absn confusion

[idreaminred]

Hi! I'm completely new to this forum and I'm also very excited to have found such a useful and updated site. I am currently 2 credits shy of my degree in literature and I am working full time in sales, which I hate. Two years ago I made an effort to switch majors from lit to nursing but had a semi-nervous breakdown in the bookstore when I realized I would be passing up all of the lit books I still wanted to read and discuss, so I stayed on with the lit degree instead.

Now I pretty much have my degree and I want to go back to school for nursing because it is just what I really want to do :redpinkhe

My question for everybody is centered around what to do before applying to schools. I currently live in Phoenix and I want to move somewhere for school. I'm looking at a bunch of different absn programs around the country but they all have different pre-reqs. I had made up my mind that I was going to apply to all of the schools I was interested in (just the schools, not the nursing programs) this summer for spring admission 09. Then I was going to chose my school based on the ones that I got into and complete the pre-reqs at the school before applying to the nursing program.

After reading through this site though, it seems that everybody completes pre-reqs and then applies to a bunch of schools. Am I going about this process backwards?? I just didn't want to have to take classes that didn't apply to certain schools-- it seems like a waste of time but maybe its the best thing to do??

Any help, advice, or words of wisdom are much appreciated!

[Bree124, BSN, RN]

Pretty much everyone I know of is applying to at least 2-3 schools, due to the ratio of applicants to accepted students. Even people with a high GPA and good test scores (TEAS/NET) sometimes get turned away due to lack of space in the program.

Some of the nursing programs that I am applying to have several hundred applicants for 30-ish spaces in the program.

Focusing on one school as your first option is not a bad choice, but if you have to make a major geographical move, or in some other way commit yourself to that school/area, you are putting all of your eggs in one basket, so to speak. Acceptance to a school definitely doesn't equal acceptance to their nursing program. If you move across the country and then don't get accepted into that school's nursing program, then your options are more limited. If you focus on your pre-req classes first and then apply specifically to the nursing schools, you can make an informed decision on where to move, based on which schools accept you.

Good luck!

[Asherah, BSN, RN]

Also, you will need to check the requirement of accelerated BSN programs, as all of them that I've researched require a previous BA or BS (or graduate) degree. If you are not currently planning to complete you BA Literature, you may not qualify for ABSN programs, so definitely confirm that with any programs you are thinking of applying to.

I would advise against applying to a school and then completing pre-reqs there (no matter if it was a private or public university), due to the fact that your costs will be outrageous. Most applicants complete their pre-reqs at junior/community colleges where you pay a small per unit fee, unless they are already at a university where it won't cost them anything extra and they pay per semester.

[idreaminred]

Thank you both for your responses! It does seem smarter to complete the pre-reqs first, I guess I was just hoping to not have to because some schools only require 5 or so extra classes while others might require more that I haven't taken or completely different types of classes. It would be worth it though to just do it that way to give me a better chance at getting into a school that I want to go to.

I am planning on finishing my degree, I just need to take any two credit class so I am taking a class this summer for that and most likely now I will be taking more than one class so I can start getting the pre-reqs done.

Thanks again- this site is amazing and very informational.