Frustrated with the Pre-Nursing Process

Shawn91111 · Feb 24, 2016

Wow, I feel your pissed off'ness. I have to wait a year (while taking classes that complete the nursing program) to take the TEAS exam, which come around only once a year at this school as well. I have no idea what I would do in that situation. Really feel for you

jredo2617 · Feb 24, 2016

Hey there,

Totally feel where you're coming from. It's a bad situation, but I know it's a situation you can pull through and Coke out of. If this is what you really want, then I say go for it this time with all you've got. Make a list of other programs you qualify for gpa wise and plan on applying to those. Whether they require the teas or hesi, study soon (even if it's next year) and study hard. Make a plan b for if this doesn't work out but make this your ultimate plan A and I know it's discouraging because this is the second time around but reorient yourself and pick yourself up and go for it! I know it's hard, but maybe the third time's a charm you know?

Also make sure to keep tabs on program requirements and everything to prevent something from going wrong. If you're going through a bad situation, keep going! Because if this is what you really want, you def have another chance of coming back strong since u have a decent gpa :)

jredo2617 · Feb 24, 2016

I meant come* out of not Coke out of haha

windsurfer8, BSN, RN · Feb 24, 2016

"where do you begin". Well start by stopping blaming others for your problems. If you had earned the score required you would not have a problem correct? It is up to you if you want to "waste" a year trying to get into nursing school. Maybe learn from this and inquire often with the school if you are ready for the test. If you are waiting around for people to come tell you about "changes" then good luck. Jumping through the hoops is as much a part of becoming a nurse as the actual classes are. You want the big time you have to earn it.

sp3233 · Feb 24, 2016

delete

sp3233 · Feb 24, 2016

"where do you begin". Well start by stopping blaming others for your problems. If you had earned the score required you would not have a problem correct? It is up to you if you want to "waste" a year trying to get into nursing school. Maybe learn from this and inquire often with the school if you are ready for the test. If you are waiting around for people to come tell you about "changes" then good luck. Jumping through the hoops is as much a part of becoming a nurse as the actual classes are. You want the big time you have to earn it.

Please know that I am in no way trying to "blame" anyone for me not making the mark. I understand that it was my fault for not making the mark, are you going to fault me for feeling frustrated?? The school that I attended never updated their website and that was the school's error in not keeping their bulletin board up to date and their website. Before waiting to take the exam again I checked several times to see if there were changes so please do not judge me. I had no idea until I actually sat with the advisor, a whole year later. Apparently this is the norm with most city schools, they up and make changes to the requirements when they feel like it with out updating their info for the public.

And how dare you say I have to earn it, do you not think that I am not working hard?? do you not think I know that??? I have a full time job, married with two kids, 5 and 6. I study every chance that I can take, not being to spend as much time with my kids or family as I would like to. I did not come to this board for judgment but for support and guidance....

NurseGirl525, ASN, RN · Feb 24, 2016

I agree with Windsurfer8. These are basic knowledge entrance exams to see if you are competent in reading, English, math, and science to enter a nursing program. You may need to take some remedial classes. I don't understand all the studying that goes on for these entrance exam tests. Either you know these things, or you don't. And if you don't, a couple of classes are needed. There is no shame in that.

I could not have done well on my Teas test until I took my prereq classes. That's why they are prereqs. I needed my English comp class, my A&P classes, along with all of my algebra classes to pass. You may just need to do some remediation.

Colleges all the time change the requirements for specific programs. All the time. I don't get why you are so upset. If this is what you want, you will figure it out. But schools aren't going to send you specifically emails that their requirements have changed. It's silly you would even think they would. Suck it up, figure out where you are going wrong, and fix it. Otherwise, find a job in your field.

You may also want to find out how you are going to finance this education. You already have one bachelors degree. You may not be eligible for anymore financial aid.

elkpark · Feb 24, 2016

I can appreciate that you feel frustrated and mistreated, but schools change their requirements all the time and there is nothing "unfair" about that. Nursing school admissions have become so v. competitive in recent years that schools are swamped with highly qualified applicants, and the challenge for schools is to figure out how to decide which (relatively) few applicants to accept from a large candidate pool for the limited number of seats they have available. The reality is that there is no need or incentive for schools to go out of their way to assist people with applying or make it easier for people to apply.

And schools are not the only organizations that don't keep their websites up to date -- plenty of organizations, including healthcare employers, don't. I've learned (the hard way) that it's generally a mistake to take info on a website at face value.

