Anyone here from Champaign?

aleii · Dec 29, 2007

I graduated from U of I, and I had a year wait until I was accepted into Parkland. I took the prerequisites while I waited, and got straight A's. I went to the director of the program who said she had no idea why I did not get accepted the first time I applied, and she called one of the 'scorers' who said to write down "15 hour rule" on my application, and that way my application would be based on my straight A's I got at Parkland rather than my A and B record at the U of I. I did that and got accepted.

Parkland has a fantastic anatomy and physiology program. It seems like the teacher I had is no longer there though, unfortunately, and it was not that long ago that I took those classes. The way it is set up is excellent, and A&P I and II have companion books which are excellent. These classes were the highlight of my experience there.

It is a very convenient school to get to and interact with online, it is also a fantastic price.

Nursing school there is difficult. We had 400 applications for 75 seats. Out of those original 75, we had 22 graduate. Approximately 10 were from the original class.

Getting my ASN was by far harder than getting my Bachelor's at the U of I. You have to make a huge sacrifice in time - significantly less family time, and a significant amount of hours studying. Some of the teachers are very good, others seem to create their tests out of random insignificant lines from the book. You have to be very self-sufficient in your studies. The class books are structured very well, especially the med-surg ones. I liked those.

The selection of nursing classes in the summer is abysmal. You have to follow their preselected course path for you - there is no way to graduate early, no fast track program.

They were still figuring out the pharmacology course when I attended. From what I hear it is now thorough, but hard.

Clinical hours there aren't very long, 4-8 hours for each. But you need to be on the ball when you are there, and be completely prepared ahead of time. They have no qualms about failing you out of clinical, which means you fail out of the class. Many of my friends ended up failing class or clinical, and I'm not going to lie - we were all pretty scared we would be next. Tests where 75% of the class fails happened too.

I, and the others I graduated with that I know of, easily passed the NCLEX

Most of the teachers I had are still teaching there.

Remember to memorize your patient's K+ level

If you can, having previous CNA experience will be especially helpful, as is taking medical terminology.

But, a lot of this reflects others' posts of their experiences at nursing school.

I wish you luck in the path you choose to go!

crazylilkelly · Dec 31, 2007

I have been going to U of I for the past two years, and about 6 months ago decided to go into nursing. I figured that it would be easiest to enroll in a ASN program. I've applied to Parkland College's nursing program in Champaign, IL, and after talking to the admissions person for Health Care Professions, he said with my ACT score and grades, I'd be a shoe-in. However, I was debating how good the program was. Anyone familiar with the Parkland College program in Champaign????

I am currently a senior @ uofi's nursing program. I absolutely LOVE it!!! It's amazing how much our instructors care for us.

I also work as a healtcare tech @ carle. many of the healthcare techs i work w/ are students @ PCC's nursing program. I always ask them if they like the program & I have yet to run into 1 student who does. Many of them passionately hate it. Apparently, students get kicked out all the time for stupid reasons---i've talked to some of those particular students. Hearing their opinion really pisses me off b/c I feel they deserve better. I have at least talked to about 15 students who have all told me they hated to program.

I have a couple instructors that taught @ both PCC & uofi. they all have said that they also hated the program @ PCC & they felt that it was not run well. that's why they left. & these are AMAZING instructors. they told me that PCC nursing program was put under probation (i can't think of the exact word...but basically probation) b/c of how bad it was doing. there's been talk of it being shut down in the past. i know they've tried revamping it.....but i don't know how much it's changed.

i'm really not trying to sound so negative. that's just all i've heard. i did work w/ one nurse who graduated from uofi, then went to pcc. she grad last yr. she said she didn't like it but it was cheap & she liked that & she's a great nurse. message me directly if you want any more info. GOOD LUCK!!!! & I'll tell you one thing......I would do anything to become a nurse!

aleii · Jan 1, 2008

hi crazy

good to get another side to the story. So maybe nursing school isn't that insane everywhere! It was a very stressful program to be in, excellent students were afraid of failing class/clinical in more than 1 class.

