Applicants to Portland area schools

Catieloops · Mar 31, 2012

Just got accepted to Linfield ABSN...AWESOME!!!!!

happiness123 · Mar 31, 2012

Sweet pnlu! I'm so happy for you! Congrats on your acceptance! I got waitlisted! I'm actually quite excited because it's not a big fat no like the one I got from UP lol

smallfry2 · Apr 1, 2012

I got waitlisted to Linfield as well... but definitely holding out hope. Can't wait to hear back from OHSU ABSN- would have been nice to know sooner so I could cancel some of these Linfield pre-req's I have outstanding...

happiness123 · Apr 3, 2012

I had to OHSU today about some things and they told me that the OCNE BSN letter would be sent out in May. So I think April 15th is for ABSN. May is still better than June though like they said on the application!

Stellar.Stella · Apr 3, 2012

Greetings Nursing Hopefuls. This post is long but the information is important so please take the time to read it.

I have contemplated this post for many long months before putting it up, wrestled with myself for quite some time. I do feel obligated to share with you what I know. Like you all I applied to all the programs in the area. I took my pre-req's over 2 years and applied with a 4.0 average. I got in to every school I applied to except Clark. (Not bragging.. sorry - but I had a major decision to make.) I set up a spreadsheet wherein I calculated start and grad dates, total debt, earn potential etc and I narrowed it down initially to an OCNE program over UP, or Linfield. I wanted the "superior" education of OHSU, but the curriculum is exactly the same at all the OCNE schools right? So why not pay less for the first 5 terms and then transfer? So this narrowed the field to MHCC, Clackamas and PCC.

MHCC was over the river and through the woods, dirty, old, grungy, and I didn't get the most comfortable feeling from the nurses and faculty at the interview so NO to that one.

Clackamas was across town, and having done all my pre-req's at Clackamas and dealing with their administration and financial aid departments for the last few years I was hesitant to continue dealing with CCC.

PCC was close! I had taken classes off an on there for years and their financial aid department was a dream compared to Clackamas, they offered me a respectable scholarship and FA package, and they are one of oldest most respected programs in the Portland area. These all seemed like good reasons to go there. This was the first year they were transitioning to OCNE curriculum, but I generally excel academically so I felt that any obstacles that were thrown up by the transition would easily be overcome. I signed up. I eagerly attended orientation, I eagerly attended classes..

Since day 10 of the nursing program start date in 2010 there has not been one single day that I have not regretted the decision to go to PCC. I could go on for days about the reasons - but the short version is, they have > 50% of their staff that stubbornly refuses to get on the OCNE bus and teach the new curriculum. They teach and test the way they have for 25 years. They have tenure and they will do what they want.

We started with 82 students, by the beginning of second year we had 54. Students failed out in unprecedented numbers. Students developed health problems from the stress that necessitated dropping out because their health was in jeopardy. Many students quit the first year to reapply and re-enter as first year students in other programs last year. Only 2 of our initial 10 ESL students made it through the end of last term. Students who attempted to bridge the gap and help make the program better were blatantly threatened by faculty and administration. We were openly Mocked in lectures by faculty for our suggestions. We were told to stop whining.

Between the 1st year and the 2nd both the Director of our program, and the Dean of the Health Sciences dept resigned.

Last term the Nursing curriculum was worth 9 credits. All 9 credits rode on 2-10 point assignments and 200 test points. The term before that was the same. 200 test points for 9 credits. This term, we have 100 test points, and 40 assignment points for 9 credits. 9 CREDITS! This program has been Pass/No Pass since it's inception and most of the faculty feels that it should continue to be so - that grades are irrelevant and as long as you get 75% when it all shakes out, well C=RN right? Wrong! Your GPA determines your eligibility for internships, hiring, and many masters programs. The nursing program has permanently and irreparably knocked my GPA out of the range to apply for the 2 masters programs of my choice. A great deal of us take an additional load of classes to counter balance the GPA drain. I am not lazy, I study hard and most of the time I score in the top 10% of the class, I excel in clinical practice, get glowing reviews from nursing faculty and clinical preceptors, and yet my transcript doesn't reflect that in any way. Do you have any idea how disheartening it is to get the same grade whether you study hard or not at all?

