UF Accelerated BSN - May 2010 Applicants

UF has group tours available but they are mostly aimed at incoming freshmen and cover more of the college experience highlights - the dorms, dining facilities, admission/financial aid office, etc. The College of Nursing is at the southernmost part of campus and thus sort of isolated from the hub of campus life (Turlington Plaza/Library area). Since all of us have already been through undergrad, I assume you don't care about that stuff much?

The College of Nursing is in a building which is open during daytime hours. There are basically only two or three rooms you'll ever be in, so a tour would be fairly quick. Almost all of your classes are in one classroom on the first floor. The nursing lab is upstairs, which has maybe 8 stations which are set up like hospital rooms with a bed, dresser, and curtains. This is where you practice your clinical skills and assessments and get checked off on them. This room is usually locked when not in use. If you're planning to visit, you could call someone in the CON and see if they will show you around informally.

There is a separate bookstore and library for health science students directly across from our nursing building, and you can always eat in the hospital cafeteria or a little plaza that has Chick Fil A and Einsteins Bagels. Shands UF is adjacent to that area, so it's nice if you have clinicals there!

I have been to the school before years ago but it would definitely be nice to see the nursing labs.

I have toured both Remington in Lake Mary and Chamberlain in Jacksonville, I was blown away by their state of the art simulated dummies! Jacksonville University also has a really nice 12 bed lab.

Hey guys, I'm new to this site. I'm also getting ready to apply this Fall. I'm a graduating senior here at UF and would love to be able to stay here for the nursing program. I know a few of you mentioned studying for the GRE. I took a practice test last week at the kaplan testing center here on campus. It didn't seem that bad to me. Very similar to SAT. Does anyone know any males that are applying???!!! Ive have a few female friends applying but I haven't heard anything about any males. Hopefully that'll be a plus for me . Also Galore, I'm looking to start volunteering at Shands this summer. Do you know if they offer anything that is concentrated more on shadowing nurses???

I most def did mean May 2010 LOL I am meeting with an advisor on monday 6/29 just to have some questions answered and to tour the campus. I live in Central Florida but I have only drove through Gainesville so I kinda want to see the city too. I am dreading the GRE cuz I am the worst at standardized tests I am taking APII now and will be taking Micro and Chem in the fall. I was hoping to start studying for GRE AFTER December but we shall see

I am taking Chemistry because the other accelerated programs I am applying for require it. I was going to take micro only in the fall and focus on GRE but I don't want to put all my eggs in one basket. Thanks for the heads up re: app deadline. I am so scared of standardized tests!!!!! I must start studying ASAP but I am going to be spread really thin trying to both chem micro and the GRE BUT I WILL MAKE IT!!!!

I am planning on appyling for next year. I live right outside of G'ville and love the town. I am a chemical engineer so I finished all prereqs a long time ago (my minor was biology so I had most of these done)...5 years ago so I need to apply by next year or 2011 at the latest or I will have to retake them. I've been looking into this program since 2004 and am finally deciding to apply. Does anyone know what the schedule looks like as far as is is M-Friday...8 am to 5pm?

Hello!

Well, we are 3 weeks away from finishing the treacherous first summer semester. I have these few pieces of advice...
when you register for the GRE (and do so with plenty of time before your testing date,) they will give you access to GRE PowerPrep software, either by snailmailing it to you or by giving you e-access. USE THE SOFTWARE. I took it once and blew the exam away without any other studying. The software is good because it gives you the rationale for the correct answer and explains wrong answers.

If you want to visit campus, contact the admissions counselor who is currently our liaison to the administration. He's a wealth of knowledge and a really nice person. He knows everything about the college, esp ABSN and graduate programs. Good guy. I'm sure he'd love to arrange a visit and tour for you.

When you first get started, life is crazy! Plan to be in class 8-4 M-F at least. There will be an occasional Fri off, but don't count on it because there are all kinds of things that have to be done on Fridays. Don't pay attention to your coursed schedule. Really....8-4 M-F. No joke.

The college offers a BOX of books that is about $600. It is possible to get the ISBNs and shop used, but you also need access to the electronic activities associated with some of the books, which are about $60 each. I started out trying to piece together my books, electronic packages, etc. On the second day of school, I broke down and bought the BOX. Nice thing with the BOX is that you also get online access to the electronic version of each text (not the same as the electronic packages I mentioned above.) In short, do what I did and you won't be sad. Buy the BOX, register all the electronic stuff, then sell the texts at the beginning of the semester while other nursing students across the country are hunting. I actually ended up saving money, but it was a pain shipping all my books. You must have the electronic packages for some of the classes because you are graded on some of them. Clear as mud? It was for us too!! Buy the BOX as soon as it comes in, register the electronic stuff, make sure you have access to the e-texts, then sell the books. Done. The BOX weighs about 30 lbs, so take something to wheel it back to your car. Parking sucks at UF. If you have the choice, get a place close by or get a scooter or settle for a place away from campus (BUT make sure it is serviced by SEVERAL bus routes that all lead to UF.)

Don't stress about uniforms. Buy one pair of white scrubs for summer. Clinical is only one day for 4 hours. The college states that shoes must be white, all leather, blah blah blah. We all wear running shoes. A little color on the side is no big deal, but basically white. You will wear your white uniform in Fall also, when there are two 8 hr clinicals. Chances are that you'll figure out which brand you like/dislike from wearing your summer scrubs. You really don't need a labcoat until it gets cold, and can probably survive without it. Just wear clothes to school. Regular old clothes. So far, no regulations, even for lab.

Patho will definitely be your hardest class. You will have 2 days of patho lecture. Block off time the evening after patho to go thru your notes and make comparison charts to facilitate learning similar disorders. Your patho teacher is fantastic. He aslo teaches your second hardest class, which is Health Assessment. Fortunately, the subject matter in both classes will parallel each other. Stay on top of both of these classes. Actually, stay ahead (is that possible?) I record both classes, then go home and play them back at super fast speed while reviewing the PowerPoints. This has worked well for me. Essentials class takes a lot of time because there is a lot of material, but it's basic nursing knowledge and skills. Pharmacology I cannot remark because the course will probably change for your group. Dimensions is basically a seminar class. Attendance counts big time. One presentation, 3 papers and a lot of group discussion and guest speakers. This is the class where you will refine your skills writing in APA format. If you don't have the APA Style Manual, get one. It's not on the book list, but I followed it exactly and got a 100 on my first paper. The other students who used the online APA sources sometimes found outdated info and lost points as a result.

Hope this helps. As time gets close, I'll try to give you some hints. Take care and good luck!! Sorry you haven't heard from any of us in the class of 2010, but we are all losing our minds! Hopefully, our minds will return in three weeks!

Best,
Tina