CRNA schools - good or bad?

Silverdragon102, BSN · Feb 2, 2008

Welcome to the site

Moving this to the Pre CRNA Inquiry forum

dfk, RN, CRNA · Feb 3, 2008

this may help or not, but:

there's no school out there that isn't affected by both good and bad..

some may be more than others, but you are bound to experience

it no matter where you go..

a good support system outside of school, whether it be friends and/or family, is really the key to surviving the daily drudges of school..

lovegasRN, BSN, RN · Feb 3, 2008

Thanks, it does help. I just get a little nervous when I read a few posts about people who hate their specific program or feel like they don't have any support from their instructors and get left alone during the first week of clinicals. YIKES!! I am extremely lucky that my husband would be an amazing support and would take the role of stay at home dad while I am in school. Thanks again.

beebe2utah · Feb 3, 2008

I interviewed at Midwestern University in Glendale, AZ in Jan. I have not heard back from the school yet but will tell you what I learned since it was really hard for me to find information on the school.

The program is very new. It is also very small. They accept a class of 15 and said that they had about 160 "quallified" applicants. They interview about 40. They have a system of 1st year didactic and 2nd year clinical.

Strengths: Due to their small class size, they cater very much to the students trying to help you succeed. They also try to base your study determined by the class's knowledge base (they make you take a test at the interview that they grade after you are accepted to determine what to teach...so they say.) You get a very good didactic education sharing classes with the DO students, they also have a pretty nice cadaver lab and simulation lab which they are in the process of expanding. The area is very nice and the school is located out of the way so you aren't stuck in downtown traffic. You get very good clinical experience in blocks. They also have a pretty good passing rate. All the students that I talked to in the interview process say they love it and it is perfect for them.

Weaknesses: By far the biggest weakness I found was the clinical sites. You have some clinicals in AZ, however some of them are all the way down in Tuscon and some other places I can't remember. There are also clinical sites in NM, UT, and CA. Travel expenses are paid personally, as well as room and board at some of them. I don't know which ones have a place to stay. The director said they don't have a specific way to determine who goes where other than by what experiences you get during the program. She also said that there are 6 clinical rotations, two of which you will be out of state. I also talked to a recent grad who said that you should take that "with a grain of salt" saying that she was only in the area for 3 months of her entire clinical experience. I also have heard that because the program is new they are still working out some of the 'kinks'. I also have heard that some of the previous students have had some issues with the director. I don't know what that is about or the situation behind it.

My impression: it is an excellent beginings of a program with a lot of potential for growth. If I did not get into any other program I would definately go to Midwestern and feel I would get a good education. I liked the area and the general "feel" of the school. If you are not in a situation where you can do a lot of traveling at months at a time, it may not be the school for you...however the director did say that they are getting more clinical sites all the time to improve that aspect of the program.

My only outright negative experience was in the application process when I called with some questions about whether I was qualified. The person I talked to was very ubrupt saying that "it was very competative" and that I shouldn't bother apply. I did anyway and got an interview. I have a friend that had a similar experience who got accepted to Baylor for this summer and was more than qualified.

lovegasRN, BSN, RN · Feb 3, 2008

Thanks for all of that very helpful info. I had no idea that some of their clinical sites were out of state. I have a husband and 3 kids so traveling does not work for me at all. I hope they get more in state sites. Where else did you apply? Let us know if you get in.

mmc-rockstar · Feb 6, 2008

Lovegas,

I'm at Westminster in SLC (I noticed you are from Ut). We have the same travel situation in regards to clinicals, so it may not work for you here. If you have any specific questions about this program, PM me.

pookster12 · Sep 8, 2009

I applied to Westminster just recently and I am awaiting to hear about a possible interview. So far I believe that Westminster is my #1 choice because I prefer to go out west and be close to my boyfriend in Denver. I am interested in what their interview process was like and types of questions they asked, as well as how is the program going so far? All I ever see are people complaining about how MD don't like CRNA there in SLC.

careyjim15 · Oct 21, 2009

mmc-rockstar, I am a student in nursing school right now and I live in Utah. I have just been exploring my future options and came across CRNA school. Seeing as I live in Utah, my first choice is Westmister. However, I cannot find a whole lot information (other than what's on their website). So, would you mind letting me know what a competitive applicant would be? Experience, GPA, interview, etc.? Thank you very much and good luck!