Why is it so hard to get into nursing school? Let me please ask that you not make mean comments here, I'm already heartbroken. But I seriously don't understand why it's so, so hard to just get IN to nursing school. I have heard that nursing school is hard enough as it is, and I don't have a problem with that. Let people in who want to be a nurse and the school itself can be the factor that makes or breaks you.
Heres my story (long story short) I have wanted to work in healthcare my whole life. I finally decided it was time this year and quit my job in Oil and Gas Accounting to go full-throttle. I worked hard, maintained a 4.0, got a job in a hospital, did all the right things. I took the HESI A2 and got a decent score, but I was less than comfortable with it and studied more and re-took it 2 days before the application to my desired program was due. Unfortunately, test anxiety kicked in and I raised my score by one point. ONE point. If you know the HESI, you know it can be taken twice in a year. That's it. So I turn in my application and anxiously await the decision. I kind of knew that my score wasn't enough to put me on the top of the list but I did hope to make the alternate list. Nope. 106 people applied, which is double what we were told was the norm for Spring admittance. They selected a measly 35 candidates. Out of 106. That means that 70ish people got rejection letters on Christmas Eve. I wanted it so bad. I feel like I deserve it and worked extremely hard to get it. I'm not saying I want it worse than anyone, but I am having a really, really hard time not feeling like there's some in that 35 who thought "what the heck, I'll take the test and see what happens" and got in. They don't even know if they want to be a nurse, they just think it's the fastest way to make a decent living. It kills me. I have made huge sacrifices to get here and just like that, my plan is derailed. I'm not saying I won't try again, but being logistical, the same test score must be used for the next application window, as I can't test again for at least 11 months. Same score for fall semester...hmmm. Test again in fall for spring...it's an entire year setback. And taking a $40k paycut and being set back a year when you have 4 kids, is a major derailment.
It breaks my heart. I feel responsible now for picking up more shifts so that we can build savings up again and not live paycheck to paycheck because I didn't make it. I feel like I let everyone down, including myself.
I know I will get past this and things will eventually work out how they're supposed to, but today, that doesn't help me understand why I can't just get my foot in the door and show them how bad I want this and how hard I have and am willing to keep working to get there.
I just wanted to say that I applied to the same school 3 times before I was accepted and each time I got the rejection I cried and was really mopey and depressed for weeks! It really does suck!
Please just oust keep in mind that a rejection doesn't mean that you aren't good enough there are just too many people applying.
I I suggest going to the school and ask how to improve your chances of acceptance and apply to more than one school!
And take heart- it seemed like it takes forever to get in but once you're in, it goes by so fast!
Hugs! Be tough, be patient, be awesome like you have been and you will get in!
The process to get into nursing school is a gigantic pain. Every school wants something different and some basically want you to be a rocket scientist to be accepted. my mom wants to make a reality show out of it. It is very disappointing to not get in. I have been wait listed and rejected many times before I got accepted into a program. Apply to more than one school, you will get accepted into the program you're meant to be in. Keep your chin up and keep trying. Good luck with the rest of your process!
Listen, I get that you're upset. But it's not the end of the world. Cry, rant, and then wipe your tears make a plan and go forth.
Did you finish all your general ed classes, not just your prerequisites, if not, work on those.
Keep working and making connections. Volunteer if you can.
And try to work on attitude/behavior when confronted with failure or less than ideal achievements. Because nursing school might break you, if not than actually being a nurse will.
Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.
Definitely not intended to be mean, but reality and constructive criticism. Part of posting in a public forum is getting responses, whether you agree with them or not.
There are many reasons not all who apply to nursing school are accepted. It's not about a matter of "wanting it"; it's a matter of resources. When the "nursing shortage" propaganda came out, there was a sudden increase in the number of nursing programs. That means more students/schools competing for the same instructors and same clinical sites. That is why many programs have to limit the number of available seats. In addition, with the "nursing shortage" propaganda, there were many people who lost their jobs, needed a better paying job, or for whatever reason decided nursing was the job for them. Demand went up; resources did not.
Also, this is not about other students who got in while you didn't. You don't know their stories and your first post does indeed sound judgmental of them. Forget all of that. Look at what you can do to make yourself more attractive. Do you need to retake courses to bring up a GPA? Do you need to retake entrance exams for a better score? Do you need volunteer or CNA experience?
How many different schools have you applied for? You also can't put all your eggs in one basket and continue to apply only to one school with the expectation that you will eventually get in. Try other schools if need be. Just make sure they are accredited by ACEN or CCNE and are approved by the BON.
I appreciate all of the responses. I am not letting this one program stop me - and I am grateful for the sharing of your stories. It was a hard hit to take. And when I wrote the post, I was hurting, but I want to clarify something. My comment of people just going in for the heck of it was directly related to the response I got when asking a co-worker who is a RN, why he decided to become a nurse. He simply felt it was the quickest way to decent pay, and it had nothing to do with actually wanting to be a nurse. The comment resonated with me, since I have been working so hard because I do want to be a nurse. I don't intend for anyone to think I'm judging or to think that I know everyone's back stories or struggles getting in - and as I said before, I am sorry for anyone who thinks I am judging based on his answer to me. I have a lot of respect for nursing students and nurses.