I hope that you will be able to find a solution to your situation. Applying to a wider range of schools might help. Best wishes for your journey!

sp3233 · Feb 24, 2016

I agree with Windsurfer8. These are basic knowledge entrance exams to see if you are competent in reading, English, math, and science to enter a nursing program. You may need to take some remedial classes. I don't understand all the studying that goes on for these entrance exam tests. Either you know these things, or you don't. And if you don't, a couple of classes are needed. There is no shame in that.
I could not have done well on my Teas test until I took my prereq classes. That's why they are prereqs. I needed my English comp class, my A&P classes, along with all of my algebra classes to pass. You may just need to do some remediation.
Colleges all the time change the requirements for specific programs. All the time. I don't get why you are so upset. If this is what you want, you will figure it out. But schools aren't going to send you specifically emails that their requirements have changed. It's silly you would even think they would. Suck it up, figure out where you are going wrong, and fix it. Otherwise, find a job in your field.
You may also want to find out how you are going to finance this education. You already have one bachelors degree. You may not be eligible for anymore financial aid.

I am happy that you were able to Ace your TEAS thanks to the pre-reqs you took. I also completed my pre-req courses in case you missed that, I wouldn't be able to take the exam without completing those first. Financing my education was not a concern because my union pays my tuition via third-party payment.

But you know what, you are absolutely right. It's either you know it or you don't, so clearly I don't! Since this is my second time failing, maybe I should give up then. You know I don't what is it with some nurses who feel like they can just beat people up when they are down and can go to sleep at night.

Destin293 · Feb 24, 2016

I completely understand your frustration because I took my pre-req's at BMCC. It is annoying to discover these little hiccups along the way, but, you HAVE to roll with the punches and stop beating yourself up for not succeeding right away...it's okay. Let me tell you about my journey into nursing school and you can understand that simply applying to a program isn't easy and that you have to not only stick with it, but stay on top of things...and that you're not alone:

In late 2009/early 2010 I applied to BMCC to start taking pre-req's and never heard anything back from the school, so I let it go because I still wasn't sure if nursing is what I wanted to do. A year later, I called back just to see what happened. They never received a transcript from a previous college. I called my previous school, they said I had a balance due of $800 and never dropped my minor, so I paid the $800, contacted the department to drop my minor, contacted BMCC who said I now had to resubmit the application, application fee, and pay for the transcripts to be sent again. And so I did. And yet again, I heard nothing.

After several months, I went down to BMCC personally and asked what the hold up was. I mentioned I was interested in nursing and admissions flat out said, "You don't qualify"...flat out, I don't qualify, even though I hadn't taken any pre-req's, even though I didn't take the exam, and even though I didn't submit my application. Lesson learned: Admissions didn't know squat about entering the nursing program. So, on the spot, I changed my major from pre-nursing (or whatever they made you select, health science or something) to science so I could register for classes.

I registered for classes (which, ironically, was just weeks after being let go from my full time job in July) and studied HARD. Not, "Let me study when I have time," I mean, "I have to study because anything less than a 4.0 will not get me into a program." I had to drop everything around me and make school my top priority, even though I was grappling with the devastation of losing a good job and trying to find a new one. My free time was spent researching nursing programs and becoming discouraged over the admission stats. Time and time again I was running into the same information: Nursing schools in NYC are very difficult to gain admission and you're better off not even trying, especially since your previous BA in sociology came with a less than stellar GPA. Not an acceptable answer, IMO.

Fast forward 1.5 years when nearly all my pre-req's were completed and I was pulling into my final semester, eventually finishing with a 3.93 (Oh, and did I mention the very last week of my final semester of pre-req's, my apartment had a nasty bed bug infestation, roaches, and the ceiling was caving in the living room because a pipe burst in the neighbors apartment upstairs and the landlord was non responsive? So in between trying to study for finals, I was getting knocks on the door from the city inspectors because I had to file a report just to not have someone's nasty bath water flood my living room?). Anyway, now I had to start picking schools. BMCC just left a bad taste in my mouth and like you said, their requirements changed all the time. It just seemed like no one really knew what was going on, the testing schedule was strange, and I just wasn't feeling it. I decided to look into a community college near where I used to live in upstate NY and also submitted my application to Lehman.

