potential student

U.S.A. Michigan

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Hi, I am not a nurse or a nursing school student but would like to be. I am interested in attending wcccd and was wondering if anyone has tips/advice for me? I was looking at the pre reqs online and also spoke w an advisor but neither was clear on whether there were gen ed requirements to be fulfilled in addition to the pre reqs to apply to the program. I am 36, have 2 kids and currently work full time and was looking for some much needed guidance. If anyone is able to help it will be much appreciated! Thanks!!!

For my Micro class, I think my book was $130 new. For my Anatomy class the books required were about $180 used.

And...another day, another question: I was laying in bed last night trying to figure out how I was going to pay for all of this when I realized that I had not factored the cost of books into the equation! Can anyone give me a guesstimate on how much books would cost for a class? Just one class - bio or eng or something. It would not be good if I registered then didn't have the money for the book! As usual, all responses welcomed and appreciated!

The cost of books varies widely. If I recall correctly, Micro's about $130, Anat/Phys (you use the same book for I and II) is about $180-190 used (both as Anne36 said) or around $215 new (I think?), Bio 155 is about $120. Chemistry (if you take it) is close to $300 new. (It's a ways off for you, but I spent close to $800 on books for the nursing program so far!) It really depends on the subject and class. Medical Terminology (which I can't recommend enough!) is about $50-70 used/new, while Psychology 101 is about $95.00.

I'm not sure how many people know about it, but the bookstore has its own website, with book prices! WCCCDBookstore.com. I always go there to figure out the prices for my books.

Of course, if you qualify for any sort of financial aid (Pell, loans, etc), you can use those to pay for books (though you'd have to pay for the books up-front if you're relying on loans alone). :)

Craigslist, craigslist, craigslist!!! :-) I got my anatomy books (in almost brand new condition (the person dropped the class) for $95 (text, lab, etc.). There's also a great text-searching site out there, something like cheapesttextbooks.com or something. I googled cheap textbooks. Good luck!

if you go to cheapestbookprice.com--- it will find the cheapest books available for you from all websites-- i use it alot- i purchased my nursing books from there and saved hundreds and hundreds of dollars where i was able to use somewhere else like for uniforms, shoes, and what have you

You seem to be in the same situation that I am in. I will finish my last pre reg (microbiology) in December of this year. What should I do from then? What is the soonest starting nursing program that I can get into. Your help would be greatly appreciated since whoever answers the phone at WC3D seem to hate their job.

You seem to be in the same situation that I am in. I will finish my last pre reg (microbiology) in December of this year. What should I do from then? What is the soonest starting nursing program that I can get into. Your help would be greatly appreciated since whoever answers the phone at WC3D seem to hate their job.

If you want to avoid wait-lists, focus your attention on schools without them, like WCCCD. Have you taken the appropriate tests for the school you want to attend? For example, for WCCCD, you have to take the TEAS before you can even apply - if you haven't taken it yet, that should be your next step. I believe it's good for two years, so you can take it before your pre-reqs are finished. If you're interested in WCCCD, I'd suggest attending an information meeting (you can find information about them at the Northwest campus, but you'll probably need to go there physically instead of calling); they'll have all the information you'll need, including application dates and what you'd need to apply. Besides, you can't apply until you've attended a meeting, and unless they've changed the rules, the paper you get at the meeting doesn't expire.

Whoever answers the phone at WC3D seem to hate their job.

:lol2: Every time I'm at NW, the office is swamped with calls, and when it comes to wanting info about the program, they almost always (from what I've overheard) just say "go to an information meeting." Guess they're tired of saying the same things over and over? Heh.

I went to the meeting. It was boring and very broad. I already took Medical Measurements and Mathematics at the NW campus and passed with an A. I'm just not familiar with deadlines for applying, when the program starts, and how long it takes. Do we finish in one year? I was told the winter and fall are 15 weeks and the fall and spring are 12? Do we do these consecutively and finish in a year? lol Sorry but I am so lost.

I'm just not familiar with deadlines for applying, when the program starts, and how long it takes. Do we finish in one year? I was told the winter and fall are 15 weeks and the fall and spring are 12? Do we do these consecutively and finish in a year? lol Sorry but I am so lost.