I appreciate all of the responses. I am not letting this one program stop me - and I am grateful for the sharing of your stories. It was a hard hit to take. And when I wrote the post, I was hurting, but I want to clarify something. My comment of people just going in for the heck of it was directly related to the response I got when asking a co-worker who is a RN, why he decided to become a nurse. He simply felt it was the quickest way to decent pay, and it had nothing to do with actually wanting to be a nurse. The comment resonated with me, since I have been working so hard because I do want to be a nurse. I don't intend for anyone to think I'm judging or to think that I know everyone's back stories or struggles getting in - and as I said before, I am sorry for anyone who thinks I am judging based on his answer to me. I have a lot of respect for nursing students and nurses.
I hope you understand that several of the very qualified and competent nurses who post here became nurses largely because at certain times it has been a good career to earn a decent wage. (Wages are not very competitive in many areas these days) If you think nursing is all about "helping people" you have a rather narrow view of what nursing actually entails. There is often little time to focus on helping people the way we would like due to ridiculous nurse to patient ratios, increasing acuity, and insane charting requirements.
My comment of people just going in for the heck of it was directly related to the response I got when asking a co-worker who is a RN, why he decided to become a nurse. He simply felt it was the quickest way to decent pay, and it had nothing to do with actually wanting to be a nurse.
To put it as gently as possible....so what? Maybe his motives weren't what you felt they should be but he IS an RN, so apparently he was skilled enough to get through nursing school, pass his boards, and find employment. Who cares why he went into nursing as long as he's doing a good job at it.
If you compare yourself to your peers like this you will not make it through nursing school. You cannot always be worrying about the other person (and their motives). You will need to focus on you and your choices.
As others have said, start taking your pre-reqs. You can put yourself in a great position to start nursing school when you actually get in. Also, at my college you could take a few nursing classes before you were actually into the program (Nutrition and another one that escapes my memory right now). Look into that and see if there are some classes you can get under your belt.
Also as others have said, APPLY ELSEWHERE! I live in the middle of nowhere and there are three colleges that offer nursing in my area. Do some research and see if you can get in somewhere else.
I know how it feels to work so hard, harder than others to get to where you want to be and not be accepted, all the while watching others get the thing you fought so hard for. The easiest thing to do is look around for someone/something to blame to try to make yourself feel better but it actually does the opposite. You have to separate yourself from the other people who got in and know that you are different from them. What they do and what happens to them has absolutely nothing to do with you and this is your own journey. The more you try to look at it that way, the better you will feel about not being accepted. And besides, it seems like you only applied to ONE school?? That is just BEGGING to be rejected. Not to scold you or anything like that but even people with 4.0 gpa's and 80% and up for HESI and TEAS are not guaranteed anything. I'm not sure if you mentioned where you're from, but im from California which is the land of the rejected nurse. And I don't know anyone here who has only applied to ONE school with the realistic hopes of getting in. I, myself applied to 5(and that's modest) and luckily I got into 1 so far. It's like a raffle. You can't expect to have a high chance to win with only 1 ticket do you? APPLY AGAIN, and this time apply to 5+ schools, don't pay attention to anyone or whatever they're doing, and keep telling yourself that you will be a nurse no matter what. You not getting in does not reflect what you are or are not capable of, it just means you need to wait a little longer. I truly hope you have a happy new year and that you get in. Anyone who can uphold a 4.0 NEEDS to be a nurse:yes:
Apply to another school and get some study materials for the HESI. Consider a back door route if you have to. My friend's daughter kept getting wait listed for the RN program at a community college in FL. This occurred over several years. Finally, she went to a trade school and became an LPN. She completed a bridge program at the community college that kept turning her down and finished the RN coursework in a year. Now she is working on her BSN. I think her grades were mostly B's and C's. She worked as a tech in a trauma ED while she was applying to school. You would think that would help, but it doesn't always! Now she works as an RN at an urgent care.I wish you luck. Stay positive. You can only control your variables. It doesn't matter what the school accepts or who got in when you didn't.
Look at your schools policies. Are they something that is difficult for you to meet? Our local community college has a point system where their courses count the most. For example, an A in A&P at Yale, counts the same as a C in A&P at this community college if you want to transfer that course in. Their answer is take is again with them for more "points." That is crazy and a waste of people's money. To me, if I looked at this local CC and wanted to transfer in credits, that is a no go.
My daughter went to a private school and was done in two years. She was not an excellent student. She got B's, C's, and one or two A's. The community college would have kept having her retake their courses for more points. She definitely spent less time going to the private school and less money too, if you figure in the fact that she earned a nurse's salary after two years. Many people I know take and retake courses at the community college and take 4 or 5 years or more to complete the ASN.
Remember, Cs get degrees. At the end of the day, an ADN is a RN and a BSN is a RN In my area, the difference in pay is minimal if anything.
It took me several years on a waitlist after taking all of my prereqs - which included having to retake both A & P 1 and 2 twice to pass with a minimum of a B. I'm an average student making it with Cs and low Bs.
I just passed second semester (OB, Peds, and Mental Health), now the monster is ready to eat me (MedSurg)
And I don't know anyone here who has only applied to ONE school with the realistic hopes of getting in. I, myself applied to 5(and that's modest) and luckily I got into 1 so far. It's like a raffle. You can't expect to have a high chance to win with only 1 ticket do you? APPLY AGAIN, and this time apply to 5+ schools, don't pay attention to anyone or whatever they're doing, and keep telling yourself that you will be a nurse no matter what. You not getting in does not reflect what you are or are not capable of, it just means you need to wait a little longer. I truly hope you have a happy new year and that you get in. Anyone who can uphold a 4.0 NEEDS to be a nurse:yes:
In my area, the difference in pay is minimal if anything.
Chory
9 Posts
It's not the paycheck that I want. It's what the paycheck can bring me. In other words, I can't build a house out of paychecks nor eat paychecks.