In February, I looked into the nursing program at the upstate CC. I had 1 opportunity to apply for that year and only a few days to pull everything together. I had to call out of work, book a last minute ticket, travel 5 hours on Amtrak to get home in order to take the final date for the TEAS...the only studying I was able to do was on the train and the day of the exam. I did okay and spoke with an advisor who told me I needed to come in to look over my transcripts because the application deadline was in 2 days...except, I was already on my way back to the city. The moment I arrived back in the city, I called up all the schools I had attended, paid an insane price to overnight my transcripts, and faxed in my application which was received after the advisor had left for the day/weekend, so my application package was given to the nursing department 3 days after the deadline. I received a rejection letter a few months later. And, yes, I did cry and felt very discouraged/stupid.

Also in January or February of 2013, I received my acceptance to Lehman College and stalked their website trying to find out how to apply to the nursing program. I discovered I had to submit an application, submit all my transcripts, have some forms signed by someone there to evaluate a couple courses that I didn't take in the CUNY system, and take the HESI. I called the school to schedule the HESI and all spots were filled and I was told to come in as a standby in case someone didn't show. I was told that just days before the final 2 testing dates. So, on the final testing date I woke up at 5am, took the train 2 hours up to the Bronx from lower Brooklyn, crammed as much as I could, and crossed my fingers there was an extra computer so I could take the test...luckily, there was and I did well.

Then came submitting all the information. I was able to get everything in and track down members of the department to review some of the courses I took, which meant making SEVERAL 2 hour (4 hours round trip) train rides into the Bronx. I kept going up there just to make sure everything was submitted that needed to be submitted. Even though that meant taking 4 hours out of my day just to speak with someone for 5 minutes. And what did I discover? BMCC had never sent my transcript and there was another snafu regarding the transcript that was submitted by Stony Brook. Here I was standing outside my job flustered because the deadline to apply was less than a week away and the 1 school that had 95% of my pre-req's never sent the transcript. So, I spent more time going there trying to figure it out and luckily Lehman eased my concerns and I was eventually able to get the transcript in, get everything straightened out with the Stony Brook transcript, and the application package was finally complete.

A few months later, in the summer of 2013, I received my acceptance letter to Lehman's accelerated nursing program. And in September of 2014, I graduated and am working as an RN.

So, moral of the story, YOU have to stay on top of the requirements. It's a pain, it's frustrating, you'll want to beat your head against the wall, you may even cry a few times, but it's all up to you. I understand you have work and family obligations, but, unfortunately, if you're serious about becoming a nurse, then becoming a nurse has to be your priority.

My advice to you? Take all that frustration your feeling and funnel it into looking for other options. Have you tried looking into private schools? I know this is very likely not even an option as your roots are probably in the city, but SUNY Delhi (in waaaayyyyyy upstate NY) will very likely accept you with your GPA. Chances are that's not an option, but I will just throw that out there in case.

Anyway, best of luck. Don't give up, it's worth it in the end.

