Direct Entry Programs- How hard to get in?

Hi everyone! I've been reading this thread for a while now and it's been really helping me get through this crazy admission process. I posted a while back, asking if anyone had heard yet from Columbia. It seems that people started receiving their decision letters about 10 days ago, and everyday that I checked my mailbox, I never saw a Columbia logo. I gave up this past weekend and thought to myself, maybe it wasn't meant to be and I had started to prepare myself for the rejection letter. HOWEVER, I received an email yesterday from Columbia when I got home from a HORRIBLE microbiology midterm. I could not sleep all night and waited to call the admissions office this morning. It turns out, they had the wrong address on my file and I was actually accepted! They are sending out my acceptance letter again today and I cannot wait to finally see it in writing! Although I thought I didn't get in to Columbia, all of the postings that I have been reading have been so supportive and helpful. It's helped me to try and stay positive and I wish everyone all the best! :)

I posted a while back, asking if anyone had heard yet from Columbia. It seems that people started receiving their decision letters about 10 days ago, and everyday that I checked my mailbox, I never saw a Columbia logo. I gave up this past weekend and thought to myself, maybe it wasn't meant to be and I had started to prepare myself for the rejection letter. HOWEVER, I received an email yesterday from Columbia when I got home from a HORRIBLE microbiology midterm. I could not sleep all night and waited to call the admissions office this morning. It turns out, they had the wrong address on my file and I was actually accepted! They are sending out my acceptance letter again today and I cannot wait to finally see it in writing! Although I thought I didn't get in to Columbia, all of the postings that I have been reading have been so supportive and helpful. It's helped me to try and stay positive and I wish everyone all the best! :)

Congratulations Emy2005! :balloons:

That's a good point. Do check with the school to be sure they have the correct snail mail and email address for you! It's also worth calling the school to see if they have looked at your file and where they are in the process.

What happened to me: I had turned in my application early and got interviewed in Nov; I was not early decision. Then I knew they were looking at the regular applications starting in January (they had to finish early decision by Dec 15th). I had already gotten accepted to one school and wanted to know where my application was with the 2nd one. I phoned the 2nd school the last week in January. They gave me the standard line, "It will be at the end of Feb, early March before you hear anything". But I persisted and told them about turning my application in early and the interview. Then they transferred to another woman who looked at my file. She said, "Your file looks excellent. You're admitted." Just like that! Over the phone!

It saved me a lot of agony waiting and not knowing.

So if you really want to know, you can always call and ask them to look at your file. Go past the gatekeeper and get to the decision maker, the person who can tell you the status of your application. What is the worst that can happen? They can tell you they still haven't made up their minds. OR they can tell you one way or the other whether you got in! Hopefully you did!

Good luck to all! This is a nice support group for all of direct entry people!

Smile123

Hi everyone! I've been reading this thread for a while now and it's been really helping me get through this crazy admission process. I posted a while back, asking if anyone had heard yet from Columbia. It seems that people started receiving their decision letters about 10 days ago, and everyday that I checked my mailbox, I never saw a Columbia logo. I gave up this past weekend and thought to myself, maybe it wasn't meant to be and I had started to prepare myself for the rejection letter. HOWEVER, I received an email yesterday from Columbia when I got home from a HORRIBLE microbiology midterm. I could not sleep all night and waited to call the admissions office this morning. It turns out, they had the wrong address on my file and I was actually accepted! They are sending out my acceptance letter again today and I cannot wait to finally see it in writing! Although I thought I didn't get in to Columbia, all of the postings that I have been reading have been so supportive and helpful. It's helped me to try and stay positive and I wish everyone all the best! :)

Yay!!! Another acceptance- wooo hooo! Was Columbia your first choice? Where else have you applied?

Congrats!!!!!

Wow! Congratulations to Emy, Elizabells, Bruinlaura, and good luck to everyone else. :balloons: You're an inpiration!

I'm obsessively checking my mail now, waiting for the results after being interviewed at UCSF. My hopes are up again after all of your wonderful posts and advice.

