Best nursing school in GA?

U.S.A. Georgia

Published

In your opinion what is the best nursing school in GA and why?

Public and Private.

Look forward to hearing everyone's thoughts on this.

Thank you both so much for your time. I sat down with my adviser/A&P professor and we talked about all the classes I would need in order to start a BSN program in the fall of 2012. It would be A LOT! I mean she thinks I'm fully capable and should go for it, but on the other hand it just won't work for my family.

I have a 4.0 GPA - completely aced A&P with no biology or chemistry prior. So I was beginning to feel VERY confident and wanting to pick one of the "best" schools in the state. However, we have 5 children and my husband currently is having difficulty wih some eye issues...me being gone all day 5 days a week for the next 3 years just won't work. So I'm going to go ahead and apply to 3 ADN/ASN programs this fall for fall 2012 entry. At first I was really bummed about it, but it truly is the best thing for my family - me included.

With my GPA so high I'm hoping I won't have any problem getting in first try - if I do not - well then I will have that extra year to work on the bsn requirements and will then definitely go straight for the bsn...but right now I'm really hoping to get accepted on my first application.

Thank you all so much for all your help! Even if I don't go to Emory or GA State - I still love to learn about these programs!

Thank you both so much for your time. I sat down with my adviser/A&P professor and we talked about all the classes I would need in order to start a BSN program in the fall of 2012. It would be A LOT! I mean she thinks I'm fully capable and should go for it, but on the other hand it just won't work for my family.

I have a 4.0 GPA - completely aced A&P with no biology or chemistry prior. So I was beginning to feel VERY confident and wanting to pick one of the "best" schools in the state. However, we have 5 children and my husband currently is having difficulty wih some eye issues...me being gone all day 5 days a week for the next 3 years just won't work. So I'm going to go ahead and apply to 3 ADN/ASN programs this fall for fall 2012 entry. At first I was really bummed about it, but it truly is the best thing for my family - me included.

With my GPA so high I'm hoping I won't have any problem getting in first try - if I do not - well then I will have that extra year to work on the bsn requirements and will then definitely go straight for the bsn...but right now I'm really hoping to get accepted on my first application.

Thank you all so much for all your help! Even if I don't go to Emory or GA State - I still love to learn about these programs!

I'm glad your doing whats best for your whole family. Good luck with your nursing career and congratulations on your 4.0 :). I'm sure you will do an amazing job no matter what nursing program you decide to attend!

Thanks highschoolfuturenurs - I was pretty bummed out at first, but that only lasted about an hour :) It really is right for our family, and I feel a great sense of calm knowing I'm doing the right thing. I can just feel it.

Thanks again for the encouragement!

I was recently accepted to Emory, and they were my ONLY choice to attain my nursing degree after doing a lot of research on reputable nursing schools in GA. It is very expensive, but I believe that it is very much worth it. I can understand those who do not like taking out loans and frown upon the price, as I have even questioned this, but you just have to think about what it is that you want to get out of a nursing program to make that decision. Emory was the best to me and that is what I went after :)

They do not rely solely on your GPA for acceptance into the program either...but you as a whole. I wish you the best of luck on your journey to becoming a nurse!

There are great ADN programs in GA, have you applied to Georgia Highlands College?

I'm a current Emory senior with only 58 days to graduation. The program is good...tough, but good, nonetheless. For the students thinking about getting an associates in nursing: more and more hospitals are trying to reach magnet status, thus they are really slowing down on hiring ADN's. This year Emory Hospital will not be hiring any new grads with ADN's. BSN is the way to go. It takes the same amount of time to obtain as the ADN. I understand money may be a factor, but Emory is not the only school in GA that offers the BSN. Good luck to you all. I know exactly how it feels to be in this phase of the application process.

I'm a current Emory senior with only 58 days to graduation. The program is good...tough, but good, nonetheless. For the students thinking about getting an associates in nursing: more and more hospitals are trying to reach magnet status, thus they are really slowing down on hiring ADN's. This year Emory Hospital will not be hiring any new grads with ADN's. BSN is the way to go. It takes the same amount of time to obtain as the ADN. I understand money may be a factor, but Emory is not the only school in GA that offers the BSN. Good luck to you all. I know exactly how it feels to be in this phase of the application process.

