Do men have priority when considered for Nursing School?

HM2VikingRN, RN · Feb 26, 2008

No men don't get preference. If you really want to get in the best way is to be professional in your communications. Apply to several schools. Always ask to be put on the waiting list.

My mother as a retired nurse educator always tells the story of how a man showed up 4 days before classes were to start. The DON told him to show up Mon morning and be ready to go. He would have a slot if there awas a no show. There was a no show and he was accepted. As far as I know he went on to be a very successful LPN.

Moral of the Story: Show up. Put your best foot forward and you can succeed.

AprilRNhere · Feb 26, 2008

Thank you for your help. I know three RNs and only one of them is still working. I think working mothers have a great deal of responsibility and courage. Maybe I was a bit too blunt with my statement in my first thread. Im sorry if I offended you. However, please look at the facts. Women get pregnant. They often feel the responsibility to stay home and take care of their newborn. Just as fathers should feel the responsibility to provide for their families. I do understand that not everyone has an ideal situation. I know a few single mothers and they are some of the most courageous people I have known.

Hmm...maybe you should see the thread about the large amount of RN's who are supporting their family while their husband's stay home. THis is a very old fashioned view. I also believe it's illegal for companies to hire based on potential to get pregnant.

mlblmt · Mar 3, 2008

Hi, my name is Jason and I am a prenursing student attending ASU. I have fulfilled a majority of my prerequisites and have scored generally well. I applied to the nursing program in December 2007 but am almost sure that I did not get accepted. My GPA was a 3.5 and my overall net score was a 75%. My question is, do I still have a chance of being accepted? Since I am male do I have priority to students who are bound to get pregnant, start a family and quit the profession?

Sorry to beat a dead horse but are you kidding me?!?! I've just recently gotten accepted into, imho, the best ADN program in NE Florida and worked my butt off to get there. I worked full-time while attending school full-time with a wife and child, gpa of 3.41 and scored 126 on the NAT (of which only 120pts max were accepted). "People" say that males get preference. Who are these "people"? They obviously didn't make the determination of who would be in my class of 75 that starts in May. And, here it goes, it completely boggles my mind that in 2008 someone can think/say that about women! I, as a married male of 13 yrs was offended. I, as a black male who is bombarded with how much affirmative action is ruining the country was offended. I, as an older student having to compete with younger brains with fewer responsibilities was offended. I can say unequivocally that I have EARNED my spot in class. I do hope that you take to heart the words of some of the other posters. Please examine the reasons why you want to be a nurse, I implore you. Maybe I'm reading/making to much out of this, but if this is how you think before you're even in nursing school, what will be you attitude when dealing with patients?

Valerie Salva, BSN, RN · Mar 4, 2008

I hate to burst your bubble, playbanjogood,

but men leave the nursing profession at twice the rate that women do-

"One additional surprising finding is that beginning male nurses are leaving the profession at twice the rate of women."

Specifically, the research found that:

o in the most recent nurse survey, 7.5 percent of new male nurses dropped out of nursing within four years of graduating from nursing school, compared to 4 percent of women;

o the dropout rate for both male and female new graduates is accelerating, rising from 2 percent of men in 1992 to 7.5 percent in 2000; and 2.7 percent of women in 1992 to 4.1 percent in 2000;

http://www.upenn.edu/researchatpenn/article.php?435&hlt

HM2VikingRN, RN · Mar 4, 2008

We need to figure out how to prevent attrition of new nurses....

Valerie Salva, BSN, RN · Mar 4, 2008

We need to figure out how to prevent attrition of new nurses....

And of not-so-new nurses....

CANurse2B · Mar 5, 2008

Perhaps the tendency shown here...of some to "eat their young" for a young person asking a, perhaps badly worded, question is one of the reasons for dissatisfaction in the nursing profession felt by some. Lighten up folks!

I bet all he can think of now is "gee, I hope I never make a mistake in word or deed...look how I will be treated!".

karenG · Mar 5, 2008

Wow. Perhaps the tendency by some here to "eat their young" in response to a badly worded question might be one reason some feel dissatisfaction after working in Nursing. I bet all he can worry about now is the hope that he never makes a mistake in word or deed....only to be devoured. Lighten up folks!

