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There’s no denying that obtaining nursing degrees has always been a challenge. It has always been a very competitive process. However, there’s also no denying that the process has gotten much more competitive during the last decade or so. Why is this happening? Well, there is more than one reason for the phenomenon, and these factors are huge, society wide, and basically unchangeable and unstoppable. In other words, there is very little that can be done to make nursing school admissions less competitive any time soon. It simply is not possible. Let’s look at the first reason, which is the huge nursing shortage. Right now America needs about 200,000 more nurses than it has. If you think about it, it’s a wonder our health care system manages to function as well as it does with this big of a nurse shortage. Plus, this shortage is about to get much, much worse. That’s because for the next 15 to 20 years, over three million people a year, the so called Baby Boomers, will be turning 65. Senior citizens are the biggest client base of the health care system, so this means many more people coming to hospitals and nursing homes and doctor’s offices. So we start with a huge shortage, and we add a social trend that will make it worse, and then, we toss in the worst recession in decades. With millions of people out of work, many of them are looking for a career where they’ll have job security. Well, with the huge and growing nurse shortage, they’re naturally considering nursing programs. All these three factors together, and what it all amounts to is clear: every year, more and more people are applying for the same number of slots in nursing degree programs. Yes, the same number. That turns out to be another huge part of the problem. The government knew 50 years ago that right around now three million Baby Boomers a year would start retiring, and taking care of them would require massive numbers of new doctors and nurses. They should have begun building new schools for training nurses and doctors decades ago, in order to be ready for the present crisis. Instead, they did nothing, and the number of schools offering medical degrees and nursing degrees is woefully inadequate to meet the huge, present demand. There is a lot of talk about building more schools now, but that will be too little, too late. By the time most of these proposed new schools are ready, the great retirement wave will have passed. But all this should not discourage you from applying for nursing schools. Yes, it’s harder to get in than it used to be, but if you’re a good candidate for college you still have high odds of begin admitted. And since the problem is growing worse every year, it behooves you to apply as soon as possible. Gregory Jones is a freelancer who writes about medical, education, business and other topics. Read more of his thought on nursing degrees.
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