Ready to Apply CT Community Colleges- Nursing Program 2010

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I was hoping to continue a great thread that I read last year, Ready to Apply CT Colleges 2009. It was a bunch of people looking to get into the CT Community Colleges nursing program for 2009-2010 academic year! They really banded together and answered questions for each other.

I was hoping to start the same thing for this year.

So, applications for the 2011-2012 year come out in just over a month. November 1st!!!

What has everyone been doing to prepare for the application process. What classes are you currently taking? Has anyone taken the TEAS yet? What was your score? What school is your 1st choice?

Speak up people!

Does anyone know what is going on with the TEAS website. Could it really be that Gateway is not offering ANY TEAS TESTS! The wesbite has changed since I last took it (in Oct) and I am not sure if anyone has been to a nursing info session where they might have said something about the ATI site, or if they want you to take it through another site?

Any advice would be helpful.

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Specializes in New Critical care NP, Critical care, Med-surg, LTC.

I know that test dates are listed on the Three Rivers site, you might check the Gateway site itself and see whether it's offered. I know there are probably 4-5 dates between now and February 1st at Three Rivers, I would imagine that other cc campuses would offer it as well with the deadline so close. Matt, thanks for all the info. Good to hear a little about the orientation process. Not that my husband would be thrilled about attending an orientation, but it sounds like a nice idea.

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I just recently applied to NVCC and BHSN. I took my TEAS last week and scored an 83.5. My AP1 grade is an A, which should help but I'm not sure what they will consider my GPA to be. I thought I read that the community colleges calculate GPA from classes taken within 5 years. The only classes I have taken within the past 5 years have been Chem and AP1, both A's. Do you think NVCC will really only use those two grades to calculate my GPA?? I have a B.S. degree that I obtained in 2003, obviously more than 5 years ago.

Does anyone know when the community colleges start sending out acceptance letters?? I was informed by BHSN that I should hear back within 2 to 4 weeks. Wish me luck!!

I really hope I am faced with the tough decision of deciding between the two schools but I'd be happy to just be accepted at one of them. I think if it came down to it though that I would choose BHSN. I've heard that they get twice as much clinical time and you even get to see patients on the first week, which seems like it would be a huge benefit. However, I'll be only about 5 minutes away from NVCC compared to about 30 minutes from BHSN.

Which would you pick if you had the choice? Anyone have any opinions of which program is better? I haven't heard much about NVCC but I have heard great things about BHSN.

Best of luck to everyone who applied for the 2010 programs!!! :heartbeat

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Yes BHSN is a good program, but I would choose NVCC. Its one of the better CCC's around. I guess seeing clients the first week is good exposure but what will you be able to do exactly? At least with GCC you do 8 labs (1 mo) on vitals,assessment,bathing,feeding,O2 and diabetes monitoring..so you're better prepared for your first day. That way there you don't keep telling your client "I'm not sure how to do that". But I could be wrong with BHSN. The other advantage with the CCC is you are able to transfer to your first choice(if you didn't get it) and not miss anything since everyone is on the same schedule. Just another thing to think about :)

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Ladybug, the community colleges take the grades from the last 5 years of college, and also any classes that you are transeferring into the program. For example, I am sure that with a bachelors degree, you have already taken both english classes (that are typically taken during the nursing program)... then both of those grades will also count toward creating your GPA.

I have taken all the non-nursing classes for the program, so both english grades, micro, math, psychology classes, sociology grade, and hummanities grades will also count toward my GPA- understand?

Hope that helps!

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Matt - You definitely gave me something to think about! :confused: BHSN also has labs…. I think lecture is Tuesdays, lab is Wednesdays and clinical is on Thursdays, where you can apply what you learned over the prior two days. NVCC is so close to me but who knows where I may be placed for clinical. You say that NVCC is one of the better CC's but do you think it has a better reputation than BHSN? I'm starting to think that maybe it is just personal preference - there are probably good things about both programs. I'm curious what the difference in retention is. I thought I read somewhere that the CC's can have about 40 or so fewer students after the first year - wonder if that is similar to Bridgeport.

Orourkco - That does make sense now, thanks! :)

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My friend who goes to NVCC and graduates this May has 100 students left out of 130. With NVCC you might get Waterbury or St Marys, Griffen, New Britian or Midstate hospitals. With BHSN you're looking at Bridgeport, Yale, St Rays(where I'll be this semester) and maybe St V's. You're working on floors not in a ER so the "clients" you see will be pretty much the same everywhere. As far as a better rep, BHSN has been around for 100yrs of course they'll have a good rep but don't forget, everyone sits for the same exam whether you're from a AD or BSN program.

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Matt- you started this semester right? How is it going? Whats the schedule looking like for you this semester? I tried to get an idea of what days classes would fall on for the fall (I know, Im not accepted yet- but I'm a planner). Monday and Thursday are only 4-5:55? Is that right? Are your clinicals on Tuesdays and Wednesdays? When do you start clinicals? Are those days labs at first and then clinicals?:confused:

Application deadline has come and gone. I recieved an email stating that if they needed anything else- they would've sent it in an email in January- so I guess Im all set.... nothing left to do but wait. sigh

If I get waitlisted, do I get a letter the same time everyone else gets their acceptance letter?:rolleyes:

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Well our first exam is Monday so A little nervous about that. The schedule is Lecture M&TH 4-6ish and Lab T&W 3-930 which is the same as all CCC from my understanding and its been that way since my friend started in 09'. Theres tons of material to read but thats what lecture is for..to reinforce it. We have 44 students. I start clinicals in three weeks at St Rays and the other half are going to Yale for the semester. Right now they are labs. You will get a letter not sure when if you get waitlisted. They will call you if a spot opens up at any school and ask you if you want the seat.

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Wow. sounds exciting Matt. are your clinical hours in addition to the lab hours- or do they replace the lab hours (on Tues & Wed).

Good luck on your exam. I have heard that most student have an EMT or Paramedic training- do you find that to be true with your class?

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Clinicals will replace lab. There is another EMT in class and there are some CNA's but you have plenty of people with no experience in the medical field.

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OK, so I am writing in thread- to bump it up. I have been reading the other threads and, compared to last year, there seems to be more people posting about BHSN or St. Vincents programs than CTCC programs. Do you think a smaller amount of people applied this year?

I applied in November, and got an email in January stating that they were reviewing my application, and that if additional information was needed, another email in January would go out, otherwise anyone who had incomplete applications would be notified by a letter in March. Now I really think I handed everything in, however, this email got my thinking. If I neglected to hand in something, does that mean that my application went to Hartford incomplete, or that my application is not getting ranked with the others (and if that happens how do they rank me?). Last year I tested out of the computer requirement in March. Another girl was testing too, and begged the teacher to let her know if she passed because she had applied to the nursing program and didn't have her computer requirement met... which also means they let her apply and take the test AFTER the February 2nd deadline.

This is just a mini rant, because I am waiting and want to make sure that my application is complete and I dont find myself unqualified because I stapled something that I should have paper clipped. I wish they could just send an email to everyone that has a completed application- letting each of us know that everything is fine and our application package is being sent to Hartford.

End Rant!:redbeathe

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