Early Admission for University of Alberta

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Does anyone know how long the University of Alberta takes to send out admission letters to the After Degree Nursing program? I applied to the Winter 2011 session so I'm just wondering when they give out Early Admission so I can stop worrying about it for awhile!

As an aside, anyone know how exactly UofA assesses your GPA? My previous degree was on a 4.33 GPA scale but they assign letter grades, so does the assigned grade get transferred straight across?

Thanks in advance, and I'd love to hear all related comments about this program and nursing in Alberta in general.

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Look through some of the old posts in this forum.

Most of us working in Edmonton aren't great fans of the UofA's students.

As for working in Alberta as a nurse? Sheesh, you read the newspapers and watch TV right? Look at the AHS threads. We're not happy campers.

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Specializes in Cardiac Sciences, Cardiology.

MacEwan University is better ..why not that?

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Surely all students coming out of University of Alberta aren't bad; that seems a bit unlikely considering it's the largest nursing school in the country. I'm considering it because they offer the 2 year after degree program. I'm also considering UofC and ULeth but waiting for to see if my course prerequisites are adequate.

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Specializes in Cardiology.

Some of my U of C classmates considered going to the U of A but the whole PBL thing really turned them off.

U of Calgary has completely changed it's after degree program and it starts in Jan 2011. As for a GPA to get in.. no idea. They pretty much accepted everyone that applied for the Sept 2009 class (165 students!!!!) LOL

Is your GPA on a 9 scale? If so, you're probably borderlline to get in (B, B+).

If you're set on nursing as a career, I would suggest you apply to every school in AB (even if it's a 4 yr program) and go from there.

Good luck!!

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Specializes in NICU, PICU, PCVICU and peds oncology.
Some of my U of C classmates considered going to the U of A but the whole PBL thing really turned them off.

That's hysterical!! Only yesterday I read an article in the Alberta RN (monthly CARNA magazine) just drooling over PBL and how much more appropriate it is for nursing students than the common lecture/lab format. I quote:

"Research shows that students educated with a problem-based learning approach may be:

  • more highly motivated
  • better problem-solvers
  • more self-directed learners
  • better able to learn and recall information
  • better able to integrate basic science knowledge into clinical practice

It is unclear if the problem-based learning approach affects self-rated academic competencies. It does not seem to influence clinical competence."

Then in another place, regarding advanced practice it says:

"In particular it enhances three areas of nursing practice:

  1. viewing patients holistically
  2. integrating general principles of care and treatment in specific and unique situations
  3. embracing self-directed, life-long learning

There is little substantive evidence to support longer-term effects on practitioners."

So basically CARNA praises the concept then systematically tears it apart. But the U of A is committed to it. My own experience with U of A grads is that so much more rests on the individual's strengths and weaknesses than on the educational approach. Some new grads are competent and efficient ICU nurses right out of the gate and others take a LOT of nurturing, spoon-feeding and babysitting to even marginally make the grade. And the only way to know which is which is to give them a job and hope for the best.

The faculty of the U of A definitely looks down its collective nose at the average hands-on nursing provider by lecturing students on the blue-collarness of it all. One professor in particular has a pre-programmed rant about nursing unions and the indignity of belonging to one. But so many faculty members have been away from the bedside (if indeed they EVER were there) for so long and so much has changed in the health care workplace that they have no idea of the challenges faced by nurses today. And without that frame of reference they are powerless to work toward effective change. Some will say that the United Nurses of Alberta is overly aggressive and militant, but without them our workplaces would be SO much worse than they are. What we need is a balance between regulation and advocacy.

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Hey thanks very much for the reply.

My gpa wasn't 4.33 that's just the scale it was graded on. My actual transfer gpa is what I was trying to figure out because I know they look at the last 24 credits for the transfer agpa, and I think I had 1 A+, 5 As and 2 B's. I have no idea what it calculates out to be because I don't know how they do the conversion.

On the 4.33 gpa scale, it would work out to an A- or A

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Specializes in MPH Student Fall/14, Emergency, Research.

You'd have to be pretty motived to finish the U of A's after degree program. A friend of mine was in it and said it had close to a 50% drop out rate. Since you're done your prereqs when you apply, you are essentially just taking context-based learning nursing courses back to back to back and the pace is furious.

I've often wondered how you're supposed to teach yourself a profession if you have no idea where your knowledge deficits are...

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If anyone has questions about the U of A's BScN-After Degree Program, please check out nursing.ualberta.ca/AfterDegree. There are also host information sessions and chatrooms for students who would like additional information or to ask questions (check the website above for upcoming events and chats).

Regarding the difficulty of the program itself, yes it can be challenging since it is a BScN completed in only 2 years, however we have a student advisory council that provides us with ongoing feedback on the program and we have made many changes to the program based on this feedback. I am more than happy to answer more specific questions about the program, please contact me!

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Also, thanks janfrn for the information you posted on Problem Based Learning! If anyone would like more information about the Context Based Learning method that is use at the U of A, check out ualberta.ca/Undergraduate/TeachingMethods (CBL section is about half way down that page) or contact the university directly

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So..does anyone know when they start accepting students into the program? So I can stop worrying if it's going to be ages?

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