Applying to nursing school with dui/long waitlist/ don't know what to do

[Sunkissed229]

Long story short: I have a dui from 5 years ago, finished prerequisites/ associates degree, applied for a school with no guarantee of acceptance and have been waiting a year, don't know what to do next/plan B/ best course of action

Sorry about the long read, go down to ***** for the important points

Hi everyone, 
I really need some advice and I have no one to turn to about this.
About 5 years ago I got a dui in NY. It was an aggravated dui (misdemeanor)because I blew a .19 and it was my first time getting blacked out drunk. I don't remember anything up until they opened my door, not even when I started driving. With my lawyers advice I enrolled voluntarily into an outpatient counseling service that drug tested me etc and I was done in about 7 months without testing positive for any drugs/alcohol. I was then sentenced to 1 year conditional discharge, ~100hrs commuting service, 1 year interlock in the car and no probation. I did plead guilty at the time, and I believe in NY a conditional discharge still means it's on my record. Also in NY you can't have a dui sealed. Keep in mind I'm not an alcoholic and I don't have any other addictions. But I do accept responsibility for what happened, and I'm glad no one was hurt.

Fast forward a year or so later I decided I want to go for nursing and it made me finally have a sense of purpose. People told me that I should look into something else because of the DUI but I absolutely cannot fathom doing anything else. I genuinely believe it's a calling for me. I enrolled into a community college and finished most of my prerequisites and got an associates in applied science. I moved to New Jersey since I knew it was really competitive in NY to get into a program. I have a 3.6 GPA and most of my grades are A's and B's with one or two C's (in foreign language). Also in nj a dui is a traffic violation, although it doesn't matter with the nursing school background checks.

I enrolled into an "accelerated" BSN program in NJ that has multiple start dates and I began the process around June/July 2023 for the September start date. I was upfront about my dui with the admissions counselor early on but she didn't have any information regarding that. She told me they will make a decision after I do the background check and I can only do that when they initiate it,  no sooner. Anyways a week before the first day of class they tell me they have a spot for me and that I can do the background check within the first 2 months AFTER starting. Keep in mind this school is not cheap and it's probably about 8000$ for the first semester that needs to be paid when I start and I couldn't justify paying that knowing I may get kicked out in a couple weeks. The admissions counselor told me that's just the way they do it, and I thought I'll wait until the next start date and hopefully be able to do the background check earlier. Fast forward I applied again for January but they were full and they told me they can have me in for May. I just found out they are full again for May but they can take me in September. I was pestering my admissions counselor about the background check but she again said they can only initiate it at a certain time and deal with the decision after. She now told me they can get the process started sometime next month for September start date. Keep in mind I've already finished the entrance exam and have been "accepted".

******Long story short I have no idea what I'm doing. I wasted a year waiting on this school and at this point I really don't know if I'll even get in. I'm absolutely devastated again that I have to wait a few more months, and now it's starting to look grim. I was just blindly hoping that the dui wouldn't be a big deal but waiting on them to see if I'm even eligible is making me loose faith. I need a plan B. I looked around at other schools and no one is telling me a straight answer. Most of them want me to apply, take the entrance exam, either get waitlisted or accepted for a start date that's 6+ months away, do the background check within 2 months of the start date and weeks and weeks later I'll get an answer. Not to mention most schools want you to be matriculated to their school before even applying. 

*******What I think I should do now is take the 2-3 classes left of the prerequisites I needed while waiting to hear back from them in September. If I get denied from them, I'm thinking to get a bachelors in something else and do a 1 year ABSN. I'm also open to any suggestions. Few questions I have,
-would I be able to get my bachelors in another major online (like SNHU) and get accepted into an ABSN program? Do they take online credits?
-what other major would you recommend for me in the meantime/plan B?
-does ANYONE know nursing programs in nj/pa that would take someone with a dui?
-are there any blogs you can recommend? (Sites like Reddit/all nurses)
-considering my aggravated dui, is it even possible to get into a program?
-what would you do if you were in my situation?

Few things I considered: I'm not much interested into an LPN program, although I can bridge, it only seems like it'll save me a couple of months. Most associate programs flat out say anyone that fails the background check with be dismissed from the program. I'm not worried much about the cost or loans. I'm open to ANY schools. I know I have to deal with the board eventually which I'm definitely mentally prepared for. I'm also prepared to go into a nursing intervention program if it comes down to it. It's seriously in my heart to become a nurse, even if it means I have to jump through hoops. I also know that many people are leaving nursing and how hard it can be once you start, but it's still in my heart to go after it.

I'm honestly ready to just go to every nursing school uninvited and beg to talk to the program director. I'm reading every post on Reddit/all nurses and doing the most research I can.

I've been carrying around this burden alone for a while, thanks for anyone and everyones input