I have friends in programs all over PDX, and another huge difference between PCC and the descriptions I get from other students is the level of investment of the faculty in the students. Clark and Clackamas instructors are 100% invested in the success of their students - That is really not the case at PCC. There are some amazing instructors here for certain but many of the instructors are far more invested in their own egos than the success of the students.

I feel that at some point this program will catch up. That the obvious rifts in the faculty will either heal or staffing decisions will be made. The faculty will figure out that you can't grade people on tests alone, especially with tests they often admit are very poorly worded.

But for you - the Class of 2014, and probably the class of 2015 as well - you owe it to yourself to get the education you are going to pay dearly for, and from experience I am telling you that you won't get it at PCC at this time. If you get in to more than one school - I, and a vast portion of the current students at PCC would heartily recommend you choose the other school. I would also recommend that you talk to as many current nursing students as you can find about the pro's and con's of their programs. For instance - a great deal of MHCC's program is online, how does this work for students? How flexible is clinical scheduling, how do they feel about their exams? i.e. does the material on the exam match what they were taught in class? Are they given clear and defined learning objectives to study from?

I know the big push at this point is just to "get in" but you will only do this one time - do it the best way you possibly can.

Thank you for your time and Good Luck! Maybe you will be my student on the floor in a few years. :)

pnlu007 · Apr 4, 2012

Hi stella-it is unfortunate you are unhappy with PCC...I know how much work it takes to get in. I'm likely to start at Linfield in the accelerated program this summer.

I do have a bit of good news for you. Your concern regarding your GPA is actually unfounded, as Pass/No Pass courses are excluded from GPA calcuations. So it will not have a "drain" on your GPA. Master programs may look unfavorably to so many P/NP classes, but I think you can explain that away in your personal statement for these programs, and secondly, you will have a OHSU GPA your third year that you can use to represent your BSN GPA and part of your cumulative GPA. So I wouldn't take any more classes to balance out a P on your transcript, as they are already disregarded in calculatiaons.

Although you many not get an A on your transcript, the reward you have for doing well in your courses and clinical is that you will have a stronger foundation for success when you become a professional caring for someone. I think this is truly the most important thing, as a grade on a transcript really doesn't mean much if you get on the floor do poorly and can't get good references from your supervisors when you apply to your masters programs. Lastly, although I am no 100% sure, I dont think grades regarding clinicals is any different at PCC than any other program. And you may not be happy with your rotation, but from doing anecdotal research on this forum, there is actually quite a bit of dissatisfaction with clinical regardless if its PCC, linfield and OHSU...everyone can't always get exactly what they want.

Hopefully what I told you makes you see things in a different light.

As far as the professors, that sucks that they don't listen to student suggestions, (I've read on this that many students feel Linfield and OHSU programs area bit disorganized-at least the ABSN programs) but bear in mind...these folks have been running the same program for 10s of years, graduating strong qualified nurses every cohort...they may just view this class as weaker than average. The fact that you apparently are excelling just might be a reflection of some of your classmates that dropped out...and not the program. Let's face it, just cause a student got in, doesn't mean they can cut it-you mentioned yourself that a C (75%) is a pretty low standard-so if some of the students can't even make that, the sad truth is that they may not be cut out for the program. I agree, that it would be more promising if their was more support, but at the end of the day, its big boy school, and people are just responsible for themselves-you managed to do it right?

Anyways, I know this last paragraph may me sound like an *$$...but thats my two cents. Good luck in your endeavors!!!