Just out of curiosity, do you know how it looks for people who have a BA and went back for an ADN? I have a BA in German and Religion already. Not really applicable to the nursing field, but still a Bachelor's.

And going off of other GA schools offering BSN's... I got my BA at a private college that, while much smaller than Emory, probably had a bit of the same feel. Private colleges can take a bit of getting used to. I personally didn't enjoy it, even though the people who go do typically enjoy it. Don't throw out public colleges just because they are public. Try to get the reason behind both the positive and negative reviews of a college. The college will only give you the positives, but if you can talk to someone objective (hard to find, I know) about the down sides, that can also be extremely helpful. Sometimes people who like the school will give some of the negative complaints, but they'll still typically counter the negatives with what they think makes up for the negatives. That doesn't always work for the people who the college isn't the right fit for. Especially for the money you'd spend at Emory, this is very important to think about (my undergrad was over $100K and the college definitely wasn't a fit for me).

Definitely not to talk negatively about Emory. A friend of mine (also an alum from my undergrad alma mater) got his Master's at Emory. The university is very nice...and I had to visit the Carlos Museum (I believe it's called?) for my Humanities class...also very nice (I'd like to go back). But just seriously consider both sides to the story. Visiting the college and hearing stories from students (even sitting in on classes) is completely different from being a full-time student at a college. And the college name on your resume isn't always everything.

It might not be everything, but it sure does help

I'm a current Emory senior with only 58 days to graduation. The program is good...tough, but good, nonetheless. For the students thinking about getting an associates in nursing: more and more hospitals are trying to reach magnet status, thus they are really slowing down on hiring ADN's. This year Emory Hospital will not be hiring any new grads with ADN's. BSN is the way to go. It takes the same amount of time to obtain as the ADN. I understand money may be a factor, but Emory is not the only school in GA that offers the BSN. Good luck to you all. I know exactly how it feels to be in this phase of the application process.

It actually does not take the same time to get a BSN. There are far more pre-req's for a BSN, and I would not be ready for BSN admission until the fall of 2013. Then I would graduate in 2015.

I will be ready to apply to ADN or ASN program's this fall for entry in the fall of 2012, and will graduate in 2014.

I realize the actual nursing school part is 2 years either way, but the pre-req's can make the BSN a more time consuming degree.

I would love to go straight for a BSN through the Medical College of GA (my choice for a BSN - and cheaper than private), but it's just not a possibility for me. We have several young children and my husband has had recent health issues that have prevented him from going back to his normal job.

So as great as it would be to spend more time and go straight for the BSN, that's just not a luxury I have.

I believe if it's God's will for me to get through an ASN program then He will also provide a job!

I also realize getting my BSN will take longer than if I went straight for the BSN, but the BSN cannot be obtained in the same amt of time as the ASN - or else I'd go that route. It will be much easier for me though because I can work on my bsn pre-req's when I'm on summer break from nursing school. Then once I'm an RN, I can obtain my BSN online through a local university. It's just what I need to do for my family right now, and I'm happy about it - I know everything will work out for the best!

Thanks for your response...I appreciate everyone's insight!

It might not be everything, but it sure does help

Not really. I've applied places who have a preference for alums from my alma mater never to get a call back. Or even a response to my calling them. While it's possible for a name to help, your chances in the work force are unfortunately much better with connections...and the more, the better. A name can imply connections, but an actual person pulling weight for you makes a huge difference. And even then, it still doesn't always turn out. It seems like now, with the economy, having certain university names on your degrees really only displays weight when staying in the academic field.

