Cold Feet for NYU Accel. BSN

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School starts in a little over a week, and I am facing the reality of the debt that comes with NYU Nursing. NYU was the only program I applied to, and I was so excited to get in that I didn't fully realize the amount of money it cost. Though this Accelerated BSN program is ideal, I am seeking advice on whether or not I should withdraw my acceptance and choose something cheaper in the Fall.

This is a huge debate in my head...is the school where you get a BSN important when you apply for an MSN? NYU MSN-Nurse Practitioner is unquestionably my top choice after I finsh the BSN. If I were to get my BSN elsewhere, would that harm my chances of getting into NYU for grad school?

Another consideration: My GPA from my first degree is a meager 3.28...thankfully NYU's application is a little well rounded and looks at other factors. Should I choose to look for a cheaper BSN, would my low GPA put me out of the running for schools like Hunter?

Is Hunter even a good program? I was attracted to NYU for it's learning environment, supportive atmosphere and good clinical experience. I hear a lot about the disorganization of CUNY schools...is it really that bad?

Also, if I did take on the debt from NYU, are hospitals eager to repay loans?

I'm in need of some serious guidance. Please help. Thanks.

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Okay, you need to think about what the next couple of years of your life entails. Are you planning to do anything life changing like having a child or getting married? If so, then the money (debt) may be more of an issue, that if you were not facing these things. If you have nothing else going on, go for it, you can always pay it off. The money aspect is scary, and its not going to go away soon. Anywhere you go your going to have debt, you just have to figure out how much your willing to pay. Good luck with whatever you decide!

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I am not sure if you knew this before, but in this program you:

1- will be sitting in with about 150+ other students (maybe even more than 200?) in each lecture class which are power-point led.

2- will be mixed with traditional students, in which case you will obviously be at a disadvantage because you will have less hours of sleep and more work to do (because you are taking 5 classes, as opposed to 4 or less). This might affect your GPA (for obvious reasons), so be prepared to put in a lot of hours in school work.

3- I heard it is difficult to switch to other nursing programs, so do your research and decide.

I do not know much about how their MSN program, so I cannot advise you there.

Hunter (and BMCC) are supposed to have pretty good programs, but it is extremely competitive (cheap and good, how can you beat that?) because they only have a limited number of seats (hunter has less than 80 seats, I think) and they require that you take one or two semesters there before you apply to their nursing program, so if you did not do that, you can forget about them. They also have a high GPA requirement that changes based on the applicants for that semester you are applying, but my guess is that it should range from 3.5 to 4.0. Well, at least this was the case about 3 years ago. I tried to enter Hunter and BMCC, but my GPA was not high enough to meet these requirements, and I did not take any classes in Hunter before trying to their nursing program because the classes I needed (pre-requisites for nursing) were always full.

About the debt after school, I guess it might depend on the hospital and when you apply. I have not heard of any hospital in NYC doing this, so I am not sure if that even exists here, but for those who do, I think you might have to apply before graduation. Given the current market conditions (recession??) and the many existing nursing programs in NYC from which students are graduating, the job market for nurses is starting to get saturated with new grads, and New York is becoming a very competitive market place for NEW nurses. If you are planning to get work in more needy states, their hospitals might be able to offer you assistance repaying your loans.

As for the money, this is something that can be taken care by federal and private loans, unless you think you might enter into financial difficulty during your nursing program and have to drop off from the program in which case you might be able to work it out with the lender. You can always try to apply for scholarships to lessen your tuition costs.

Hope this helps. These comments are based on my own experience, but maybe others might have something different to say.

Good luck in your studies!!

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Bluskies,

I am interested to hear what you have decided about NYU?? I am also looking into that accelerated program myself (applications due in March for fall start), and I would love to hear anything you have to say about the application process! How long did it take for you to hear if you were accepted? Did you have any problems with prerequisite courses being accepted?

I had a 3.1 GPA from undergrad ('04 graduate) but my 6 most recent prerequisite classes have boosted that considerably. Did you apply with any sort of experience in the nursing/healthcare field? I don't have any experience (have been working in a microbiology food safety lab) and am worried that will hurt my chances.

Sorry for all the questions! I hope you were able to make the best decision for you about this program, g'luck!!

-Scouter

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NYU is a reaaaaaaalllllllllyyyyyyy good choice and some hospitals do pay loans.

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good luck!

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:D Dont worry
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Thanks NYCbs! Did you or do you currently go to NYU for the nursing program?? I am starting there this fall, and have orientation in 2 days! Very excited, but very nervous about the accelerated aspect. I've heard stories that the past two years have had some considerable "issues" with administration, etc?

Thanks for any info! =)

-Scouter

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Scouter,

I'm also starting in the Fall and attending the orientation, although I'm finishing up pre-reqs in the fall and won't start the nursing part until spring. I have a friend who started the program this spring and she's very happy with it, but does say it's very time consuming.

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as long as you are not a transfer student, it may work for you, in the huge size classroom, it seems like you just study by your own, but if like this, why you pay that amount of $$$$???

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Hello guys, did any of you join NYU BSN program? I was accepted into their program for Spring 2011 for the ABSN program and I am also having cold feet. Its going to cost me 120k inclusive of everything and I also have 40k loans from my previous degree. By the time I pay it off, it will be 200k...any suggestions on what I should do? Should I not go to NYU? Currently, I have been unemployed for a year now and havent had any luck with finding work. I have all my pre-reqs done and have applied to handful of schools for next year. I got into NYU and am really excited but not sure if I want to take on another 120k in loans...please help!! also I am 32 and planning on getting married by the time I am 35..not sure how my bf feels about taking on my debt...

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I am finishing my first semester at NYU. There are some good and bad things about the program, but I'm sure it's like this in every school, no program is perfect. I decided to go to NYU because I wanted to take all my prereqs in one semester. I get about 1/3 of tuition paid in scholarships (one is need-based, based on your Fafsa, the others I applied for and got). There aren't that many options in NYC for an accelerated BSN. Columbia is even more expensive. Pace is not that much cheaper than NYU, Suny Downstate is much harder to get into and has a lot more requirements in terms of pre-reqs than any other school. Hunter makes you bend over backwards just to apply to their program. Basically for me NYU just made sense. Yes, it's not cheap, but you get to do clinicals at all the major hospitals, make connections, etc.

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