Stellar.Stella · Apr 4, 2012

Hi stella-it is unfortunate you are unhappy with PCC...I know how much work it takes to get in. I'm likely to start at Linfield in the accelerated program this summer.
I do have a bit of good news for you. Your concern regarding your GPA is actually unfounded, as Pass/No Pass courses are excluded from GPA calcuations. So it will not have a "drain" on your GPA. Master programs may look unfavorably to so many P/NP classes, but I think you can explain that away in your personal statement for these programs, and secondly, you will have a OHSU GPA your third year that you can use to represent your BSN GPA and part of your cumulative GPA. So I wouldn't take any more classes to balance out a P on your transcript, as they are already disregarded in calculatiaons.....
As far as the professors, that sucks that they don't listen to student suggestions, (I've read on this that many students feel Linfield and OHSU programs area bit disorganized-at least the ABSN programs) but bear in mind...these folks have been running the same program for 10s of years, graduating strong qualified nurses every cohort...they may just view this class as weaker than average. The fact that you apparently are excelling just might be a reflection of some of your classmates that dropped out...and not the program. Let's face it, just cause a student got in, doesn't mean they can cut it-you mentioned yourself that a C (75%) is a pretty low standard-so if some of the students can't even make that, the sad truth is that they may not be cut out for the program.
Just to clarify - There were 1056 applicants to the program the year I applied and 80 of us got in. We were not C students. I think only 3 of the students that started with us were not 4.0 students going in. We were not slackers, we did not have issues with our study skills or our dedication. The students that I referenced that quit to restart elsewhere are now A students at Clackamas, Linfield, and Clark.
As for the Pass/No Pass issue - it wouldn't be a problem if we were actually graded pass/no pass but we are assigned Letter Grades based on our test scores only - most of the assignments and huge time consuming projects that we are required to do are not worth points but are graded Pass/No Pass.
I don't understand your comment about Clinical Placements - In my experience, you get out of clinical what you put into it. I have no complaints about my clinical experiences. I go in organized and ready for my day, I listen in pre-conference and report for any possible skills that might be available throughout the day and immediately corner the nurses asking them to find me when it's time to insert that NG tube or foley. If you have a nurse that hates students or won't let you do anything - find another nurse! There is always one or two on the floor that love students and are happy to help you. If you are helpful, get lights, demonstrate a willingness to learn and a talent for patient care you will have an excellent clinical experience.
My primary point in the post is - if you have a choice; for the next few years you should choose something else because this program is suffering in their attempt to transfer over to OCNE curriculum and as a student paying tuition and accruing debt you should not have to pay that additional freight. PCC was once the best in the business and they very well may be again in short order - but not now.

pnlu007 · Apr 4, 2012

stella-

the first thing a who says they didn't mean to offend-is actually offend. I know my last paragraph was harsh and i apologize. I shouldn't make assumptions as I am not obviously there. I didn't understand that people left the program do to dissatisfaction versus not performing well. good luck to you and ill keep my mouth shut!

SushiOConnor, ADN, BSN · Apr 4, 2012

Stella,

Thanks for the heads up. I have applied to all the programs you did (PCC, MHCC, CCC, & Clark) and UWash (which I just heard I didn't get into) so I'm waiting to hear soon from all those places. I do know someone @ PCC in their first year so, as you suggest, I'll really grill them about all the stuff you mentioned before (hopefully) making a choice. I live in Vancouver, and since PCC's nursing classes are mostly (all?) at Sylvania, it would be the same distance for me to commute to MHCC. I also got a better impression from MHCC than you did, was the Bruning center built when you applied to MHCC? It's a nice new building right on the MAX so I think MHCC may become my first choice (seeing that I did all my prereq's at PCC and really liked all my instructors). Well, I wish you well, good luck on the NCLEX, and I hope you get multiple job offers, just remember to save one for me in 2014!

Lilpoka · Apr 5, 2012

Well, I just got my first letter inviting me for an interview at Mt. Hood! Yay...I am so happy and excited. Now to wait to hear from the rest...

SushiOConnor, ADN, BSN · Apr 5, 2012

ME TOO! I just got my email invitation by Mt. Hood for April 17th! They also said they would hold up final decisions for everyone till after ALL interviews are conducted, approximately May 4th (or 5th?). I was invited last year and I'm assuming the format is the same, five or so short, hand written essay answers, then orally present one of those responses to the group of other applicants. Gotta go practice some oral presentations!

portland medic · Apr 6, 2012

Sweet!!! I just got an invitation email to MHCC as well!! My group interview is from 6-9pm on April 24th. This is my first forward movement towards a program since starting pre-reqs two years ago and it feels good to at least have SOMETHING to show for it. Question to all those who have interviewed before; I plan on wearing a suit anyway but was just curious what kind of clothes they have seen in nursing interviews before. This is business - formal attire right?