Waiting 2 1/2 years in Cali, feeling like giving up

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

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Specializes in General Surgery.

Hi all, this is my first time posting. Anyway, here's the run-down of my situation and I would love any advice or even just a fresh pair of eyes on what I should do next. I feel like I'm in a rut.

Last week, I just got my fifth letter of denial :sniff: so I've been waiting 2 1/2 years. I know there are a lot of people out there who have waited longer than me but it is incredibly disheartening to keep getting rejected over and over again.

I'm 25 years old and I've always known deep down that I've wanted to be an RN, just like my mom. I know I will be a good nurse if someone will just give me a chance. I also so badly want to start a family but I can't knowing that I wouldn't be able to financially support them. Right now, I'm working as a scheduler for a local outpatient radiology company and before that I was a surgery scheduler for a vascular surgeon. I have my CNA license but cannot find any suitable openings at a hospital to get experience.

I live in Roseville, CA which is a suburb of Sacramento. We have four CC's around in this general area that have 2 year RN programs (which is what I'm looking for). I think where I messed up is that I was in such haste to get my applications out to those schools that I made the stupid, STUPID mistake of trying to take Microbiology and Physiology at the same time (at that point, you couldn't have any classes in progress at application time). Needless to say, I didn't do well; I got a B in Micro and a C in Physio. I did well in Anatomy, getting an A. That puts my core bio classes at a 2.93 GPA.

1) Sac City College requires a minimum 3.0 GPA in you core bio classes so I've never been able to apply there, no exceptions.

2) Sierra College uses this Chancellor's Predictor of Success equation calculating your cumulative GPA, English 1A grade, core bio GPA and # of core bio retakes. You have to have at least 84% to apply this last semester so I can no longer apply to them. Unfortunately, my cumulative GPA is horrible (2.5) because when I first started college, I was young and totally unmotivated which really screwed with my GPA and now I'm paying for it. Even if I were to raise my GPA to a 3.0 which I would have to take 30 more units to do that, it would still only put me @ 82%. FRUSTRATING.

3) American River College also requires a 3.0 core bio GPA but they are nice enough to accept my 2.93 GPA - this is the only school that I have been able to apply to so far, or so I thought...

4) Yuba City College is a four year waitlist. I had two separate counseling appointments at their campus and both times I was told I needed to have my pharm and pathophysio classes completed before applying to their program. Problem is, with nursing being so popular these days, all nursing pre-reqs fill up within minutes of priority registration. Notice I said, priority, I had never been a student there so I've never been able to get into those classes. Recently, I tried to see if there was any more room in their online classes so I could add them and the nursing department told me that they've never required students to have those classes done before applying. Since I've already waited almost as long as it would've taken me to get in, you can hopefully understand my anger and frustration.

My boyfriend is done with his school in Feb 2010 which would give me 2 more tries with American River College. If I don't get in, we're really serious about moving to the Los Angeles area. We're both originally from that area so it wouldn't be a culture shock or anything like that if we do move, my fear is that even though there are more RN programs down there, I'm still going to end up waiting because there are WAY more people down there too.

I have also been looking into Mt. St. Mary's College and I love what I see. My hesitation with that is since it's in the LA area, rent for us two is going to be sky-high. How many hours would I be able to work while in the program if I'm even able to find a job down there? Is that reasonable? How would I make it work to attend that college? At this point, I would rather pay the high cost for their tuition than to wait any longer. I haven't found any other private colleges that offer 2 year degrees like the Mount does.

What do you suggest I do? Any other avenues I haven't covered? I don't have a competitive enough GPA to get into Sac State. I obviously don't want to move if I don't have to but it's looking more like I have to each time I get denied. My mom has lupus and she's getting older and I really worry about her. She has a younger sister here but she has a serious illness as well and no other family members to take care of them if they get sick. I'm hesitant to move away from my mom which I think is understandable. Also, am I being unreasonable or impatient? Again, I welcome any and all advice or constructive criticism. What am I doing wrong?

Oh, and I can't retake physio to get a better grade because I know retakes look really bad. Why do they say a C grade is acceptable when in reality it's not?!?

I'm SOOOOO frustrated... I have everything ready to apply to the rad-tech program but I cannot see myself taking x-rays for the rest of my career. I want to do patient care. Being an interventional radiology nurse would be cool though. But I digress, what else can I do?

