[Phoenixlight]

Good Day all,

I am considering a relocation to the Lakewood/Denver area of Colorado. I am currently a FL Paramedic working overseas in Iraq. I have been working on my Nursing pre-reqs and I have all my classes done. All that Im missing are the entrance exams which usually are specific to the school you're applying to. I was wondering several things:

1. Does anyone know about any transition programs (Paramedic-RN) in the Denver Area? If not, maybe in the general vicinity.
2. Which are the most inexpensive programs for out-of-state students?
3. Any work-study programs? (hospital-based RN programs)
4. ANy additional advice that may be helpful in Colorado?

Thanks in advance for your time and advice!

Lucy
Baghdad, IQ

[wildchipmunk]

Hi Lucy!

First of all thank you for your service

Secondly, I do not know of any Paramedic-to-RN programs here in Colorado. Which is not to say we DON'T have any, I just don't know of any. I used to live in Florida and we had several there.

I don't know of many schools that use entrance exams except maybe the vocational-technical ones like Concorde or Platt. CU uses one for their Work Site program only, I believe (see below for more info on that). Many programs here just use them as a predictor of your success in the program and passing NCLEX-RN. My school makes us take the TEAS through ATI only after we're accepted into the Nursing Program, just to see where you might need extra tutoring the summer prior to start.

Our prereqs here are different than the programs I was familiar with in FL (the schools in the Tampa area). In fact, the schools in the Denver area vary slightly so you'll want to check the prereqs program by program. Some schools have a 5 year limit on the age of science prereqs, others don't. It just depends.

The community college system here would be the least expensive route. I'm not certain as to whether or not there is still a waiting list but about 1 1/2 years ago when I moved back it was 5 years. I thought I heard that they were abandoning that system but am unsure. Here is the link to the Community Colleges in Colorado Nursing website. I believe you have to apply to each individual school now but this page is great info: http://www.cccs.edu/Nursing/ApplicationProcess.html For me, it was worth borrowing the money and starting earlier somewhere else; I figured I could be earning money and nursing instead of waiting.

There are two Work Study Programs of which I am aware. The first is University of Colorado's. Their program is for their own employees who want to become a nurse. You must be an employee of the hospital for one year to apply and then score 3.8 on a competitive entrance exam.
More info here: http://www.uch.edu/find-a-job/nursin...-nursing-.aspx CU is an excellent program.

My school, Regis, offers what is called the CHOICE program. You don't have to be an employee of the university or even a nurse, just employed in the healthcare field. http://www.regis.edu/rh.asp?page=study.chbsn The program is something like two nights a week. Don't be freaked out by the tuition, the school is very generous with private grants and scholarships. The school is very kind to veterans. You do have to take two religious studies courses for the degree but you can do that online through a less expensive community college prior to the program or maybe even during, I'm not certain about that.

If you have any other questions you can PM me. This board is really helpful. I hope if there is a Paramedic to RN program in the state, someone else can point you to it.

Best of luck to you!

Stay safe!

Michelle

[Mister SN]

Hi Lucy,

I am also not aware of any Paramedic-RN programs in the state, however you may be awarded some transfer credit from your school based on the classes you have taken already.

There are a number of good schools in Denver. My school, Platt is a private one and is on the more expensive side, however there is financial aid available. Michelle's school, Regis is well known and respected also.

The end result of being an out-of-state student is that the cost of tuition at the local community colleges and the University of CO is likely to be similar to that of the private schools like Platt and Regis. That doesn't mean you should automatically cross them off your list if that's where you want to go.

One more point: you don't state in your post if you are a civilian or military paramedic (and either way, thanks for taking care of our troops!) but if you're in the service don't overlook the possibility of changing your state of residence before you get out of the military. This might provide you with legal residency, or accelerate the process of qualifying as a resident. More information would come from the admissions or financial aid department of the school you choose, and your personnel office.

Welcome to Colorado!!