Current high school senior who is determined on becoming a nurse practitioner.

twinmommy+2, ADN, BSN, MSN · Aug 5, 2015

I'm starting my senior year of high school. Just a few months ago i decided that i want to become a nurse (eventually a nurse practitioner.) So i didn't really plan far ahead in my early years of high school because i didn't really know what career i liked until now.
I have the intention of getting accepted into a college or university, complete my prerequisites, and apply for a nursing program at the school. I would like to get accepted into a BSN program straight away (i read somewhere you could do that.) But i guess i'm fine with getting my associates first if i end up having to. Yes you can get into a BSN program if your GPA is high enough, if not start with Community College and work your way up from there
Is it really necessary to take AP classes in high school to be a nurse? no I took science honors classes that i passed with A's and B's and i'm currently taking an honors anatomy class and its kinda too late for me to get into AP classes now. Would colleges still consider me? Yes they will.
In math, I barely passed with a C in algebra 1 but B in geometry and a C in algebra 2. How would that affect me? I plan on becoming better at math as i know that basic algebra is used everyday as a nurse. Instead of working on AP classes I would put forth the extra effort into math, since you will need both math and science.
How are my chances of getting accepted into a nursing program? Also, what are the minimum SAT or ACT scores to be accepted into a program? Do nursing programs even look through your high school years and just focus on how you did on your prerequisites? Focus on a great GPA, the higher the better. Nursing school will focus on prereqs and not the high school GPA.
I flew through my English, history, and my foreign languages with decent grades.
Any more tips and advice would be truly appreciated!:)

There you have it

Here.I.Stand, BSN, RN · Aug 5, 2015

It's hard to say 100% not being from your area (I'm assuming you're in Florida, being that you tagged it), but I wouldn't think it would be a deal-breaker. Quite a lot of people these days are pursuing nursing as a second career, or after staying at home with children for years after high school--meaning, that they didn't necessarily plan their high school curricula with the goal of nursing school in mind.

How it works is you apply to colleges/tech schools, take general ed classes until nursing program prerequisites are met, and then apply to the nursing program in your school. Then you do the core nursing major classes, plus whatever general ed classes you still need. AP classes will be helpful for getting into the college of your choice and possibly tip the balance if your school's nursing program is very competitive, but your performance in your college pre-nursing program will likely be the biggest deciding factor.

I don't remember my high school transcripts or ACT even being looked at when applying to my nursing program, only for general college admissions. My high school didn't offer actual AP classes either (I'm from a little podunk town, with Head Start through 12th grade all in one building), for what that's worth.

Of course, my word is not gospel--for a definitive answer, you should contact the nursing departments of the schools you're looking at to ask these questions.

I would highly encourage you to get some extra help with math, however. Your overall GPA might be competitive if you got mostly A's in other classes, but math is a factor. For nursing you'll likely need a minimum of college algebra, and you'll probably have to take an introductory statistics class if you're pursuing your BSN. In nursing we use basic algebra a fair amount in dosage calculations for drugs, and most nursing programs that I am aware of don't consider C's passing grades. Plan to utilize any tutoring services your college offers. Depending on what the admissions staff say, you might consider taking some extra math over the summer. Community colleges may have online or evening options for summer math classes, or there are online classes geared toward high school students who are homeschooled or need extra math classes for whatever reason. (My daughter has done the latter--I can PM you if you want to know what options her school suggested. Let me know.) Or if time and $$$ aren't a huge obstacle, maybe look into tutoring options available in your area for some 1:1 help. Or even just start by talking to your guidance counselor at school, about how you're considering nursing but haven't done great in math, and find out if he/she has any suggestions? Whether doing any of those suggestions will actually transfer and make a difference in your GPA, that I don't know; but you would be demonstrating your initiative and extra effort to succeed.

applewhitern, BSN, RN · Aug 5, 2015

At my college, a minimum score of 19 on the ACT was required to get into the nursing program. That particular school did not accept SAT scores for nursing or education majors. Every school is different. It would benefit you to start checking around at the different nursing schools you wish to attend and see just what they require. Many nursing schools have "waiting lists," so the better prepared you are academically, the better your chances. Good luck.

