Joey Wahler (Host): Well, there's still time to apply right now, so we're discussing starting your nursing journey. Our guest, Ken Sigler, he's Dean of Enrollment Management and Student Services at Carmel College of Nursing. This is Careers in Care, a Mount Carmel College of Nursing podcast. Thanks so much for joining us. I am Joey Wahler.

Hi there, Ken. Welcome.

Ken Sigler, EdD: Hi, how are you Joey? Good to see you.

Host: Great. Same. How are you doing today?

Ken Sigler, EdD: I'm doing okay. The sun's starting to peak out a little bit and so that's always nice.

Host: It's as good a time as any, is it not to begin a road to a nursing career? So first off, let me ask you this, if some students perhaps think they're too late to start college this fall, not so at Mount Carmel College of Nursing. Am I right?

Ken Sigler, EdD: Yeah, absolutely. So, we don't have our deadline until July 1st. So we do that intentionally. We have a lot of students that are transfer students, and so they're still enrolled somewhere in the spring. We have students that just need that extra time, to make up their mind and their decision about where they want to go.

And then, as always, life happens. And so, there are disruptions and it's not just a linear progression for everyone. And so, we take that into account as well. And so we want to extend that grace and allow people to apply up until July one if they wanna start this fall.

Host: So I'm sure those joining us, hearing that are happy to hear that if life gets in the way, so to speak, accommodations can be made. Speaking of which, how about for those on other nursing schools waiting lists that did not get in elsewhere, what would you say to them now about continuing their path at MCCN?

Ken Sigler, EdD: I would say two things. Come on over. We're, we're ready for you. And not to give up. Nursing is a really, unique calling and it really is that, it's a calling and it's a lifestyle and it's something that people are very, very committed to. And so it certainly can be discouraging.

 It can derail plans when you get placed on a wait list that you didn't expect to. But we want to just say there's lots of options out there. There are a lot of, really solid, nursing programs. And so, we know we're one of them and we hope that they'll continue that dream and not give up and to keep pressing forward.

Host: What would you say makes Mount Carmel College of Nursing a real strong option for those students just now deciding they want to pursue nursing as a career, what do you think more than anything, Ken, the place really hangs its hat on, that sets it apart?

Ken Sigler, EdD: We have that question a lot, and it always comes back to our people here in the community that we have. We from faculty, to staff, to students, to security, to everyone on campus, we're here to support students for their success and to see them through the program. It's kind of one of those things where everybody comes alongside you, and helps you through it.

We've got a lot of resources for students and so that small class size and that access to faculty, the fact that we are a part of a much larger health system, and so we've got some really amazing clinical experiences that are available for our students at our hospitals all around the city.

Host: And I want to ask you about that in a little more detail in just a moment or two. But first, how about the application process for students that are interested in starting this fall?

Ken Sigler, EdD: Yeah, so that's another can be, another barrier to some students to applying. And so, we've really tried to eliminate all those different obstacles. And so, we no longer require an essay. We have a pretty straightforward application. The main thing that we really need, is that completed application, along with all official transcripts. I mentioned we do have a lot of transfer students. We've got a lot of students that take college credit in high school. And again, we still need those college transcripts even though they're on that high school transcript. We need the official transcript from the college. And so that's an important piece for us, is that we get those because we don't want students to have to repeat something that they already have credit for.

We want to make sure that we recognize and that they get the credits that they deserve, that they earned. So those official transcripts are critical. The application itself is not too extensive. There's a $30 application fee. We have a specific apply page on our website that'll walk you through all the steps, but we've tried to eliminate as many obstacles as possible, and so we've made it a pretty quick and easy process.

Host: To follow up on one thing you mentioned there when you talk about transcripts and good work that many of these students have already done academically, tell us if you would please a little bit about this second degree accelerated program, which supports college graduates that are looking to quickly pivot into nursing now. Right?

Ken Sigler, EdD: Yeah, I really love this program. It's a as you mentioned, a second degree accelerated. So these are students that already have a bachelor's degree. They may have just graduated a couple months ago, or they may have graduated 10 years ago, but they feel that, again, that calling to nursing. So they may have a bachelor's degree in finance, in marketing, but maybe it's in a health science, maybe it's biology, something of that nature. We have some specific prerequisite courses that they need to complete first, but their undergraduate major does not matter. And so what's great about the program is we get students from all over the country and you get students from all different industries.

The experiences that they bring to the classroom and then that are transferred to their patient care is just fantastic. So I think some of the best nurses that we graduate are from that second degree, and it goes back to the fact that they've got an educational grounding in another area in addition to nursing, and they've got that life experience to add to it.

So, that's a really unique program. We have start dates every August and every January. So there are two tracks. So you can do the 18-month track or you can do the 13-month track. Both are intense. They require some pretty significant commitments. But our students are really successful and we see the highest NCLEX pass rates with these cohorts coming through in that second degree.