Thank you all for you input in advance :loveya:

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Hi

I just wanted to say I feel for ya! I am also in the sac area (live in Auburn) and am taking pre-req's at Sierra. I don't really have advice for you because it sounds like your only option is to continue to apply to American River. If it was me I definately would of been taking classes while waiting, anything just to get my GPA up, plus I think AR offers pharmacology, I know that doesn't help you now though as you indicated it's too late to get on Yuba's wait list. So, apply 2 more times and keep your fingers crossed!! Good luck to you..

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Specializes in Med-Surg.

I'm in the San Diego area and I know what you mean. I applied to two CC's and a university. The CC's have a three year waitlist down here now. When I got on it was about two and a half. I've been accepted to one of CC's after two and a half years of waiting and am now waiting to hear from the university. I'm sorry that your choices are so limited. I know retaking physio doesn't look good but wouldn't that bump up your gpa. I would think if they saw you try second time and passed with flying colors then they might oversee the C. Taking other classes to bump up your gpa is good too. I decided to get on the waitlists as fast as possible down here and then take all my BSN requirements while waiting. I also decided to be certified as a medical assistant. If you have all your bachelors requirements then maybe you can look into getting a bachelors in something else and going into an accelerated program. Another option down here that we have is private schools like Kaplan but they cost an insane amount of money and their courses only transfer to university of pheonix. Best suggestion I could give pretty much is to get on a waitlist where you know you're accepted and then keep applying and applying anywhere you need to. Whether you want to move or not is up to you and what school you really want. All I know is that Cali is extremely competitive. It's probably going to be bumped up to four year waitlists by next year. Which is horrendous.

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Specializes in Couplet Care/Newborn Nursery.

Hey I'm in Roseville too and just finished up Micro at Sierra.

I guess my best advice is to just continue taking classes and still apply to the colleges that you can. Have you thought of applying to BSN programs?

Or do you have your bachelors, if so you can apply to accelerated programs.

A lady I work with said it took her 3 years to get into Sierra's nursing program and she just graduated. She said she didn't give up and just kept on applying each term.

When I was looking into programs, a lot of the nursing programs in southern ca also have wait lists or require a min gpa of 3.0. I would def look into retaking one of those classes, just to boost your GPA above that 3.0 mark so you can apply to more schools.

Good luck to you! Just don't give up!

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I would retake the physio. You are holding yourself back from the schools that you could probably deal with, if you got a better physio grade. Be prepared for more of the same down in LA. Your best bet is MSMC, although expensive. But be aware that it, too, is very competitive. You really need to repeat that class. Another thing you could do is go to an LVN school. Getting an LVN license might get you in via the LVN to RN bridge door. Good luck.

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Specializes in CNA @ LTCF.

Hey I am in Sacramento and understand your frustrations. I am on the same level with applications as you. I have been applying to programs for 2.5 years and finally got into a program. However. I kept my options open and finally caved in and retook A&P 1 to better my grade. I suggest retaking the courses and applying for a BSN program. It is getting a lot harder so it would be best to up your science GPA and soon as possible! I have wanted to give up plenty of times especially when I had enough pts to get into CSUS and then made the mistake of applying to sac state too late and the nursing prog considered me ineligible because of one little mistake. scores were good, GPA was good and my points added up but i didn't follow the deadline to apply to the university in time. then I did everything right the next semester and the competition raised dramatically the next semester and i didnt get in because smarter people applied that semester! I was an alt for sac city and didnt know that if you are an alt you get placement for the next semester if you get your ducks in a row as if you were already selected (send TEAS and such to them). so i would have gotten in this spring... I don't know what is worse, not getting in because of not being selected randomly or not getting in because of a mistake here and there! I do know grades are key to getting into some programs (sierra, csus, sam merritt, possibly sutter even) If i had put my name on the wait list for yuba or napa or solano i would've been in a program by now so those wait list classes i totally suggest getting signed up with! Wherever you go you will be chancing your acceptance so i suggest either alternate routes while you apply (PA program, Phleb certification, Bio degree) and just sit it out. I have finished all of my Associates and bachelor's general ed, and all co-req's, and also some recommended classes while taking fun course at the same time while I wait it out. Grades are, sadly, a big thing if you are trying to be competitive, but if you wait it out with the random selected schools you will eventually get a spot! But I say don't give up just find ways around the urge to throw in the towel by taking other classes while waiting. Also while you wait retake courses (CSUS you can do A&P1 and A&P2 at the same time esp since you have already taken them). And if you get A's with those you can use those towards applying to CSUS! Calculate your grades and see what would happen if you did retake those two big curses and applied for the next semester of csus's BSN program, you may be surprised! If you havent already i suggest studying and taking a TEAS test to see where you fall and what you need to work on. if you give me your last 3 years of grades i could try to calculate your GPA and suggest where to start with building up your GPA. my email is [email protected]

