Any PhD in Nursing Applicants?

calinp · Apr 3, 2010

Yay BayArea2010! That is great! I'm so glad that everything is working out and that you'll be able to continue to your PhD :)

If I go to UCSF I would love to meet you too! It could work out that you and I and NPtoPhD could be there...that would be actually pretty amazing.

Good luck with Kaplan, I've used them with good results. Congratulations again!

NPtoPhD · Apr 6, 2010

I've made a decision! I have officially accepted Yale (and also turned in my official declinations). I am very excited and so relieved to have made a decision and move forward. I feel good about my decision, although it is hard giving other offers up. BayArea2010, I'm so excited you got into UCSF for the CCT master's. This sounds like what you are going to do, am I correct? Congrats! Calinp, how has the decision been coming along? Has your husband's job responded on the transfer yet? It is sounding like a very difficulty decision! Sadly, I won't be meeting you guys at UCSF, if that's where you both end up. That would be pretty neat though! Keep me posted on how things unfold on your end! Good luck!

calinp · Apr 6, 2010

NPtoPhD, that is GREAT! While I'm sorry that we won't be meeting at UCSF, I am thrilled for you and for your decision! It must feel nice to be able to move into the planning phase. Congratulations!

I hope to be joining you in the decided group soon. :)

BayArea2010 · Apr 6, 2010

Yeyyyy!

Congratulation NPtoPhD! That is great! School is only a few months away! Let us know how it goes. What kind of classes they offer (SPSS for statistics or not), and the cognates, as well as the campus life.

How exciting! I plan to go through the Masters program and continue on to the PhD....having a PhD opens up so many opportunities to help others, to research, to be a change agent, to impact policy making and to teach!

Yeyyyyy! Good luck!

Calinp, I hope you are doing good and that things work out to facilitate your decision.

calinp · Apr 10, 2010

My husband and I made the decision last night. I accepted at UCSF! I also contacted my assigned adviser. It was a relief and after I had finished writing out the declinations, I felt really relaxed. And I also realized how ready I'm getting to start the program.

Now the planning, moving, looking for someplace to live starts.

Have a great weekend everybody!

llg, PhD, RN · Apr 10, 2010

Congratulations to everybody! I'm happy to read that you are making progress in your efforts to find the best situation for you -- and wish you all the best of luck with your studies. I'll be interested in reading your posts as you experience the various paths you have chosen.

BayArea2010 · Apr 10, 2010

Thank you LLG!

Congratulations Calinp!!! So much to plan!!! There will be a an event for students on May 22nd...they will provide funding information etc. You will receive the e-mail soon asking you if you want to sign up (maybe you did already). Just giving you heads up!

Hope to see you in school! Yeyyyy!

I asked the professor I want to study under if I could work in any of her current studies...I start this Monday!!!

calinp · Apr 10, 2010

Thanks llg! It's nice to hear that other people have been interested and supportive! I hadbeen considering the idea of starting a blog about the PhD nursing experience for a while before I found allnurses.com. When I started the application process, I wished that there was a blog to read on the web, and I really didn't find one. This has met that need to communicate and reach out to other people.

BayArea2010, I think that your working with the professor that you want to study under now is a great, great idea! You're brilliant! Also, the experience you'll be building will be so great. I can't wait to meet you and hear what you've already learned about the campus and nursing school when I get there.

I registered for the funding information session when I got the e-mail. Did you get any confirmation? I didn't and I'm not sure if I need to call the graduate coordinator to check...

I can't wait to see you there!

scoloya · Apr 29, 2010

Hello everyone;

It has been nice reading all your posts since i am in the process of applying to the Phd program at UCSF too. I am interested in the BSN-Phd program and i have 2.5 yr experience as an RN. My interest would be in Public health-and HIV. I have attended one information session at the campus and met with 3 professors. I have finally finished writing my goal statement but the hurdle for me at this point is the GRE. I don't know how exactly to study for it especially since i work nights, 32 hrs/week. Do i take some time off to study, or do i enroll in, say, Kaplan program for it? And then i will think of the rec letters after that. Please, help.....especially those that have gotten into the program or are in the application process. Any advice will be appreciated!

