UMD SON CNL: Current / Former Students

U.S.A. Maryland

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Hi,

Positive feedback / negative feedback?

Suggestions for success in semester I of the CNL program?

Things you would advise students do to prepare ?

I have applied for Spring 2011 UMD CNL program and hope to be admitted soon. I completed Funds / N101 at Harford CC (Accelerated program) last summer working full time with a "B". I determined I could not complete the RN program in an acceptable manner and also work. I plan to stop working 1/11 providing I am admitted.

I am coming from a Business background with no prior Nursing work experience and found the magnitude of information a bit challenging with just 7 credits last summer. The 15 credit CNL curriculum will obviously be even more challenging and looking for any suggestions from people who have already completed semester I or further.

I am looking for some feedback (good or bad) and general suggestions on the CNL program, .

Thanks

Dave

You found the magnitude of the information to be too much but then you're hoping that the cnl program will be more manageable? If you do get accepted, I imagine it will be tougher. Im in the bsn, but i know many in the cnl. I considered it myself, but for reason that are not pertinent here, I decided against it.

Just know that in the cnl program you need at least a B in all the classes to pass. There is a lot of research, writing and critical thinking required. I know more than a handful that have been held back a semester d/c them not getting a B in patho, adult health, etc.

Why dont u just switch to the traditional program at hcc?

Hi Thanks for the info.

The key factor was Full - time work + N101/Funds. in 12 weeks with no prior background.

I am in the process of finalizing my financial plan --Plan is full time school only ---will not be working when I go back. The fact that I have no prior Nursing background (CNA or volunteer work) did not help.

Thanks again for the info. that is helpful.

Specializes in Family Nurse Practitioner.

I am looking for some feedback (good or bad) and general suggestions on the CNL program, .

Thanks

Dave

Hi Dave, since you asked, I am not a fan of CNL programs for people with no nursing background. I have worked with several new graduates and they have been way behind the learning curve compared to even LPN new graduates, imo. Maybe the focus is too light on clinical skills or the people attracted to this program tend to be more book smart? I don't know but in my exprience it hasn't been good for the older new grads or the teams trying to integrate them.

I'm in the CNL program at UMD right now and I think the most important thing to remember is that a CNL is still an entry level nurse. You will be competing for the same jobs as other new nurses and have just as much to learn when you start! The difference is an ADDED (not replaced) emphasis on critical thinking - which, after some experience, will help you "climb the ladder" but more importantly - help promote evidenced based practice!

We get lots of fundamental skills practice - the same as the BSN students - but we have a have a few extra projects/papers on top of that! Its nice to be in a group of people with one career behind them already and be coming back to school after some time.

Hope that helps :)

Hi Thanks for the response and information. Good luck in the program.

Hi Jules

Thanks for the direct feedback-- I will keep this in mind.

I'm in the CNL program at UMD right now and I think the most important thing to remember is that a CNL is still an entry level nurse. You will be competing for the same jobs as other new nurses and have just as much to learn when you start! The difference is an ADDED (not replaced) emphasis on critical thinking - which, after some experience, will help you "climb the ladder" but more importantly - help promote evidenced based practice!

We get lots of fundamental skills practice - the same as the BSN students - but we have a have a few extra projects/papers on top of that! Its nice to be in a group of people with one career behind them already and be coming back to school after some time.

Hope that helps :)

Blondell - I'm in the process of applying to the CNL program at UMD, and I was wondering if you can tell me what the program is like there? What is a typical day/week like you for as a CNL student? I haven't heard much from UMD's program so I'm curious to know what current students think about it. Thanks!!:-)

A week in the life of a first semester CNL student at UMB...

Monday: My alarm goes off at 5:30 am. I leave my house to catch the train at 7:00 so that I can be downtown and ready to go when class starts at 8:00. Monday is health assessment. This class goes through each body system and you learn how to do literally do an assessment to make sure the person's body is functioning properly. For example, this past Monday we learned how to do an abdominal assessment. The lecture first had a brief review of GI anatomy and physiology, and then you learn how to assess the patient's subjective symptoms and the objective findings from the abdominal physical exam in order to formulate a nursing diagnosis and a nursing care plan. Health assessment ends at 11:00 am. For four consecutive weeks toward the beginning of the first semester, we also had a communication module on Mondays. This module met from 2:00 to 5:00 pm and focused on how to use communication in a therapeutic setting.

