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The toughest job you will ever love. That’s what many people say about a career in nursing, a high demand field that offers numerous tangible and intangible rewards.
Opportunities abound
The
career forecast for nursing looks promising for those seeking job security.
Today’s nursing shortage is
expected to continue for the
next 20 years. Projections state
that by 2020, nearly 20 percent of
nursing jobs will be vacant because
there aren’t enough new recruits to
fill positions left open as current
nurses retire.
Not only can you find
job security in the
nursing profession,
you’ll also discover
its flexibility. Nurses
can work days,
evenings, midnights,
weekends,
full-time or parttime.
You’ll also
find it’s a profession
open to letting
you take
time out to raise a
family, then return
when you choose to.
Nurses can work in a
variety of areas: emergency
medicine, surgery,
pediatrics, psychiatric,
obstetrics. They can choose
their settings: hospital, clinic,
medical office, prison, school,
factory or any number of other
locations.
With a high demand and promising
salaries (the average is $40,000
per year) nursing is a career to
be considered seriously.
Today, 70 percent of registered
nurses have an associate degree
like that offered through OCC.
Continuing your education with a
bachelor’s degree offers additional
opportunities in public health and
community nursing, and more
opportunities for leadership. With
a master’s degree, a nurse may
become a nurse practitioner,
nurse anesthetist or clinical
nurse specialist. 
OCC nursing programs
OCC offers four nursing program options:
- Associate Degree in Nursing
- Practical Nurse Education
- Second Year Associate Degree Completion Option
- Transitional LPN to Associate Degree Nurse
OCC’s two-year, 72-credit
Associate Degree in
Nursing program, the
largest in Michigan,
is one of the most
respected in the
nation, according
to OCC Dean of
Nursing and
Allied Health,
Dr. Nadia
Boulos. "OCC
associate degree
graduates have
exceptionally high
passing rates the
first time they
take their state and
national licensure
exams," Dr. Boulos says.
"More then 95 percent of
our graduates pass on the
first try, versus the state and
national averages of 85 and 86 percent."
And passing rates for OCC’s
licensed practical nurse graduates
have been 100 percent on the first
attempt for the past four years.
In the college’s Practical Nurse
Education program, students follow
the same first-year course of
study as students in the associate
degree program. After completing
the 46.5-credit program (this can
be done in three semesters once
students have completed prerequisite
courses in microbiology,
human anatomy and physiology,
according to Dr. Boulos), students
are eligible to take their licensure
exams.
Many LPN graduates decide to return to school to complete an associate degree and become registered nurses. OCC’s Second Year Associate Degree Nursing Completion program is designed for OCC-graduated LPNs and others. After completing an additional 31.5 hours of credit, they earn their Associate Degree in Nursing; then they can take the state and national exams to become licensed as registered nurses.
The fourth nursing program at OCC is brand new, and an exciting addition to the range of programs, according to Dr. Boulos. This program –Transitional LPN to Associate Degree – begun in September 2001 in response to community need, is the only one of its kind in Oakland County. It’s designed for individuals working as licensed practical nurses who have long since graduated, or graduated from schools other than OCC. It offers individuals "a marvelous way to expand and build on their knowledge and work experience. The program is very progressive and takes the needs of adult learners into consideration," Dr. Boulos explains. Response from the community has been tremendous, she says. Initial information sessions drew 400 responses and 49 nurses began the program in September. They will finish the 63-credit program in December 2002. Another class of nearly 30 will begin in the winter semester, and it is Dr. Boulos’ hope that in the future the program will be offered at several area hospitals to make it more convenient for working students.
Those hospitals – many of which are clinical training sites for OCC student nurses — have endorsed OCC’s program wholeheartedly. Iris Taylor, PhD, chief nursing officer and vice president at the Detroit Medical Center (DMC), expressed their endorsement of the program by announcing that DMC has sponsored 20 of its LPNs for scholarships to the OCC program.
For more information on OCC’s nursing programs, call 248-341-2346.