Anyone attend the Kirkwood Nursing program?

lunamoon8910 · Apr 22, 2012

I am a current Kirkwood nursing student. I would advise anyone considering going to Kirkwood for nursing to wait at least two years until they get their stuff organized or GO SOMEWHERE ELSE. Had I known everything their nursing dept was going to put me through, I would have went elsewhere. It took me 4 semesters to get through the pre-req portion as they changed the criteria while I was enrolled in the original classes. They did not grandfather me (or anyone else for that matter) in and two of the classes I paid for didn't even apply anymore. I thought things would be different once I got into the program. It's not. The teachers could care less if you pass or fail, which may be the reason that half of my class is failing. I wish I could go back and take classes somewhere else. If you're thinking of going here because it's cheap, think again. Per credit hour it is cheap, but they are so backed up with people trying to get into the pre-req's that it will take you at least 3 semesters at full-time status to even be considered for the program. In the end, you will probably pay more by going to Kirkwood. By the time I graduate with my lpn, it will have been 7 semesters-including there final 4 week class that I have to take in the fall. That's over 2 years. Good Luck to all of you out there and PLEASE do yourself a favor and stay away from Kirkwood.

Medic2RN, BSN, RN, EMT-P · Apr 23, 2012

Moved to IA Nursing Programs forum.

Stressed74 · Apr 29, 2012

I feel exactly the same way as lunamoon does. I am also in the program at Kirkwood. If I had known the problems the program was going to have I would have gone elsewhere. Now I am stuck. I have been at kirkwood for over two years and am just starting the program. I would strongly advise going elsewhere.

Hi,
I was wondering if anyone has actually gone through the nursing program, or is in the program at Kirkwood Community College? I am finishing up my last semester of prereqs (nursing fundamentals) and am very unhappy with my professors (in the nursing dept) this semester. I was wondering if it will get any better or if it will remain chaotic and unorganized? I already have a b.s so I don't want to waste more time going through a bad program. I really appreciate everyones time! Thank you!

KG247 · Apr 30, 2012

I will be finished with my prerequisites at the end of this term. I would like to enter the program as soon as possible. What kind of issues are you having in your current courses? Were the problems primarily with your prereqs and apathetic professors? I understand the program's Dean recently changed. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

sascher75 · Jan 26, 2013

I agree with lunamoon. I got my LPN at KW and the program was a disaster. You completely teach yourself. The instructors are not there for the students, and if you complain you are pretty much shut out.

Hollyhocks720, MSN, NP · May 29, 2015

This is so true. They have the whole program built around insulating the instructors. They have no idea how to teach. It's very pathetic. Students don't mean a thing. Be prepared to teach yourself. You won't learn any other way. Half of their faculty should be fired.

Hollyhocks720, MSN, NP · May 29, 2015

I will be finished with my prerequisites at the end of this term. I would like to enter the program as soon as possible. What kind of issues are you having in your current courses? Were the problems primarily with your prereqs and apathetic professors? I understand the program's Dean recently changed. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

btw the dean changed again since this post. They can't seem to keep a dean. Some of the instructors are just completely worthless. In pharm, one tried three times to show a simple dosage calculation on the board, failed and said she was probably confusing us more than helping. Students have to be flawless but instructors can be full of error. They have instructional lab videos full of errors but students have to perform perfectly. They certainly don't hold their instructors to the same level students are held to.

Ellie.D · Jun 4, 2015

I agree with lunamoon. I got my LPN at KW and the program was a disaster. You completely teach yourself. The instructors are not there for the students, and if you complain you are pretty much shut out.

absolutely correct. They had a great program about 10 years ago, all they care about now is their nclex pass rate. Check out the Iowa board of nursing stats and you will see their numbers of students are dramatically down. They change their class pass percentage rate about every other semester, all they are doing is screening and filtering. A very unfriendly unsupportive program unless you are a complete @$$kiss. Which is very inequitable.

KarrieMarie · Aug 23, 2015

I would advise anyone going into nursing to avoid Kirkwood's program. I have been through it and they are more concerned about your grade point average and your class points than what you know. You will be teaching yourself everything. What you get in lecture is not what is on the exams. You ask a question and you get a deer in a head light look. A lot of the information they give you is incorrect. They will tell you right off the bat that only 25% of your group will make it through. If you have a job or kids, good luck. They bog you down with so much work it's impossible to learn it all. The skills test outs are a joke. If you question things and complain and refuse to brown nose, don't expect to pass (which was me). You are set up for failure. They do not care. i noticed anyone who was a little different or didn't play by the rules did not pass even though they were good students. I am at Mount Mercy University in their BSN program which has a "C" average versus Kirkwood's "B-" passing grade. I am doing so much better and the instructors care about your education instead of about how many people they need to weed out. I was passing at Kirkwood and had all my points I needed to pass and right down to the exact percentile that was needed to fail the course, that was what I missed at the last minute. I demanded that they let me see my exam and quiz and they refused and told me that I needed to accept the fact I did not pass and would have to start all over again. Do not waste your money

jtl909 · May 20, 2016

Sadly, I have to agree with the above. I had a very difficult time with their program for identical reasons; apathetic staff, shifting/vague expectations, inconsistent application of standards, more concerned with preaching nursing dogma than direct patient care (nurses are benevolent angels/doctors are bumbling fools, etc). The instructors have paper-thin resumes. Lots of letters behind their names, sure, but that just means they've spent their nursing careers hiding behind a desk and writing term papers. One of my clinical instructors stated one day that she had never performed chest compressions on an actual person nor had she participated in a live intubation! That's insane! I was warned to save my money and go elsewhere but like an idiot I gave it a shot and wasted a year of my life. In the end I transferred to another program in the state and passed with flying colors.