Why Is A BSN Important?
Before deciding if you want to go back to nursing school for your Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree, you’ll want to weigh the benefits. Below, you can watch our nurse expert, Shanna Shafer BSN, discuss the reasons why getting a BSN is important for nurses.
The Benefits of Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing
“The benefits of getting my Bachelor’s degree in Nursing, first and foremost, were to expand my own knowledge base. I am motivated by education, so I always knew that I would go ahead and get my Bachelors. While I thought that I had sufficient education with my Associate’s program, as far as nursing theory and actually [performing] nursing tasks and being able to administer patient care safely, I realized that as far as management opportunities, leadership opportunities, and the ability to expand into different nursing roles, a Bachelor’s degree was going to be absolutely necessary.
Some of the direct benefits of getting my Bachelor’s degree included having more time in the classroom and time out in the community that focused on research and focused on population based health, which I think is extremely important in today’s health care environment. It gave me a broader view of the diverse spectrum of patients and citizens and community members that access care. The Bachelor’s program allowed me to see all the different entrance levels to health care, whether it be in schools, at a community health center, at a focused center like an outpatient center or an infusion center — so it really just increased my breadth of understanding for how health care is administered in our nation.
Also, you know, the benefits obviously include being able to expand and be more independent with practice. I learned that as a Bachelor’s prepared nurse I could be the DON of a nursing home or an assisted living facility, which I wasn’t aware of before. So it really just expanded my knowledge base and prepared me for being more involved in community based health overall.”
