FCCJ Summer 2009, anyone?

*Olivia* · May 26, 2009

first time poster here...

while i am sure you all are studying hard...i just wanted to ask if anyone had any advice for someone starting out. i have a full time job so i guess my schedule will be part time and i haven't been in school on 12 years. so any advice about prerequisites, general education classes or professors (good or bad) would be appreciated. how many classes can you do part time? do classes require a lot of outside class time? (studying/projects) i spoke with someone at fccj today and they said you have a better chance of getting in if you do all of your prerequisite and general education classes before applying. i have been a medical coder for 12 years so i have a lot of medical knowledge. i know which classes i need but i don't know how many i can handle at once. of course i want to do it in the least amount of time but i don't want to sacrifice my grades.

thanks a bunch in advance!!

FLmomof5 · May 27, 2009

I can't answer all of your questions.....some of it has to do with your own innate abilities. That aside, I did 2 classes per semester of the pre-reqs. I did them online. I worked FT while taking these classes. I had been out of school for 25 yrs so I beat you on that one!

You have to take all the pre-reqs before you apply so I don't know what that person at the FCCJ office was saying to you.

You will need to get good grades or you won't get in. There were three times the number of applicants to the number of seats available. To keep my grades as high as possible, I took one "tough" course with one "easy" one.

You can go to the nursing office and get the information packet, etc. as you start your journey instead of waiting until you apply. I advise this because you will know exactly what you need to do to get in.

Good Luck!

*Olivia* · May 27, 2009

first of all thanks flmomof5!!! i know i have a bunch of questions...lol. yes, you beat me! copy%20of%20wink.gif it's kinda scary going back to school after all this time!

you have to take all the pre-reqs before you apply so i don't know what that person at the fccj office was saying to you.

they told me you have a better chance of getting in if you do all of you general education classes as well as the pre-reqs. because you get more points and have a better chance. plus it is harder to do the general ed classes once your are in the nursing program.

you will need to get good grades or you won't get in. there were three times the number of applicants to the number of seats available. to keep my grades as high as possible, i took one "tough" course with one "easy" one.

i know it is different for everyone but what classes would you consider "tough" and which ones "easy"?

if i have figured it correctly i would need 10 classes before applying. (including general ed classes for extra points)

*chemistry (because it's been more than 5 years)

*human anatomy & physiology i

*human anatomy & physiology ii

*microbiology

college algebra

english comp

general psychology

humanities

human growth & development

intro sociology

it was my understanding from my conversation yesterday that the classes i listed with *s can not be taken online. if this is right and i did 2 classes each term that would take 5 terms before i could even apply. i would like to do it in less time. are online classes any faster or easier?

they way they explained the quality points to me yesterday was 50% grades / 50% nat. your pre-req grades get multiplied by 5 and general ed by 4. (a=5 b=4) and 20 points for medical experience.

anyone know what the total number of points possible is?

Stephanie09 · May 27, 2009

The classes that HAVE to be completed to apply to the program are A&P I & II, MAC 1105 or higher, and Chem. Microbiology you have to at least be enrolled in when you apply and needs to be completed before you start the program should you get accepted. The other pre-reqs (ENC1101, PSY 1012, SYG 2000, HUM, and DEP 2004) could be taken while in the program.

I am awaiting acceptance into the Fall nursing program, and from what I understand the workload is very time consuming so it is in your best interest to have as many of those pre-reqs as possible complete. Also, these pre-reqs are all part of your point total. It is very likely that you would not have the points necessary for acceptance without these classes.

Also, some of those classes like A&P can be taken in a hybrid format which is where the class portion is done online and the lab is done one day a week in class. That is what I did and I worked full time. I was able to take a science hybrid class, and 2 more online pre-reqs a semester while working full time and raising a baby.

The highest points possible, including work experience points is 260. If you call the nursing department and ask them to mail you an application you can find all this information on there. Also, I learned a lot by reading other forums and posts.

FLmomof5 · May 27, 2009

Honestly, I don't see how anyone could have enough points to get accepted to the program if they didn't do ENC1101, PSY 1012, SYG 2000, HUM, and DEP 2004 first. Beside, from what I saw when I applied, the ONLY class you didn't have to finish prior to application was MCB.

