Almost done with a degree in film, want to be a nurse; advice?

allnurses Guide · May 12, 2012

My two cents:

Take whatever you need to finish your BS degree; that will open more doors for you.

If you want to apply to accelerated BSN programs in the Boston area, they are pretty competitive. The MA Nursing Programs forum may have may have more specific info for you about programs and requirements.

You will (likely) need to take prerequisite classes that film degree doesn't cover (A&P, chem, psych, G&D, etc). Getting a solid GPA in these new classes will be the base of your application to school; most schools here are looking for 3.5+ prerequisite GPA and don't care as much about your overall GPA. There and some good community schools around the city where you can take these classes.

Good luck!

Stephalump · May 12, 2012

If you're almost finished with a four year degree, you're going to be hard pressed to raise that gpa up without taking 1.5 million courses. Retaking classes won't help you, I don't think. Schools generally have a minimum cumulative gpa, and that includes all the classes you've ever taken, so there's no benefit over just taking new classes.

I would

1) Look at minimum GPAs at the schools you're interested in.

2) Use an online calculator to determine how many credits you need to take to raise your GPA to that point.

3) Subtract the number of credits of prerequisites you have to take and the classes you have left for your degree from the number of credits you need to raise your GPA, and take whatever you might still need worth of nice blowoff classes and ace them.

4) Try to focus on nursing schools that only care about your prerequisite GPA, and rock out in the courses they require. Or maybe one that only cares about last 60 hours if you can find that.

5) Be accepted and become an awesome nurse.

cljonesfuturenurse · May 13, 2012

If you're almost finished with a four year degree, you're going to be hard pressed to raise that gpa up without taking 1.5 million courses. Retaking classes won't help you, I don't think. Schools generally have a minimum cumulative gpa, and that includes all the classes you've ever taken, so there's no benefit over just taking new classes

Question? So if my GPA is a 2.5, But i have repeated several classes for better grades, will my GPA actually be lower once they have factored in the other attempts? My transcript shows excluded from GPA on the classes that I have retaken. I hope this is not the case. My undergrad mistake is ruining my future.

But I am applying to several schools, one of the schools, a BSN program, takes the last 60 hrs.

Another school, a ADN program, looks at the pre-req GPA and the minimum is a 2.0 although it must be much higher to be competitive. I have also applied to an LPN program, just in case I don't get accepted at any of the five schools I am applying to then I can bridge. I would take as many classes as I can before I petition to graduate. You want be eligible for financial aid anymore and your low undergrad GPA will follow you forever.

It was tough finding a decent Grad school to accept me. My grad GPA is 3.5 and many of the programs wont even look at my grad school GPA. Now that I am applying to nursing school I have to research other options because of my undergrad.

Stephalump · May 14, 2012

Yes, your cumulative GPA will be lower than your university's GPA.

Where there's a will, there's a way! I had quite a few barriers to starting nursing school...not so hot cumulative GPA from my first degree, no financial aid because I have too many credits, transcript problems...and I'm starting my RN program this summer! I would've rather gotten my BSN instead of bridging, and I'm really going to have to work hard to keep my GPA spectacular to raise it high enough to get into grad school, but it's possible and I'm a fighter :-)

Just keep swimming!

umbdude, MSN, APRN · May 14, 2012

I completely agree with de2013. There is no point for you to waste time & money to retake art courses. Remember, most admissions do not just look at the GPA as a number. They look at the courses you take and try to see if there are trends. If you re-take art courses now for the sake of increasing your GPA, it might raise some red flags or even be interpreted as a lack of maturity and self confidence.

My 2cents is to get through the Bachelor degree ASAP, with very good grades, and maintain a 3.5+ GPA for your pre-reqs.

Btw, a low undergrad (or even grad) GPA does not follow you unless you want it to.

Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN · May 14, 2012

Welcome to AN! The Largest online nursing community.

I am going to play the devils advocate. Why nursing? Why do you want to be a nurse? Anything you want bad enough you can find a way to achieve your goal.

