GCC weekend program!!!

Hey Sarah! Congrats on getting in!

I will be starting block 3 in the weekend program in January. I love being in the weekend program!! Also, just because it's the "weekend program" doesn't mean you aren't studying your butt off during the week. The first block is a breeze, so don't worry. It's mostly CNA stuff. The second block got progressively harder, but it's still do-able. Once you get to block 2 you will have to start going into the hospitals on Thursdays and gather info for your careplan which is due the next morning by 6am. Also, if you work, that's ok. We have a lot of people in our program (including myself) who work full-time and still get good grades.

My advice is to study a little bit everyday, don't get behind and continuously practice the skills you learn.

If you have any questions let me know.

One more thing, save up as much money as possible. In the beginning of block 1 they throw a lot of unexpected things you need to get, such as a lab bag, which isn't cheap.

Good luck!!

Samantha,

Thanks for telling me a little about the weekend program! My fear is not being able to juggle school work and a baby. I was pregnant when I got accepted and now I have a 9 week old! Is our program going to take us longer to get through since we don't go as often as the traditional program?congrats on making it to block three! Maybe we can meet at school sometime! Keep me updated on how block three goes!

Sarah

I'm posting all over the place for info on GCC weekend program schedules :) hope nobody gets mad at me. I just finished prereqs and think I'd like to do this program. Childcare will be a major concern- I'll have 4 kids when I start (due w/ this baby in March). If you can post what your schedule is, I would really appreciate it! Also any other info on your wait time, instructors, incidental things (extra meetings, labs, appointments, etc) that get thrown in would be very helpful to me!

Razmataz26,

The weekend program is two years, just as long at the traditional program. However the weekend program has longer semesters. The Spring semester will be January to mid-June, then you will get about a 4 week break or so then Fall starts back up in July and ends in December.

RickiP, The actual weekend schedule varies. Below I put how our schedule was, if I remember it correctly.

Block one:

Covered Fundamentals of Nursing

Friday: Lecture & Lab: 7am-2pm

Saturday: Clinical 6:30a-1:45pm

Instructor was awesome, really sweet, gave us study guides for exams which was nice : )

Block 2:

Covered Med/Surg

Once we start doing clinicals:

Thursday: Go to hospital on our own time, gather info for careplan and write careplan by Friday 0630.

Friday: Clinicals 6:30am-4:30pm

Saturday: Lecture 7am-11:30am

(Also, before we started clinicals we were required to complete so many hours in the lab on our own time)

Instructor is byfar my favorite. She is tough! She doesn't give you study guides and you have to read all of the assigned reading. She will force you to think critically and start thinking like a nurse. This block got progressively harder, but she is an awesome instructor.

Block 3:

We will have 3 different instructors to cover 3 different subjects: Med/Surg, OB, Peds.

Also, instead of having lecture on one day and clinicals on the other, we will have ALL lecture in the first half of the semester (on Fri and Sat) and in the second half it will be ALL clinicals - and clinicals begin at 6:30am to 6:30pm. (On Fri and Sat). I also heard that we have to come in on Sundays to take exams.

I hope this helps - I know you are worried that you have kids but my best friend in the program has 3 kids - she basically arranges for daycare or calls family members to watch her kids.

Kind of a bummer we aren't allowed to specifically give credit to those who are worthy but then again there are other websites out there that specifically rate professors :)

AZSamantha, it was extremely helpful info for me (I printed it out and put it w/ my school stuff!) because I just want to know as much as possible! I appreciate your thoroughness! kss, thanks for your feedback don't want anyone getting in trouble...

Could you tell me how long your wait was, and if GCC weekend was your first choice? I'm hearing 1 1/2 to 2 years for Maricopa programs.

Hello I am hoping to start the GCC weekend program Jan 2011. Can anyone please give me any advice? I am getting so nervous and questioning if I can really handle this! Is their anything that I should buy ahead of time? Are their any books that I should be buying ahead of time and study. I have heard nightmare stories about the care-plans, writing is definitely my weakness. How difficult is the weekend program compared to BIO 201 and 202? Are their alot of oral presentations that nursing students do? Any advice is appreciated.

yvonne,

let me start off by saying that nursing school is hard - but you can do it! there is a lot of reading, a lot of studying, a ton of coffee, and possibly a few all-nighters.

nursing school isn't like any class you have ever taken. you have to think like a nurse, and you have to think outside the box. also, i think i read that you were worried you didn't remember anything from bio201, 202... well none of us did - and the teachers totally understand. our nursing books usually have a brief summary on what we really need to know in the beginning of the chapters and that's all we really need. :)

i really love being in the weekend program. it was my first choice because i work full-time during the week. it's nice because it's only 2 days of class and the rest of the week you have to study.

my advise is get an nclex book. commit to 10 mins a day just to browse, get a feel for the questions. my two favorite nclex books are saunders (isbn: 9781416037088) and the illustrated study guide (isbn: 9780323056649).

also, don't fear careplans! they aren't hard - just time consuming. yes, careplans can be over 20 pages. yes, they take all day but don't stress too much because they have a template for you to follow. it's not like you have to "write" a paper - you just fill in information that you have looked up. the first few times they suck, but then you become faster at it. if you private message me, i can send you one of the templates if you want.

as for the oral presentations - i'm right there with you. i hate public speaking. i'm going into block 4 and so far we have done about 4 oral presentations but i think only 1 of them was by myself - the rest of them are group presentations. don't worry, they aren't that bad because you get to know everyone in the class.

if you have any other questions let me know :) good luck!

Hello AZSamantha thank you so much for replying, i really appreciate the advice. I tried to PM you, but the system said I could not until I have meet 15 replies. I have heard so many bad stories about the careplans, thank you for easing some of my anxiety. Do you think that the weekend program is less stressful than the traditional full time program at GCC? Those presentations sure scare me. I have never done a presentation in college. I am now 31 years old last one was when I was 14 in High School and I know its silly, but I am terrified!!!!! Thanks for the advice on NCLEX books. Do you recommend I start looking at those now? or once I start the program? Advisor told me I should be starting in January. I know in nursing, their is so much to remember, but do the instructors really teach you well, I don't want to hurt anyone LOL. Maybe I am just being paranoid, but I have had some anxiety since I talked to the advisor this past Monday and they told me to be ready!

hey yvonne,

traditional and weekend have the same curriculum but the weekend program seems a little less stressful. i really like that they tell us everything we need to know on the weekend, and the rest of the week we get to study it and really focus on studying.

also, yes buy an nclex book now. it wont hurt. you may not understand everything but you will get a feel for how they ask questions. in the beginning of most books they explain the nclex and questioning which helps a lot.

as for being scared you might hurt someone - that's totally me. the instructors are awesome but you have to make sure you practice your skills. i am totally an anxiety case but i notice if i practice skills before i go into clinicals, i feel so much better. & you wont hurt anyone - an instructor or nurse is always by your side.