Tuesday: My alarm goes off at 6:00 am, I leave my house at 7:30, and class meets from 8:30-10:30. Tuesday is intro to professional nursing practice, otherwise known as fundamentals of nursing, or "fundies" for short. This class teaches you the "meat and potato" nursing skills. You learn everything from medication administration to wound care to patient hygiene to nurse and patient safety to patient mobility. This class literally gives you all of the basic skills that nurses use every day. Both fundies and health assessment have a clinical simulation lab (CSL) components built into the course (more on this later). Tuesday afternoon I take context of healthcare delivery and intro to the CNL role from 11:00-2:00. This is more of a theory class and you learn about some key issues such as legal, ethical and economical issues that effect nursing practice today. You also learn a little about the history of nursing in this class as well.

This semester you are off either Wednesday or Thursday, depending on the CSL lab group you are in. I decided to take Wednesday off because it's a nice way to break up the week.

Thursday: I have both fundies and health assessment CSL on Thursday. In the morning I have fundies lab from 9:30-11:30 and in the afternoon I have health assessment lab from 12:30-2:30. I love CSL because it actually allows you to put all of the didactic information you have learned in to practice. If you go to one of the information sessions, they might give you a tour of the CSLs. They are set up just like any hospital, with real hospital beds, monitors, etc. Even the mannequins that we practice on are very similar to a real patient. Some of the more expensive ones even have actual physiologic functions and vital signs that you can program. For example, you can listen to abnormal heart murmurs or abnormal lung sounds with your stethoscope.

Friday: One word: PATHOPHARMOCOLGY! This is probably one of your hardest classes first semester. It starts at 8:30 am and ends at 3:00 pm with a break for lunch between 11:00 am and 12:30 pm. This is where all of your A & P and microbiology comes into play. Again this class takes a systems approach. You learn about the pathophysiology and disease processes that can occur in each system and then learn which drugs are used to ameliorate these problems. Since this class meets for 5 hours each week, you cover an incredible amount of information in a very short amount of time.

As far as assignments go, you have your traditional tests and quizzes. Context of healthcare delivery has 2 papers (I have only done one so far), pathopharmacology has a 10 page case study, and fundies has a CNL leadership paper at the end of the semester. I am in the 21 month extended track so I am not taking systems in health population this semester. The 16 monthers are taking this an online course and they have a few papers for that as well.

Then there is something called validation. This is how you are tested on all of your skills in CSL. Basically you are handed a scenario instructing you to perform a variety of nursing tasks you have been practicing. While you are performing your scenario, you are being videotaped. Then, your instructor watches back the video and grades you on your performance. This can be an incredibly stressful type of testing situation if you are not adequately prepared. That is why you spend a lot of your free time during the course of the first semester in open lab. The few hours you have to practice your skills during your scheduled lab session is not nearly enough time to properly master all of these skills. This is why open lab is a necessity. I can't stress this point enough.

Lastly, I want to openly state that you have to be extremely committed in order to do well in this program. This program places high importance on critical thinking, integration of information, and independent learning. Besides for the routine assignments, you spend a lot of time reading the textbooks and applying the didactic theory to real world nursing practice. Evidence based practice is a concept that will be continually used throughout your nursing career. So you can't just know how to do something, you have to know WHY you are doing something and how it will effect your patient in both the short and long term.

If I anyone has more questions about the CNL program please don't hesitate to ask!

1 Votes

Sewnew -

Wow, thanks for taking your time and explaining! That gives me a better idea of what the "daily life" is like in the program.

Thank you

Hello all!

I wanted to let you know that I just checked SURFS and the spring schedule for first semester CNL students is exactly the same as the schedule this fall. I know that you guys are still playing the waiting game with admissions, but I figured that I would let you all know. My fingers are crossed for all of you! I know how hard waiting to hear back can be!

NURS 503: Health Assessment - Monday, 8:00-10:50 am

NURS 505: Intro to Professional Nursing Practice - Tuesday, 8:30 - 10:20 am

NURS 507: Context of Healthcare Delivery I - Tuesday, 1:00 am - 1:50 pm

NURS 501: Pathopharmacology - Friday, 8:30 - 11:00 am & 12:30 - 3:00 pm

NURS 622: Systems and Populations in Healthcare (16 month option only) - WEB

They have not posted the various lab groups yet, but I believe that all CNLs have lab on either Wednesday or Thursday.

Hi Sewnew!

I just got accepted into Fall 2011 CNL at Maryland! I had a few questions about what expect in the first semester...

- Are all classes held in the nursing school building off West Lombard Street?

- What is the work load like?

- Are there any recommended reading/study materials I should have?

- Which was the most difficult class in your opinion in the first semester?

Thanks so much!

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