Nursing is very competitive right now. Jobs are scarce /competitive particularly in the Boston area. There is NO shortage right now. The economy has effected the profession greatly in the area and it is over populated with schools so there are plenty of new graduates. I know of nurses that have been searching for at least 14 months for jobs, particularily new grads have been affected. Hospitals have hiring freezes even though the floors afre short staffed. I thought there was just a layoff at the Brigham. I know U Mass just layed off.

Has the Nursing Shortage Disappeared?

It's that time of year again. Graduating nursing students are preparing to take the NCLEX and are looking for their first jobs. This year, many are finding those first jobs in short supply.

Reports are rampant of new graduates being unable to find open positions in their specialty of choice, and even more shockingly, many are finding it tough to find any openings at all.

These new RNs entered school with the promise that nursing is a recession-proof career. They were told the nursing shortage would guarantee them employment whenever and wherever they wanted.

So what happened? Has the nursing shortage--that we've heard about incessantly for years--suddenly gone away?

The short term answer is clearly yes, although in the long term, unfortunately, the shortage will still be there.

The recession has brought a temporary reprieve to the shortage. Nurses who were close to retirement have seen their 401(k) portfolios plummet and their potential retirement income decline. They are postponing retirement a few more years until the economy--and their portfolios--pick up.

Many nurses have seen their spouses and partners lose their jobs and have increased their hours to make ends meet for their families. Some who left the profession to care for children or for other reasons have rejoined the workforce for similar reasons.

In addition, many hospitals are not hiring. The recession brought hiring freezes to healthcare facilities across the country, and many are still in effect. Help wanted ads for healthcare professionals dropped by 18,400 listings in July, even as the overall economy saw a modest increase of 139,200 in online job listings.

Organizations that are hiring may simply have positions for fewer new grads than in the past.

Has the Nursing Shortage Disappeared?

Massachusetts Nurses Schools, Salaries, and Job Data

[TABLE]

[TR]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD]Barnstable Town

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]$75,000

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]2,580

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]+36%

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD]Boston

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]$93,000

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]48,240

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]+35%

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD]Brockton

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]$79,000

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]2,320

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]+36%

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD]Framingham

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]$76,000

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]2,990

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]-7%

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD]Haverhill

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]$67,000

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]1,580

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]+3%

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD]Lawrence

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]$79,000

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]1,920

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]+76%

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD]Leominster

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]$79,000

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]1,300

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]+47%

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD]Lowell

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]$71,000

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]2,360

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]+2%

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD]New Bedford

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]$73,000

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]1,560

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]+31%

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD]Peabody

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]$68,000

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]2,320

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]+19%

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD]Springfield

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]$71,000

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]6,610

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]+10%

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD]Taunton

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]$78,000

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]760

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]-4%

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD]Worcester

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]$83,000

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]7,510

[/TD]

[TD=align: right]+49

[/TD]

[/TR]

[/TABLE]

The Big Lie?

Without a doubt, the main source of frustration experienced by recently graduated and licensed but still unemployed nurses is what could be called "the big lie."In other words, the television commercials that encourage young people to become nurses -- and then abandon them for months (or years) without employment; and the educators who tell them that the associate's degree is perfectly adequate to guarantee employment, that they will have their pick of jobs when they graduate, and that there is plenty of time to get a BSN later on. Who knows whether it is greed, ignorance, or wishful thinking that underlies the fairy tales told to nursing students about their future job prospects? Whatever the motivation, the disillusionment of our new grads is palpable. The jobs they expected after all of their hard work just haven't materialized, and some grads are getting pretty desperate.

Medscape: Medscape Access requires registration but it is free and is an excellent resourse

If you really WANT to be a nurse then nothing will stop you. Eventually the "shortage" may return, but I think nursing has been changed. I wish you the best..... Good Luck on your journey.

barbizzle · May 14, 2012

Thank you all for your responses! This was very helpful. I will finish up my Bachelors ASAP and then get to work on my pre-requistes moving forward.

Esme12, to thank you for this information as well. I want to be a nurse so I can do real good and help people around me. Working in film is fun and rewarding in its way, but I know I can and should do more. My life pupose is to make positive change in the people around me. Thank you so much everyone, I'll be looking around and back with more questions as I keep going through this process :)

Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN · May 18, 2012

Good Luck! the job market is tough in MA. Hopefully it will be different when you graduate.:)