For those who applied to more than one school..I have a question..

jennabean55 · May 12, 2010

To be honest with you I was in the same position as you are currently. I live in Southern California and I was made aware very quickly that every nursing school is different when it came to the application process. Each school (whether Community College, Cal State, UC, 4 year, or Vocational School) wanted something different.

I can tell you for sure that every school will require Anatomy, Physiology, Microbiology, and English so definitely take those. Others require Nutrition, Psychology, and a Math class, but it varies. And on top of that some schools require a nursing entrance exam (TEAS, HESI, etc.) and some don't.

Some schools accept based on just your GPA and others might be a GPA/lottery combo. There is a minimum 2 year wait in CA. I was put on several wait lists, but got tired of waiting (no pun intended).

I applied out of state and got in right away after 6 years of frustration. This Fall 2010 I will be attending school in Pennsylvania and I am so glad I finally get to do what I've been wanting to do for a very long time. I think I got in because all schools require a out of state demographic and I guess I fit the mold. The tuition is the same as in state students and it's lower than CA tuition. The only downer is that I will be living across the country from my entire family and there will be a major adjustment to whether. I feel that if this is something you really want, 'you gotta do whatcha gotta do.' (but within reason of personal/family expectations regarding cost especially).

I agree with what you are doing by taking more pre-reqs than normal. You will eventually use them, especially if you want a BSN or MSN. I also think you are correct in applying to more than one school to better your odds of acceptance. Just don't give up!

Best of luck to you windmill182!!!

Trilynjoy · May 12, 2010

I have been looking into applying to more than one school in hopes that it will increase my chances of not having to wait to get into a program. However, as I'm sure you are all aware, a lot of schools have different requirements and Pre-Reqs. I have considered taking a few more Pre-Reqs that aren't necessary for my current school of choice, but required to apply to other programs. Has anyone else done the same thing???
It seems like it might be a waste of money, but at the same time I don't want to wait X amount of years just to start ...especially since my school of choice is lottery based. So, no guarantees there...
Thanks for any input! : )

I applied to 6 different schools for the Fall 2010 program. Each school for the most part required the same pre-reqs or grades needed for the selection process. I personally stayed away from schools that demanded I take classes that I recently took or classes that I have taken a few years back (have a Bachelor's in different concentration). All of the 6 schools that I applied to did not require for me to take a class that I've already taken or that wasn't necessary. Out of all the 6 schools I was accepted to 1 and put on a waitlist for another. The school that I was accepted to was my first choice (go figure...lol). My advice is to apply to as many schools as you can, it never hurts to have back up plans. Look at me I am going to be a Nursing student come August:dncgbby:

At the end of the day you have to do what is best for you, but if you can find other schools that don't require as much I would really suggest you apply to those schools. For example: the school that I was accepted to only required at least a high school chemistry(c/o 2000) compared to other schools that I looked at that requested a Chemistry taken within the last 5 years. I actually started applying to schools in the Fall of 2009 and took classes such as CNA, Developmental Psych and Anantomy & Physiology in Fall 09-Spring 10 in order to get those classes out of the way. Thankfully all the English, Math, Humanities, and other Psych classes I took during my undergrad.

Good luck!!!!

gumby1411 · May 13, 2010

I also applied to more than one school. I applied to my first choice school and found another school that had similar required prereqs. I also had plans to take additional prereqs if I didn't get into either of those schools. So, I had my Plan A and Plan B schools that I applied to at the same time (same required prereqs). Then Plan C (I needed one more class for) and Plan D (I needed two additional classes for). Thankfully, I got into my first choice school, so I didn't need to take any unneeded prereqs. I recommend that you apply to as many schools as you can. It is really competitive to get into nursing school, especially the accelerated second degree programs (not sure which program you're applying to). Better to pay more money, take additional classes and have a better chance at getting in somewhere rather than not taking the extra classes and having to delay applying to other schools until you get those prereqs done.

Abby Normal · May 14, 2010

Let me first say that the prereq situation is nuts.

There is no reason for the requirements to be so all over the board. They are not for premed -- they are much more consistent. There was once a roundup here of the ones required by certain schools. I swear one school required public speaking. Another required a religious studies class. I'm the first to say all education is valuable, but please. I seriously think a national standard for prereqs is needed. Not fewer, just standard, so people can choose the school that is really right for them, not just what they have time and money to do prereqs for.

My take -- really look at all the schools you would consider going to. Lay out all the lists of prerequisites. Figure out which schools have the most courses in common with the one you most want to go to, and the order you would have to take those courses.

In my experience, most people apply before they have completed the prerequisites, no matter what the application demands. And they usually just do the core of prerequisites, then just worry about the different courses specific to the schools once they are accepted by that particular school. They don't do them all. For example, A&P, micro, 2 social sciences. Or whatever. They would just take those. Not the odd couple of odd courses left over. Nutrition, or physics, or math etc. They'd only take those if they get in. You just need a semester's notice. Or perhaps less for an online course.

The wild card is often chemistry. And there are online lab courses (believe it or not) that even the top schools accept -- just one course that combines organic and inorganic. ccconline.com, I think. Obviously check with the school you want to go to that this would be acceptable. Because if it's not, and you have one semester and have to take 2 sequential courses, you're going to have to forfeit your acceptance.

You might get good news before you've done extra work. But if you don't, I think, psychologically, it won't seem so bad. Because you won't be doing "extra work". It won't be "plan b" it will just be "the plan". It allows you to see the big picture, to plan everything out, rather than to deal it out in pieces. Knowing it's no more work, you might even apply to some different programs, if you're already mentally committed to taking a course, or a test like TEAS.

A lottery system would make me insane. To have no clue how to make plans. This might at least give you a feeling of control. And you guys in California -- it must be so hard to know what to do.

I am going to an accelerated master's program, but I did a large number of prereqs, more than I strictly needed to, with the nurses at a community program. I am really happy I did.

I did start small, thinking it was going to be just a couple of courses and one school. If I had planned it out from the beginning, I would have been more organized about things, instead of having to change my plan every few weeks.

As for wasting money: the sooner you enter school, the sooner you can be earning a nurse's salary.

alyssa* · May 14, 2010

i too am in so cal and plan on applying to all ADN schools within a 60 mile radius because they all have basically the same pre-reqs (the big 3 sci and obvisously english) but i can't apply til spring 2011.