Any other Sentara Nursing 101 students out there

Jess4Nursing · Jan 27, 2007

Not in 101 I am in 301..let me know if I can help you with anything!

Princess74 · Feb 15, 2007

Thanks

capribry · Mar 9, 2007

hey princess, you remember me and NURSECADET. We are in 201 now together. how are you

Princess74 · Mar 11, 2007

Of course I remember you guys, I'm great,staying busy with school but I love it! How are you guys?

capribry · Mar 12, 2007

so are you in 101 to become an RN or an LPN? I love Mrs. Wyche and Mrs. Evard. My last clinical instructor was Ms. Webley (she recently to just cut all her hair off) Me and Nursecadet came into the class when Mrs. Evard was doing the "i'm from sentara" act when she was dressed inappropriately and interupting class. Everything is fine I just finished my OB rotation and start PEDs this week. I have a test tomorrow so I need to study.

Princess74 · Mar 18, 2007

Im doing PN but plan to keep going straight through school until I get my RN. Ya Ms Evard is a trip.

I'm doing clinicals at Leigh on 2a, Ortho.

TRINI_RN · Mar 25, 2007

Hey princess! Glad to hear things are going good in 101, there are some excellent teachers in that course, I really liked them. 201 is a trip (especially psych) but I'm sure you'll hear about that. LOL:lol2:

Epona · Apr 6, 2007

Hi everyone! I am at a school now I am not happy with, and I am thinking about switching over to Sentara's new long distance program. I would have considered Sentara before, but at the time I went to RN school, they were not offering the long distance RN program.

I have a few questions I hope you all can address. :rolleyes:

Are you pleased with your Sentara RN program? Do you feel you are actually TAUGHT the material or are you pretty much on your own to learn it? How are teachers when you have questions? Do they answer your questions? How do the students do overall there? What is the grading scale like? I think I read in the school booklet that 77 and above is passing.

I know these are a bunch of questions, BUT I am seriously considering applying to the Sentara program and wanted to ask YOU the students who are there what it is like. I have talked to my family about going to Sentara and I have called the school and have been talking with the admissions folks and have received my application packet.

Thank you very much for your input!

Princess74 · Apr 7, 2007

Its a great school. The instructors really teach the materials well and they love it when we ask questions in class and in clinicals. We have a 7 point grading scale. Anything at a 77.50 or below is failing. On the dosage calcuations test we have to get a 90 or above, but we have three chances to pass them. The overall average of the class right now (92 students) is hanging around a 90. The NCLEX pass rate is 100%, we are prepared well. Like any other school they seem to be a bit disorganized at times but its never anything serious. The first semester (101) is RN and PN students mixed together, (which is where I'm at)then we split up after that. Let me know if you have any other questions okay.

Mia2005 · Apr 7, 2007

Hi everyone! I am at a school now I am not happy with, and I am thinking about switching over to Sentara's new long distance program. I would have considered Sentara before, but at the time I went to RN school, they were not offering the long distance RN program.
I have a few questions I hope you all can address.
Are you pleased with your Sentara RN program? Do you feel you are actually TAUGHT the material or are you pretty much on your own to learn it? How are teachers when you have questions? Do they answer your questions? How do the students do overall there? What is the grading scale like? I think I read in the school booklet that 77 and above is passing.
I know these are a bunch of questions, BUT I am seriously considering applying to the Sentara program and wanted to ask YOU the students who are there what it is like. I have talked to my family about going to Sentara and I have called the school and have been talking with the admissions folks and have received my application packet.
Thank you very much for your input!

