ETEA Bridging Program

pogzRN · Jun 29, 2013

Thanks for getting back to me. Glad that you did because I was very keen on buying a printer when I went down to the city today. The printer I found was only around $39 and I might go back tomorrow to buy it. Thanks again!

belle_v2g, BSN, RN · Jun 29, 2013

Thanks for getting back to me. Glad that you did because I was very keen on buying a printer when I went down to the city today. The printer I found was only around $39 and I might go back tomorrow to buy it. Thanks again!

That's pretty cheap. :)

pogzRN · Sep 13, 2013

It's been 2 weeks waiting to get registered. The school hasn't forwarded my documents until today!!!! It will take me another week to get registered or God knows when...

Don't even think about choosing ETEA for your IRON program. The educators suck. It's not even worth your 17,500 AUD. I expected a lot from the school because it was the most expensive back when I had to choose which school. My friends only had to wait 4 days to get registered.

The clinical placements were wonderful. But my experience back in the lecture for 3 weeks was nothing short of dull. They had some useful inputs but most of the time they were all a waste of time: teaching you how to research using google, how to do medical handwashing, etc. We are professionals back in our home country, we don't need to be taught how to do these things rather they should teach us things that we don't know yet e.g. handling equipment.

I'm telling you, I should have chosen universities like Ballarat or Latrobe. Don't settle for this middle-sized mediocrity of a school.

ceridwyn · Sep 13, 2013

Thanks for posting your concerns.

Google!!! For research! Was Joanna Briggs ever mentioned? How to access more reliable information ever discussed? Though you can use google to find hospitals and scholar can sometimes show options, but not recommended to find evidence based nursing practice peer reviewed information, nor any other research information.

As you are a professional in your own right tell of your experience to ANMAC.

belle_v2g, BSN, RN · Sep 13, 2013

Thanks for posting your concerns.
Google!!! For research! Was Joanna Briggs ever mentioned? How to access more reliable information ever discussed? Though you can use google to find hospitals and scholar can sometimes show options, but not recommended to find evidence based nursing practice peer reviewed information, nor any other research information.
As you are a professional in your own right tell of your experience to ANMAC.

I went to ETEA for my Bridging Course too and so far, I am satisfied with what they have offered us during that time. they do have softwares installed in the computers and they encouraged us to use those ones for research, they introduced Google "SCHOLAR" for researches but google is just one of the many other options that we have. However, there are still peer reviewed materials in google and students do have a choice where to go and get their info. As far as Im concern, ETEA is not forcing anyone to go for it.

belle_v2g, BSN, RN · Sep 13, 2013

It's been 2 weeks waiting to get registered. The school hasn't forwarded my documents until today!!!! It will take me another week to get registered or God knows when...
Don't even think about choosing ETEA for your IRON program. The educators suck. It's not even worth your 17,500 AUD. I expected a lot from the school because it was the most expensive back when I had to choose which school. My friends only had to wait 4 days to get registered.
The clinical placements were wonderful. But my experience back in the lecture for 3 weeks was nothing short of dull. They had some useful inputs but most of the time they were all a waste of time: teaching you how to research using google, how to do medical handwashing, etc. We are professionals back in our home country, we don't need to be taught how to do these things rather they should teach us things that we don't know yet e.g. handling equipment.
I'm telling you, I should have chosen universities like Ballarat or Latrobe. Don't settle for this middle-sized mediocrity of a school.

