Any Info on Grayson or NCTC?

ijuanabhappy, ASN, RN · Jun 19, 2007

I have been accepted into Grayson also. I don't know anything about either school really since I am not originally from this area. I did go to the Texas Nurse Examiners website and saw that Grayson had good pass rates.

tcdtx · Jun 20, 2007

I graduated from the RN program at NCTC in December 2005. I loved this school. The instrutors were very available to help with anything and everything, and I did get some great clinical experiences. They test with real NCLEX questions, so you get used to the type of questions, wording, etc. I passed my NCLEX the first time with no expensive review courses. I bought the Kaplan Review book, and did just great.

When I got out of school, I didn't have to stay on orientation as long as my new employer anticipated, because I was well prepared. I recently have been given the opportunity to serve as a charge nurse at my hospital.

Good luck to you!

~T

rdop5388 · Jun 20, 2007

I attended NCTC LVN program, but that is another story. Depending on your location if you attend Gainesville plan on doing alot of driving to Denton, Carrollton, Etc for clinical sites. We left classes on Monday afternoons to pick patients at the hospitals then back home for our careplans then back up again for the drive the next morning. The money I spent in gasoline and the time driving was almost unbearable. If you are closer to Grayson I think I would just go there mainly because of the time and money. Also you should checkout how many students are addmitted to the program verses how many actually make it to boards. To me the pass rate doesn't mean anything if they are not graduating students. Good Luck.

melimayer · Jun 20, 2007

I attended NCTC LVN program, but that is another story. Depending on your location if you attend Gainesville plan on doing alot of driving to Denton, Carrollton, Etc for clinical sites. We left classes on Monday afternoons to pick patients at the hospitals then back home for our careplans then back up again for the drive the next morning. The money I spent in gasoline and the time driving was almost unbearable. If you are closer to Grayson I think I would just go there mainly because of the time and money. Also you should checkout how many students are addmitted to the program verses how many actually make it to boards. To me the pass rate doesn't mean anything if they are not graduating students. Good Luck.

Thanks for your reply! Did you have to go to class first and then go to your clinical site? Also, how were the clinical locations assigned.

Thanks for your time.

rdop5388 · Jun 21, 2007

Yes we had class all day then drove in the late afternoon traffic to the hospitals. Sometime I didn't get home until evening. I live in Denison so it was really hard on me and others that lived in my area. Then we had to do paperwork and be back in the hospital at like 6 a. m. the next morning. I don't know about the RN students they might not have had to do like us. As for your assignments in the hospital it really depends on your instructor. We usually had most on Med Surg floor then a hand full in other departments in the hospitals but most of the students were on the floor with the instructor.

AdobeRN · Jun 22, 2007

I attended Grayson as an LVN-RN transition student, I thought it was a great program. Clinicals were at Medical Center of Plano, WNJ & Texoma Medical Center. You could request the location and the day/times of clinicals - 0645-2pm, 130p-9 or one 12 hour shift 7a-7p. We did not have to go to the hospital the day before to pick our patients - which was nice. If you have any more questions let me know.

melimayer · Jun 22, 2007

I graduated from the RN program at NCTC in December 2005. I loved this school. The instrutors were very available to help with anything and everything, and I did get some great clinical experiences. They test with real NCLEX questions, so you get used to the type of questions, wording, etc. I passed my NCLEX the first time with no expensive review courses. I bought the Kaplan Review book, and did just great.
When I got out of school, I didn't have to stay on orientation as long as my new employer anticipated, because I was well prepared. I recently have been given the opportunity to serve as a charge nurse at my hospital.
Good luck to you!
~T

Thanks for the great information. One of the things that I like about NCTC is the class size is smaller. Do you know how many students made it all the way to the boards that started? It concerns me that Grayson accepts 100+ students and, looking at the pass rates for the NCLEX, only 70-76 people made it. Maybe there are other reasons for this.

Also, did you meet at your clinical site or did you have to go to class first in Gainsville?

Thanks again for your time.

AdobeRN · Jun 23, 2007

Thanks for the great information. One of the things that I like about NCTC is the class size is smaller. Do you know how many students made it all the way to the boards that started? It concerns me that Grayson accepts 100+ students and, looking at the pass rates for the NCLEX, only 70-76 people made it. Maybe there are other reasons for this.
Also, did you meet at your clinical site or did you have to go to class first in Gainsville?
Thanks again for your time.

In our class that graduated May 07, we had about 80 that finished the program.

rdop5388 · Jun 23, 2007

I am not sure about the RN program at nctc but the lvn program they weed them out. The first time I was there I think we started with 45 and they finished with like 15-20. The next time I was there it was about the same. But this seems common with most programs I think. Most of the folks in my classes were dismissed for more than just grades. Ex. skill checkoff, not making 100 on the math test each semester. But I do think the RN program does not have to make 100 only the lvn program. So I guess that is a good thing. Good luck.

txnursingstudent7406 · Jul 1, 2007

I would definitely think twice about Grayson. Grayson does not have a good reputation outside of the Grayson County area . If you are planning to stay here then that shouldn't matter but if you ever want to make more $$$ and work in the DFW area then I would say go to a better school. The clinicals are horrible at Grayson and most of the teachers have not worked in a clinical setting in years and alot changes in healthcare in a short time.

I don't know anything about NCTC but I have heard that Collin County is pretty good and Dallas County at Brookhaven in Farmers Branch is excellent. I realize it is quite a drive but in the scheme of things it is worth it.

Good luck to you!!!!

NurseLatteDNP, MSN, DNP, RN · Jul 1, 2007

In our class that graduated May 07, we had about 80 that finished the program.

But that included 30 transitional LVN students also. From the original group, less than 50% have graduated. I love the nursing program at Grayson. Their reputation is excellent, all major hospitals are trying to recruit you early on, so finding a job is not hard. Our NCLEX pass rate is outstanding. Sofar from May 07 graduates everyone who took the NCLEX has passed(that I know of). The school is very hard, but after you graduate you will be well prepared for yoor life as a nurse.