BSN from ASU?

Bubbles · Apr 24, 2010

Hi everyone
I am currently applying to ASU to get my BSN (not RN-BSN). I was wondering if anyone else is currently working on pre-reqs at ASU, or if anyone can offer any input on the actual NS portion at ASU? I'm new to Arizona so I don't know how ASU's Nursing Program is reputation wise, etc.
Any information, input, anything really, would be greatly appreciated.
Also if anyone cares, hehe, I am hoping to start my prereqs June 1st, or July 1st, starting with Chemistry (eek!)

I don't know if things have improved for ASU grads. The state board of nursing (I think) used to print how the graduates from ASU and the various community college schools of nursing did on their state boards. ASU grads never did as well as the others. :mad:

blondielocks · Apr 25, 2010

hmm, interesting. on that subject, does the actual teaching have a big affect on how well students do on state boards? Or is it more based on how the students study for the Nclex?

Cursed Irishman · Apr 25, 2010

You don't learn how to be a nurse in nursing school, nursing school's sole purpose is to prepare you for the nclex.

blondielocks · Apr 25, 2010

I understand that...I guess I was asking if Nclex is the type of test you can actually "study" for - as in, if you go to a NS with poor teachers, are you doomed, or if the student studies hard for the actual Nclex test, will that make a difference?

PineappleCrush · Apr 27, 2010

I don't know if things have improved for ASU grads. The state board of nursing (I think) used to print how the graduates from ASU and the various community college schools of nursing did on their state boards. ASU grads never did as well as the others.

That's not entirely true. ASU typically passes about 90% of their students the first time. Here is a link to the AZ State Board of Nursing document that tracks all the colleges in AZ and their pass rates:

http://www.azbn.gov/documents/nclex/Annual%20Statewide%20NCLEX%20Results%20%202004-2009%20WEB.pdf

In 2009, ASU dropped quite a bit down to 87.96%, which obviously isn't stellar by any means, but it is better than Grand Canyon University and Northern Arizona University. ASU also used to accept 120 people per cohort when this graduating class was first accepted, which is much more than almost all of the other programs and accounts for outliers. It's much easier to get a high pass rate when there are only 30-40 people going to that school's program.

Obviously, I have a bit of a bias since I was just accepted into ASU's upper division summer program so I obviously want ASU to look good, but ASU's scores aren't horrible, either. They're still in the top 3% in the state. How well you'll do on the NCLEX is really up to the student, and you'll find out once you get into the program that they have simulated NCLEX tests every semester that help gauge the information you're supposed to know for that semester and how it would look on the NCLEX.

You'll get in as much as you put into your studies. Study hard and you'll be fine. I think ASU is a really good school to go to. :)

blondielocks · Apr 27, 2010

Thank you Pineapple :) Are you starting summer or fall in the upper division? What was your TEAS score and GPA? I am so nervous. I moved down here with my husband from WA state earlier this year, after having dreamed for years (way before I met DH) of going to ASU...the weather seemed so much nicer here than back home! Hehe. Needless to say, finally being in AZ and making my dream come true can be nervewracking.

Did you do your pre-reqs @ ASU too? I had considered doing CC to RN->BSN, but I figured when it's all said and done, it'd be the same amount of time, so I jumped in head first and said ASU, here I come! :nurse:

Kabin · Apr 27, 2010

Don't know about the other schools but as I recall ASU provided no assistance in passing the NCLEX. It was all up to the student and (hopefully, like the good ole' days) the new hospital employer.

And passing the NCLEX requires learning test taking strategy and understanding unique test writer thought processes.

PineappleCrush · Apr 27, 2010

Thank you Pineapple :) Are you starting summer or fall in the upper division? What was your TEAS score and GPA?
Did you do your pre-reqs @ ASU too? I had considered doing CC to RN->BSN, but I figured when it's all said and done, it'd be the same amount of time, so I jumped in head first and said ASU, here I come!

I'll be starting May 17th for their accelerated summer program. :) I actually didn't have to take the TEAS--I was a part of the last group of people to take the NET at ASU. I'm not really sure if the NET scores are similar to the TEAS, but I could never do astonishingly well on the NET's reading comp section (regardless of the fact that I took AP English in high school and honors ENG 107) and I still got in. My GPA is pretty high, though. Overall, I have a 3.98 GPA, and my "Select GPA" for the application process was a 4.0. That's really nice about our application process is that you can choose 13 out of the 17 critical courses for your "Select GPA." Depending on how you plan your classes, you can have a SGPA of 4.0 even if you had a couple B's.

I actually did not take most my pre-reqs at ASU. I took 5 of the prereqs at ASU, and the rest at community college (Glendale Community College, for that matter) because it was a lot cheaper and I didn't like ASU's massive class sizes. I took CHM 101 at ASU and got lost in a class of 350+. :uhoh3: But that was also at the Tempe campus and not Downtown. It's also a LOT cheaper at the CC's and the credits transfer very easily (so if money is an issue, I'd explore the CC route). It's good for you to get a feel for ASU, though, and it's by no way a bad thing to take your classes there--it's nice to meet your peers as well as the teachers, several of the general education teachers you'll meet again in the program! Just be ready to be in some big classes! Are you taking your classes Downtown?

I am so nervous. I moved down here with my husband from WA state earlier this year, after having dreamed for years (way before I met DH) of going to ASU...the weather seemed so much nicer here than back home! Hehe.

haha! Just wait until you experience your first summer, then we'll see if you still think the weather is nicer here haha! jk jk The summers can get pretty nasty, although it's been pretty mild so far! Especially be wary of your car after going to the mall or something... I've gotten blisters from touching the metal parts of my seat belt before :uhoh3:

Don't know about the other schools but as I recall ASU provided no assistance in passing the NCLEX. It was all up to the student and (hopefully, like the good ole' days) the new hospital employer.

I think they've recognized that now and have changed that. At my orientation they brought up these online tests that we'll be taking at the end of every semester that are supposed to simulate the NCLEX. They help track our skills and abilities and are presented in the NCLEX format to help prepare us. It seems like they're really trying to help us prepare, and I've talked to some of the graduating seniors and they've all told me that they feel really prepared to take the NCLEX. I guess time will only tell! :rolleyes:

Kabin · Apr 27, 2010

ASU had those prep tests a few years back they just didn't teach the NCLEX test taking skills/mindset. Couldn't hurt to add that at the very end of the last semester.

Jamers334 · Jun 19, 2010

I just graduated from ASU last month and I strongly feel they have prepared us for the NCLEX. The comprehensive tests I took the last semester told me I had a 99% chance of passing the NCLEX on the first try. Of course I have to give my school props :)