My name is Tarah and I'm in the ASU Post-Baccalaureate BSN program that started in 2015. I found an allnurses thread from last year that I followed while applying and getting accepted into the program. It was started by a guy named Alex and he was really great by letting us know what to expect from the program. I'm sure all of you who plan on applying to the program are right in the middle of all that crazy!
We are on our summer break for another few days. Please feel free to ask any questions you have about acceptance to the program and what it is like during the various semesters. Anything I can't answer, I will find people who can.
I would say that this first half of fall has been kind of the worst! We had a lot of writing intensive assignments and we started our 12 hour clinical shifts this semester. We were taking complex care for the first 8 weeks and half the time we would do our clinical and have a test the next morning at 7:30 am. Now that complex care is done, things should ease up some. The problem is that all the stuff we were putting off the first half of the semester, is now coming due. It never ends!!!! Last year's Post Baccs said fall was a lot easier. I think they were only talking about the very end. Seven more week.s. Believe me, we are counting down.
I start my immersion tomorrow. It is what you are calling the preceptorship. I don't know that we will have the same nurse every week. I guess we will see. I'm gonna grab about six hours of sleep and then I'll try to post some more data from the survey.
You are so awesome for taking the time to do this. This is so great! I am sure there are lots of people reading this page and not posing as well, who are finding you, Melanie, and Cassie to be super informative and helpful!
In addition to inxdigust's questions, I was wondering about breaks during the program. Do we have any and if so when? Also, what unit are you in for your preceptorship.
And speaking of breaks... How do they get you guys ready for the 12 hour clinicals, or do they just throw you in? That is one of my big concerns, because I've never really done that before. I used to pull 12-14 hour days in an office setting a few days a month but that was about it. Do they give you guys bathroom/snack or lunch breaks? Do you just take a minute to use the restroom when you need it? Inhale a granola bar while you're walking somewhere, etc? Really curious to see how structured those days are!
We all had to submit our paperwork back by yesterday at midnight, so we're on our way to finding out about admissions :).
Check your emails, everyone! I received an email a few hours ago saying they received my forms, and the minor changes I notated did not affect my advancement score or application. It's nice to know there are real people on the other end and we aren't just throwing things into the abyss, haha :)
We do get a few of the standard state/ASU holidays. Sometime that meant we would have a Monday off throughout the program. It was great for catching up on schoolwork. There was a Spring and Fall break that is standard for ASU. The Fall break was for three days last week. We had Monday through Wednesday off. There is a week and a half off between the Spring and Summer sessions, and again between Summer and Fall. I'll dig through my old calendar and get the dates.
What unit for my preceptorship?â€
So we call our preceptorship immersion.†Preceptorship implies that you will be with the same nurse every time. We go to clinical once a week on the same day of the week and usually never have the same nurse. I'm at St. Joe's on the Neuro ICU. I was also there for complex care and really like it. I was stressed because we have been told that we would be more responsible for care and the nurse would follow us. It wasn't like that for me yesterday. I just follow and help my nurse. I got to do a lot of hands on tasks like give meds and work equipment (zero arterial lines and draw blood), but it was no more stressful than usual. This doesn't mean that in other facilities, other students aren't running the patient care.
How to get ready for the 12 hour clinicals?â€
So I was a server all through my first round of college. I often worked 12-15 hours shift walking all day. Then I was at home with kids for 5 years. When starting the program, I realized how out of shape I had/have gotten. When we would go to lab for 4-6 hours and stand around, my feet would hurt so bad. The good news is that they work you up to the 12 hours. In the Spring, you will have 1 clinical day per week and it is only 6 hours. Also, there is a significant amount of sitting in nursing. They have a ton of documentation to do, so when they aren't running around, they are sitting. It ends up being a lot of up and down. Summer is about 8 hours of clinical once a day. Fall is when they get you up to the 12 hours shift so your feet will have time to adjust.
As for breaks during the day, nurses do the work till there is no work. Some days are busier than others. Yesterday I started at 6:30am and didn't get lunch till 2:30. You can always find a few minutes here or there to grab a bathroom break, drink, or snack. There are supposed to be certain areas for drinks or snack, but nurses usually have something where they are sitting. You get your assignment (rooms/patients that you take care of) and sit near there. Generally you manage your own time and give the nursing care that is required. You tell the nurse next to you if you will be gone for 5-10 minutes or you get someone to cover your patients when you go to lunch. The main thing is that you take those breaks when you can. I think it is very different than an office setting where you plan your day around your scheduled breaks. In nursing, you take your breaks based on the lulls in your work. It won't be that bad. It's just an adjustment.
I think you do much more running in Med-surg. You have 4-5 patients and they always seem to need something. Individually, they are less stressful because their condition isn't at complex/serious, but someone always needs meds, ice, to go to the bathroom, or whatever else. In ICU, you have 2 patients, and while their condition is more serious and you have to assess and monitor them more frequently, I feel that there is more downtime.
That's it for now. Hope you guys are trying to enjoy your last few months of freedom! I'm sure you will all be hearing the good news soon.
I thought I would give a bit of info from the survey. I ended up with a lot of data, so I think I'll just add a bit at a time. This will be a large post. Think of it like a review on Amazon.
Would you recommend this program to others?
• 51% Said Yesâ€
• 3% Said Noâ€
• 46% Said Dependsâ€
Yes
• Yes. One year of Nursing school is hard but it's such a short time that it feels worth it.
• Although unorganized, it was worth it to be a nurse in 11 months!
• For the most part, we had some really awesome faculty. Clinical instructors were excellent and we get some really great experiences.
