pre-nursing student with misdemeanors

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

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Hello everyone,

I am pre-nursing major attending community college in CT. What I would like to know is that I got into some trouble back in 1997-1998. I was charged with disorderly conduct and third degree assault. I was given a promise to appear in court. I showed up at court the judge heard my case and dropped all the charges against me. I think that I was given a fine of $50. I was a very troubled person back then. I have learned form my mistakes and I sought out counseling. I haven't been in any trouble since then. I am hoping that my past will not come up and bite me in the butt. What do you think about this? Do you think that I will have trouble getting accepted into a nursing program?

Carmen

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Specializes in Med surg/ tele, LDRP.

As long as they're not felonies and are honest on you application about having said demeanors then you should be fine. Same on the state certification applications when you apply for your RN license you will need to back it up. I don't think they worry much about misdemeanors especially if it was more than 5 years ago, usually its felonies that have problems. Good luck!

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Specializes in Emergency Department.

You should get a copy of your criminal record and be absolutely certain that it shows a disposition for your case. If there's no disposition, then the BON may not be able to determine whether you (still) have an active and open case with pending charges against you. If there is an incorrect disposition, that's also not good. It's better to clean up badly-kept records early than to wait and untangle a mess later. That could lead to problems getting licensed. The poster above me also gave good advice... be open, honest, etc with the BON so that they can properly evaluate your application (when it comes time).

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Thank you for your response my post

carmen

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Specializes in Critical Care.
Hello everyone,

I am pre-nursing major attending community college in CT. What I would like to know is that I got into some trouble back in 1997-1998. I was charged with disorderly conduct and third degree assault. I was given a promise to appear in court. I showed up at court the judge heard my case and dropped all the charges against me. I think that I was given a fine of $50. I was a very troubled person back then. I have learned form my mistakes and I sought out counseling. I haven't been in any trouble since then. I am hoping that my past will not come up and bite me in the butt. What do you think about this? Do you think that I will have trouble getting accepted into a nursing program?

Carmen

Paralegal here (obligatory IANAL and do not work in CT, but I think the following may be applicable/helpful). If the judge dropped all the charges against you then you were never convicted of those charges, and you therefore have no misdemeanors on your record. Did you plead guilty to a lesser charge? It sounds like you are stressing out over nothing, if indeed the charges were dropped. You should call the court and obtain the paperwork regarding your case to see what, in fact, you plead guilty to (if anything).

Pay close attention to the wording of your applications. If it asks if you have ever been charged with a crime, you must tell about the charges, but if it asks if you've ever been convicted of crime that leaves you some more wiggle room.

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Hello Emmjayy,

I want to thank you for your advise. I will call to the court to see if I can get my record then I will go from there.

carmen

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