Western Governors University Reviews of Bachelor's in RN to BSN

"There are some good things about having completed my bsn through WGU, but the negatives do outweigh the positive by a long stretch. The positive is that I saved money by completing the degree in 2 terms, which in my case worked out to around $7300. I do believe they have increased the tuition rate recently, but it was possible for me to complete the program and save. The negative is that the school has an utter lack of honest, professional, transparent communication to students and is tremendously disorganized in sudden program changes. I found out through a FACEBOOK group that my course would now include 60 hours of in-person field experience after being told repeatedly when I asked during enrollment that there was not an in-person requirement. The school never did notify me of the change. If I would not have found out ON FACEBOOK I literally would not have known until I got to that class. As a working professional with a personal and family life, I need to be able to plan. I also did not appreciate the bait and switch. As a student I needed to find my own nurse to shadow, with some narrow guidelines: not in a hospital setting, needed a BSN, etc. Since my graduating the the program has changed requirements again and now requires clinical sites to agree to a contract with WGU, but the student still has to find site and jump through a lot of hoops to get the agreement. (The student also has to have certain vaccination records and AHA CPR and other requirements for WGU to approve them for the field study.) WGU is not efficient on their end to get the sites approved and will not tell students about sites that already have an agreement in place. A lot of students are struggling with this. The school is placing a lot of obstacles to student success, and not communicating with students clearly or honestly."

"I had a great experience with WGU. My Mentor was great. It is an independent study college for those working in the field for a few years. Read the instructions and answer the questions for the assignments. There are many resources available but they will leave you alone if you prefer, which I did. I did 9 classes in one term(6months) but decided to take my time for the rest, doing only the minimum. Watch the recorded lectures and do the modules and quizzes and youll succeed."

"I searched long and hard before deciding on what school to attend to get my BSN. I have a BA in another field, and have been an RN with an ADN for 13 years. I had finally decided that it was time to start my Advanced Practice journey.. but I had to have my BSN completed before I could apply to any Graduate program. Full disclosure .. I saw the completion of my BSN as a necessary EVIL to get to where I was going, most programs that I researched took between a year and a year and a half at a cost of 10-18k and I only had 12 classes to complete. I am THRILLED with WGU. They charge per a 6 month semester, right under 4k/semester, and claim they do NOT hold you back if you want to dedicate the time to learn the material, and pass the assessments.. and this has proven to be TRUE! The program is not easy, the material and testing are tough, but they don't waste your time with online message boards, waiting on other students or any other reason. The material is broken down into understandable concepts, and they offer group classes and have many options to connect with a person for help including a help line to call if you get stuck. I am over half way done with my 15 classes and so far I am quite satisfied with my progress. Also I have learned a few things, things that make the processes at the hospital more clear, and have refreshed my math and Biochemistry skills. When I began I had other nurses tell me that a degree from WGU was not accepted at 'most' graduate schools, they were quite smug in fact when they insisted a WGU BSN was invalid in some way. I called the graduate schools I plan to apply to and they had no problem accepting a BSN from WGU. So I am on track to complete my BSN in one semester and in a quarter of the cost they will spend.. so more power to them!! I spend 4-5 days a week 8-10 hours a day studying as I am on a time and money crunch to make my graduate school deadline. If you are a 'get stuff done' person, this program is a great option!"

"I had a great experience with this program. It was affordable at approx $3,700 a term. They break your terms up with 12 credits per term but you can easily pull up classes to your current term as you complete them. I did 46 credits in 1.5 terms, 9 months. Many do it in 6 months. Student mentor support is great. Course mentor support is average. Tutors/help are easily available and really helpful. You need to be very organized and self disciplined to accelerate through it at your own pace. The classes are well formatted. Student support is great. Peer support was wonderful on social media. I'm 58 years old and a nurse for 25 years. I work full time and have a life and managed this program easily. I loved doing this program sitting on my couch on the computer"

"I loved this program. The competency based classes were great. If you have prior knowledge in the area, you can quickly finish a class in a matter of days. This is not an easy program, it just cuts out all of the busy work. There are no specific deadlines, no class discussions (other than the introductory class, which is new since I graduated). I was able to finish quickly, and when I finished early my second semester, I was reimbursed a prorated amount. I highly reccommend this clas to family and friends, and have had more than 5 friends get their BSN through WGU. I just enrolled in the MSN program, and am looking forward to it! The exams are proctored, and they request to see around the test area to prevent cheating. I am fine with that! I think it gives credibility to the degree."

"This program is a ridiculous coaster of caios to follow. The courses and information can change at anytime. The "mentors are just paid to answer the phone but lack any knowledge or assistance. It is in my opinion that the way assignments are worded they are purposely made to be confusing so doing assignments will take longer ultimately earning them more money. There is no flow in the course work or class selection. There is a WEB of call centers that you need to contact if "there's an issue", which there usually is. Tests are through another online service, they usually start 20-30 mins late and can be interrupted if the person needs a break or to leave. They were VERY prompt when it came to the financials, oh except applying my discount contracted through my employer... that took 9 months. I have discouraged many of my colleagues from attempting this program as the frustration out weighs the value."

"I started in October 2017 and will be finished by February 2018; as of right now, I only have 3 classes left and 1 of those is a clinical. The faculty is excellent, well prepared and friendly. The courses are well constructed with availability of live classes, recorded ones, online textbooks, and support from a course adviser. It truly does allow you to go as quickly as you want or as slowly as need be for remediation. I already have another bachelor degree so this design has been beneficial and most affordable. I highly recommend this school"

"I highly recommend this college. The classes are tough, but all of the mentors are fantastic! Very flexible, military friendly, you can pretty much go at your fast.English is my third language, but I finished my RN to BSN in about 14 months. My mentor, Jamie S. was great, she guided and supported me all the time. The course mentors will help you even if you are going through tough times. The fact that a school actually cares to try and see you succeed is special. Overall I would recommend this school to anyone seeking further education in their desired field."

"Do not question, just do it. WGU has changed my life for the better. I am a mom with 1 full-time job as well as a weekend job. I took my time and recieved my degree in 14 months. I could of done it in one year if I had planned accordingly. I never thought I could have done it, and now it's complete. I will continue on with my MSN-Education. The only advice I could give is to go for the RN - MSN! I second guessed myself never fully believing I could do it!"

"Western Governor's University offers a comprehensive BSN program that caters to the full time working student. The instructors and staff in general are very personal and during my studies, I had lost my father and six months later, I lost my father in law. The staff went above and beyond to give me the time that I needed to make arrangements, grieve and pick up where I left off. They not only taught compassion, but they lived it! Highly recommend!"