{"id":1616,"date":"2022-10-19T11:08:28","date_gmt":"2022-10-19T15:08:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bridgeport.edu\/news\/?p=1616"},"modified":"2025-01-30T13:02:40","modified_gmt":"2025-01-30T18:02:40","slug":"alumna-earns-bsn-over-30-years-after-becoming-an-rn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bridgeport.edu\/news\/alumna-earns-bsn-over-30-years-after-becoming-an-rn\/","title":{"rendered":"UB Alumna Earns BSN More Than 30 Years After First Becoming an RN"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>You left your job to care for your family, but what was supposed to be short-term turned into an extended leave of absence from your career. What does returning to work look like?<\/p>\n<p>That&#8217;s the question Maria Cantito asked herself in 2007 after more than a decade away from her nursing career. &#8220;I graduated with my associate degree as an RN in 1986. I postponed my bachelor&#8217;s degree and took a hiatus from nursing for several years after having children,&#8221; Maria says. &#8220;When I went back into nursing, it felt a lot like riding a bike in many ways, but I realized a lot had changed in the ten years I was away.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>After returning to her career, Maria still had a passion for patient care \u2014 she wanted to learn more about the advancements in the field of nursing and grow her confidence in her skills. &#8220;I obtained my ANCC certification, joined the clinical ladder program, and as my knowledge, skills, and confidence grew, I decided to pursue my BSN.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Maria needed a program that would fit her busy schedule as a full-time RN. Maria&#8217;s husband, a professor in UB\u2019s School of Chiropractic, mentioned the RN to BSN program at Â鶹´«Ã½ to his wife. &#8220;I wanted a program that would allow me to work and use my experience to enhance my learning,&#8221; says Maria. &#8220;From the information session to the admissions process, it was easy to navigate, and UB offered guidance when I needed it.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>After joining the RN to BSN program at UB, Maria found the support and collaboration she was looking for. &#8220;I had the most wonderful professors and found the courses engaging and relevant to the current state of healthcare and the nursing profession.&#8221; Maria found herself collaborating on projects with fellow RNs and peers in the program on campus to enhance her learning.<\/p>\n<p>More than 30 years after first becoming an RN, Maria graduated from UB with her BSN in 2019. &#8220;Obtaining my BSN at UB increased my confidence in my skills and opened doors to exciting new opportunities that I wasn&#8217;t even looking for before UB.&#8221; Today, Maria works in her &#8220;dream job&#8221; as a nurse coordinator for a primary cardiovascular program \u2014 helping people identify and learn how to modify their risk for cardiovascular disease. &#8220;I have long dreamed of being in a position to help people before they fall victim to a life-altering cardiovascular event. I owe this to completing my BSN at UB and in doing so was re-inspired to learn and grow in the field of nursing.&#8221; \u2013 Maria Cantito, BSN, RN, CV-BC.<\/p>\n<p>It&#8217;s never too late to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bridgeport.edu\/news\/how-to-go-back-to-school-adults\/\">go back to school<\/a>. With 6 class starts a year and 7 week online sessions, Â鶹´«Ã½&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bridgeport.edu\/academics\/programs\/rn-bsn\/\">online RN to BSN program<\/a> helps registered nurses advance their skills and achieve their life and career goals.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Â鶹´«Ã½ graduate Maria Cantito completed the RN to BSN program over 30 years after first becoming an RN. Read her alumni success story.  <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bridgeport.edu\/news\/alumna-earns-bsn-over-30-years-after-becoming-an-rn\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">UB Alumna Earns BSN More Than 30 Years After First Becoming an RN<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":1618,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[94,23],"tags":[18,2,44],"class_list":{"0":"post-1616","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"hentry","7":"category-featured","8":"category-ub-news","9":"tag-alumni","10":"tag-featured","11":"tag-nursing","13":"fallback-thumbnail"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v24.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>RN to BSN: 30+ Years Later | Â鶹´«Ã½<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Â鶹´«Ã½ graduate Maria Cantito completed the RN to BSN program over 30 years after first becoming an RN. 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