DUKE ABSN Fall 2012

Columnist · Aug 2, 2011

Moved to NC Nursing Programs Discussion forum for more responses.

Good luck!

ABSNhopeful · Aug 2, 2011

thank you!

Columnist · Aug 2, 2011

You are welcome.

southeRNgirl185 · Sep 6, 2011

Hi! I am going to be applying to Duke's ABSN program for Fall 2012 also! I am very nervous but also very excited at the thought of going to such a great school. I'm from the Boston area and went to school in NYC so a move to North Carolina would be a big change for me. At this point I am almost certain I will also apply to UNC-Chapel Hill and George Washington U. What other schools are you considering?

ABSNhopeful · Sep 6, 2011

Hello! That is so exciting! I noticed that a lot of people on here have applied to the Spring term but I haven't really seen that many Fall '12 applicants. I am from California so I understand the big change of scenery part! I am just waiting to take the GRE so I can send in my application! I was considering applying to University of Denver in Colorado and possibly a few other schools but Duke is my number one choice!

moggsy · Sep 21, 2011

Hi guys! Did anyone attend the information session last night? I did, and I thought it was really good. The student panel was especially interesting. Got a handout that lists the total program tuition and fees cost estimate as $65,008 - ouch. But I think it's definitely worth it considering the fact that you will have 896 total clinical/lab hours by the time you graduate. Thoughts?

ABSNhopeful · Sep 21, 2011

I didn't get to go to the meeting although I really would have liked to have gone. That is quite expensive only for a year but from what I have noticed Duke has a lot more clinic hours than other schools which is a big plus for me! What else was covered in the information meeting? Was there a ton of people there?

moggsy · Sep 21, 2011

There were maybe 65 people there? But that includes family members and spouses (some people brought their parents/husbands/wives, etc). There was definitely a big age range between everybody there. The program chair talked and then they did a faculty panel and a student panel, and then M (the nice admissions lady) talked about the application and requirements (the personal statement section has been revamped) and a financial aid lady talked - the session lasted the whole 2 hours. Most of the info was what is on the website, but the program chair gave everybody a PowerPoint that has the stats for the most recent classes (how many people applied, were accepted, majors, average age, etc) and broke down the four semesters (when you have classes and clinicals) so that was interesting. I thought the faculty panel did a little too much pandering to the audience (but I guess all admissions people are like that, ha ha). The students and alumni were really honest, so that was probably my favorite part (bottom line - you absolutely cannot work at all while you're in the program). Sounds like a great but very busy 16 months!

ABSNhopeful · Sep 22, 2011

Oh ok. That sounds like it was a helpful meeting to go to. Did she say anything specific about the application? I noticed that the personal statement is now just three questions instead of the essay format. That is kind of nice but at the same time it's hard to express what you mean in 250 words. Haha. That is interesting about the program chair too. Are you looking into the research or spanish path? I would like to do the spanish path but I am horrible at spanish already and don't think it's very realistic if I tried to do it in a nursing program. Haha. It's always nice when they are honest. Was the overall vibe good? Did the students seem happy with there decision? I assume they would pick the good student. Ha. It would suck not to work during but it would probably be impossible with the course load and studying! Overall I think it's my top choice for school! Now I just gotta get my application going, just waiting to take the GRE this friday! Ahhhhh

moggsy · Sep 22, 2011

About the application - she just said that you can't share too much as far as your resume goes (we upload it, so that's convenient because you can add a lot of details) and to talk about medical experience you've had in the personal statement questions (but I think that is a given, ha ha). I am liking the three question thing over the regular personal statement because it gives more direction, but I agree with you about the 250 word limit - is that about a page double spaced for each? 3/4 of a page? Geez. I am thinking the Spanish pathway too because the research path sounds like it can snowball into a ton of work - a few of the students there were doing that. I like languages but I was never into Spanish, so I would be starting out in the lowest level for sure! LOL... The overall vibe was really good, and everybody (the professors and the students) seemed really happy to be there. The students were diverse - one girl was a mom, two people were in their third semester, one guy was a chef for 10 years before switching fields, several of them are doing some of the graduate programs, etc. One of the girls was saying how expensive it was (ha) but that it was worth it, and they talked about how much they studied. No one there really kills themselves trying to do all the reading/get straight As, so that was refreshing to hear. You can do clinical experiences abroad, but the male student was like you have to pay out of pocket for those, so I got the vibe that not many people go on them because of that. I am working on the app too... Glad they don't do rolling admissions so we at least have quite a bit of time to prepare everything! Good luck on the GRE - I am sure you'll do great!

ABSNhopeful · Oct 7, 2011

Thank you for all the info! The GRE was killer! Hopefully my score wasn't too low so that I don't have to take it again. Now I just have to finish my application! Ahhh i'm so nervous about submitting it. I definitely have to update my resume, especially if it can be super detailed. I also have to send my transcripts. Do you know if we can send them before we submit our app? I wasn't sure if we had to do it at the same time or not. I cant believe it's almost the deadline to turn it in!!