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I understand your frustration. It took me two years to get all the pre-reqs done, and than a year-and-a-half of applying before I finally got an acceptance. I know your situation is a tough one, but I do have a few suggestions:

  1. Keep applying to ARC. This is kind of a no-brainer, but be aware that every time you are passed over in the lottery, you get an extra "ticket" for the next semester. Your chances get better and better as you go along, provided you apply each successive semester. If you skip a semester you lose your accrued extra "tickets."
  2. Go ahead and retake physiology. Before you sign up, make sure the college will allow you to repeat the class. Some colleges won't let you repeat a class that you passed with a C, but I believe Sierra will allow it when a higher grade is needed for a specific program. That sounds like your situation.
  3. Get an application in at Solano College. I know it's a long drive, but you would qualify at Solano. Unlike many other CCs, Solano puts you on a waiting list if you're qualified. It would take a couple of years for your name to get to the top, but it's a good backup if all else fails.
  4. Have you considered an LVN program? You're already more than qualified for many of the LVN programs, and once you get your LVN it is relatively easy to get into an LVN-to-RN stepup program. For instance, Sac City College has about 600 applicants for the 35 slots in their ADN program, and about 40 applicants for the 20 slots in their LVN-to-RN stepup. Going this route, it would take you an extra six months to a year to get your RN (1 year of LVN training + 6 months mandatory work experience as an LVN + 1 Year LVN-to-RN stepup). The LVN program at Sierra is currently "on hold," but an LVN program is still being offered at SCC.

I hope these suggestions prove useful. Best of luck in your quest to be an RN. Hang in there, you can do it!

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Yeah I was just about to suggest getting into an LVN program first with what you do have, then transitioning to RN from there. Don't give up! :)

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Specializes in General Surgery.

Thank you to everyone, really, it's so nice to see so much support here =)

I called Sierra and they're saying it's my GPA that's holding me back, not my physio grade... Poo. I will definitely sign up for some classes in attempt to raise my GPA. And they won't let me retake physio at Sierra because I got a C; it would be an "illegal repeat" as the lady told me. She also said repeats looks worse than just leaving it. I'll have to find out if I can retake it at ARC and if they consider it worse as well.

Mossback and Lenee, thank you for the LVN suggestion. Honestly, I haven't given it much thought, I've had my blinders on... First thing tomorrow morning, I'm gonna get an app to Solano and look into SSC. I've been waiting this whole time already, what's six more months?

I was also looking into possibly moving to Fresno or Bakersfield but I need some more details about how impacted the are compared to up here. I like that they accept a 2.5 GPA in your core bio classes as with most southern Cali programs. I picked those areas because I would think they would be cheaper to live there than as if I were going to go to MSMC (I still REALLY want to go there but LA real estate is expensive). I need to do more research into that unless someone else already knows if they're just as bad as up here.

Well, I am very glad I stopped by here - who else to ask for advice than from all you smart, kind future nurses!

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Specializes in geriatrics.

Find out about the pre reqs required for some of the private nursing schools around. I don't know about your area, but I know there are plenty here. I'm going into the LVN program at American Career College. I got in just by taking three entrance exams. Their RN program is at West Coast University, and if you get your LVN through them you can go through their RN rpogram in just 18 months. If you're worried about funding, it was easy as pie for me to get $26,000 in grants and loans.

I would personally give up on the community colleges. Their waiting lists are only going to get longer as they lose funding.

Good luck!

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When you talk to the schools make sure you ask them what the GPA cutoff was for the prior years rather than just what the acceptable cutoff is to apply. I know of two schools that "accept" a GPA of 2.5 but haven't in the last five years given a seat to anyone under a 3.4 because of so many well qualified applicants applying.

If the LVN to RN doesn't work for you and you're still not able to get in, i'd suggest finding a school w/ an RN to BSN program and scoping out what their gen ed requirements are. Most BSN programs require english, humanties, social science, diversity and math courses that ADN programs do not. Keep applying to the ADN programs but in the meantime take these gen ed courses to bump up your GPA and then after you do finish your ADN degree you already have a good chunk of your BSN courses out of the way as well.

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sweetie move to the midwest state like ohio they will love you and you can become an rn in a different state and then get your license in CA, after you pass NCLEX, there are no other tests

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