General arts and Science Health Profile as a path to get into RPN...

xokw, BSN, RN · Jun 24, 2013

I completed the General Arts and Science (health option) program at Conestoga a couple years ago. I took no sciences in highschool either and it gave me a great introduction to a lot of the things I would eventually learn in the nursing program. By finishing with good marks it got me an early acceptance in the practical nursing program which I may not have gotten otherwise. I don't regret taking it at all and I think it made me a much stronger student overall.

habitant · Jun 24, 2013

Thanks a lot for your reply. I appreciate it and it makes me feel alot better about my situation. If you don't mind my asking, did you find the program hard or do you catch onto concepts easily? Did you need a tutor at all for anything? And what was the age range of the people in your class at the time? Do you have any tips in succeeding in this course? Thanks again for your reply

xokw, BSN, RN · Jun 24, 2013

I didn't think the program was hard, as long as you take good notes and study it is manageable. I did find that it was time consuming though, equally as much as nursing so time management is key. Average age was in the mid 20s but there were many 35 years plus as well and the average age was higher in my nursing classes, probably high 20s -mid 30s on average.

habitant · Jun 25, 2013

Thanks for all your information. Its much appreciated :) has anyone else on this forum done this program at a different school other then Conestoga? I am trying to get a feel for what schools prepare you the best and what schools to potentially avoid. Also, if there is anyone else that will be doing the general arts and science health profile program as a stepping stone, I would love your thoughts on this topic, if you have any anxiety about it like myself or any information at all as a matter of fact. I would love to potentially meet future students of the program on here :up:

MizzMo · Jul 9, 2013

Personally what i would recommend doing is contacting the school you're looking to take RPN at and ask them directly what the best course of action would be.

Make sure that any classes you take during the general arts and science can actually be applied as the prerequisites for RPN.

I didn't have the necessary math and sciences from high school either so i contacted the schools and they recommended i took pre-health to get all the prerequisites for RPN.

I also did not have to pay for pre-health (I took it at Durham college) as it was considered CE

MizzMo · Jul 9, 2013

I really enjoyed the pre-health program at Durham.

It was 22 weeks long and covered Math, Biology, Chemistry and English (there were a couple of people who may have had one of these credits, so if that were the case they just attended the classes they still needed the credits for)

I was also able to apply the course and use my transcripts when applying at other colleges as well. I applied at George brown, Centennial and Durham (i accepted Centennial's Flex program for 2012)

canadianhungarian · Jul 9, 2013

I actually took this exact same program through Durham College and then become an RN at their joint university UOIT. I graduated in june 2011 :) I loved the program and would recommend it to anyone that is interested in going this route. I'm not sure if any aspects of the program have changed (I took durham's pre-health in 2006/7). At the time I recieved the certificate, it was only valid at Durham college for their RPN program or UOIT's RN program. I applied to other colleges but was not accpeted as I did not take their pre-health. Things could have changed since though but I would ask about that once you decide which college you would like to go to. Any questions don't hesitate to PM me. It helped me alot because at that time I was out of highschool for 6 years and never took any science programs. It gave me a good foundation for the RN program.

kathy3 · Jul 12, 2013

was it easy getting the job? and like does what university you went to matter?

canadianhungarian · Jul 14, 2013

To be honest I don't think it's that easy to get a job Anywhere now unless you leave the city. However, I work 2 casual positions at 2 hospitals in Toronto and both places did not question me about my choice if where I choose to go to school. As long as I had my BScN and and RN registration that's all they cared about. Both places were more concerned with clinical placements and performance. Some universities are better then other of course but you'll will be fine wherever you choose to go. They all have to meet a certain level of expectation to graduate.

MizzMo · Jul 15, 2013

I completed pre-health at Durham college in 2011 and I could use that certificate and grades to apply to any other college. I was accepted at Centennial college and put on the wait list at GBC and Durham.

Spamom · Dec 17, 2014

Personally what i would recommend doing is contacting the school you're looking to take RPN at and ask them directly what the best course of action would be.
Make sure that any classes you take during the general arts and science can actually be applied as the prerequisites for RPN.
I didn't have the necessary math and sciences from high school either so i contacted the schools and they recommended i took pre-health to get all the prerequisites for RPN.
I also did not have to pay for pre-health (I took it at Durham college) as it was considered CE

Hi there - Sorry, I know this is an old post...but I just joined the forum today. MizzMo - When you say you didn't have to pay for pre-health at Durham College...how did you go about doing that? I just registered for Sept 2015 and it's going to cost me almost $4000!!! Lol. Did you attend Full time?