Hi pogzRn, did you asked the school first what happened before posting it here? I understand that it is really frustrating not to have the registration on time but just so you know, lots of ETEA students waited for their registration for almost 2-6 months, maybe you were not aware of this before you enrolled with them. Although I got mine in less than two weeks.. I am still in communication with some ETEA educators. I'll try to mention this to them, it might help. But don't fret about the hand washing because you will still have to do that.. All over again like million times, even when you are already working.. I actually did my hand washing competency 3 times this year now. :)

Where did you have your placement? I hope they were able to teach students on how to handle equipments and things like that. ETEA will teach nursing skills that will be helpful to you but you will have to learn all the other stuff in your placement.

pogzRN · Sep 16, 2013

Hi pogzRn, did you asked the school first what happened before posting it here? I understand that it is really frustrating not to have the registration on time but just so you know, lots of ETEA students waited for their registration for almost 2-6 months, maybe you were not aware of this before you enrolled with them. Although I got mine in less than two weeks.. I am still in communication with some ETEA educators. I'll try to mention this to them, it might help. But don't fret about the hand washing because you will still have to do that.. All over again like million times, even when you are already working.. I actually did my hand washing competency 3 times this year now. :)
Where did you have your placement? I hope they were able to teach students on how to handle equipments and things like that. ETEA will teach nursing skills that will be helpful to you but you will have to learn all the other stuff in your placement.

That's not what I'm trying to say. I'm aware of the requirements and the competencies that we had to meet. The school doesn't have a clear structured plan for the whole program (theory) and we could have done something more useful for the placement rather than talking rubbish and listening to them for hours.

Look at this: After the placement, we had to spend 2 days back to school for debriefing of some sort. 2 weeks prior, I already emailed twice and called the school about what to do after the placement. There were only 2 of us with an in-house educator so we didn't know what the next step was. Well when I called, they told me that they would get back to me but no one ever did. Had I known that there was going to be a 2-day debriefing post-placement, I shouldn't have had to pay $200 for flight rebooking. And when I came in and told them about this, they were just mum. How absurd is that?

And what really got me was, we did absolutely nothing for the last 2 days, well I could say they talked about job interviews but it seemed to have gone off-topic since the speaker/educator wasn't around that day! And to top it off, we spent the entire day taking photos and eating pizza the next day. Have they gone mad? I'll give pizza a pass, I need my registration soon!

The last 2 days happened on a Thursday and a Friday. I finished my placement on a Friday, so I had to wait until next Thursday for the debriefing. All in all, I wasted a week of doing nothing.

Placements-wise, there's nothing I could say but praises to the hospital staff. They were amazing, gave us support and the opportunity to do things on our own with supervision. One thing true about placements, some had to do it again because of the lack of communication between the school and the hospital. We were once told by our educator that a certain acute hospital has been downgraded into a subacute facility where students are doing their placements. For some reason the school wasn't informed about the matter hence AHPRA had approved ETEA just recently with some conditions to be met. And mind you, they are still on their placements.

I'm just saying that I expected more from them only to find out it was a big disappointment. Not much for me, as long as I get registered. But what about some of my peers, Indians as a case in point, who could hardly speak and stand up for themselves. This school had taken advantage of them. There was absolutely lack of support from the staff, the educators were okay, but we didn't know who to talk to when we needed guidance outside the classroom.

I do hope this gets through the ETEA administration. Their days of ripping off their clients are almost over.

pogzRN · Sep 16, 2013

It's been 3 weeks and I'm still waiting. Mailed them twice last week and was told they've been forwarded to AHPRA. Called AHPRA earlier, haven't received any under my name.

Friends from IHNA only had to wait 4-5 days. That's consistent. I've asked 5 people from Melbourne and Perth.

They paid roughly 12,000. I had to pay 17,500 AUD.

Go figure.

ceridwyn · Sep 16, 2013

Learning about google scholar is not educating overseas nurses to Australian standards of research and finding evidence based practise, do they not have an affiliation with a university nursing library!!!! this is why ANMAC are bringing in Graduate certificate bridging course from universities. or institutions with a university signed up,, so that they will be monitored to give graduate standard Bachelors education and research component to Australian standard of a nursing graduate.

Universities is where locals are educated, have no idea how a private tafe (profit driven) that can only provide up to a advanced diploma, can give a bridging course to nurses that have way above diploma in a Bachelors course and where the locals are educated at, NBV hang your heads.

