Hi all!
My DD is trying to choose between Pitt and Case Western for Nursing 2029 and is wondering if anyone has advice on choosing, either school or nursing specific. With merit aid, Pitt would be ~65k/year (trying to negotiate for more scholarship money) and Case would be ~54k (these both include housing). LMK what you all think!
Which does the student prefer? They are very different.
If they prefer Pitt, can you afford it? If you can afford it, do you want to afford it?
There’s a nursing shortage - I don’t think the school matters. In fact, at many hospitals, they import nurses from other countries, such as the Philipines.
Good luck.
While nurses can make a very decent living, it does not really matter from where they get their degree, they are in such demand. So what you are really buying is the college experience. Is this worth it to you? If yes, then she chooses the school she likes best. If no, then i suspect that there are much less expensive options in state for you.
I am an RN and I can absolutely verify that where your kid gets their degree from has no bearing on her getting a job, pretty much wherever she wants to go. There is a terrifying shortage of quality RN’s out there right now so her career will be set.
So like the PP said, you will be paying for the college experience at this point, since an associate’s RN from community college would be able to get any RN position she wanted too.
I would take nursing out of the picture and choose the school she likes better, assuming affordability.
My neighbor’s daughter attended a small, local private college that most have not heard of. She had her pick of jobs at well known, highly regarded teaching hospitals.
I agree you could just pick based on cost.
I am open to being corrected, but I also suspect in a nursing program, there would not be a notable difference in terms of the curriculum and academic experience. Obviously there are big hospitals associated with each university.
So that leaves the rest of it.
In terms of format, Case is a medium-sized private university, Pitt a larger public (although on the smaller size for a flagship-level public). This means Pitt has real D1 sports and such, which some people like and other people would not care about.
In terms of setting, Case is located in a nice neighborhood in Cleveland, Pitt in a nice neighborhood in Pittsburgh. Not a big distinction there, although I would note Pitt’s location is maybe a little more central.
In terms of student vibe/culture, Case in my circles has a reputation for being a bit intense and grindy–it is often described as the Carnegie Mellon of Cleveland. Pitt is more just a normal US college. I actually again suspect this would not affect nursing directly, but maybe in terms of socializing outside nursing? Maybe.
Honestly I really see these options as more similar than different for a nursing student, which is why I keep circling back to cost in my mind. On the other hand, I think at least a certain sort of kid could see Pitt as potentially more fun non-academically. And other kids may not be interested in that sort of fun.
And that’s about all that comes to mind.
In my experience location matters a little bit. For summer jobs/internships hospitals prefer to hire from schools near by because they want to have the students available year round. So if you don’t want to pay rent during the summer and stay home for free it is better to choose a college near your home. Same goes for first jobs after college. If you know which city you want to work after you graduate is also way easier to get a “prime” first job if your college is near by. And it is even easier if you had a summer job in the hospital you want to work at. However, after your first job it does not matter anymore. So if you are overthinking/splitting hairs which college to go I ll chose the college in the city you want to stay after graduation.
Hi! We are in the same boat with my daughter and wondering what you decided. Have you done the admitted students days? We are doing them soon and hoping my daughter gets some sort of “feeling” as to which one to go with.