So it's a great program. Dr. Marlene Sampson is the Director there, she's the program lead for that, and she does a phenomenal job with her team. And, so we're really excited to bring another group in this year.

Host: Now oftentimes as you well know as much as anyone, there are a lot of hurdles sort of logistically to tackle in order to get settled at a nursing school, academic, financial, personal things that may be going on. So what kind of help, what kind of support does MCCN offer to help new students to make that smooth transition with some of those things that might have to be navigated along the way?

Ken Sigler, EdD: That's a great point. And it's another reason why I think we're such a strong option for so many students because we have all those support systems and they're pretty much all in one building. So we've kind of got that at one stop shop, so they're not jumping across campus to this office and then going over to campus here and having to kind of navigate all those different buildings.

We've got everything pretty well centralized here, and we've got a great academic advising team. We have a fantastic student success center. And I think one of the things that makes our Student Success center so good is that we have these peer tutors and it reinforces the fact that everybody is here for your success. The students are not, competing with one another and trying to outdo one another. They're trying to bring everybody along. We talked a lot about competent and compassionate care. Well, if we want to produce competent and compassionate nurses, we gotta start here. We gotta start at the college.

And so, we want to be competent and compassionate in the education we're providing. That sort of just rolls right into when they start caring for patients. So from our financial aid office, to the academic advisors, the peer tutoring, student success, it's a full wraparound, that's really here to support students and their success.

Host: And as you point out, all under one roof, right? So no getting lost, like for someone like myself a terrible sense of direction.

Ken Sigler, EdD: Yeah, should not get lost. And if you're concerned, we will happily walk you there. So.

Host: Excellent. A few other things here, Ken, I mentioned earlier, I wanted to ask you to follow up on this a little bit. How about the climate for gaining practical experience in the workplace while attending MCCN?

Ken Sigler, EdD: We have a lot of opportunities for our students to work part-time in Mount Carmel's Health system. Again, one of the really unique things with our program is our new students, from day one, actually even before they start class, they are assigned a person, a human in talent acquisition in our HR office.

And so that individual will work with them through their whole educational journey, making sure that they're aware of part-time positions while they're in school, and then certainly preparing them for full-time employment once they graduate. So that's another really unique thing about the program. And one of the advantages that our college has of being a part of that larger health system and having all those hospitals. We're in New Albany and Westerville and now the new hospital in Dublin. And we've got Grove City and we've got Mount Carmel East. And so, we sort of cover the whole area and those are all really unique opportunities for students to get that clinical experience.

Host: Since there's this continuing nursing shortage in the US, what would you say the climate is right now for job opportunities for those pursuing nursing as a career? What's waiting for them once they get to the other side?

Ken Sigler, EdD: Well, it's a fantastic career and I think uh, like a lot of different industries, the pandemic really hit nursing hard. I think we're coming out of that, and starting to circulate back and kind of hitting a reset button and refreshing the nursing industry. As I look around our city in Columbus, there are cranes everywhere and new hospitals being built all over and they're going to have to be filled with somebody taking care of. We've got plenty of patients. The jobs are going to be there and the opportunities are going to be there for them. The longevity's going to be there for them. There's a lot of opportunities now that provide, incentives that provide, sign-on bonuses and different things like that.

I think the pay right now is probably as good as it's ever been. Again, there's just so many opportunities to advance in the field of nursing. We also have a number of graduate degrees that we offer for those that want to go on to be a nurse practitioner. We also have a DMP, a doctorate in nursing practice.

And so as students advance in their career, they can keep coming back and we'll be here for them. So that's exciting.

Host: Absolutely. And then in summary here, Ken, as you've mentioned a couple of times, and so aptly so; nursing is a calling for those that get involved in it as a career. It's not something that you take on just to earn a paycheck, so to speak. And so for those that know that this is what they want to do, this is their passion, but are unsure as recent grads about those next steps, those first steps, what's your best advice on starting down that great road?

Ken Sigler, EdD: I think it starts with talking with someone that's currently in that role, talking with a nurse, talking with a neighbor or a family member or a friend that's in that role, seeking out a part-time opportunity where you can work in a hospital without actually having to do patient care.

And so maybe there's some other things you're doing in a hospital or in a healthcare system that is giving you that exposure, but you're not actually having to care for patients yet. And so that kind of opens up the world to you. There's a lot of different areas that you can work in and come see us, stop by campus.

 We'll happily provide you a campus tour, show you some nursing is so hands-on. And so there's a lot of really cool hands-on, experiences and labs and things like that, simulations that we have that are fun, that students can come and experience before they start their own journey.

Host: Well folks, we trust you are now more familiar with starting your nursing journey. Ken Sigler, keep up all your great work. Thanks so much again.

Ken Sigler, EdD: Thank you. Appreciate it.

Host: Same here. And to schedule a campus visit or to apply for school, please visit mccn.edu. If you found this podcast helpful, please do share it on your social media. And thanks again for being part of Careers in Care, a Mount Carmel College of Nursing podcast.