APU ELM Summer 2018

U.S.A. California

Published

Hi Everyone!

I don't see a thread for prospective students for Azusa Pacific University's ELM program for the Summer 2018 so I decided to start one.

I am Iliana and I submitted my completed application back in May. As the deadline approaches July 1st, I hope we can support each other and update one another as we move through the process of applying, interviewing, and getting admitted!

Hi Everyone,

I know this is extremely late, but I was wondering if anyone could help me. I have just recently decided to get into nursing, so I lack the complete volunteer and work experience in health care. I was wondering if anyone who also have this issue but still gotten in? Thank you so much, and CONGRATS :)

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Hi Everyone,

I know this is extremely late, but I was wondering if anyone could help me. I have just recently decided to get into nursing, so I lack the complete volunteer and work experience in health care. I was wondering if anyone who also have this issue but still gotten in? Thank you so much, and CONGRATS :)

Hey @NursingSanDiego! That's awesome that you decided to go into nursing! I had decent volunteer work but did not really have health care experience and I was accepted. I honestly would not sweat it too much because acceptance is based on a point system and the volunteer work/health care experience is just a small portion of that. With that said though, make sure you have a solid GPA and try to get in as much volunteer work/health care experience as you can because you want to make your application as strong as possible. It's definitely not an automatic no if you don't have the experience but it will help you! Good luck with the whole process!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Hey @NursingSanDiego! That's awesome that you decided to go into nursing! I had decent volunteer work but did not really have health care experience and I was accepted. I honestly would not sweat it too much because acceptance is based on a point system and the volunteer work/health care experience is just a small portion of that. With that said though, make sure you have a solid GPA and try to get in as much volunteer work/health care experience as you can because you want to make your application as strong as possible. It's definitely not an automatic no if you don't have the experience but it will help you! Good luck with the whole process!

OMG thank you so much @Adriana9, but I still worry because my overall GPA is around 3.2. :( Does anyone know if I should go for CNA to counter the lack of volunteer? I really don't want to waste $2000 for the class :(

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Ultimately the decision is up to you, but if you worry about a weaker/lower GPA it couldn't hurt to bolster your application with that experience. Besides, it could broaden your options--having done research of nursing programs, they either require that sort of experience (clinical, with nurses), recommend it, or don't require it but regard it favorably. I got the impression that rather than having another checkbox for you to complete, schools want to make sure you know what you're getting yourself into when applying for a(n accelerated) nursing program.

Like you said, 2k is a good amount of money, but working afterwards would technically help you get that back. Another thought, working as a CNA means more time if you're willing to take it, but because of it you could probably get a reference from a superior you work with there. Pros are the experiences to strengthen your app, cons are time and money. Ultimately you will get an idea of what's best for you :) maybe you'll decide that you should just go for it! I didn't have extensive clinical/shadowing experiences either, but found that I didn't need to do CNA work (though there's no denying it would've made me an even stronger applicant).

Those were my thoughts. Good luck to you :) you can do it.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

@NursingSanDiego

I was in your same shoes when I first started the process of applying to APU. Keep in mind as you prob already know, APU looks at you from an holistic approach. Meaning that your overall gpa, science/non-science grades are only the few aspects of their rigorous process. Besides the academic portion, I worked very hard on the other key areas of the application process; letter to the dean, letters of recommendation and volunteer/paid experience. Your current gpa looks good so don't stress that too much. If you still have outstanding courses, just make sure you get A/Bs only. Focus on all the other items that you can affect now to make your application standout. I would suggest starting with the letter to the Dean, make sure you have a few people look over your letter to the dean and make sure it answers all the important questions they stressed during the information sessions. Next, make sure you can identify 3 important peers in your life that could really write you a stellar letter of recommendation such as manager, mentor, coworker, professor, current medical professional, church leader, volunteer leader. Lastly, the work/volunteer experience aspect of the application. You could attack this in 3 different ways, one do the CNA/EMT track as mentioned above, be a current medical professional or do what I did, look into the COPE Health Scholar Program. I learned about this program from prior APU posts. This internship program offers you hands on experience working directly with medical staff and patients in different hospital departments such as med-Surg, ICU, Peds, ER and even OR. I hope they helps out. Let me know if you have any other questions. Good luck!

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Hi @Spitz43! I actually emailed ------------------------ and asked her if a page has been created and it is up to the students to do so. She said that I can create one, which I will try to do shortly! I believe summer 2018 at SD campus is cohort 85!

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Hey guys, I'm new to all nurses, but it seems to have tons of useful information especially for the APU ELM program. I almost complete with my application for fall 2018, but I'm missing my letter to the dean. I have written it over so many times, I just can't seem to fit in everything I want to say. Could any of you give some pointers on how you approached the letter to the dean? For example, did you choose to go directly into your academic and professional goals or did you happen to give more of a background of why you chose nursing? Also, what format did you guys follow APA, did you double space, include deans address on top, etc.. ? Thanks guys any help would be greatly appreciated.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

hey!, I'm new to all nurses, but it seems to have tons of useful information especially for the APU ELM program. I almost complete with my application for fall 2018, but I'm missing my letter to the dean. I have written it over so many times, I just can't seem to fit in everything I want to say. Could any of you give some pointers on how you approached the letter to the dean? For example, did you choose to go directly into your academic and professional goals or did you happen to give more of a background of why you chose nursing? Also, what format did you guys follow APA, did you double space, include deans address on top, etc.. ? Thanks guys any help would be greatly appreciated.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Hi doctav!

The letter to the Dean was one of my favorite parts about the APU process. You have the ability to really tell them about yourself. The way I had approached the essay was answering the following questions; why nursing? Why apu? How does being apart of the apu family correlate with your personal goals? Share personal experiences on why nursing? Talk about what you have done to prepare yourself for this program? Talk about work experiences or volunteer experience, if you have issues with below average gpa or certain courses make sure to add that in your letter. Review the core values of APU and discuss how it aligns with your personal goals.

Also, I googled "graduate nursing school letters" just to help with my outline.

Ex:

Your info

Name

Address

Number

Dean

Address

Paragraph 1

Paragraph 2

Paragraph 3

Conclusion

Sincerely

I hope that helps. Sorry for any grammar issues as I'm replying back on my phone.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

@ksam - Hello! I am just now seeing this, were you able to create a FB page? If so, can you post the link?

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Congrats to you as well! I am very excited to meet you and the rest of the cohort! I do not know of a FB page available yet, should we start one?

@nurse.amb- I am sorry, I am just now seeing this! I am excited to meet you as well. Have you found a facebook page yet? Someone else in this thread mentioned they were going to create one for the ELM - May 2018 SD campus, but I am not sure if it has been created yet.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

@nurse.amb - I am just going to create one. It is requiring me to add at least one member before I can create it. What is your first and last name so I can add you to the group on FB?

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Add a Comment