UVA MSN CNL 2015

U.S.A. Virginia

Published

Hi all, I've been lurking on the boards for about a year and a half now and finally the time has come for me to apply. I haven't found any boards about UVA MSN applicants for the 2015 cohort so I decided to start one. I'm also applying to VCU's ABSN program as well, and perhaps GMU and ODU, too.

I was hoping to get some feedback from others applying because truth be told, I'm very nervous about my stats because while I am above the minimum requirements for GPA and pre-reqs, they are still below the comparative applicant averages. I also am very interested in talking to others who are going through the process of applying!

I'm graduating this December with a BA in Philosophy from Virginia Tech. My GPA is 3.16 and I doubt it'll increase much more with this last semester I have ahead. I've completed all the pre-reqs with a 3.5 avg gpa and I'm going to take the GRE the beginning of September. I work as a care companion at a local nursing home and have experience with late-stage Alzheimer's patients and the geriatric community as a whole. I don't have a CNA license however. I also volunteered and interned at a women's shelter working with clients over the phone and in-house, as well as training new interns/volunteers. My other job is unrelated to healthcare and involves working in a research lab as a lab tech and although I have not done any formal research, I have helped grad students and the PI with small projects in addition to the typical duties of dish cleaning and lab maintenance.

UVA is definitely my top choice but my stats are so mediocre in comparison to the other applicants of previous years, I'm feeling discouraged. I'm not sure what else I can do to improve my chances other than study my butt off for the GRE and write mind-blowing statements, and hope my letters of recommendation are as glowing as my recommenders say they will be.

Anyway, I'm looking forward to chatting with others applying and going through the process and hopefully we will be classmates in the near future!

Hello, Kaitlyn. I wanted to know if the nursing school have frequent career fairs for recruiting new graduates? Also, are you awarded a bsn after the first year of the program for covering the "nursing basics" or is it just one degree awarded(MSN)? Approximately, how many students are accepted into the cohort at the UVA campus? Thanks, Kaitlyn!

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Hey JRob,

So I looked it up and it looks like the SON does a career fair once a year, last year it was on December 2nd, but there is no info for this years one. So I'm not really sure. I know the health system does have them from time to time, they have a Facebook page "UVA Nurse Recruitment" that updates about their open houses for all the different units. That being said, I've never attended one, during my second year I will most likely start going to a few.

It's just one degree, the MSN. The way it works is your get your MSN at the end of the two years, then you need to test to get your RN license (NCLEX exam) and then to get your CNL certificate you take an additional test for that as well (I didn't realize it was a separate test/certificate before orientation week this past summer). At the end of the two years you can decide whether to take the CNL exam or hold off, but really it makes sense to go ahead and take it while all the info is fresh in your brain.

My cohort is the largest to date and it is my understanding that they are not growing the program further. There are 43 of us total.

Hope this helps!

Kaitlyn

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Thanks, Kaitlyn.

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Hi Kaitlyn! Thanks for joining the group. I followed the UVA/CNL thread on this blog last year so I remember you!!

When you said log in to the SIS page, do you mean the dashboard of our application page? I will probably start checking ASAP(like ten times a day, every day!)!:woot:

Thanks Kaitlyn, and best of luck in your studies!!!

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The decisions will be available on Saturday, December 20. You will need to log into the application itself and there will be a link that says "Your Admissions Decision is Available". Click on that link to see the decision letter. That link "goes live" on the 20th at 12:01am Eastern Time.

Those offered admission will have one month to confirm their space and pay a $250 deposit. We expect to turn to the Waiting List in early February if needed. We anticipate 36 spaces for the Charlottesville cohort and 4-6 spaces for the Abingdon cohort.

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Thank you for the update UVA Grad Nursing!

I'm also curious... do you know how many people applied to the program this year? And of those how many were selected to interview?

Thank you for keeping us in the loop.

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Sorry! Just now seeing your questions, but it appears the SON has answered them below! It definitely won't appear until the 20th at 12:01am EST! As much as you wish and hope it will show up sooner, it's not! I can speak from experience!! haha

19 days friends, you can do it!

The wait is the hardest!

Best wishes for you all!!

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sigh, 12 more days!

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Indeed! Elefant, is UVA your first choice? I briefly checked out the boards for two other schools I'm applying to (Duke and JHU, but UVA is my first choice) and saw you applied as well :)

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It's hard to say what my first choice is. I'd be more than happy going to any of the schools I applied to lol!

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I'm in Kaitlyn's class too. They told use 36 would be accepted and then took 43. No guarantee with that, but you never know!! Also, UVA is on an extreme nurse shortage. Morals are not always high on every floor, but I have had great clinical experiences. You have two years until you graduate so career fairs are a bit in the future and it is hard to tell what the hospital will be going through at that time. With a CNL, you are in high demand!! I haven't heard of anyone having difficulties finding a job after graduation!

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I don't know about the rest of you, but I am getting so anxious about the 20th I dreamed about the acceptance letter the other night!

Only 10 more days, but it feels like a lifetime away. I hope the rest of you are coping better than I am.

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