Started a new thread, since the other threads on this topic look like they are from last year.
Okay,
I just got my acceptance letter in the mail today!!
I was going totally mental with anxiety, checking this board several times a day to see when people were hearing back, compared to when they had applied and what their stats were. I was also very nervous about how I had done on the TEAS, so I wanted to post my info to help other people a little. Here are my stats:
I applied to the school January 4th, 2010. I took the TEAS January 23rd, 2010.
Previous BA degree in anthropology. I graduate in August of 2009 with a 3.46 cumulative GPA.
I took A&P I last fall, at Gateway: B
Developmental Psych: A
TEAS: 81.2% (mean national was 72.8% and the mean for the program 73.3%)
My adjusted individual scores were as follows:
Reading: 82.5%
Math: 82.2%
Science: 70%
English: 85.5%
In all my nervousness, I called two days ago and was told that I would likely hear back from the in school 4-6 weeks. Then I got my letter today, February 5th. For the record, my admissions essay was based on a CNA training course I took in the fall and I also think that having a previous BA really helped, especially in seeing past that nasty 70% in the science section of the TEAS.
Good luck and I hope this information was helpful, or at least of interest, to some of you!!
Hi Cardinal! Glad to hear that you've been accepted! Congrats! :w00t:
I actually just responded to your post in the CC thread. From what I understand, Gateway isn't as competitive to get into as a few of the other CCs; NVCC and NCC are one of the best CC programs and are therefore the most widely sought after. So you have a good shot at getting in!
There really is no difference between diploma and ADN. From what I've heard throughout the community, diploma programs are sometimes more highly looked upon by some because of the extra clinical time that you get - you are comfortable hitting the ground running. However, a few people may also have negative ideas about hospital based programs since they seem to think you don't have the same general education experience that the ADN graduates would have. I doubt they would have the same mindset for diploma grads with prior degrees, so the diploma program is a terrific choice for current degree holders - you will be able to market yourself as having strong clinical experience plus the general ed experience . From what I've heard about BHSN specifically, it is viewed as an excellent nursing program in the state (it is one of the oldest in the country, established in 1884!). Another thing to think about is that the CC's have been known to have a lower retention rate. They can lose about 30 students or more easily in a given year, as opposed to BHSN who lost only 5 (provided by Th0R) this past year.
I had the same decision to make because I also applied to NVCC, which would be less than a 5 minute drive from me. BHSN is about 35 minutes. The thing that you have to consider, however, is that clinical at the CC's can be anywhere. I've heard a lot of students say that they were placed at the farthest location possible (45min+); they definitely don't take where you live into consideration. At least at BHSN, you know where you will be. I also decided that the extra clinical time would be invaluable, and I haven't heard one negative comment about the program yet. Everyone I talked to has said that BHSN has an excellent reputation, including my former boss who provides debt financing to all the hospitals. NCLEX pass rate is over 95% on average.
Unfortunately, I don't know much about GWCC specifically, so I can't speak to that. Another thing to think about is that Bridgeport has been known to offer jobs following graduation and will repay your tuition costs if you sign a 2 year contract with them. I know they were doing this up until a few years ago, but I haven't heard much about it since. Perhaps this has changed with the market but the possibility of getting this opportunity in the future is there, which is a nice plus. I'm hoping the market for new grads opens by the time we graduate.
Hope this helps in making your decision. If BHSN is extremely inconvenient location wise, I could see why you'd prefer to attend GWCC. What is the difference in driving time for you?
I am from Branford, so anywhere from 30-40 minutes with out traffic...I have talked to alot of nurses and people who work at St Rays and Yale and most of them Say along with the Gateway people that they do 90% of their clinicals at St Rays and Yale, so i am hoping that is true
Oh, the traveling time isn't too terrible. It's about the same for me. At some point, you have the option to choose Yale as a clinical site instead of Bridgeport if you want. I'm not sure about St. Rays, haven't heard anything about it.
Where can i find out if that is a 100% possibility to do my clinicals at Yale....also i wonder if that two year agreement where they pay back your schooling works if you work for YALE in New haven becuase they are owned by the same organization
I don't think you can do all of your clinicals at Yale... I believe it is just a portion, but I could be wrong. Th0r is currently in the program so perhaps you can ask him the specifics of that. He is the one who told me that they give you the option. Plus, I believe that they have a limited number of openings at Yale - so if a large number of people request it you may not get it. Perhaps you can call the secretary and ask who you can speak to about the specifics regarding the clinical sites. That is probably your best option so that you don't make an important decision based on false assumptions. Just let us know what you find out. I'm curious what they may say.
Perhaps they may offer the 2-year contract deal for Yale as well, but i would think that Bridgeport would prefer to keep their students in-house. Maybe if you can get someone on the phone to ask about the clinical sites, they can tell you if they still offer the 2-year contract opportunity to grads.
i dont know if this is true or not but one of my friends that just graduated from the program said that they were in the process of doing away with the contract deal so I dont even know if they do it anymore....but i havent talked to anybody in the program so i dunno how reliable the info is.
Thanks for that info…that could be the case. As I said, I haven't really heard much about it over the past year or two. That would be a nice perk in this economy, but perhaps that is why they decided to get rid of it.
Maybe a current student can shed some light on this, if any are reading this thread.
Congrats all around. Good luck next fall maybe see ya at your orientations.
Thor,
I was wondering if you knew anything about the clinical options at the BHSN program. Speaking to Ladybug she had mentioned that they may offer a choice between Yale or BHSN. Is this true? and if so, can one choose to do alll clinicals at YALE?
she said that the program was hard but it nursing school so really what do u expect lol but she absolutely loved it. She was the one who actually got me thinking about applying to the program because all she had were positive things to say. She has since then moved to mass and she has a job in a hospital working in the nicu. She didnt get a job right away because she knew she was moving so instead she signed up for an online RN to BSN program to fill time. once she moved out there she got a job fairly quickly. They really liked that she automatically started the BSN program once she graduated so I think that worked to her advantage.
That's really good to hear! :) I'm super excited to begin the program, but September seems so far away. Has she given you any good pointers for if you ended up going to BHSN?
I took the TEAS test with about a hundred people today. As you stated Ladybug it was important to know the life science stuff, I was blown away b/c there was not one A&P question mostly other science stuff about rocks, lol. I asked my fiance why as a nurse that would be important, he said b/c some people have rocks in their head. lol I'm exhausted b/c I was so nervous about the test. Results by Wednesday and then letters 1 to 4 weeks after then.
I bet you're glad that is behind you now. Did the guidance that I gave on the gen. science stuff help at all? I think I had 2 or 3 AP questions but they were so random.
You don't get the results immediately? You must have taken a paper version. I took the test via web and received my score immediately after I finished. How do you think you did? You'll have to let us know when you get your score on Wednesday. Fingers crossed for you!!!
Have you heard from NYU yet? If not, when do you expect to hear? Wow, 1 to 4 weeks is such a wide range. Let's hope for sooner rather than later!
Cardinal23
8 Posts
I am from Branford, so anywhere from 30-40 minutes with out traffic...I have talked to alot of nurses and people who work at St Rays and Yale and most of them Say along with the Gateway people that they do 90% of their clinicals at St Rays and Yale, so i am hoping that is true