The deadline for starting in a Fall semester is the last day of February (28th or 29th) of the same year; the deadline for starting in a Spring semester is June 30th of the previous year.

Do we finish in one year?
Nope. The program at WCCCD is four semesters, which is about two years.

I was told the winter and fall are 15 weeks and the fall and spring are 12? Do we do these consecutively and finish in a year?
At WCCCD, there are only three semesters: Fall, Summer, Spring. Fall and Spring are 15 weeks, Summer is 12 weeks. Fall is late August to early/mid December, Spring is Mid/late January to early May, Summer is mid/late May to early August. They only offer true nursing classes in Fall and Spring, not in Summer. So, if you started in Spring, you'd go Spring, Fall, Spring, Fall. If you started in Fall, you'd go Fall, Spring, Fall, Spring. The only nursing class offered in Summer (aside from some remediation classes, I think?) is Pharmacology. That means that if you start in Spring, you'd have to endure two empty Summer semesters (unless you take accessory/extra classes); if you start in Fall, you go through just one, meaning the program is ~3 months shorter if you start in a Fall semester. So, if you want to finish as quickly as possible, I'd aim for a Fall start (unless, of course, you can start in Spring first - obviously I'm not suggesting bypassing a Spring start to go for a Fall start :lol2:). ;)

So let's say everything goes as planned and I finish microbiology this winter. I apply before February 26th. That means I won't be in school from late december untill the fall? That gives me a lot of time to do...nothing. LOL did you do the program? If so how did you like it?

So let's say everything goes as planned and I finish microbiology this winter. I apply before February 26th. That means I won't be in school from late december untill the fall? That gives me a lot of time to do...nothing. LOL

If you finish Micro this Fall semester, and that's the end of your pre-reqs, and you've done the TEAS and have all of your documents together and apply before Feb 28th, 2011, you may be able to start in Fall 2011, which would mean you have Spring 2011 and Summer 2011 to do nothing. :lol2: It could give you time to get some co-reqs (DT 130, ENG 120, etc) out of the way (which I *highly* recommend!) or to take some other classes that might help (Medical Terminology [officially called "Terminology for Health Professions," I think] is a very, very helpful class I can't recommend enough).

did you do the program? If so how did you like it?

Yes and no, :lol2: I started the program in January, but I had a few things come up (fairly major surgery later this month, etc) so I have to take a "break" for a few months. Still need to talk to the Dean to finalise things, but I'm hoping to get back on track this Fall. Oof. Bad timing, no? Blah. As far as if I like it, absolutely! From my experiences so far, it's a great program.

Reading these posts always get me excited about being able to apply and hopefully start a program soon. I have a family and work full time so I have been taking classes since August of 2008. I have AP and Micro left to take but have completed all the other co-reqs and pre req's. I was supposed to take Anatomy this semester but dropped it to take a Chemistry class so that I could get on HFCC waiting list (dumb I know specially since the wait list is 3 years). I figured at least I would be on the move there in the event that I didn't make it into a program my first time applying so I guess in a way it wasn't that dumb of a decision. I have completed all of my classes at WC3 with the exception of Chem and I am hoping to get into an Anatomy class for the summer. If All goes well I will take AP1 in the summer AP2 in the fall and finish with Micro in the Spring. Which leads me to my next question. If I am completing Micro in the Spring semester, which doesn't end until like April or so, will I still be able to submit my application at the end of February? Will they hold out for my grade in the Micro class? Or will I have to just wait until June?

Which leads me to my next question. If I am completing Micro in the Spring semester, which doesn't end until like April or so, will I still be able to submit my application at the end of February? Will they hold out for my grade in the Micro class? Or will I have to just wait until June?

Unfortunately, nope: you can't apply until all of your co-reqs are finished. When you apply, there's a section where you write in your grades for each pre-req, so if you tried to apply in Feb, you wouldn't be able to complete the application because you wouldn't have a grade for BIO 295/Micro. Alas, you'll need to apply after the grade comes in. If it posts before the application date in May, of course, you can apply then. :)

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