Here are some tips for selecting schools, based on an analysis comparing each school to all others across dozens of factors:
Schools Concentrating On Home Health Aides
- Focus: For schools with a focus on this career area, look at Delaware County Community College.
Fastest Response From Schools
- Request Info: For the fastest information for prospective students, look at the Spotlight schools on this page.
Student Body
- Part-Time: For schools emphasizing part-time studies, consider Erie Business Center.
- Diverse: For a diverse student body, consider Erie Business Center.
- Adult Learners: For lots of adult learners, consider Delaware County Community College.
School Setting
- Out of State: For geographic diversity, take note of Pennsylvania Institute of Technology.
- Dorms: For a residential campus environment, take note of Commonwealth.
Excellence
- Class Size: For small class sizes, look at Commonwealth.
Student/Alumnus Reviews of Schools for This Career and State
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Delaware County Community College • Media, PA
Studying Nursing (completion in 2012)
• 7/11/2011
"I feel prepared and confident in my career."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | I really enjoyed my time in school. |
| Program Reputation | 10 | I believe it is one of the best programs in the area. |
| Program Quality | 9 | I feel competetent in the skills I have learned. Some organization in the school could be better |
| Instruction | 10 | All of my instructors were extremely well educated and always prepared. A variety of instructors gave me several different view points and were very helpful. |
| How Difficult | 8 | There was a lot of information that was covered very quickly and it was a challenge to keep up with all the work. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | There is an even amount of book and hands on learning. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 10 | There is a night and weekend program as well as summer classes. |
| Academic Facilities | 10 | There are several online and physical resources available for research. |
| Social Life | 5 | I don't participate in many social experiences. |
| Placement Services | 9 | There is a lot of support to futher your career. |
| Alumni Network | 5 | I don't know much about it. |
Philadelphia Life Sciences Institute • Philadelphia, PA
Studying Home Health And Certified Nursing Assistant Certification (completion in 2006)
• 7/13/2011
"Given the environment of the school and the level of training, I was not satisfied overall with my education there. I would have paid for a different program if I had known of the conditions."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | maybe | I would recommend this to anyone who can absolutely find no funding for their education. However, I would caution them to find some friends quickly as this place was very dangerous at times. However, this could have changed with the move into the Northeast. |
| Program Reputation | 7 | The school's current reputation for the program isn't bad as a lot of things have changed. The program is longer and there is a longer clinical time frame associated with the curriculum. |
| Program Quality | 2 | As stated above, I felt the training wasn't extensive enough. |
| Instruction | 4 | Although my professors were very understanding and patient, the amount of time they allowed me to finish the course was too short. |
| How Difficult | 1 | This course was very very simple to complete and, at my own pace, there wasn't much more to learn after 7 months, so they allowed me to take the exam and pass. There was not enough technical or hands on time. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | We were given a mixture of both book assignments and hands on assignments. The hands on assignments were very meager and centered on watching more than actually doing. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 10 | This course was an "at your own pace" course and they allowed for a lot of moving around of schedules. This was probably the only advantage I felt in taking the course. |
| Academic Facilities | 1 | The building is in a very difficult neighborhood and there is a very poor security faculty handling complaints about students and others doing drugs near and on the property and things of that nature. This was a very nerve wrecking experience. I was afraid to park my car anywhere on the property because cars were getting broken into regularly. I drive a new Mustang and was worried about it, so I took the bus in. The facility itself as in disrepair as well. This has since changed as they have moved to a new facility in a much better neighborhood since I graduated. |
| Social Life | 1 | I didn't get along with with the other students as they were upset it wasn't taking me as long to finish the course. There was a lot of social planning involved in our education, though. This was a good thing and they would even commission trips for social gatherings between students and provided diversity training. Still, the other students didn't really get along with me because I wasn't like them at all. They considered me bookish and uncool because I didn't do drugs or have children at a very, very young age. |
| Placement Services | 1 | They didn't really help me to find a job. A professor gave me a lead, but this wasn't in conjunction with any career placement agency within the school. |
