How I earned my BSN online in 40 days from Western Governors University

I am writing the following Hub to tell you how I went from ASN to BSN in an accredited online program in approximately 40 days for about $3000.

With the economy the way it is, I figured that I ought to go back to school to get my BSN. I wanted to do it as quickly as possible, so I explored all of my options.

I investigated all of my options, but turned to an institution which I was familiar with: Western Governors University (WGU). I earned an MA in Education from WGU (in my pre-nursing career), and only found it natural to return to WGU to get my BSN.

When I initially contacted WGU, they said that it traditionally takes about 18-24 months to go from ASN to BSN online. I then did some digging and found in some online forums that many were reporting finishing the program in less time than that (the fastest I heard was somewhere around three or four months). I thought that if they could do it that fast, if I really put my mind to it, I could do it even faster.

So that’s exactly what I did. You see, the wonderful thing about WGU is that you can complete the classes as fast as possible. I got my undergraduate ASN degree from Excelsior College, and all of my credits didn’t transfer. I had to take microbiology with lab, biochemistry, nutrition, a public health practicum, and an anatomy and physiology lab. I also had to take 6 nursing theory classes including community health nursing, evidence based practice and applied nursing research, contemporary nursing issues, organizational systems and quality leadership, nursing informatics, and professional nursing roles and values. With at least two of these, I actually completed a whole course in one day.

The biochemistry class consisted of drawing diagrams and writing some APA-style papers (I think there were a total of 5 big tasks). The microbiology theory class was simply an objective exam I took down the street from my job at an educational center (it was proctored). The anatomy and physiology lab consisted of dissecting a fetal pig (yes, you read correctly) which was sent to me in the mail and I had to write reports on what I saw…I also had to dissect a sheep kidney and brain. Pretty gruesome, even by my standards, but it was worth it to get it done. I actually completed the anatomy and physiology lab one weekend and the microbiology lab the following weekend. The public health practicum is an assignment where you have to team up with a local RN and do something that deals with public health. I chose to do mine on the homeless epidemic and interviewed many homeless people around the Skid Row area in Los Angeles.

It helped that I had a great academic mentor at the college who didn’t stand in my way and let me go at my own pace. As a result, I went from ASN to BSN in 40 days, which is less than six weeks. It is so awesome. I only wish I would have done it sooner.

I was able to complete this degree in 40 days while still working about 60-70 hours a week teaching LVN students in clinical and theory. I spent a lot of time away from my wife and kids during this period, but we all knew that this was for a higher long-term purpose: to make more money and have better employment and advancement opportunities.

In the past, I have also earned an MA in educational studies (from WGU), an MPA in Public Administration (from the University of Oklahoma), a BA in history (from Thomas Edison State College), and an ASN (from Excelsior College) all through distance learning. I also earned a law degree through online/correspondence in California (currently studying for the California Bar Exam). I will be writing about those experiences in other Hubs in the future.

Bottom line: You can do just about anything through distance and online education. Don’t let anyone tell you that it can’t be done, because in America, anything is possible.