Hi Epona,

Ask away... I am a student at Sentara. I graduate in October. YES!! Overall I think Sentara is one of the best programs in the area, and I dont say that because I go there, because it to me a LOOOONG time to adjust to the school. The school at one time was extremely disorganized, financial aid was awful, classes were not organized, it was just a mess. But I must say they have really gotten it together. Nursing school is what you put into it... It is hard, but definetly doable if you put the effort in. I would say the hardest class thus far was 201, which is specialities, and it is hard because you complete this class before you have med surg, and some of the med surg content will be related to what ever speciality you are studying. But after you go through the speciality content it does it easier. Nursing school is hell, but it is worth it. I feel like if you are a Sentara grad you will definetly be more prepared compared to other schools, because you will already be used to the sentara system especially if you work for them, you will learn how to give an excellent report, your assessment will be on point, plus by the time you will graduate you would have managed up to 4 patients and trust me other schools do not do multiple patient management. They have an externship program you can do your senior year to help prep you to go into the real world. When I talk to people from other schools they say I wish I would have went to sentara because yall get so much clinical time. I used to hate going to school, but now I have a lot more respect for the school. I have grown so much in a year and a half, and I know I will be more prepared than other after I graduate. The test are hard, but what nursing test arent, once you get used to the questions, your anxiety level will decrease when you take a test. Just practice, practice,practice.. Do nclex question, be organized, and have a study group, and I used to hate studying in a group, but its less stressful, and the info stays with you more. I do feel like I have been taught the material with some instructors, others, you may have do just do the reading and reinforce what you know with your notes, but for the most part yes they do teach the info, and they reinforce what they have taught through case studies, and nclex questions. I can tell you we were the largest class in the school, not anymore though. We started out with 71 students and we have only lost 6 students, we are going to be the largest class to graduate thus far. You wont fail if you study, and do ok in clinical. To fail clinical you have to give them a reason to say you are not competent. Since I have been in the program only one person has failed because of clinical. You will learn about your meds and be proficient, and feel comfortable and responsible giving meds. They have a 100% pass rate on the nclex exam.. Overall its a good program, it definetly has it corks, but I can guarantee you that you will be more prepared than others when you graduate, and this is coming from someone who hated the program. Hit me up if you have any questions, I dont mind being anyone's mentor

Epona · Apr 7, 2007

wow. thank you everyone. well i will try to not get too long winded, but here are two recent examples of why i am considering leaving where i am at.....

we took a test yesterday that i studied and studied for really hard. the other students and i knew the info. inside and out... or so we thought. i felt really good about the test. well, i failed it big time. i am one of the best students in the class (not trying to be boastful here, but it's true) and i failed it. the other girl who has straight a's in the class also failed it. unbelieveable! out of a total of 90 people, only three passed it. that should certainly tell the teacher something. i wonder if they try and make it more confusing then it really is. i studied the hardest and longest for this test more so than any other and bombed it. the test was written like cleint presents x,y, and z and with these manifestations and you do blank to fix it. it was a lot more involved then that, but that's the jest. all we went over in class and on power point and in the book was info. like hypokalemia is when lab values are less then 3.5. that is the info. we went over. the instructor never presented the material in an assessment way and we have not done any assessing to speak of in clincials, just giving a few shots and passing meds. so how are we supposed to know it???? if lecture or clincials had been presented that way... we all would've gotten it.

if we had been taught that structure or discussed it.. cool.. then it's on us, but we never discussed it as such and that is how the test was based. i understand that nursing is about assessment, don't get me wrong, but we never discussed that format in class. i studied the book and lecture notes and failed. out of the class around 10 people are passing and the other 40 are failing. i am one of the few passing.

afterwards, when the students were upset, the teacher would not discuss the test. when asked, she smirked and rolled her eyes. no joke. one student said to her 'there is a problem here and we are doing poorly.' the teacher said 'well there are two more tests.' and the student replied 'but that is not going to help us. we have been doing poorly from the beginning and we will keep doing poorly if the instruction is not improved and if we are not helped.' the teacher gave a half smile, turned her head and that was the end of that. several students got up and just walked out. i am a very good student (honor student in my first degree), and i have been teaching myself the entire way through... no help from teachers.

another really quick example was when i did not do well on a quiz on dosage calculations and i went to the teacher for help and she said to me and in my face 'shoosh (and waved her hand).. i do not have time to help you (after she told me to come by). she said 'bye....go.' i was mortified. i was so upset. one student who walked by was like 'boy.. that was rude.' i just said 'yes it was.' and i walked out. so... i have had to go to an aunt's house who is a nurse to try and get help on weekends, i have gone to two other professors for help and they have put me off, and i am trying to get with another professor this wed. to see if she can help me. ridiculous. the school has the worst nclex pass rate in the state and they might lose their accreditation. the students are not dumb, but we get no real teaching or guidance. so we fail. i study like a mad dog and so far have been doing ok thanks to my own diligence. but if i fail, there is a problem. seriously. i have always been a diligent and hard working student. i was an honor student in my first degree and i am no bird brain. i seek outside help too and do what i can to always improve. my family has even said how i study all the time. so boy, it's a bad situation. the other students even come to me looking for help as they are lost. gesh.