Yes, I had heard about the probation as well. I got different theories of why that was so, everything from that they failed such a high portion of the class, to the idea that NCLEX passing rate wasn't that good, (though, they failed so many of us out that the ones left passed easily, so I heard.)

At least one of the teachers was on probation as well.

They changed directors, and from what I heard, were supposed to do a complete revamp of the program. Apparently that's not working out too well for them? Too bad.

Had I the money and a time machine, I would have taken A&P at Parkland, then gone to Lakeview. Had I the money and the time, I would have taken A&P at Parkland, and then gone back to U of I. Parkland is not a school I would recommend, especially now, after hearing that things haven't changed over there.

During clinical, we would sometimes see 1 or two U of I students on the floor with us 8-12 students from Parkland, I always wondered how that worked - did you have 1 clinical instructor per 2 students?

crazylilkelly · Jan 1, 2008

hi crazy
good to get another side to the story. So maybe nursing school isn't that insane everywhere! It was a very stressful program to be in, excellent students were afraid of failing class/clinical in more than 1 class.
Yes, I had heard about the probation as well. I got different theories of why that was so, everything from that they failed such a high portion of the class, to the idea that NCLEX passing rate wasn't that good, (though, they failed so many of us out that the ones left passed easily, so I heard.)
At least one of the teachers was on probation as well.
They changed directors, and from what I heard, were supposed to do a complete revamp of the program. Apparently that's not working out too well for them? Too bad.
Had I the money and a time machine, I would have taken A&P at Parkland, then gone to Lakeview. Had I the money and the time, I would have taken A&P at Parkland, and then gone back to U of I. Parkland is not a school I would recommend, especially now, after hearing that things haven't changed over there.
During clinical, we would sometimes see 1 or two U of I students on the floor with us 8-12 students from Parkland, I always wondered how that worked - did you have 1 clinical instructor per 2 students?

ya, it is really sad that it hasn't improved. I just get so angry hearing how many students they kick out for such dumb reasons when we're in such a nursing shortage.

I wish we only had 1 instructor per 2 students! Clinical groups consist of 8 students. Unless, you saw a uofi student during their leadership course. We get assigned to just one nurse for that course & one manager.

msjellybean · Jan 14, 2008

I graduated U of I in May 06 with a BS and applied to Parkland's program for Fall 07 start.

I was rejected because my score needed for admission was .06 too low. All because of one stupid chem class that I did terribly in at UI. I took an easy peasy chem class over the summer and got an A. I breezed into the program for the Sping 08 start (which is tomorrow and I'm SO nervous!)

Have a friend that graduated in December and she tells me that the program I will be going through is much better than the one she went through. *cross fingers* I hope so. But the director of the program has been kind of curt with me already and I feel like that doesn't bode well.

grdngrl · Jan 14, 2008

The time between classes is a busy one for faculty and Program Directors. Do not take the Director's approach personally. Work hard and hold high standards for yourself and you will do well! Good luck!

shygoofyone · Apr 14, 2008

I'm currently in the PC program with one year to go (going part-time). Those people who I've seen kicked out have deserved it. The official reason may be "stupid" to some, but, usually...it's been a long-time coming.

I can tell you why people have said they hated the program. Most of the ones I hear complaining about the program seem to want the license handed to them. It makes me sick to hear these girls (some of them old enough that they should know better) complaining because "that question wasn't covered in lecture!!!" Guess what? Nursing school involves ALOT of reading! lol

I happen to love the program. Hate the stress that comes with it, hate the lack of a life...but I love the program. I have yet to meet one instructor that is uncaring or against students passing.

What I can tell you about the program now is that we have ATI assessments that we must pass each semester. Visit www.atitesting.com for more information, but it seems to be a pretty accurate assessment of how well you'll do on the NCLEX-RN. I think this has helped the program's NCLEX pass rate improve dramatically.

Some troublesome instructors were (thankfully) gone before I got there, and the ones they're hiring now are awesome.

