TSU Nursing at Volstate, help!

U.S.A. Tennessee

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Hi everyone, is there anybody thinking of attending or currently attending TSU nursing at Volstate here? Im applying for the fall this year at Volstate location. To be honest, im constantly being heard about complaints about this school and that really makes me feel worry! Grade scale; staffs and teachers attitude; students being neglected; administration process,....more and more are just...notoriously bad. Therefore, i would really appreciate if anyone could tell me more about this school, or this program. Can anyone help me please?

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I don't have personal experience with Volstate, but I can tell you that you would do well to listen to your gut. It sounds like you have heard consistent feedback from many different sources. It is one thing if only one person complains. But with potential schools or employers, if you are hearing the same feedback over and over, LISTEN to it!

One example I just had is a hospital in my metro area (I'll call it "Exclusive" Hospital - that's what they're trying to be). I heard from multiple people at a hospital I worked at 3 months ago that the staff relationships at Exclusive Hospital are not supportive and sometimes hostile. But, wanting to be undeterred, I pursued applying at Exclusive Hospital anyway - I was a new grad afterall and wanted to leave no stone unturned. However, Exclusive Hospital told me very curtly, "Sorry, we only accept BSN graduates." Today, at my new hospital which is VERY supportive to new grads (which I LOVE working at and would NEVER trade for the BSN-only hospital), one of the very experienced nurses mentioned that she previously applied at Exclusive Hospital. She interviewed there and found them to be completely "snotty." I just chuckled under my breath. You really do serve yourself well to listen to consistent feedback about schools & hospitals, especially if it is consistent between different people who don't know each other. These places have definite "cultures" that are good or bad, and their reputation does get out. I'm not saying that they never change or should never be reconsidered later, but definitely listen to the feedback, especially if it is recent.

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Hi AJPV,Can you believe that, for every5 people I ask, 4 out of them, just like me have been heard about these complaint! Well, I think that many people want to get in there because of its minimum admission requirements compare to other schools ( if you apply in main campus) and the length of the program (faster, I choose TSU of this feature). These maybe the causes.... Besides, my old classmates told me that since there was not much help, they mostly had to study by themselves and they were glad that they luckily made it! Well.... Should I consider to go somewhere else? Any thought?

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Some hospitals prefer BSN over ADN??? :(

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Some hospitals prefer BSN over ADN??? :(

Some hospitals do require a BSN. However, I've noticed an interesting correlation that these same hospitals often have horrible employee morale and a dictatorial leadership style. Hospitals that are more forward-thinking recognize that there is very little difference in clinical skills between a BSN & ADN graduate, and what really matters is actually SUPPORTING new grads with extensive training and opportunities to pursue additional study and professional certification in a specialty area. That is what really matters in terms of clinical excellence - not the "extra" courses you get in a BSN major (like management, statistics, Western Civ, Art History, etc.)

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Well for this point I totally agree with you. Those prerequisite classes are such real pain to our GPA. AJPV, do you have any idea of how much new grad ADN get paid for a hour nowadays? Thanks

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Just wanted to touch on a couple of things. I don't know about other hospitals in the area, but Vanderbilt does not give preference to ADN vs BSN. In fact, one of our new nurse residents in my dept is an ADN fro TSU main campus as are SEVERAL of the TRAUMA!!!! nurse residents. There are a few from TSU, a couple from Aquinas, and maybe 1 or 2 from Motlow. I haven't seen anyone from Columbia St this go around. The pay rate that was offered to new grads (ADN AND BSN) was around 21 and some change an hour. One of the girls hired in my dept worked with us for 4 years before she graduated from belmont with her BSN. She had 12 years in at , a Bachelors, and a Masters degree in another health area. She was offered the same money as everyone else.

As far as the TSU program rumors. I know people who are succeeding and people who aren't. It's whatever you put into it. There are no perfect programs. I applied for the Fall 2012 group, and I'm excited about going. Nothing is going to stop me...syllabus change or a little bit of disorganization. I'm going. I will graduate, pass my NCLEX, and go on to my masters.

Best wishes to you all on your journey! Hope to see some of you in the Fall!

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Oh...and I also wanted to add. Out of 6 charge nurses in my dept 3 are ADNs. We have around 30 staff nurses, and the greater majority of them are ADNs as well. It's the same in my husband's dept. Charge nurses in my dept top out at $40 an hour. My mother in law is and IV therapy/PICC nurse (at ..she's an ADN from TSU) and their top out is close to $35 an hour. She's topped out because she's been there awhile. She was a CN in the ED at General after she graduated in '86.

Also, I live in Gallatin but applied to the main campus. Dr. ******** ***** the Program Director. She's super sweet, VERY helpful, great about returning emails in a timely manner, etc. She even gave me her personal cell number to call if I had any questions. The last I spoke with her she said, "We're really exciting you're applying". I chose the main campus because I have spoken with her many times, and she made me feel very comfortable. The Program Director for the VolState campus (I currently attend VolState) had a stroke this year, and as far as I know will not be returning. The VolState program went through a lot this year. I'd be patient. I was in their office in January for some odds and ends stuff, and spoke with a couple of students. The majority were adult students returning to college. We all know that's hard, so I can see why school is frustrating for them. I think there are many factors that contribute to a person's frustration and/or success in nursing school. It's hard for people who have never worked as a tech (and even that depends on where you work), adult students, people with young kids, etc. We all bring our own issues to the table, but we can do this. It's not out of our reach and honestly....I really don't think it's as hard as everyone makes it out to be. The nurses I work with are not only amazing nurses, but amazing teachers. They lend me their nursing books and have taken the time to teach me so much. There's nothing in those books that is impossible to learn. Just a lot of reading and studying. That's all.

Again, best wishes to you guys!

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Did anyone get their acceptance letter for fall 2012 yet?

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Last year they came on or after the 17th. I expect to receive it any day now. :)

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Do you mind sharing your GPA, entrance exam scores, and Chem grade? Just curious about where everyone is.

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I'm also waiting for the letters to arrive, mabey tomorrow. :bugeyes:

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