN from EC in a long time, but generally speaking they will require 30 UL credits that are really only obtainable from EC or more traditional sources. The rest can be from other areas such as clep. Think of it this way, up to 90 credits can generally be lower level, usually 30 credits will have to be upper level. There are some exceptions, a handful of degrees at TESC for example only require 18 credits at the UL.