Choosing to go back to school is a major decision for any travel nurse, regardless of where he or she is along their career path. In fact, the desire to develop professionally served as the No. 1 motivator for registered nurses to return to school, according to a study published in the Journal of Professional Nursing. A nurse may want to earn a master’s degree, pursue a degree in education or transition into healthcare administration. For some, returning to the classroom is a necessary step toward expanding the travel nursing jobs available to them. That was the case with registered nurse Peggy Patterson. With an Associate of Science in Nursing degree, she considered going back to the classroom to earn her BSN so she could be eligible for more job opportunities, but there were certain hesitations holding her back. Fortunately, with the help of the tuition reimbursement program offered by Aureus Medical, cost wasn’t one of them. Learn how this perk for Aureus Medical travel nurses allowed Peggy to advance her career from an RN to BSN:
What is the Aureus Medical Live & Learn Tuition Reimbursement Program?
Healthcare professionals working with Aureus Medical have the unique opportunity to receive education funding through the healthcare staffing agency’s Live & Learn Tuition Reimbursement Program. Specifically, individuals can receive coverage for books and tuition as much as $12,000 per degree.
In addition to nursing, Aureus Medical employees can use the benefit to obtain bachelor’s or master’s degrees in allied health, healthcare administration and healthcare education. All around, it’s the ideal way for healthcare professionals to earn advanced degrees while continuing to work in the field.
Heading back to school was made easier for Peggy with the Live & Learn Tuition Reimbursement Program.Motivation for Peggy
Peggy can validate the opportunities the tuition reimbursement program provides, as it gave her the necessary resources and motivation to further her education. After obtaining her ASN, she planned to return to school and earn a bachelor’s degree, but heading back to the classroom wasn’t appealing immediately after graduation. However, as she continued working as a travel nurse with Aureus Medical, she learned that furthering her education could also open her up to more opportunities as an increasing number of hospitals are requiring a BSN.
Once she learned about the Aureus Medical Live & Learn Tuition Reimbursement Program, the picture of her future began to emerge.
Peggy searched online and discovered that University of Texas at Arlington’s classes fit with her night-shift schedule and were also cost efficient. Her education was actually less than the $12,000 limit. In September, 2011, she committed to this journey that has yielded substantial rewards but wasn’t without its challenges.
“Nurses with higher degrees are typically more satisfied at work.”
The work-life-school balance
Peggy’s giving and passionate personality make her a great nurse, but that’s far from the only role she plays. She is also a wife and mom. After she enrolled at the University of Texas at Arlington, she became a student, too. Balancing these four responsibilities was no doubt difficult, but she learned that certain adjustments can make the process easier.
For one, she advised that other travel nurses taking this path should enroll in only one class at a time and get all prerequisites out of the way. Additionally, pick a school that coincides with your schedule. For Peggy, she was able to complete assignments during the nights she didn’t work. Online classes were a great advantage, too, especially for travel nurses who move about the country frequently.
NurseTogether brought other suggestions to the table for nurses striving to strike a balance with school, career and family. Some individuals may find list-making a helpful tactic in staying on track with goals. For example, write down what assignments you aim to complete each day. Additionally, don’t overload yourself. That is, say “no” when requests come in – from family, work or otherwise – that are just not feasible to complete amid all your school work. Finally, don’t be afraid to ask for help, whether you need your spouse to make dinner or your child to do some housework to ease your schedule.
Is going back to school in your future?A journey well worth it
For Peggy, while going back to school required a balancing act, she was glad that cost wasn’t weighing heavily on her mind.
“I don’t know if I would have returned to get my BSN if it wasn’t for Aureus,” Peggy said. “To be able to go to school on my time and know that I would be reimbursed for doing so was such a relief.”
In the past 10 years of traveling with Aureus Medical she’s worked 23 assignments and since she earned her BSN in 2014, she has found that she has more job opportunities available to her. And according to a study in the Journal of Professional Nursing, nurses who obtain higher degrees are typically more satisfied with their jobs.
Peggy’s advanced degree may also have implications for patient safety. A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that hospitals with a higher proportion of BSN nurses experienced decreased mortality rates. In fact, these statistics are so compelling that many healthcare organizations have launched initiatives to help nurses go back to school. For example, the Institute of Medicine has a goal to have 80 percent of nurses hold at least a bachelor’s degree by 2020.
Looking ahead, Peggy is considering getting her master’s degree so she can teach at a local community college within the next five years.
How to apply for the Live & Learn Tuition Reimbursement Program
If you want to earn a higher degree and potentially contribute to better patient safety while working as a travel nurse, consider applying for the Live & Learn Tuition Reimbursement Program. As Peggy noted, the process is easy. You need to send in a pre-approval request to your account manager before the class starts, pay for books, class and other fees upfront, and keep track of your receipts. Finally, send in proof of your expenses and a passing grade to receive reimbursement.