I've talked to many nurses that work in the area hospitals and they all have said that they would rather work with a PC grad than a UI grad, because the PC grads have the techniques down. I've even spoken to instructors at other schools that flat-out told me that PC is a tough program, tougher than UI and Lakeview. I'm proud to be a PC, even though the only reason I chose PC over UI was cost and convenience (I'm working full-time).

Good luck eitherway...as a nursing student, you'll need it! :)

msjellybean · Sep 4, 2008

Coming back to this thread after finishing one semester.

If there were problem instructors, they either teach classes I haven't gotten to yet or they truly are gone. I can think of a clinical instructor who would be better off not teaching. My fundamentals CI was awesome and really helped me grow as a person (I have some self-confidence issues).

I'm very happy so far with the education I've received. I'm sad to say I think I learned more in one semester at Parkland, than I did in my 4 years at U of I.

The one thing I don't like is the ATI assessments. However, at this point, they're not really figured in as part of a grade (and I hope it never comes to that). With the one class that had them last semester, you took an assessment during class time and had to get a certain percentile score. If not, then you simply remediated online and kept taking the assessments until you got at/above the 90th percentile. And since they're the same questions, it's probably not that hard to do. I hope that subsequent ATIs for other classes are similar (just don't want that added stressor).

There are some students who just flat out shouldn't be in the program and it wouldn't surprise me if some of these are the ones getting kicked out for stupid reasons.

shygoofyone · Sep 7, 2008

Update to the jellybean's remarks...

The ATIs (atitesting.com) are a great way to study for the finals at PC. And, most classes now require that you score a certain percentage on the ATI in order to pass the class. But, you do get to remidiate if you don't pass the first time. I have had friends that had to remediate and did quite well.

oh! and the class that graduated in May 2008....is at 100% NCLEX pass! :)

bookscrapper · Oct 6, 2008

I graduated from Parkland in May 2008 (and yes, everyone I've talked to passed NCLEX on the first try). The program prepares some of the best nurses in the area. It has the reputation of being far superior to both Lakeland and U of I. They really force you to learn the material, and if you're not committed you won't make it. Sure there are students that fail and leave the program, but I'm pretty sure that happens everywhere. I think it's more common that students that were full time end up going part time because they have a lot of other committments (jobs, kids, etc.). The group of students I started with probably numbered close to 50, and I graduated with about 35. We only lost maybe 3 or 4, most of the students just dropped down to part time for a semester or two.

Yes, I will admit the program has had some problems...mostly related to the administration. Just over a year ago, they switched program directors (the old director still teaches there, and the new director taught there before taking over). It can be really frustrating at times, but you just have to persevere and push through it. The classes have changed somewhat in that I know they now put more emphasis on the ATI tests, but they really do help you in preparing for the NCLEX (believe me, they're more specific than NCLEX so if you can get through them you should be good). They provide you with the ATI books that really should be utilized more than they are.

During my two years at Parkland, I never heard anything about them losing accreditation. The past several semesters they have had a very high NCLEX pass rate.

I would suggest for any student starting out, or anyone in the program for that matter, to get Saunders Comprehensive Review book. Go through this book as you go through your lectures. It really helps break things down, and just reading the subject matter for a 2nd or 3rd time in a different structure helps it make sense and stick in your mind.

All the clinicals are a 1:8 preceptor:student ratio. This is what is allowed by the accredidating bodies. If they dropped the number of students, then fewer and fewer students would be allowed in the program. (It's hard to find nurses who want to get their masters and go into teaching.) We had a great number of clinicals and learned a lot from them. They try to find as many opportunities for the students as possible. In relation to the 1:1 or 1:2 ratio that U of I supposedly has, they have fewer clinical experiences over all and don't even have the chance to start IVs on real patients.

Overall, I would greatly recommend the Parkland Nursing Program for anyone in the area. Yes, it's tough; yes, it can be frustrating. But it is well worth it. You come out of there thoroughly prepared to take and pass NCLEX. And the local hospitals know that and are very willing to hire Parkland grads.