sp3233 · Feb 24, 2016

I completely understand your frustration because I took my pre-req's at BMCC. It is annoying to discover these little hiccups along the way, but, you HAVE to roll with the punches and stop beating yourself up for not succeeding right away...it's okay. Let me tell you about my journey into nursing school and you can understand that simply applying to a program isn't easy and that you have to not only stick with it, but stay on top of things...and that you're not alone:
In late 2009/early 2010 I applied to BMCC to start taking pre-req's and never heard anything back from the school, so I let it go because I still wasn't sure if nursing is what I wanted to do. A year later, I called back just to see what happened. They never received a transcript from a previous college. I called my previous school, they said I had a balance due of $800 and never dropped my minor, so I paid the $800, contacted the department to drop my minor, contacted BMCC who said I now had to resubmit the application, application fee, and pay for the transcripts to be sent again. And so I did. And yet again, I heard nothing.
After several months, I went down to BMCC personally and asked what the hold up was. I mentioned I was interested in nursing and admissions flat out said, "You don't qualify"...flat out, I don't qualify, even though I hadn't taken any pre-req's, even though I didn't take the exam, and even though I didn't submit my application. Lesson learned: Admissions didn't know squat about entering the nursing program. So, on the spot, I changed my major from pre-nursing (or whatever they made you select, health science or something) to science so I could register for classes.
I registered for classes (which, ironically, was just weeks after being let go from my full time job in July) and studied HARD. Not, "Let me study when I have time," I mean, "I have to study because anything less than a 4.0 will not get me into a program." I had to drop everything around me and make school my top priority, even though I was grappling with the devastation of losing a good job and trying to find a new one. My free time was spent researching nursing programs and becoming discouraged over the admission stats. Time and time again I was running into the same information: Nursing schools in NYC are very difficult to gain admission and you're better off not even trying, especially since your previous BA in sociology came with a less than stellar GPA. Not an acceptable answer, IMO.
Fast forward 1.5 years when nearly all my pre-req's were completed and I was pulling into my final semester, eventually finishing with a 3.93 (Oh, and did I mention the very last week of my final semester of pre-req's, my apartment had a nasty bed bug infestation, roaches, and the ceiling was caving in the living room because a pipe burst in the neighbors apartment upstairs and the landlord was non responsive? So in between trying to study for finals, I was getting knocks on the door from the city inspectors because I had to file a report just to not have someone's nasty bath water flood my living room?). Anyway, now I had to start picking schools. BMCC just left a bad taste in my mouth and like you said, their requirements changed all the time. It just seemed like no one really knew what was going on, the testing schedule was strange, and I just wasn't feeling it. I decided to look into a community college near where I used to live in upstate NY and also submitted my application to Lehman.
In February, I looked into the nursing program at the upstate CC. I had 1 opportunity to apply for that year and only a few days to pull everything together. I had to call out of work, book a last minute ticket, travel 5 hours on Amtrak to get home in order to take the final date for the TEAS...the only studying I was able to do was on the train and the day of the exam. I did okay and spoke with an advisor who told me I needed to come in to look over my transcripts because the application deadline was in 2 days...except, I was already on my way back to the city. The moment I arrived back in the city, I called up all the schools I had attended, paid an insane price to overnight my transcripts, and faxed in my application which was received after the advisor had left for the day/weekend, so my application package was given to the nursing department 3 days after the deadline. I received a rejection letter a few months later. And, yes, I did cry and felt very discouraged/stupid.
Also in January or February of 2013, I received my acceptance to Lehman College and stalked their website trying to find out how to apply to the nursing program. I discovered I had to submit an application, submit all my transcripts, have some forms signed by someone there to evaluate a couple courses that I didn't take in the CUNY system, and take the HESI. I called the school to schedule the HESI and all spots were filled and I was told to come in as a standby in case someone didn't show. I was told that just days before the final 2 testing dates. So, on the final testing date I woke up at 5am, took the train 2 hours up to the Bronx from lower Brooklyn, crammed as much as I could, and crossed my fingers there was an extra computer so I could take the test...luckily, there was and I did well.
Then came submitting all the information. I was able to get everything in and track down members of the department to review some of the courses I took, which meant making SEVERAL 2 hour (4 hours round trip) train rides into the Bronx. I kept going up there just to make sure everything was submitted that needed to be submitted. Even though that meant taking 4 hours out of my day just to speak with someone for 5 minutes. And what did I discover? BMCC had never sent my transcript and there was another snafu regarding the transcript that was submitted by Stony Brook. Here I was standing outside my job flustered because the deadline to apply was less than a week away and the 1 school that had 95% of my pre-req's never sent the transcript. So, I spent more time going there trying to figure it out and luckily Lehman eased my concerns and I was eventually able to get the transcript in, get everything straightened out with the Stony Brook transcript, and the application package was finally complete.
A few months later, in the summer of 2013, I received my acceptance letter to Lehman's accelerated nursing program. And in September of 2014, I graduated and am working as an RN.
So, moral of the story, YOU have to stay on top of the requirements. It's a pain, it's frustrating, you'll want to beat your head against the wall, you may even cry a few times, but it's all up to you. I understand you have work and family obligations, but, unfortunately, if you're serious about becoming a nurse, then becoming a nurse has to be your priority.
My advice to you? Take all that frustration your feeling and funnel it into looking for other options. Have you tried looking into private schools? I know this is very likely not even an option as your roots are probably in the city, but SUNY Delhi (in waaaayyyyyy upstate NY) will very likely accept you with your GPA. Chances are that's not an option, but I will just throw that out there in case.
Anyway, best of luck. Don't give up, it's worth it in the end.

Thank you very much for sharing. My GPA has improved since then (that was in 2013), currently a 3.5 and finishing two classes at Medgar this semester. As much as I would like to leave my job its just not an option I can take. Its just me, my husband and my kids, not a lot of savings to live off of while I finish. But you are right, I shouldn't beat myself up and just focus on doing better, which is what I intended on doing.