Which schools are "hard" to get into

I dont know if there is a national ranking system or not.

My school in Texas is competitive- around 850 applicants for 100 seats.

I attend a 4 year university, and am the only student in their program currently that is doing a military program.

The way my school works is you take 2 years (64 hours) of prerequisite courses, and then start your nursing courses your junior year. You must be accepted into the upper-division program to start nursing. Each semester 100 students are accepted, and those 100 students stay together for the next 4 semesters. That brings the total to 400 students in the nursing program. Then again there are failures and dropouts, so by graduation time those 100 are down to around 85.

I didnt apply to any other colleges or universities for nursing, so I can only tell you about my school.

all programs are competitive. the reason that cali programs get so many apps is that there aren't a lot of programs in the west and so most of the west coasters apply to them. plus, the number of apps doesn't mean that it's all that competitive, anyone can apply. applicants apply all the time that don't meet all the requirements in the hopes that schools will make exceptions. sometimes i wonder if there is any rhyme or reason on who gets accepted too. you hear about students with 4.0's not getting in and other with 3.0's getting in. now i know that grades in undergrad is everything but if everything else matches up it's interesting to see who gets in. also, certain school weigh different aspects of your application more. my school weighted the personal interview the most and they used it as a chance to really get to know me and not grill me with CCRN questions. some schools want to scare you and others want to stress you out during the interview to see how you are under pressure. so it's a crap shoot. go with the schools that meet your needs. remember that you are interviewing them too because you have to live with them for 24-36 months. personally i didn't like the schools that tried to make me think that "I" should feel lucky to be at their school because they are so wonderful. i went with a program that made me feel like they would be lucky to have me. it all comes down to your personality and needs. best of luck.

There are alot of programs in and around the Pittsburgh Pa area. These programs include, BSN, ADN, and yes even alot of the great Diploma programs are still in plenty supply. The area has a huge geriatric population and many, many, LTC, large teaching hospitals, small community hospitals, and homecare agencies to choose from. The area is fairly poor and cost of living is low. Worth checking out if your having difficulty getting into a program and are willing to relocate.

Sorry didn't realize it was for anesthesia programs. Pitt has a great anesthesia program though from what I hear.

If you want to find out which programs are competitive then simply apply and you will find out, if your looking for a short cut, it's not there, don't waste your time. Meet with a program director and find out what you need to do to make your packet an acceptable one. There is no easy way out, may be nurse anesthesia is not for you.
BTW the Army program has 35-45 positions each year.

That's the norm for most schools, at least 8 applicants for each seat. There are some schools that are "easier" to get into. But there may be a reason for that. Instead of applying to all of them, I'd call the program itself or the admissions office of the school to see what the average was on applicants:accepted students.

Realize that a lot of candidates will apply to many schools, especially in the same geographic location.

Do you want to know a quality program, or one you can "easily" get into?