Congrats calinp and NPtoPhd; do u plan to work when going to school? calimp, what problems did u face with the recommendation letters? Please continue to share your experiences as u go along.

I am glad to finally find a Phd forum on here that is even close to home. Thanks to you all.

calinp · Apr 29, 2010

Hi Scoyola,

It's great to hear from you! Also, I'm glad to know that our posts have helped you some.

I can't speak to everyone's experience with the GRE, but I'll tell you what I did. I work full-time (though not nights anymore) and what I found worked best was to take a weekly course. It was through Kaplan and it lasted about 9 weeks. It had been my original plan to use books at home, but I wasn't getting the practice test scores that I wanted. I really think the course helped. BUT, the reason it helped is that I used it rigorously; I did every practice problem and review that was assigned in the class.

Letters of rec. were really tricky. I sent e-mails and talked with previous profs. and co-workers early to give them plenty of notice. I also gave them/e-mailed them copies of my CV, goal statement, etc. so that they understood what I was interested in doing. Even then, it was still a struggle for all of the recommenders to get their letters in on time. I did however get really positive letters and I think that giving them info. was helpful to them. Having written letters of rec. for people looking for jobs or to go back to school, I know that it is difficult to write a good letter.

I really think that you've already done one of the most important things, which is to reach out to researchers at the university...so good luck!! :yeah:

calinp · May 2, 2010

So, I'm approaching the next step towards being a student again!

Today, the first moving company representative came to give us an estimate. I've never used a moving company before, and I'm hoping that it goes well. I'm not planning on having a car in SF, but I am going to rent one to drive up there with my cat.

I started really thinking about the packing today, even though it is still 2-3 months off. My husband and I looked around our house, and we both realized that we have accumulated a LOT of stuff that we don't/won't need.

Last week I also contacted my academic adviser and spoke with her for an hour. She is very, very nice and I'm looking forward to working with her. So far, this is going about as smoothly as major change can!

I really need to think about when my last day of work is going to be and when to tell my manager...

I hope everyone is having a great weekend!

NPtoPhD · May 19, 2010

Hi Scoloya- Glad you could read about our experiences and hope it helps you during your application process! Are you only going to apply to UCSF or do you have others in mind? Talking to professors ahead of time is paramount, I believe. So you are definitely on the right track. I think especially because they don't interview, so making that contact is huge. Glad to hear you have an interest in Public Health. So do I! I actually turned down some MPH offers when I first graduated with my MSN. I decided I wanted to work instead of more school at that point. But actually, I'll be doing the Summer Program at Harvard in Public Health (if my house sells!). Do you anticipate doing an MPH, or incorporating your public health interest solely in the PhD? Regarding the GRE, I took an online prep class through ed2go.com that goes through your local community college. It was 6 weeks, 2 lessons each week, if I remember correctly. It helped mostly to keep me on track with studying. I did not knock myself out on studying. I did what it took to be "average." I hate standardized tests so I didn't have it in me to do more. As far as letters of recommendation, I also told everybody pretty early. Everyone was very supportive and willing to write a letter. I didn't give people my CV (because most knew it all anyway) and I hadn't written my goal statement yet. But I did talk to them all about what I wanted to study, why, and my future goals.

Calinp and BayArea2010, that's so neat you guys will be at UCSF together! Man, had I chosen them we could have all met! And maybe if Scoloya goes there next year, you'll all be there! BayArea2010, how has it been going doing the research with that professor? You liking it? I think that is great you are doing that!

Calinp, I hear you on how much there is to do! I have been trying desperately to sell my house to prepare for the move across the country. I feel totally hung up on that step, and have trouble getting to the next stage of planning without having the house sold. I have had 3 offers fall through! This is killing me! Not sure what to do if the house doesn't sell! At this point, I will definitely be renting in CT. I'm glad you are already getting movers to give you estimates. I'm not sure if I can start that part yet. I've used movers for at least the last 2 moves I've done, and it is so much easier than doing it yourself! But on the other hand, it isn't nearly as cheap! Did you pick a company yet? I'm also trying to determine when to leave work. Have you made any decisions? Everybody knows I'm leaving and I put in a temporary notice so they could post my position, but now it's getting down to details.

Hope everyone is doing well!