• This is a great way to get your degree fast. Everyone has had life experiences and is already mature. We are all in this because we really really want to go into nursing so you have a similarities from the start.
• It's only one year.
• There really is no other option as short. A longer program would probably be easier so if you have the time and want slower pace do longer. Program still has lots of growing pains and instructor turn over
• This is a one year program with great instructors (90% of them at least).
• It's only ONE year.
• I feel like I have learned a lot in this program, and it is super quick and fits most peoples timeline who already have a degree.
• ASU provides opportunities to learn and practice the skills required to become a good nurse.
• It is a very fast track to a BSN! It is very do able. The expectations are clear, do the work, and the grades will follow.
No
• I don't want this to scare you, but it is just too much! Maybe for an extremely smart person that doesn't take hours to learn material, but it really sucks to fun out of you.. at least it did for me. Also I was not impressed with the caliber of some of the teachers. For a program to be this fast and intense i expected instructors to have their crap together and some of them didn't. I would just hate to see someone go through what I went through. It was just so emotionally draining. I feel like I the only thing that as on my mind was school and that was the only thing i talked to people about. It was just go go go go for 1 full year. Too much stress for a human.
Depends
• It is the fastest way to get your BSN without a waitlist but it is definitely expensive. However, if you factor in you are in the job field earlier than you still come out ahead.
• If you are willing to give up a whole year of your life to get done faster and get into the job market, go for it. If you want to maintain an income and work, or have free time to relax, travel, spend time with family/children this is not for you. If you are not able to be flexible and understanding of the often crazy schedules, then don't do it. If you are good at time management and prioritizing things, go for it.
• Not sure! Glad it was quick, but depending on the support you have at home, it could be doable or impossible. I had great support from my husband and kids.
• I do like that this program only takes a year, but I don't exactly feel prepared for the real work of nursing. Now, I might feel the exact same way after the 2 year program too... I'm not sure because I'm not in that program. I guess overall I would because I'm almost done. I just wish some aspects weren't so unorganized
• It is a fast and relatively cheap way to get nursing school done. The program is hectic, fast paced and often disorganized, but with the help of your peers you make it through. ASU also probably has the best reputation in the valley for nursing school. If you are well organized and can learn fairly independently most of the time, you will probably excel in the program.
• I don't think it is a really good program as far as level of organization. However, it is one year and I don't know that other nursing programs are better.
• This program is not for everyone. There are many times I wish I would have chosen a longer program so I could have kept my routine, worked, and taken time to understand concepts more. Overall, during the summer and last semester you will feel like you are understanding it or not.
• If you want to get through a program as fast as possible, this is for you. There are opportunities to learn a lot but it depends how much effort and time you are capable and willing to put in to it.
• If you are driven and you want to complete this program you will. Make sure you have a strong support system who knows this is only a year and who will be there for you when times get tough and if you live with a significant other, make sure they understand some things will changes, including that the dishes may not always be done any more and they may need to help with the cooking. Remember that this program is very different from your first degree and that the instructors as well as any hospital you work at expect a certain level of maturity from you.
• ASU needs to organize this program. We often had professors who had no idea what the post-bacc program was and the requirements of the program. However, I am so grateful that it is only a year of learning and then I am out in the nursing world!
• I think we had a rough year with some new instructors. I think the content of the program was great, I learned a lot. MOST instructors were great and very knowledgeable. However, I felt like there were a lot of times where things were very unorganized, which was very frustrating. It is also very frustrating that most of the supplies used to learn with are completely out-dated and do not work. I think we pay enough tuition for them to be able to get newer equipment.
• The professors are thrown into classes they are unfamiliar with making things so disorganized and finding out what your assignments are can be difficult. It is really frustrated
• Type A personalities need not apply. Must be laid back and okay with uncertainty. Lots of chaos in this program. However, support of classmates make a huge difference in making it through the program!
• If the program improves in organization and is more consistent
• If you are looking to get into the field fast yes, but there are a lot of sacrifices you have to make such as strain on social life and relationships. I don't know if the traditional program is much better as far as time to read everything/master everything though,
• If you are looking to get your degree in the fastest manner possible then yes. If you are easily frustrated by inconsistencies or things done last minute or on-the-fly then the traditional program may be better suited. This program is still pretty new and expanding so there will be kinks or issues. I am personally happy I did this program and feel as though I will be well prepared for the NCLEX and life as a nurse.
By chance, was the last name of the students information you got Miller?
I just got a phone call this morning that they sent the excel sheet with all of my information to another student. The woman left this very serious sounding VM "regarding my application" that by the time she told me what happened, I was like "oh that's all??" I probably should be more pissed that they violated my privacy, but I was just relieved because I thought she was going to tell me that there something wrong with my application. Now I'm curious if the incident happened more than once.
SaltyTreats
11 Posts
Hey Guys,
I would say that this first half of fall has been kind of the worst! We had a lot of writing intensive assignments and we started our 12 hour clinical shifts this semester. We were taking complex care for the first 8 weeks and half the time we would do our clinical and have a test the next morning at 7:30 am. Now that complex care is done, things should ease up some. The problem is that all the stuff we were putting off the first half of the semester, is now coming due. It never ends!!!! Last year's Post Baccs said fall was a lot easier. I think they were only talking about the very end. Seven more week.s. Believe me, we are counting down.
I start my immersion tomorrow. It is what you are calling the preceptorship. I don't know that we will have the same nurse every week. I guess we will see. I'm gonna grab about six hours of sleep and then I'll try to post some more data from the survey.
Tarah