I would suggest that no-one is 'eating their young', merely expressing dismay that a potential nurse would think that he should get preference because he is male and unlikely to have children. I personally think a nurse should be chosen on ability, not colour/sex etc. if he gets the grades, then i hope he gets a place.

and one day someone must explain this grade system to me.. havent a clue what any of it means!

Karen

adamwade · Mar 5, 2008

I can tell you from personal experience that it does not give you priority or an edge.

I am a 34 year old male sophomore nursing student. I maintained a 3.94 GPA while completing my prerequisites. I applied to the 4 colleges in my area that have a Baccalaureate Degree programs as well as the two Community Colleges that have Associate Degree programs.

Out of the 6 colleges that I applied for I only got accepted into one of them. I know a few women in my prerequisite classes that had a far lower GPAs than I did and got accepted into a couple of colleges. One of them got accepted in 3 of them.

The college that I was attending completing my prerequisites where I maintained my 3.94 GPA did not accept me, which was odd.

The best advice I have for you is to not keep all of your eggs in one basket. Some colleges are more expensive than others but if this is something that you want to do, go for it.

nursemike, ASN, RN · Mar 5, 2008

I would suggest that no-one is 'eating their young', merely expressing dismay that a potential nurse would think that he should get preference because he is male and unlikely to have children. I personally think a nurse should be chosen on ability, not colour/sex etc. if he gets the grades, then i hope he gets a place.
and one day someone must explain this grade system to me.. havent a clue what any of it means!
Karen

A= Excellent= 4 pts.

B= Good= 3 pts.

C= Average= 2 pts.

D= Poor= 1 pt.

F (or E) = Failing= 0 pts.

Then, in college, you weight each grade by the number of credits. At my school, classes were weighted by semester-hours, and the results were called quality points. So if you made A's in two 3hr courses and a C in a 4hr course, your GPA would be (4x3)+(4x3)+(2x4)= 32 quality points/10 semester-hours= 3.2.

I give the OP a gentleman's C in Women's Studies. While I agree there is no need to flame him excessively, I believe this thread illustrates the necessity for at least an awareness of feminist sensibilities as one enters the nursing profession. I happen to agree with many ideas that could be broadly described as feminist. I like the fact that I work around a lot of strong, intelligent, independent women (some of whom do not particularly describe themselves as feminists and may disagree with some of my liberal views) but when I say something in report like "Pt MAE equal and strong, for a girl..." I know in advance to be ready to duck.

nurselizk · Mar 5, 2008

C= Average= 2 pts.
I give the OP a gentleman's C in Women's Studies.

I sincerely hope that believing a guy should get hiring preference because he can't have children, is not considered average.

nursemike, ASN, RN · Mar 11, 2008

I sincerely hope that believing a guy should get hiring preference because he can't have children, is not considered average.

I've always heard the term "gentleman's C" as a grade that isn't really earned, but the instructor doesn't want to impede the student's progress in a (usually unrelated) major, like giving a business major a C in chemistry.

I applied it to the OP because I don't think one regrettable comment makes a guy a sexist pig (if I'm wrong, I'm in deep do-do, because I've made a lot of regrettable comments).

That said, the underlying view used to be average, and is probably still more widespread than it ought to be. Women do get passed over because "they're going to leave to have babies in a couple of years..." Obviously, that view would make recruiting new nurses pretty difficult, since I'm sure most new nurses are still women of childbearing age. But another poster alluded to a manager preferring "older" women, and some might apply the same rationale toward males.

It seems to me that dealing with young women would be one of the challenges for nursing administrators. In American society (and many others) it is more typical for the mother to take time off for child rearing.

Then, too, if I, a nurse, had a wife who could make 90K a year as a software engineer in California, or flip burgers in WV, I could probably find a good nursing job in California. But, more often, it appears to be the female nurse following her husband. I'm not suggesting these are valid reasons to prefer males, but the mommy track and changing jobs may be part of the reason there appears to be some inequity in pay for male nurses and female nurses. In a lot of marriages, it's assumed (by both parties) that the mother will be the one to sacrifice her career to raise kids, etc.

The good news, and why I recommend nursing to young women, is that a lot of the administrators have been working mothers, themselves. And, again, those who don't understand and accept the needs and goals of young women--some young women--are doomed to unhappiness and frustration, because there will never be enough men or post-menopausal women to staff all of the beds.