Editorial Team / Admin · Aug 5, 2015

Welcome to allnurses.com

Thread moved to Pre-Nursing forum.

RNsRWe, ASN, RN · Aug 5, 2015

In a nutshell, the better you look on your application to a college, the better your chances for admission. Two ways to go: One, decide which university or college (traditional, four-year degree) you want to try to get into, take a look at their admission criteria, and apply. If you get in, do everything that the school recommends in order to be a viable candidate for that school's nursing program.

OR, Two, consider enrolling in a community college to complete the pre-requisite/general education courses that all nursing programs will require prior to applying to the nursing program(s) of your choice. It might be ADN, it might be BSN; right now, your job is to get in SOMEWHERE, just to get started:)

How well you do in your Senior high school year will determine (plus, of course, your high school history of academics and extra-curriculars) how likely it is you will be accepted anywhere. Whether or not to take AP courses, or what you can do to bolster your application is something you should discuss with your HS Guidance counselor. He/she should know what schools you are considering for applications, and what your chances might be as you are now....and what they could be if you make some changes to your schedule. Getting into college in the first place is the first step.

From there, how well you do in your college coursework will REALLY determine what your chances are at nursing school: if your college GPA is excellent, your pre-requisite courses show you to be a great student, and your volunteer experiences and recommendations have you as a top candidate...there you go. If you do very well, you increase your chances. Do poorly....not so much.

Good luck!

Dranger · Aug 5, 2015

The fact you want to be an NP is moot, focus on the now which is getting into nursing school. It sounds like you are on the right path if you heed the advice from the posters above.

Gabriella06 · Aug 6, 2015

Thank you all so much! :cat:I'm going to focus on doing my extracurriculars and doing what i can to get into nursing school first. When my senior year starts i will definitely take advice my highschool counselor as well.

RNsRWe, ASN, RN · Aug 6, 2015

Thank you all so much! :cat:I'm going to focus on doing my extracurriculars and doing what i can to get into nursing school first. When my senior year starts i will definitely take advice my highschool counselor as well.

Good luck to you....but remember, you are not looking to get into a nursing school first. You are looking to get into college first, anywhere where you can take the pre-requs necessary to increase your odds of a great GPA and application to get INTO a nursing school. The latter comes later.

JessicaNICURN · Aug 6, 2015

Hi Gabriella,

It is great that you are so determined! You are at an advantage because you know what you want to go into before college, not everyone has that going for them. The best thing you can do for now is to work on bringing your GPA up as high as possible. If I were you I would apply directly to the BSN programs when you are applying to schools. It is very difficult to transfer into nursing programs after you get into a school because programs are often limited in size.

Like you, I struggled with math in high school. Focus your attention on that for now. It is better to do well in an honors class than to do mediocre in an AP class.

Good luck!

la_chica_suerte85, BSN, RN · Aug 6, 2015

If you're really set on it, some schools offer a type of "guaranteed admit" from high school into the nursing program upon completion of prerequisites. These are the 3 particulars of my school (based on your final transcript from spring graduation): 3.5+ GPA, 1100 SAT I (critical reading and math) or 26 on ACT and graduate in the top 10% of your class.

Also, you don't get your ADN before BSN. You can get your BSN or get your ADN (which there is no point anymore because everyone wants BSN, sadly) and then bridge later to BSN. Just look at schools offering BSNs if NP is your ultimate goal.

Good luck!

samim0799 · May 8, 2017

So I am by no means an AP student, however I care a great deal about school and intend to become a RN and later be a Nurse Practitioner, i have about a 3.0 gpa and I'm doing good in school mostly B's and C's and occasionally A's. I got an 17 on ACT but I intend to retake it. I plan on going to jjc first for prerequisites, will I be okay? are the requires classes to become an RN easy to pass as long as I have m stuff together?