To the OP, I did A&PI, A&PII, SYG2001, DEP2004, ENC1101 online and MCB was a hybrid (online class, in classroom lab). I did my Chemistry in 1979 abd 1980 (more than one level of Chem for an Engineering degree) and I did NOT have to repeat. [i had to take ENC1101 because I CLEP'd out in '79 and they would only give me a "C" for points if I didn't retake!].

OK, You get 4 pts for an A, 3 for B...just like when you compute your GPA. You just don't divide by the # credits. Add together.

NAT -> Take your score from the 3 sections ID's by the nursing dept and mult by .64 (64%). Add to your pts for grades.

*IF* you have medical experience, add 5 pts per year up to 4 yrs (max = 20 bonus pts).

You get NO extra points for any other coursework.

260 pts is max IF you include those 20. For the rest of the non-experienced folks....240 is max. I had 219.

This summer was very competitive and the initial cutoff was around 190 pts.

I won't say what was easy and what wasn't. I have a very high IQ + I excel in science and math so I could be looking at apples where you see oranges.

Oh, and look at this by semesters. I went year round. When you go to NS it will be for 4 back to back semesters (1 yr 4 mo.)

Stephanie09 · May 27, 2009

It doesn't make sense, but the application does say that the following courses can be completed while attending the nursing program, and it lists ENC1101, PSY1012, SYG2000, HUM, and DEP2004. It also states that you only need a minimum of 120 points to apply.

Although, to the original poster, 120 points WILL NOT make the cut. And FLmomof5 is right, there is no way to have enough points without these classes(or at least most of them). I applied to the Summer with 180 and did not get in. I have 205 for Fall, and I am crossing my fingers that this will be enough. As you can tell (and probably heard) this program is very competitive.

noeyrn · May 27, 2009

You are both correct. It would be better to have all those classes as you would be in better points standing, but you can apply without the ones Stephanie09 stated. I'm still getting my ENC class transferred but I got in without having in on my record. Good luck to you Stephanie09

ElsieFL · Jun 14, 2009

Hey y'all...question on Orientation....when was it for Summer and when did classes start? Was there just the one orientation or were there multiple dates?

How's the first semester going? Hope things are going well for y'all!

FLmomof5 · Jun 16, 2009

It is hard to remember exactly what date we had the orientation....but there was *1* day for everyone including the LPN-RN bridge folks. At orientation the lottery was held to determine which section you were in. They gave away a lot of skills kits (saving the winners lots of $!). They also had boxes of used uniforms. Not sure if will help ya'll though. Gotta think about the name change that comes this Fall!

Anyway, the first day was May 4th. This was a Monday and for us nights/weekends folks, it is our test day each week. The first day of class was our first test in Dosage Calculations. You will receive emails before school starts with BB stuff and Nursing Tutor that you will need to get right on top of right away. For math whizzes, the dosage calc tests are nothing to concern yourself with.

Remember that NS has a different grading scale. Less than 80% is failing. A's are harder to get. From my perspective, NS is tough not because of the difficulty of the material, just the sheer volume of it! You will have tests that cover 5 - 7 chapters at a time.

The tests are unique, insomuchas, they are not simply factual. There are HESI/NCLEX style questions....like "Select all that apply" and scenario type questions where you have to pick the most correct answer. Their main focus is to build your "critical thinking" skills.

The schedule has been a bit tough for most of us N/WE folks....many of us work our 40 during the week plus full time schedule in NS. My day starts at 5 AM. I go to work, go to school and get home at 9:30 PM 4 days a week. Friday we have no class but you are pretty wiped out friday eve. They you get up for techniques on Sat morning (8 AM) and are there until 2:30 PM ish. Sunday, in addition to studying, there are the standard family chores, shopping and bill paying to do as well.

You will need to put in 15 hours of documented practice time in the labs outside of your normal schedule AND do 4 hours of community service. :icon_roll

Remember the books will run you about $1K. :eek:

As for teachers trying to fail you or nursing students backbiting....I haven't seen any of that. The teachers we have are great and really want to help you pass!

Good luck on your journey! (BTW, you won't have much time to be on this board once school starts! LOL!)