To the poster, have you thought about reporting your experience/concerns to ANMAC. Have you checked out the conditions of their conditional credentialing, may take time, when AHPRA have to so closely check assessors and assessment during the course of each student.

pogzRN · Sep 16, 2013

I agree with you. Screw google scholar, I don't think that should even be included in our curriculum given that the program has time constraints and for Pete's sake, we're professionals, we should already possess the reasonable research skills prior to joining the course.

I haven't made any steps to let ANMAC know about this. I did,however, fill out the school's evalutaion/feedback online and told them about my dissatisfaction. They haven't gotten back to me yet, as expected.

And, I just got my completion letter today--details about my scores and the placement but I'm surprised I haven't received a certificate at all. I ought to have one, I suppose.

belle_v2g, BSN, RN · Sep 18, 2013

That's not what I'm trying to say. I'm aware of the requirements and the competencies that we had to meet. The school doesn't have a clear structured plan for the whole program (theory) and we could have done something more useful for the placement rather than talking rubbish and listening to them for hours.
Look at this: After the placement, we had to spend 2 days back to school for debriefing of some sort. 2 weeks prior, I already emailed twice and called the school about what to do after the placement. There were only 2 of us with an in-house educator so we didn't know what the next step was. Well when I called, they told me that they would get back to me but no one ever did. Had I known that there was going to be a 2-day debriefing post-placement, I shouldn't have had to pay $200 for flight rebooking. And when I came in and told them about this, they were just mum. How absurd is that?
And what really got me was, we did absolutely nothing for the last 2 days, well I could say they talked about job interviews but it seemed to have gone off-topic since the speaker/educator wasn't around that day! And to top it off, we spent the entire day taking photos and eating pizza the next day. Have they gone mad? I'll give pizza a pass, I need my registration soon!
The last 2 days happened on a Thursday and a Friday. I finished my placement on a Friday, so I had to wait until next Thursday for the debriefing. All in all, I wasted a week of doing nothing.
Placements-wise, there's nothing I could say but praises to the hospital staff. They were amazing, gave us support and the opportunity to do things on our own with supervision. One thing true about placements, some had to do it again because of the lack of communication between the school and the hospital. We were once told by our educator that a certain acute hospital has been downgraded into a subacute facility where students are doing their placements. For some reason the school wasn't informed about the matter hence AHPRA had approved ETEA just recently with some conditions to be met. And mind you, they are still on their placements.
I'm just saying that I expected more from them only to find out it was a big disappointment. Not much for me, as long as I get registered. But what about some of my peers, Indians as a case in point, who could hardly speak and stand up for themselves. This school had taken advantage of them. There was absolutely lack of support from the staff, the educators were okay, but we didn't know who to talk to when we needed guidance outside the classroom.
I do hope this gets through the ETEA administration. Their days of ripping off their clients are almost over.

ETEA's Course Curriculum has changed starting March 2013. I have done my course with them in January so during our time, we were really busy with paperworks, practicals, exams, laboratories.. and the curriculum is good during that time. After the placement, we went back to school for the individual case presentation which I think is no longer part of the new program now. It seems like everything has gone down for ETEA with what you've experienced with them, sad to hear your story. Anyway, I hope you get your registration soon. All the best!

belle_v2g, BSN, RN · Sep 18, 2013

I agree with you. Screw google scholar, I don't think that should even be included in our curriculum given that the program has time constraints and for Pete's sake, we're professionals, we should already possess the reasonable research skills prior to joining the course.
I haven't made any steps to let ANMAC know about this. I did,however, fill out the school's evalutaion/feedback online and told them about my dissatisfaction. They haven't gotten back to me yet, as expected.
And, I just got my completion letter today--details about my scores and the placement but I'm surprised I haven't received a certificate at all. I ought to have one, I suppose.

You will receive your Certificate of Course Completion in 1 month..