| Alumni Network | 1 | There really isn't an alumni network and there isn't support once you leave. They will help you right after you leave, but a few months later, they direct you to a local temp agency. |
Dubois Business College • Dubois, PA
Studying Medical Assistant (completion in 2001)
• 7/12/2011
"My career is on the right track because of Dubois Business college. I am satisfied."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | Dubois Business College is affordable. They help you get the most of out your learning experience. |
| Program Reputation | 10 | The school has a good success rating. The job placement rate for graduates is high. |
| Program Quality | 10 | The school was very helpful and I learned a great deal. |
| Instruction | 10 | The teachers explained a lot. The book material was easy to understand. |
| How Difficult | 6 | The workload was involved required a lot of study time. The material was difficult to learn without help from the teachers. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | The hands on learning is the best way to learn the material. The book learning is difficult. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 4 | The classes are not very flexible. They are at set times. |
| Academic Facilities | 10 | The facilities are good, although there are no tutors. |
| Social Life | 10 | The social experience is awesome. There is a lot of school spirit. |
| Placement Services | 7 | The job placement is successful and the services are average. |
| Alumni Network | 10 | The school's alumni network and support were good. |
Career Training Academy • Pittsburgh, PA
Studying Certified Medical Assistant (completion in 2007)
• 7/11/2011
"I would have really liked some placement assistance! I had a very hard time finding a job after I moved."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | maybe | It's an adequate program. It teaches you the basics. The rest you learn in the field. |
| Program Reputation | 5 | I had never heard of this before, but there were a lot of affiliated companies that would take interns from this program repeatedly. |
| Program Quality | 7 | The school had very outdated equipment/information. I did not feel I was fully prepared for my externship. |
| Instruction | 4 | Again, a lot of the equipment was outdated along with some of the techniques we were taught. I had to relearn a lot when I got into the field. |
| How Difficult | 5 | This was a good alternative to nursing school - you still learn terminology and anatomy, but it's not as difficult as an RN program would be. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | To become certified you have to pass a practicum where you draw blood, perform EKGs, etc. They teach you to do all of this in class. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 5 | They had part time and full time. Full time was every day Monday through Thursday. Part time was every evening monday through friday. |
| Academic Facilities | 4 | There were 2 computers in the lab. You usually had to come in early or stay later just to use them. A lot of teachers had other jobs as well, so they were rarely available outside of class time. |
| Social Life | 1 | This was a technical school, so no one really cared. |
| Placement Services | 1 | There is none! They place you in an internship and that's it. You go to graduation upon completion. I haven't heard from my school since. |
| Alumni Network | 2 | No job assistance whatsoever. They do not even help to prepare your resume. |
North Hampton Community College • Tobyhanna, PA
Studying Nurse Assistance (completion in 2009)
• 10/30/2011
"I was very satisfied with this school. I went here before and would go again for more education."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | I enjoy my work. Also, there is a need for more nurse's assistants. |
| Program Reputation | 8 | I don't know what the reputation is, but I would attend again. My major is extremely helpful in gaining employment. |
| Program Quality | 9 | Had great nurses teaching us. |
| Instruction | 10 | I had great nurses teaching the classes. They were still in the field and helped to make the classes interesting. |
| How Difficult | 8 | It was a shorter program which made for longer days and daily tests. Also, there was a lot of homework which I was not used to doing. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | We had good hands on learning experiences. We had two weeks of book learning before the hands on training. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 10 | I loved it - the hours fit my schedule. I was able to work part time and take care of my family. |
| Academic Facilities | 8 | They provided us with a nursing home to work in. I had a good friend to study with, and that made it easier. |
| Social Life | 1 | The school never had any parties or other social events. |
| Placement Services | 6 | I don't think they did that much to help with job assistance. They did offer me a job a nursing home, but it was not close to home. |
| Alumni Network | 8 | I have gone to this school before and I would attend again. The teachers wanted everyone to pass and helped us a great deal to learn the information. |
Certification Through Northampton Community College • Bethlehem, PA
Studying Nursing Assistant/Home Health (completion in 1993)
• 11/3/2011