Although I was wait listed at SF State, and don't know yet about UCSF, I just wanted to say to people that don't have 4.0's and incredible gpa's, that it's still possible to be considered. I'm not sure how my gpa was calculated, because I went to UC Santa Cruz when they gave narrative evaluations instead of grades, but I suspect they'd be interpreted somewhere between 3 and 3.5. Nothing spectacular. My GRE verbal and writing was pretty good, but math . . .

Anyway, they still gave me a chance to interview. So I encourage anyone else who wants to be an NP or CNS to apply. Grades and GPA aren't the only things they look at. I applied to the Gerontological NP program, which isn't as impacted, so perhaps that's why they were more lenient with me. Then again, I have a friend who is at about my level gpa wise and gre wise she got an interview for pediatrics which is extremely competitive.

Anyway, I'll keep you posted, and Good Luck to you all.

" I'm not sure how my gpa was calculated, because I went to UC Santa Cruz when they gave narrative evaluations instead of grades, but I suspect they'd be interpreted somewhere between 3 and 3.5. "

When did you graduate? I was a Slug too, graduated '03.

Can we start a Columbia thread? That would be good, I think, for all of us to network a bit before we get there. Find out who's going to be at the visiting thing in March, etc. Mods? Can we do that?

When did you graduate? I was a Slug too, graduated '03.

Hi Elizabells,

I graduated waaaaaay back in 1993 in American Studies. What did you major in?

Seahorse

Hi Elizabells,

I graduated waaaaaay back in 1993 in American Studies. What did you major in?

Seahorse

Legal Studies, which I believe they are discontinuing soon. They tried to kill the Journalism program, too, but it was saved when the new chancellor came in. I went back for the first time since grad a few weeks ago, and there's all this new infill housing behind Porter and Cowell, and these horrid new Engineering and Physics buildings. Remember how Science Hill was all pretty? Yeah, I do too. Not so much these days.

Yay!!! Another acceptance- wooo hooo! Was Columbia your first choice? Where else have you applied?

Congrats!!!!!

Thanks! I am super happy! Columbia was my first choice, but now I am actually leaning more towards Western U since the school is local for me and much, much cheaper. I also applied to MGH and I'll find out from the rest of the schools early next month!

Thanks! I am super happy! Columbia was my first choice, but now I am actually leaning more towards Western U since the school is local for me and much, much cheaper. I also applied to MGH and I'll find out from the rest of the schools early next month!

I've heard Columbia is crazy expensive- even by Direct ENtry program standards (hey none of them are cheap!). I guess living expenses in NYC with housing and all would really add to that. I applied to MGH too- fingers crossed!

Jess

has anyone that has gotten into one of these entry MSN's taken a look at scholarsihp info by chance? I've started looking, and most graduate scholarships ask for an RN already, whereas a lot of the general ones are mostly ADN or BSN... any suggestions?

has anyone that has gotten into one of these entry MSN's taken a look at scholarsihp info by chance? I've started looking, and most graduate scholarships ask for an RN already, whereas a lot of the general ones are mostly ADN or BSN... any suggestions?

You know, it's not exactly what you are asking- but I was surprized to learn at the BC infosession that they let you know what scholarships and grants you've been awarded in the acceptance letter. Now these are from the school directly- but how strange is that?! Is that common at most schools? I always thought that getting any kind of money was only though the financial aid office after you've submitted a FAFSA and that you found out what your total package was well after being accepted. Any of you who have already been accepted to schools know anything about your finiancial package yet?

-Jess

You know, it's not exactly what you are asking- but I was surprized to learn at the BC infosession that they let you know what scholarships and grants you've been awarded in the acceptance letter. Now these are from the school directly- but how strange is that?! Is that common at most schools? I always thought that getting any kind of money was only though the financial aid office after you've submitted a FAFSA and that you found out what your total package was well after being accepted. Any of you who have already been accepted to schools know anything about your finiancial package yet?

-Jess

That is really strange. How can they give you scholarships and grants upfront? Perhaps if they really want you, they'll offer you that as an enticement to come to their school. The FAFSA on the other hand, is mainly for loans (subsidized and unsubsidized). When I got my acceptance letter, they said to go to the FAFSA website and fill out the form to be eligible for financial aid. (Part of doing the FAFSA is that you have to do your 2004 taxes first! That takes awhile. And if you are a dependent, your parents have to do their taxes before you can complete the form.)

Smile123