Check to see if the school is regionally accredited by searching for the school in the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) database. All colleges and universities that are listed in the CHEA database are regionally accredited, thereby allowing credits to transfer from one institution to another. If the institution is regionally accredited, there is a good possibility that the work completed as part of the Nurse Manager program could be utilized as part of a graduate program. This is especially helpful for nurses who are looking for a Nurse Manager preparation course and are considering pursuing graduate school.
Ask the program director what percentage of students in the last graduating class obtained a position as a Nurse Manager within one year of graduation. The higher the percentage, the more marketable a graduate of the program is.
Request to speak with current students of the program. Be certain to ask current students about their experiences in the classroom and during their clinical hours. Only some Nurse Manager preparation courses have clinical hours, but many students report feeling as though they were better able to apply the management theories they learned in class after utilizing them during their clinical hours. Many students believe that Nurse Manager preparation programs that offer clinical hours are superior to those that don't.
Request to speak with alumni of the program. Be certain to ask the alumni about how prepared to work as a Nurse Manager they felt they were upon completion of the program. Also ask them how long it took them to be offered a position as a Nurse Manager upon completion of the program.
Speak with the Director of Nursing (DON) at a variety of health care facilities in your local area. Ask the DON for recommendations of exemplary Nurse Manager programs. The DON will be able to provide suggestions based upon working with Nurse Managers that have graduated from various programs.