Originally Posted by savoryspice74
i know i shouldn't let one person get me discouraged, but i'm worried about going to CC for years to do pre-reqs and then not being able to get into any schools. what would increase my chances of getting accepted? is it just about GPA or is there more i can do? do you just keep applying to schools until you get in? the whole situation is very intimidating but like i said i'll regret it if i don't do it. any suggestions?
Hey Savory -
Don't let a bad attitude get you down. It's advice I often give myself, especially while reading some of the posts about jobs in the Bay Area! I'll share my abbreviated story with you and maybe you can pull out some helpful pieces.
In the spring of 2005 I finally settled on wanting to become a nurse. I started looking at the local advanced entry programs (I live in SF) and reading through the pre-reqs lists. Very daunting. However the first thing I did was find a local CC and enroll in an on-line sociology class. I'm not sure how I got my BS without one, but that's another story. That summer I took my first pre-req through Napa Valley CC. I had to go up there to register and get the book but everything else was on-line.
Then came the hard road: figuring out what else I needed to take to get ready to apply to programs. It ended up I needed the following:
Nutrition
Public Speaking
Chemistry
Anatomy
Physiology
Microbiology
The only thing I could get into at CCSF for the fall of 2005 was Nutrition. I had only taken 2 other classes at CCSF so I was low woman on the totem pole when it came to registering for classes. But I was bound & determined to start checking things off my list!
In the Spring of 2006 I was able to nab a spot in a Chem 32 class at CCSF. It's a class that covers organic, inorganic & bio-chem all in one semester and is specifically geared towards those moving into the health care field. I've since met others who have taken a semester of Organic and one of Inorganic. If I had more time I would have liked to do that but it wasn't in the cards for my schedule. During the same time, I also took Speech at CCSF. I took an on-line class so I only had to show up to class meetings when we actually had to give the speeches - everything else was done on my own time.
For the summer of 2006 I squeezed in a very intensive Anatomy class at Canada College in Redwood City. It was a long drive and some long days but I knew how impacted the courses were at CCSF. My class was M & W from 1 p.m. to 10 p.m. I believe we went for 6 or 8 weeks. It was a terrific class and a great instructor. I was able to adjust my work schedule (basically I took a day of vacation each week; half day on M and half day on W) and work it out with my boss so that I could take the class.
In the Fall of 2006 I took physiology at CCSF. And then in the Spring of 2007 I took Microbiology at College of Marin. That was the final pre-req that I had to complete! Woohoo!
All in all, I finished up my pre-reqs by taking classes at 4 different schools in or around the bay area. It was not easy to hunt and peck and find out who was offering classes and what times they were open for registering and crossing my fingers that I would get in somewhere. You can do it too. It will take research (there are also CC's in the east bay that have the pre-reqs classes too) and planning and a willingness to do whatever it takes to get it done. If you've got the willingness, you can make it happen.
As for actually applying to programs, I did two years of applying. The Fall of 2006 was my first round. I applied to Master's Entry programs at UCSF, USF and SFSU. I was accepted to USF but turned it down for two reasons - it was VERY expensive & the focus seemed to be more oriented towards administration. In the Spring of 2007 I also added myself to the growing ranks of people in the CCSF lottery - no luck! For the Fall 2007 appliation go round, I branched out a bit more. I re-applied to UCSF & SFSU & CCSF but I also added CSU to the list.
I will be starting the nursing program (BSN) at CSU East Bay (in Hayward) in September!
While it's not the initial route I had planned (I was pretty sure I could get into the Master's program at SFSU) I am so grateful and excited to be getting to the meat of my journey. I will be quitting my job next month and getting ready to start this new adventure. I started taking my pre-reqs when I was 30 and will be 33 when I start nursing school.
I had no prior experience in the health care industry. I have a BS with a psychology major & have spent the last 6 years working for a real estate marketing company. I think something that will really help you when you apply to actual nursing programs is to have experience (volunteer or paid) in the health care field. Or any other volunteer experience that you can relate to your desire for nursing school. Also, there are many paths and routes you can take to get where you want to be - don't get locked into the idea that there is only one way. Be open to opportunities as they present themselves.
Best of luck to you. But as someone who has just done it, I know you don't need luck!
Would you like to comment?
just do your best in the pre reqs. gpa has a big part in if you get in or not but most schools also have a lottery system. so we have to get in sooner or later. keep your head up and dont let anyone tell you its not going to happen! good luck to you!
