Frustrated Grad Student

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I just started orientation for PNP, & most of the students, including myself have had terrible experience with the Graduate Dean already. First of all, I chose this school because I thought it would be a great school, for me to obtain a PNP degree w/ all the research they are currently doing on peds. I had a bad experience w/ this "Dean," I'll refer to her as [EVIL]Dean Cruella[/EVIL]while I interviewed w/ the school, but I thought she was just having a bad day. I found out from all the PNP grad students that they all had the same experience. Today, a classmate called Dean Cruella's secretary & told her that she will be a little late for orientation because of a prenatal appt. She said the secretary sounded shocked and said "You're pregnant! Does Dean Cruella know?" Well, Dean Cruella came on the line upset and told this student that she is going to have a hard time w/ grad school because she was preganant. Dean Cruella told her, she would have to change her schedule/curriculum because she won't be able to handle the program being pregnant. I couldn't believe I heard this coming from the Graduate Dean of Nursing and let alone a WOMAN! I was already insulted by her secretary yesterday, when she told me I should think about dropping my minor because I wouldn't be able to handle the load. She had seen students come in in the office "crying" because the program was "so hard". She practically said I was stupid and I just met her! Aren't nurses suppose to be compassionate w/ each other? Besides, I'm paying for these classes out of my own pocket & loans, they should treat us students with respect!! I don't know what I'm going to do.

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Specializes in Emergency & Trauma/Adult ICU.

While she may well be Dean Cruella, I didn't get that from the 2 examples you gave. While I wasn't there for the conversation to pick up the tone/body language/etc. ... telling you that the program is demanding enough to consider carefully whether or not completing a minor at the same time is prudent does not equal calling you stupid.

Again, I didn't hear the conversation, but your classmate's pregnancy may very well impact her progression in the program - it is a legitimate issue that should be planned for now rather than later.

Good luck to you & your classmates. Hopefully the initial stress level will "level out" in a few days as both faculty & students learn better what to expect from each other. :)

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The Dean's Welcome speech yesterday was "We want you in, and we want you out." Another example from her is if your cell phone goes off during class, she will take 5 points off your grade, if your pager vibrates another 5 points, if you walk in 5 mins late another 5 points. She discourages study groups because she thinks they are a waste of time and she has the "last say if we graduate or not" even if we have A's or B's in all of our courses.

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Time to look for a new school. Women get pregnant. I had 2 babies while pursuing my ADN. The first I delivered while I was in my first semester of nursing school, never missed a clinical. The second was in my last semester of school. I had all of my precepting hous in before I delivered. I didn't get any special treatment, maybe the school think's that's what you're after.

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Specializes in Critical Care/ICU.
Another example from her is if your cell phone goes off during class, she will take 5 points off your grade, if your pager vibrates another 5 points, if you walk in 5 mins late another 5 points.

Not to minimize your obvious frustration, but these all sound legitimate to me.

Hope you can get past all of this. Being po'd with the Dean of Nursing and her secretary before you really get a chance to get to know them or the program doesn't sound too good.

This is your first time in a PNP program, right? They have probably seen hundreds of students go through the program. They know it's going to be tough. I would never consider studying anything but the nursing program and I can understand them wanting your full attention and commitment because there are probably other's, more than willing to give it, waiting in the wings.

I wonder if professors in medical school allow cell phones during lecture.

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Specializes in NA - 100 years ago.
The Dean's Welcome speech yesterday was "We want you in, and we want you out." Another example from her is if your cell phone goes off during class, she will take 5 points off your grade, if your pager vibrates another 5 points, if you walk in 5 mins late another 5 points. She discourages study groups because she thinks they are a waste of time and she has the "last say if we graduate or not" even if we have A's or B's in all of our courses.

It's really tough to start out in a new program, a new semester with new people to get to know and new rules to remember, but you can do it. Remembering to turn off your cell phone, or your pager, could be likened to remembering to perform a certain procedure a certain way so as not to kill your patient.

