Medical Careers Institute VA Beach or Newport News??

U.S.A. Virginia

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Specializes in None yet.

Im looking into starting a nursing program in Virginia. Has anyone out there been or is attending the Medical Careers Institute? Is it a good program that they run?

My main question is - is the VA Beach Campus better then the Newport News Campus and why? I am coming from out of state so have no preference to where I live but I am wondering which campus is better. Also any other information you could give me about the college or the program would be great as the admin people that I have spoken to are reluctant to give me any information until I go for an application interview.

Thanks a ton.

I think you should look around at some other programs, the last time I was thinking about going to MCI in 2008 the tuition was $30,000 for the RN program. If you go to a community college or a Hospital based program it won't even cost half that price. So do some more research.

The only reason that MCI seems drastically more expensive is because the tuition includes all your text books and uniforms/required med. supplies. the only thing it doesn't include is your basic school supplies ...paper..binders....in my opinion, not having to worry about text books each semester is a big plus.

The RN program at MCI is tough. In va beach..the last class to graduate had 98% nclex pass rates, and 98% job placement. It is a small private school and offers very small classes with alot of individual attention. Everyone knows you and They want you to succeed. The failure rates aren't as bad as it may seem. I had concerns about the pass rates myself. If you research their graduation rate it seems low because alot of students do not graduate on time. The classes are only 5 weeks opposed to 15 week sememsters. If you don't pass a class because you get sick and miss a week, or you fail a class but almost passed, they will let you retake it with the next "batch" of RNs( so long as you stay in close contct with the school)...a 3 month wait.The first classes are hard to retake because they have less room..and they probably figure if you can't handle microbiology you should consider LPN... So students that aren't graduating on time are officially counted against the graduation rate. The program is hard to get into .....sometimes averaging 150 applicants...25 accepted for days....25 for nights...This program takes complete devotion, 600% dedication. I noticed that alot of the negative posts about mci's rn program are from people who do not go there. The most important thing is that you do well on your admissions tests. You will take them during your first applic. interv....I am only familiar with VB.

Specializes in None yet.

Thanks for all the info.

Do I understand right that you said - you take your admission tests during your first application interview?

That scares me because they did not tell me this when they told me to come and complete the application process. They were very reluctant to give me any information about the program etc which I found quite strange.... as I am travelling a long way just to complete the application.

Did you find the tuition rates quite high?

What is the VA Beach area like..... renting wise?

Thanks

Hi Jules,

My daughter has attended both the MCI Virginia Beach campus and the Newport News campus and says she likes the sim labs in the Newport News campus better. She found apartments to be cheaper in Newport News but you need to make sure you talk to someone about the safest areas in the city. My daughter took a test the first time she visited the campus and there was only one part she did not do well on and they showed her a site online to practice and she passed when she went back. MCI is a hands on school and they seem to have the best equipment in their labs, my daughter says the NN campus just got a Med Dispenser machine that no other school in the area has. It looks like they invest a lot of that tuition money back into the students :)

My best advice is...study before you go. I did well without having any idea I was going to be tested...but..I could have done better if i had known. its the TEAS...study. I would rather live in Virginia Beach Area. Va Beach is more expensive rent wise...but I wouldn't want to live in newport News..but thats just me..Newport news has some really bad crime areas..dangerous areas..

Specializes in None Yet.

Sorry, I am not familiar with the VB campus but I do know a little about the Newport News campus. Let me tell you that I attended an Open House there, last year and had NO idea that we were going to take the TEAS! I thought we were going to do a walk through and learn more about the school, what they have to offer.

From what I remember, they briefly went over the programs and sent us to another room to take the TEAS. I was so ****** off because no one mentioned anything about taking a test. Mind you, we had to RSVP for the Open House and everything. I RSVP'ed well in advance. This was all done at the Newport News campus.

My sister in law attended MCI Newport News campus for Medical Assisting and she loves it! Everyone she graduated with has a job and are doing very well!

I just moved from NN,VA. I worked with a lot of nurses that graduated from MCI and they were all great nurses that were very educated. I have a friend that is doing the RN program now and loves it. NN is a lot cheaper as far as cost of living goes. NN gets a bad warp cause downtown is a little rough but the area around the school is very nice. The cost seems like a lot. But you get in quickly where as one of the community colleges you'll have to get on the waiting list which in that area is long. Good luck with your choice.

