Aaahhhh!!! This application process is getting to me!!! (Long)

[tfleuter, BSN, RN]

My school's application deadline is May 15th. They only look at two factors to decide on who gets in: your pre-req GPA and your TEAS composite score. The past 2 semesters the average accepted GPA was 3.8ish and the TEAS composite score was 89%. I have a 3.93 and 89.4%, so I was feeling pretty confident that I would get in.

Yesterday, I began my summer block physiology class and I overheard two girls talking about the application process for the nursing program. One of the gals says she has A's in all of her pre-reqs except for one, where she has a A-(same as me), so she is planning on taking the class over so she can have a 4.0. I'm thinking that is pretty unecessary since her (supposively) 3.93 gpa is competitive enough as is. Then she goes on telling the other girl that she will need a TEAS composite in the high 90's to even have a chance at getting in this fall because the application pool is going to be MUCH bigger then the previous year. This is where my jaw dropped cause I just can't imagine that the average score would jump up by almost 10% just b/c more students are applying. Of course this has me worried so today I talked to a nursing instructor and he assured me that this girl had no "insider information" and that nobody has any way of telling how competitive this years application pool will be. He told me to take what she said with a huge grain of salt, and that these kind of rumors go around all the time.

So now I feel a little bit better, but am still worried that I might not get in JUST because of this conversation I overheard. I have the option of taking the TEAS one more time before May 15th, but this summer physiology course is really demanding and I don't want to fall behind on it because I am trying to study for the TEAS instead of focusing on my class. If I knew my TEAS score wasn't going to be good enough I would for sure take it again, but until yesterday, I was pretty confident in my score. Aaaahhhh! What to do, what to do. Ok, vent over. Thanks for letting me rant!

[jreneex2]

if it is a competitive program and there are a LOT of applicants...it can make a difference, even that petty. The minimum scores accepting on my school's test was 75% I had 89% everything else was decent, but when I was not accepted, I went and talked to admissions after and she said some of the people had all A's and (I had a couple of B's-but my school req B or better) and got over 100% on that test. Because there were so many applicants they had to base it more on numbers before going into the other factors, such as letters.

I know it sucks...If you think you could get a higher grade on that test?? Ask the admission dept. having them see your face is like having little interviews....Good Luck!

JEN

[NewBeginning]

My advice would be try stop overhearing conversations! They just get you nervous and put you in a panic. It sould like you are in a great place for your application. The person you overheard has no way of knowing what others test scores are. She may want to take the test over to put her in a better status in her own mind with absolutely no fact to base her decision upon....and it may be completely unnecessary.

[tfleuter, BSN, RN]

Thanks! I have definately consider the increased competitiveness aspect due to increased applicant pool, but what I don't know (and I guess no one can at this point) is by how much? In the past, the number of applicants was anywhere between 250 - 300 for 40 spots, or so I've been told. In order to drive up the TEAS score significantly, I would have to assume that the increase for this fall's applicant pool would be signifcant as well, like an additional 100 or so. I just can't see why that would be the case all of a sudden, even in light of the bad economy and more folks enrolling in college. The professor I talked to about this agreed with me as well. I've emailed the pre-nursing advisor, but she won't be back in office till next week.

I think I may take the test again to see if I can get a better grade. Sciene and English where the two sections that hurt me (80% and 85%) and while I feel like I could do better on the English, I really don't feel that way on the science. I've already taken the test and I still don't know what to study for on the science portion, lol! I would just be hoping to get an easier set of quesitons

[tfleuter, BSN, RN]

My advice would be try stop overhearing conversations! They just get you nervous and put you in a panic. It sould like you are in a great place for your application. The person you overheard has no way of knowing what others test scores are. She may want to take the test over to put her in a better status in her own mind with absolutely no fact to base her decision upon....and it may be completely unnecessary.

Thank you! You are so right! I guess I was sucked in by how certain this girl seemed to be about her information and how her friend didn't question any of it! Maybe she was just being polite. I wanted to talk to this person to see where she was getting her info from, but I didn't know how to approach her without coming off as confrontational.

[nkara, CNA]

I agree with all of the above.. Don't listen to other students. She could have been bragging to her friend. But it is competitive ... best thing you can do is apply and see what happends... if you don't get in the first time you could always re-take one of your classes to get a higher grade for the next application session. All depends on the applications and it sounds like you have excellent grades. Keep smiling!