"Again, it was a simple nursing course. They're pretty much cookie-cutter. What makes the difference is the instructor. Either they're good or they're not. We had a good one, and it made the course that much more interesting. The school provided what was needed, and we all got through it."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | It's the only one in the region, so you're spoiled for choice. However, it's not bad to get through, so if you go to another state college offering another course, you're more-than-likely going to get the same type of training. I would recommend NACC if another choice was available. |
| Program Reputation | 7 | We have classes come through the facility where I work now, and they are quite satisfied with their instructors. The reputation of NACC is fine, from what I understand. |
| Program Quality | 5 | It was like any other class for this. Cookie-cutter in service type training. I started this type of work long before I had to be certified, and I was not grandfathered in, but I had had a lot of the same training the college offered in a private administrative setting in the late 1980's. It was fine. NACC offers good training. |
| Instruction | 7 | From what I can remember, Janet was a pretty good instructor. She was lenient, but would give you the "eyes" if you forgot steps in your training. She was in her 50's then, so I would assume she's retired by now being that this was 1993. |
| How Difficult | 5 | Again, I had done this type of work for half a decade before I started the state certification course. I had been doing staff relief and private home health care, and wasn't grandfathered in, so I *knew* a lot of what was being taught to others as "new." I breezed through the course. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | This course, in nature, is hands-on. It was implemented VERY well, however, by our course instructor. She did a fabulous job of giving us a balance between learning and doing. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 3 | You had to be there when the classes were happening, hands down. There was no "rescheduling." Again, I think they were trying to teach responsibility in the health care field by doing this. If you missed enough, you paid the money again and re-took the course. |
| Academic Facilities | 8 | Not too much was needed, but all was provided by the instructors. It was a pretty cut-and-dry course. We provided the scrubs, and they provided the medical equipment. |
| Social Life | 5 | I made a few friends and talked to a few people. I never got involved in sports or parties at NACC. It wasn't that type of school. I still know a few people from back then that I keep in contact with. |
| Placement Services | 1 | I already had a job back then, but, from what I understand, they simply TRAIN you, they don't place you. I believe the way this works in the home health care/nursing assistant field is you generally show interest in a job, the place of hire trains you (sometimes), and then you have a built-in job when the course is done. |
| Alumni Network | 1 | I don't bother with such things. I got my certification because I needed to, and simply never bothered with NACC again. |
Pennsylvania State University • University Park, PA
Studying Human Development And Family Studies (completion in 2009)
• 11/20/2011
"I love Penn State and always will. It is a wonderful school with so many different experiences available!"
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | maybe | I love this school, and if interested in becoming a Home Health Aide I would suggest doing an Associate's degree program there rather than the Bachelor's degree. |
| Program Reputation | 6 | It is not the best known program but it is a very good program! I highly enjoyed it. |
| Program Quality | 10 | Wonderful school and program especially for those entering the social work field, working with children and the elderly. Much of what I learned about the elderly has helped me in this career. |
| Instruction | 10 | There was additional training I needed to take at work but I believe that this helped me learn a lot about the elderly and how to deal with them. This program prepared me to work in many different settings. |
| How Difficult | 8 | There were some difficult classes but there was also some easy classes. If you put work into it and study then it will come easy. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | This program was definitely a mix of both. I believe that mix was the best way to learn. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 10 | There are many different options at Penn State. There are weekend, evening, summer offerings, and also online options. |
| Academic Facilities | 10 | There are plenty of places to study at Penn State. The library is wonderful and the academic advisors were very helpful. There were always tutors available. |
| Social Life | 10 | There is always something going on at Penn State, no matter what day of the week. There is always something for anyone. I encourage everyone to join a group or organization because it is great for your social experience. |
| Placement Services | 10 | They were very helpful in helping me find an internship which led me to a job. If I didn't have the assistance to find the internship I would have never found a job. |
| Alumni Network | 10 | Penn State is known as one of the biggest alumni networks and especially for connecting with alumni. We are Penn State! There are always other fellow Penn Staters everywhere to connect with! |
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