Check out Riverside Hospital's program... I graduate from there in two months. You can do the LPN program and then, take the bridge to RN. It's 3 semesters (9 1/2 months of actual class time), and costs 3300 a semester for the LPN program. You pay a grand total of $150 for books and another 150 for uniforms. Buy a cheap stethoscope, pen light and scissors--$60. Just over 10k, and you are done. If you look on the Virginia Board of Nursing website, you'll see how they rank among other schools... Pretty high up there. There is no waiting list... you test against the other applicants each time. They take the top 36 students and have 3 alternates.

The bridge program is the same amount of time--you take the 3 month bridge, and then, complete the last two semesters of the RN program. Total of 2 years... The plus is that you can work as an LPN while doing the RN program... it's easier to complete when you are actually at the hospital and can apply what you are learning. (Hope that makes sense!) The RN bridge is another 10k, but if you work for Riverside while you are going, they pick up the tab. :)

I have a friend that went to MCI... It's a great school, and I am in no way saying that it is lacking in any way. My friend knows just as much as I do, but it cost her a lot more. In the end, we are sitting for the same state exam...

Specializes in Gertiatric/ Long Term Care.

I have been taking pre-req's at MCI NN for the last month and I really love it. I did have some financial issues that moved my start date for the RN program back to May.

As far as the teachers go, I think they are comparable to more traditional colleges. The material is very demanding. It goes very fast. But it's not undoable obviously :)

Also- get ON THEM about testing out of classes. They don't like to do this, because it costs them money. But it's your right as a student, and I tested out of the computer class which was exceptionally easy. If you know anything about word, powerpoint and excel you can pass it and then you don't have to take the class.

that's the best bit of info I have. Goodluck!

I am a current RN student in the NN campus therefore I am only going to talk about this particular campus. Here are the

PRO's;

1. Requirements are NOT as rigid and strict when compared to other schools

2. 15 month program lenght (not incl. the prerequisites and granted you don't fail any class)

3. Great instructors (MOST OF THEM.. I'm going to be fair in my evaluation)

4. Director is VERY approachable and is willing to help (THAT IS RARE. I was in another RN program before and you couldn't even look at the Director's way)

5. Provides uniforms, books, CPR class, Medical kit (Stethoscope,pen light, etc), labs to practice nursing skills are very modern and updated

6. Has a career service dept. that helps with resumes, interviews, etc.

CONS:

1. Have no control over your schedule

2. 5 week classes which is VERY stressful and draining.. VERY fast paced.

3. VERY EXPENSIVE... But remember, this school is a "for-profit school" so don't be shocked. They know most of us are DESPERATE to get in and they have NO problems filing a spot

4. Can be very money oriented (financial dept., etc) For example, they can HOLD you and prevent you from moving ahead if your financial aid package is not straightened out right away even if it's NOT your fault.

5. As someone else has mentioned, once you fail A CLASS, IT IS VERY HARD TO COME BACK. You're pretty much going to back to square one and hope and pray you get back in. Minimum of a 3 Month wait to find out if you even have a chance of coming back. Can be longer if there are no spots available for that next term. (GPA BASED)

6. If you fail any nursing class at a particular term and the next term is offering a completely separate class, YOU HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO WAIT. For instance (Nursing Concepts I is failed by a student in term 1 but passed English I... In term 2 MCI is offering Nursing Concepts 2 and an English II class.... You can't take the English class even though you only failed Nursing Concepts 1) YOU HAVE TO WAIT 3 months to take that class along with Nursing I again.

**** I hope I made sense****

7. There IS a tuition increase EVERY year even if the "counselor" tells you when you were filing out paperwork that you will only be required to pay "x" amount of money.

8. MCI does not transfer in any Nursing classes and A&P and Microbiology class no matter where you took it. (can be a double edge sword sometimes)

9. PARKING IS A NIGHTMARE if you're a day student. Not enough space and a complete chaotic environment.

As with any school, any student can knit pick about everything and whine and cry about it. For me personally, I'm glad I'm going to this school and I will be graduating soon. Best advice is... have an open mind when you go in for an interview, and take note at everything said to you. YOU WILL take the teas exam (math,english,science and reading) when you come in, and most of the time no one knows they even take this entrance exam that day. Try to do very well in it because it is one of the factors looked at when you're bidding for a spot in the RN program. My overall experience has been good and I do feel the instructors are well competent and is comparable if not better than some of the nursing schools around. There are minor issues that can be evaluated and improved, but I think that's with any school. You're learning to be a nurse and you won't be there forever. You can't just listen to what we all say to you on here because in the end, it'll be YOUR decision. But I do hope you give it a chance and of course, please shop around for other schools. MCI isn't for everyone for sure. Good luck to you and I'm sure you'll make the best decision! Hope this helped you!

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