There are several routes to receive education and become a registered nurse. There are the completions of an associate degree program or the baccalaureate degree program to name a few. In my research to distinguish both programs I have noted that associate degree programs are shorter in length with more focus on clinical skills and are more task oriented, where a baccalaureate program is focused on knowledge, theory and research with a broader picture of the nursing field. Each program prepares a person to acquire the skills necessary for bedside nursing. Our healthcare system is changing everyday, the higher a level of education a nurse can posses will meet the demands necessary to fulfill the needs of the patients along with the evolving changes (Institute of Medicine, 2010). With each degree brings different levels of competencies. As defined in the Mosby’s Dictionary of Complementary and Alternative Medicine “ competence is the state or condition of being sufficiently qualified to perform a particular action. To achieve this condition, one must possess the proper knowledge, skills, training, and professionalism” (2005). Having a bachelor degree in nursing provides you with a clearer understanding of the physical and social sciences, public and community health and nursing management. The program enhances the nurse and their professional development and allows the nurse to understand the cultural, political, economic and social issues that can affect a patient (“The Impact”, 2012), As opposed to an associates degree program. As stated on the American Association of Colleges of Nursing [AACN] Fact Sheet “ research has shown that lower mortality rates, fewer medication errors, and positive outcomes are all linked to nurses prepared at baccalaureate and graduate degree levels” (2012, para. 1). As a nurse is prepared at a baccalaureate degree level, she/he has a