I'm not attacking the school. There's a reason Emory is known as a great school. I was just playing devil's advocate and offering some very good advise regarding school choices. Had I known to talk to people who didn't enjoy my $30k/year undergrad college, I wouldn't have wasted the money (I was offered full scholarships other places). It was just my personal experience, though. The thing to remember is that the best education isn't the top rated college/university. It's the place that's best for you. Learning is specific to the person. Some people may do better in small classes with more individual attention. Others may like learn best in large lecture halls, where they are able to remain anonymous. Liberal Arts colleges are often comprised primarily of late teens/young adults. That offers a drastically different atmosphere/learning environment than being in a very mixed group of people, such as a community college with young adults and older adults (speaking from experience). It really does make a difference. And I'd rather have a knowledgeable nurse who went to a school of a lesser name than a nurse who has a big name behind him/her but didn't thrive in the environment.

Again, not saying that's the case with students at Emory (or you - please don't take it as a personal attack). I'm simply just stating this as something to think about given my experience. Just because a person doesn't have a degree from the top school doesn't prevent them from being a top nurse. *shrugs*

Not really. I've applied places who have a preference for alums from my alma mater never to get a call back. Or even a response to my calling them. While it's possible for a name to help, your chances in the work force are unfortunately much better with connections...and the more, the better. A name can imply connections, but an actual person pulling weight for you makes a huge difference. And even then, it still doesn't always turn out. It seems like now, with the economy, having certain university names on your degrees really only displays weight when staying in the academic field.

I'm not attacking the school. There's a reason Emory is known as a great school. I was just playing devil's advocate and offering some very good advise regarding school choices. Had I known to talk to people who didn't enjoy my $30k/year undergrad college, I wouldn't have wasted the money (I was offered full scholarships other places). It was just my personal experience, though. The thing to remember is that the best education isn't the top rated college/university. It's the place that's best for you. Learning is specific to the person. Some people may do better in small classes with more individual attention. Others may like learn best in large lecture halls, where they are able to remain anonymous. Liberal Arts colleges are often comprised primarily of late teens/young adults. That offers a drastically different atmosphere/learning environment than being in a very mixed group of people, such as a community college with young adults and older adults (speaking from experience). It really does make a difference. And I'd rather have a knowledgeable nurse who went to a school of a lesser name than a nurse who has a big name behind him/her but didn't thrive in the environment.

Again, not saying that's the case with students at Emory (or you - please don't take it as a personal attack). I'm simply just stating this as something to think about given my experience. Just because a person doesn't have a degree from the top school doesn't prevent them from being a top nurse. *shrugs*

Hmm, Not really? My response that "it helps" is from my personal experience through the Emory Healthcare System and Emory University, I have attained an ample amount of resources, connections, scholarships, etc that ALL could not have been attainable anywhere else. Again, through my personal experience (from my resume' alone) it helped me. I never said nor implied that a student can't become a great nurse or thrive at any other school. That would be ridiculous. My values and what I want to gain, again from my knowledge of the school and my own experience with Emory Healthcare, is that Emory is the best for me. I was giving my personal opinion based off of my experience. I got into the university where I wanted to be, so nope, I will definitely not be losing any sleep lol

Hmm, Not really? My response that "it helps" is from my personal experience through the Emory Healthcare System and Emory University, I have attained an ample amount of resources, connections, scholarships, etc that ALL could not have been attainable anywhere else. Again, through my personal experience (from my resume' alone) it helped me. I never said nor implied that a student can't become a great nurse or thrive at any other school. That would be ridiculous. My values and what I want to gain, again from my knowledge of the school and my own experience with Emory Healthcare, is that Emory is the best for me. I was giving my personal opinion based off of my experience. I got into the university where I wanted to be, so nope, I will definitely not be losing any sleep lol

You said in a prior post that you were just accepted to Emory. How can someone who was just accepted have suddenly gained all of this work experience and all of these connections enough to get annoyed at another person giving valid advice? It sounds like you are more emotionally involved in supporting the school you like as opposed to being objective about what is best for individual circumstances. That's given the information presented in your posts on this thread.

I'm glad you got into Emory. It's definitely an accomplishment given the requirements to get into the university. Good luck in your current and future endeavors.

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