NCTC ADN Fall 2013

Nursing Students School Programs

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I'm going to Gainsville next week to apply for the ADN program and was wondering if anyone else was looking to do the same. I live in Lewisville, so Gainsville is quite a drive, but I'd be willing to car pool! Has anyone started to study for the Kaplan? I need to get started on that since the test is scheduled to take place at the end of June. Good luck to all of the applicants!

Congrats on getting your letter! Perhaps I will see you on the 25th!

I haven't taken any of the online classes for AP or Micro, but I did take them at NCTC. I took API/APII during the summer at the Corinth campus with Doc Elrod and he is a phenomenal professor. I took Micro at the Flower Mound campus and didn't care for the professor at all. I'm not going to name names - the prof just didn't fit my learning style. I would recommend taking the AP classes at the campus as opposed to online just because there are so many models, slides and dissections - but that is just me.

I don't know if anyone will get this in time, but do you work with dissection and specimens in A&P II. One reason I wanted online is to avoid working with cadavers or animal specimens and the overwhelming chemicals. However, the teacher rated for the online class gets a poor rating.

In my last post, I meant *in time for registration.*

I am getting up in the morning to hopefully register for A&P II with Elrod and Dev Psych. I decided to do A&P II on campus at Corinth. I haven't been on a campus in 8 years, so I am nervous.

Did any of you do a late afternoon/evening class? Did these classes consist of older students?

You will handle a kidney and a cat in AP II, but everything else is models or slides. It also is one cat that is already dissected - everyone doesn't get their own cat to handle. Doc is FANTASTIC and will tell you not only what to study for the tests, but what your essays will be so that you can be prepared. I took the class during the summer and it was a mix of younger/older students. I work during the evening and take classes in the morning so I don't know the turn out of the evening classes. Don't be nervous! You will be just fine.

My experience lies with the Gainesville Campus A&P classes with Professors ***** and ****** As far as dissections go, we never did the cat or the heart, but they were options if we wanted to do them outside of class. That said, Prof. ******* did have an example of each that he dissected himself, and used as examples. He points out and covers exactly what you need for his exams, so pay close attention and take notes. He also emphasized info not found on his handouts, so make sure to write those things down as well. Many students took videos when he went over the dissections.

In regards to class make-up, I attended both A&P I and II on the Gainesville campus in the evenings. I myself am 32, and I'd say the majority of students were +/- 7 years of my age. Lots of adults, and most were already working in a healthcare profession in one way or another. There were some younger students, but most were working during the day and needed to take A&P at nights. Obviously going to be different in Gainesville vs. Corinth, though. Seems to be a higher population of yougner students there.

Does anyone happen to know how many people they are testing?

Has anyone here taken the chemistry for health sciences at NCTC? I have an Intro Chem from 15 years ago that NCTC will accept, but I do want to move on to the BSN track. Is it possible to take microbiology and chemistry for health sciences at the same time and get A's without it consuming my life?

Also, does anyone know what is the SCI campus? I can't figure it out.

In regards to how many they are testing, I am not sure. Although, since they said they are testing all applicants with 9 priority points or above, I come to three conclusions. One, they didn't have enough qualified applicants this semester. So, they're letting everyone test. Two, they had enough qualified applicants (similar to years past), but didn't fill all the available slots last semester. This way, by testing more, they stand a better chance to fill all the seats. Three, they are just issuing a blanket policy to test anyone that qualified. No matter which way, I'm glad that everyone who qualified is getting and opportunity to get in.

As to the Micro and Chem for Health Sciences in the same semester...I did last semester. I took the micro hybrid and chem for health sciences at the gainesville campus. The chem class was taught very well, and if you study, making a good grade isn't too hard. I managed a B in micro hybrid, and an A in chem. Definitely can be done.

That said, I also took A&P II last semester with 2 other online pre-reqs (in addition to the micro and chem). Was a heavy load, but I wanted to be able to apply for fall. No matter the class load, if you study, work hard, and find some great study partners, getting A's in all those classes is a very attainable goal.

If you have to take one class by itself though, say, over summer...definitely micro. A&P I and II are hard, and should be a priority given their weight in the criteria point scale. Chem requires studying, too...but it's do-able. Micro is very hard and requires the most outside work of any of the science classes (in my opinion). You CAN take it with other science classes, just be prepared to study your tail off. Also, if taking either A&P with another science class, remember A&Ps take priority. Getting an A in both of those classes means way more than an A in micro or chem (at least in regards to this program).

Thanks - good point about A&P being most important! It is good to know what to expect.

I am planning to take A&P II with Developmental Psychology. I am also thinking of taking Microbiology with Chemistry for Health Sciences. I don't have to have the chemistry since I had it so long ago (but I remember none of it now), however I feel like I need to take it and I also want to move onto the BSN track.

Anyway, my next question is regarding when to take A&P. I took A&P I this last spring. Now I am trying to decide if I should take A&P II this fall or wait until spring with a large gap between A&P I and II, so that it can be more fresh in my mind for the pre-entrance exam...although I am not sure if such a large time between I & II is a good idea.

So many decisions!!!

At the last information session, the nursing director said they test applicants based on the pool of applicants they receive which has

I agree with Khor on Micro being the hardest of those four classes. I took Chem at UNT several years ago then AP I/II during summer sessions at NCTC. The summer classes weren't easy since they required quite a bit of studying, but it is doable. I made A's in both. In my summer classes, it was very easy to find people to study with because everyone there was a nursing student or planning to transfer out for PT. Since EVERYONE needed A's, there wasn't any fooling around and we all worked/studied together to get it done. Personally, I wouldn't take the classes with a gap in between since most of what you learn in AP I is needed for AP II. Do what you feel you need to though to make A's in them the first time around since they are important for PP.

I took micro last fall and made a B which really surprised me since I work in a microbiology lab. It is the hardest of the four classes and required more of my time studying than AP did. I think the hardest part of that class is that we had one test with 56 bacteria and related illnesses to memorize. Not just the names and what they cause, but shapes, if they were G+/G-, specifics about their coating or defense systems, symptoms related to their infection and how the bacteria entered the body or organism it was infecting. That was on top of all of the other things we were learning for that one test. It was a ton of information that wasn't given in class and had to be found in the book. I don't think all of the teachers do that, but mine certainly did and there weren't many people in that class that did well!

With that being said, getting the grades you need is doable - just make sure that you give yourself enough time to study for all of your classes. Also, don't do anything crazy and try to take AP and Micro at the same time!

Thank you all for your input! It has really helped me to make many decisions!

jlg311 - at the information session I just went to, the nursing director said that they cannot accommodate work schedules. I am sure some people manage to make it work though.

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