allnurses Got Me Into Nursing School

I was afraid, and confused, and even a little angry at times... But, allNurses helped me choose (and even get accepted to) my first choice nursing school. This is about how I came to my decision, and how I'm very appreciative of all the help I've received in regards to choosing my school. Nurses Announcements Archive Article

allnurses Got Me Into Nursing School

I know there are many opposing opinions in regards to private/ for-profit/ community college/ university/ ADN/ BSN schools and degrees, but I just wanted to say that thanks to AN, I have been able to research, visit, take an entrance exam, submit an application, and be accepted to the nursing school of my choice.

I was able come to a decision to start at Galen College of Nursing at St. Petersburg, FL.

My ultimate decision wasn't made from school reviews. It wasn't made by people who didn't attend the school. It wasn't even made by just touring the facility. It was made by me; by spending hours online researching medical facilities in my area; by talking to hiring managers and different colleges in my state; by talking to individuals who were directly responsible for Galen's accreditation; by interviewing (in person) current students and recent graduates.

I would not have realized that I needed to do these things if it were not for the advice I received on allNurses.

Why I Choose Galen.

1. I've been in contact with 2 separate individuals at SAC. Both that I've spoken to have said that Galen will be SAC accredited in June of 2013. Yes, I understand that this is not the same as NLNAC or CCNE accreditation (although I had no idea what either were when I first started on AN)

2. From the reviews I've read online, many people are mostly complaining about: cost and credits not transferring... Cost is not an issue for me (I'm not rich, but I have enough to pay for classes), and credits not transferring is something I am not worried about (I already have my A.S. in biology, and I've taken micro and labs, A&P I-II and labs, stats, psyche, pre-calc, chem, speech, lit, and a few others) so from what I've seen, and from what I've been given in writing from other universities and community colleges in the area, I don't have to worry about those credits transferring. Also, in regards to the NUR credits, of the 5 schools I've talked to about getting my BSN, they accept Galen's NUR credits for transfer, just not their non-nursing credits.

3. I've called several medical facilities: home health, hospitals, ALF's, SNF's, ALTC, LTC... the ones that I am most interested in hire Galen graduates. I don't want a hospital job as my first, and from what I've heard that makes me weird, but I'm okay with that!

4. I have gone to the school for more hours that I should have, and I've talked to the students. I've gone on study group dates to Starbucks and talked to them (about 30 in all, different times, dates, study groups lol), and the ones who didn't like the school were the ones who were going out to party every weekend and those who missed their social lives because they had to study 3-4 hours a night and on the weekends. There were a few who didn't like the instructors or the clinical sites, but that's to be expected with any school in my experience.

5. I have a close friend that I've known for a few years, we both went to the local community college together. She decided about 3 years ago to go to Galen, and sure, there were tears and stressful days and freakouts (it's nursing school!) but she passed her NCLEX the first time around, and is working at a pediatric home health co. that she loves.

I Guess What I'm Trying To Say Is...

The best advice I've gotten from AN is to do homework. You can ask for opinions all you want, and you can go based solely on those opinions, but you'll never have the answers. Even after doing my homework I'm still a little nervous, but it's getting less and less.

"There is a real threat of danger, but fear is something that you choose to feel." Instead of being afraid, I did research.

And that would not have happened if it weren't for everyone who gave me the good, the bad, and the ugly advice I asked (and even didn't ask) for.

So thank you AN! I got my acceptance letter to Galen College of Nursing today. It's going to be a journey, and I'll always be honest about what's happening at the university. Some of you may think that I'm a faculty member, or a current student, or even a fan-girl of the college, but the truth is, I'm just like all of you other nursing school hopefuls- I hope this turns out for the best, but I won't be sure until I'm done with this leg of the journey.

Happy learning, and thanks again. All of you.

2 Votes
eyesopen_mouthshut

About eyesopen_mouthshut, CNA

I went to a tech school for my C.N.A. and after working in a hospital for a while I've decided that I want to graduate into RN status.

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Specializes in Alzheimer's, Geriatrics, Chem. Dep..

Congratulations and I am so happy for you! And yes AN is a wonderful source of information, support, and experience! Keep us posted on how everything is going!

xo

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It sounds like you read, researched, asked questions and did the leg work to make the right choice for you! I wish you success in your nursing journey!

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Specializes in Psych ICU, addictions.

You made an informed decision. Not everyone may agree with it--and that's OK because they don't have to. The important thing is that YOU did your homework and YOU made what you feel is the best choice for YOU.

Best of luck with nursing school!

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Thank you everyone! I wanted to give some shout-outs in my article, but I think we would have been reading about 8 pages of thank yous! I'm very excited :woot: My fiance had no worries about me getting in, so he ordered me a stethoscope (Littmann Cardiology III!!!) and it came in the mail today. Pink, annnd engraved. Thanks everyone on AN!

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Congratulations and best of luck!

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.

Congratulations to you! I, too, attended a nursing program at a private-for-profit entity and each school has its own benefits and drawbacks, but you basically get out of it whatever you put into it. I wish you the best of luck!

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I would like to thank AllNurses.com as well. I have learned so much from this site and have been able to communicate with future classmates. This is a great online community!

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Congrats!

Let us know how you are doing...

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HAPPY FOR U TOO

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Specializes in CCU, Geriatrics, Critical Care, Tele.

Thanks for sharing your story, sounds like you did your due diligence and made the best decision for yourself!

It's wonderful to hear that the allnurses.com community was such a great help to you! We hear these kinds of stories all the time privately, thanks for sharing you thoughts publicly.

I'm sure you will do wonderful in school and that the AN community will continue to be an asset to you throughout your career!

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Thank you Brian. And thank you to everyone else who has congratulated me, it means so much! No one in my family went to college, let alone nursing school, so AN has become somewhat of a surrogate family for me... I can ask questions and gain helpful information from the users on the site. Again, thanks everyone, I'll be thankful for you all for the rest of my life as a nursing student, and as a nurse :-)

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