After Excelsior, 2019

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Specializes in Dialysis RN.

I must say. I had mixed feelings about Excelsior before completing the program. Especially when it came time to do the CPNE at the end. It was brutal. I had no repeats the second time I took it. I failed my first go round in Texas because the 21st edition ended and the 22nd began 2 months before my test date and I had little time to re-study. I should have waited but didn't. (sigh) I had no direction and I was totally overwhelmed. So having said that, Did any of EC benefit me? YES indeed!! Today I am a new RN in a very fast paced, very busy Magnet Hospital doing Med-Surg. The work is very hard because we are always understaffed. So I learned really quickly that that doggone 20 min check can be done on real patients in 5 mins or less!!? My work load is very heavy. Yet many of the healthcare problems that I learned from my textbooks come up often. Most of which I was forced to learn on my own. So for that I'm grateful to be in the know most of the time, and to not be chewed up. (that's another story) If I had to do it all over again I still would probably do brick and mortar so that I could've been done faster. But if EC is the way you have to go, then I have to admit that they have come a long way. In recent years they are providing AOC videos, medication scenario examples and town hall meetings. It's all hard but that stuff really helps in my opinion. Especially coming out of school and being slapped in the face with 5 patients in orientation and new EHR software that you must learn. Just sayn.

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Yes, med-surg is tuff. I'm glad you're hanging in there and thank you for letting us know what you're doing after EC. It can be a bit discouraging for us students when we don't read a lot about life after EC. I'll be doing cpne sometime next year or so. I hate the wait is long, but I've come so far and can't back out now.

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Specializes in Hospice,LTC,Pacu,Regulatory,Operating room.

I am also a grad of Excelsior but I graduated many years ago. I hit the ground running post grad and immediately obtained work. It was a lot of self teaching and using forums and and study groups. But i will say i went back and obtained my BSN from the school and went on to obtain my MPH and my doctorate in naturopathic medicine. The self paced study made me a great student in my future educational endeavors.

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Specializes in Dialysis RN.
14 hours ago, SURGICALNURSE2NPORMD said:

I am also a grad of Excelsior but I graduated many years ago. I hit the ground running post grad and immediately obtained work. It was a lot of self teaching and using forums and and study groups. But i will say i went back and obtained my BSN from the school and went on to obtain my MPH and my doctorate in naturopathic medicine. The self paced study made me a great student in my future educational endeavors.

? I plan to do the same.

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Specializes in Dialysis RN.
23 hours ago, Dy-no-mite Nurse1 said:

Yes, med-surg is tuff. I'm glad you're hanging in there and thank you for letting us know what you're doing after EC. It can be a bit discouraging for us students when we don't read a lot about life after EC. I'll be doing cpne sometime next year or so. I hate the wait is long, but I've come so far and can't back out now.

Just hang in there and study while you wait. You will be glad you did.

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