Self Assessment: Are you a good candidate for Online Masters in Nursing Degree Programs?

Vicki Williams of Penn State University created an excellent tool for prospective online nursing students. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill was kind enough to create a site, accessible to the public, where nurses investigating Masters in Nursing Online programs can take a readiness for online learning survey. Check out the link below to see if you are ready!

http://www.unc.edu/tlim/ser/

If by chance your results do not show up, take  note of your numeric score and the site below has interpretations of your score, just scroll down about ¼ of the page to see where the results begin.

http://ets.tlt.psu.edu/learningdesign/assessment/onlinecontent/online_readiness

Don’t be fooled, there are many self assessment tools on the internet, but only this tool has been validated and deemed reliable.  Online learning at the graduate level takes about 10-12 hours a week, so calculate how much “spare” time you have and figure that 10-12 hours a week would be devoted to an online masters in nursing program…………make sure you still have time to sleep and/or eat –smile-.

Dr. Maggie

Welcome Back From Summer Break - BLOG Directory

For those of you just joining us, check out these topics  by just  clicking on the blog title to find the blog post(s) of most interest to you.  OR you can simply scroll to down to view the desired topic blog entry.

• Teaching with a Masters Degree in Nursing  8/14/13
•  Leadership with a Masters in Nursing 8/5/13
•  Updating Your Nursing Resume 7/29/13
•  Online Masters in Nursing Portfolio Development 7/19/13
•  Online Masters in Nursing Degree Career Options  6/28/13
•  Dealing With Family, School, and Work Life Balance...6/22/13
•  How to Get the Most Out of Online Masters in Nursi...6/18/13
•  One Day at a Time for Masters in Nursing Online St..6/14/13.
•  Writing Academically in an Online MSN Program  6/12/13
•  Dealing with Online MSN Program Course Work  6/7/13
• Taking Care of Yourself in an Online MSN Program  6/3/13
• What to Expect from an Online MSN Program  5/31/13
• Selecting an MSN Program         5/28/13

Dr. Maggie

Teaching with a Masters Degree in Nursing

   

One of the most common questions I receive is “How do I get to do what you do, teach online?” 

There was a time when online nursing programs were begging for online nurse educators, and as recent as 2013, there has been a flood of online Masters Degree in Nursing graduates interested in teaching online.  This has made it difficult finding an online nursing educator position right out of your online MSN program.  Where the nursing education need is greatest, is in the clinical education area.  I strongly urge new MSN students, who wish to teach, to proactively approach a local nursing program and offer to work as an adjunct clinical instructor.  By working for a couple years as an adjunct clinical instructor, online MSN graduates can give back to their profession in a profound way.

Adjunct clinical faculty positions abound around the country and provide the masters in nursing online graduate the opportunity to gain much desired teaching experience.  Once you have that teaching experience, a background of an online masters in nursing degree makes for a good candidate for online teaching.  WARNING:  Online teaching while flexible is not easy.  Just as online classes are not “easy’.

Dr. Maggie

Leadership with a Masters in Nursing

Nurses with  their Masters in Nursing degree have a responsibility to provide leadership in their workplace.  This leadership may be formal or informal.  Your Masters may be in Clinical Nurse Leadership or Nursing Administration (Executive Nurse Leadership).  Nursing leaders offer a unique perspective of patient care AND cost effectiveness of that care.  Whether your facility is a magnet designated facility, aspiring to become one, or not, as a nursing leader you are in a position to advocate for quality patient care.  You have the patient care expertise, and a new cadre of leadership skills to positively affect health care and its associated outcomes. Key skills to put to use are: change management, conflict management, collaboration, and communication.  The "MSN" behind your name wields power with the information you carry.  Use these leadership skills, and nurses can make a difference!

"The pessimist complains about the wind. The optimist expects it to change.  The leader adjusts the sails."     - John Maxwell.

Dr. Maggie

Updating Your Nursing Resume

Updating Your Nursing Resume    

If you have not done so already, get your resume updated and formatted to handle the electronic recruiting tools now used by human resource departments everywhere.  A resume is best at one page long regardless of your time in the nursing profession. The resume describes your education, work history, and other relevant experience in bullet points. Many large employers now have computers that scan resumes for keywords, and these computers do the screening of the numerous applicants before an actual person even sees the resumes.

 Most positions require online applications or electronic submission of a resume. In order to keep your resume from being rejected by screening software, it must be one page long, with a lot of "white space".  Use only plain sans serif font, no bold, italics or underlining.

Here is a Web site for samples. http://www.nursing.umich.edu/about-our-school/computing-technology/electronic-portfolios/nursing-resumes-portfolios  Look at the overall template in these examples, but be sure to use plain font in your own resume.

Begin the resume with a one sentence statement of your career goal for a position. Next, develop a table of 3 or 4 columns and 2-3 rows that lists all of your skills, especially those related to the position for which you are applying. Work experience should be next. List your employer, position, and time frame in that position. Then, using bullet points, list your accomplishments during that position. The listing of accomplishments is different than listing job responsibilities so be sure to focus on what awards, projects, etc. occurred while in the position. If the accomplishment was basic patient care, try to include things like patient satisfaction scores related to the care provided. Next, list education, and include GPA if appropriate.  For example, 3.74/4.0 tells prospective employers your grade point average out of the school maximum GPA.  Finally, list your nursing license(s) including the number for easy verification. Keep in mind that a resume is different that a curricula vita which can be longer to reflect more scholarly activity. More on CV’s in a later blog.

Dr. Maggie

Online Masters in Nursing Portfolio Development

Creating a portfolio of your accomplishments is something every Masters in Nursing student should know how to do. A portfolio is a collection of accomplishments to help demonstrate various skills for potential employers. Think about what accomplishments have occurred in your work place. For instance, you should document any awards you received. Collecting all of your work done at a past employer or from your education is a good way to show future employer’s your work ethic, quality of work produced, and critical thinking skills.  Portfolios can be “hard copy” or electronic.

An excellent free option for ePortfolios is Google sites. You need to create a “Google” account with a user name and password.  Be sure to write these down where you will remember them. Go to the URL below:
 

https://sites.google.com/site/unmcnursingportfolio/

The electronic nurse portfolio template will appear. Go to the upper right corner of the page and click on the blue rectangle: “Use Template”. Remember you need to create a Google account first before using the portfolio website.  Once you have created your portfolio page, you will be given a unique web address or URL. You can edit your content at any time by logging into the site with your Google account log- in credentials.

Things to include in the ePortfolio are a personal statement of professional goals, current resume, nursing license  along with any school assignments and presentations where you did well and received high marks. Some specific school /work examples are care plans, brochures, outlines of training sessions, manuals, spreadsheets, memos, etc., that you created yourself or as part of a team. You can even include a copy of your school transcripts if you have already graduated. 

Electronic portfolio formats include web pages, PDF documents, and even PowerPoint files. Remember to include all professional and educational related accomplishments in your ePortfolio. The portfolio is a way to showcase your experience and talents a “brag book” of sorts.  

Dr. Maggie

Happy Fourth of July!

Happy Fourth of July Holiday to all the Online Masters in Nursing students out there!

Dr.Maggie