Take a deep breath. Focus on what you need to do to get through each day, or minute. Study hard, complete your assignments and don't worry about Cruella so much. Oh, and remember to turn off your phone before you go to class.

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I have to agree with the above posters. It sounds as if she is preparing you for a program where you are actually going to have to know your stuff to pass. She is not going to graduate someone who will not be a top notch practitioner. As for the cell phone and being late I agree with her they are disruptive to the class and should not be tolerated. This program sounds like a very tough program but I bet they graduate some damn fine practitioners. As for being pregnant my only gripe would be if the student couldn't complete the program because fo the pregnancy that took a slot away from someone who could have completed the program. It will obviously be hard on that student but it is not the school's responsibility to work around a student's personal life period. I would love to have to more of these no nonsense type of instructors in all professions. Lot's of people can get A's and B's (book smart) but cannot apply the material well and it seems to me she is going to ensure you know what you are doing before you go out and kill a patient.

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Specializes in Acute Care Psych, DNP Student.
The Dean's Welcome speech yesterday was "We want you in, and we want you out." Another example from her is if your cell phone goes off during class, she will take 5 points off your grade, if your pager vibrates another 5 points, if you walk in 5 mins late another 5 points. She discourages study groups because she thinks they are a waste of time and she has the "last say if we graduate or not" even if we have A's or B's in all of our courses.

Sounds fair to me.

So she's not the warm and fuzzy type? She's not your nurse, she's your dean.

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Specializes in ICU, ER, HH, NICU, now FNP.
The Dean's Welcome speech yesterday was "We want you in, and we want you out." Another example from her is if your cell phone goes off during class, she will take 5 points off your grade, if your pager vibrates another 5 points, if you walk in 5 mins late another 5 points. She discourages study groups because she thinks they are a waste of time and she has the "last say if we graduate or not" even if we have A's or B's in all of our courses.

The 5 points thing is pretty standard these days for late and cell phones - understandeable too since people are pretty blatant about it. Both my grad program and my 3 college student kids were/are under the same rule.

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Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

There is a lot of stress to even deciding to pursue grad school. The first semester is rough because it is an entirely new level of learning. I would say give it a few months before making an big decisions.

As to the cell phone, lateness, beepers - as other posters have alluded to - this is nothing new. My post-grad school was exactly the same way. The lateness, constant phones, beepers going off were all a distraction to MY learning too.

In fact, at our corporate meetings, we must have our pagers and beepers on vibrate and if we have to take a call - you exit to the hallway PRIOR to saying anything in the phone.

Good luck in school - it sounds like an awesome program.

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Specializes in psychiatric ER, Mental Health.
The 5 points thing is pretty standard these days for late and cell phones - understandeable too since people are pretty blatant about it. Both my grad program and my 3 college student kids were/are under the same rule.

Just my opinion on the topic of phones/pagers.......

I almost wish my ADN program would implement these points off. Sure they give the old "Please turn off cell/pagers" talk,but when I was sitting down to take one of my exams, dont you know, someone's cell phone rang. I was on question #6, and it just ruined my whole flow through the rest of the exam. If people dont know how to respect others as far as classes go, then it should be up to the instructor to dock some points for it.

We don't allow this in real life, in any business, so why should we allow this in any type of class??

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Thanks for all your advice. I got a chance to speak to some of the NP grads of this school and they all had a problem w/ the Dean's "people personality." They didn't want to complain about her while in school because they didn't want to burn any bridges, but now that they have graduated they have written letters to the president of the school how disrespectful, unprofessional, & inappropriate she really was. One of the NPs I spoke w/ from my job told me she transfered out of the school because the Dean made her life miserable there. And she happened to be an excellent peds cardiac NP @ my job. My plan is focus on my studies and not get caught up with all the politics. If she gives me a hard time, I'll know it would be for the wrong reasons because she doesn't know who I really am. I'll kill her w/ kindness. :monkeydance:

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