Georgetown Accelerated BSN Fall 2010

Genu9ine · Mar 23, 2010

well the good thing about it is that you won't be alone in moving to a completely new place regardless. seems like there are a lot of folks from out of state :)

kryan916 · Mar 24, 2010

As far as when we will hear back I think someone posted that we will hear back within the week after the last group interviews. Right now my interview is on the last scheduled date (the 31st) and it would be such a relief to know that I don't have to wait too long to get my decision. However, I was looking through the posts from last year and it seemed as if GU started to release more invitations to interview to other applicants, so the interviews continued for another couple of weeks beyond what was originally scheduled. I'm not really sure why that happened or if it would be likely to happen again, but it makes me wonder if we'll actually be waiting a bit longer...!

Genu9ine · Mar 24, 2010

Question to those of you who traveled from a far distance: how did u get to campus for your interview? Did u take the shuttle, drive, or take a taxi and which did u think was easier to do?

flee43 · Mar 24, 2010

I stayed at a hotel relatively close to campus but I just took a taxi to campus since I was running a little late. I got there pretty quick and there were no problems whatsoever. If I had walked, it would have probably taken me 20 minutes or so (which I was not going to do in my flats, yikes). Since it's early in the morning, you shouldn't have to pay too much since there is little traffic. I would just make sure to write down the number of the taxi company so you can call for a ride back from the interview.

From the airport, if you're familiar with the metro system, you could ride the bus but I totally wasn't lols so I just paid for a Super Shuttle. When you're at the airport, all you have to do is ask someone to direct you to a Super Shuttle counter and from there, you can pay for a ride to your hotel.

TammyG · Mar 24, 2010

Ah, I see. That's definitely a point that I haven't really considered since I'm still figuring out which patient population that I want to work with. I think it's awesome that you girls already know that you want to work in peds. I kind of just want to work with everyone? Hahaha.
It's definitely a hard decision to make, but I think it would be a great question to bring up at the interview/tour. I wonder why they didn't make the scholarship program through their own university...hopefully, the tour will help illuminate the answers to our questions. I'll definitely be munching on this food for thought. Good luck with the decision! I'm sure that whatever you decide will end up working out just fine :)

Georgetown University no longer owns Georgetown Hospital. They sold it about 10 years ago, and don't get along all that well. Very few of your clinicals will be at Georgetown Hospital. That was initially a disappointment, but since we discovered it is a very nasty place to work anyway it wound up not mattering very much.

TammyG · Mar 24, 2010

I understand it's a hard decision, especially committing to living so far from home for awhile. If it helps, DC is a fun town and hardly anyone is from here, so everyone was in the same boat at some time. It makes it fun for professional sports because the visiting team will actually have a lot of fans in the crowd :)
Regarding St. Mary's being furthest away, I have to say I prefer it. It is at the northernmost point of the campus. It's close to the Dupont shuttle bus and medical library, both of which I use every day. I don't participate in "campus life" or other socializing, so this may be a negative to someone else looking for those types of experiences. I'm in the library when not in class and then head home after my last class.
Regarding the international health certificate, talk to Laura about that. You need to have some room in your schedule to take those classes. We have one or two in our cohort doing that. I didn't have room, so can't do that.

One of my disappointments has been that the second degree program isn't integrated at all with the university. It isn't even integrated much with the traditional nursing program. Unless you really make a point of getting involved in main campus activities (which you won't have time for anyway), you really are on an island by yourself. The location of the school on the northern part of campus just exacerbates the isolation.

TammyG · Mar 24, 2010

I talked to one of the faculty members, and apparently they're only sending acceptance letters to 100 people of the 160 they interviewed, so I imagine the interview does actually play a significant role in their decision process.
One caveat: for those of you looking for ICU experience, you may want to go elsewhere. It sounds like very few people end up in the ICU for their senior practicum.

Disagree on this last piece with respect to non-WHC scholards. A good portion (probably 1/2) of the non-WHC people do ICU or other critical care for their practicum. WHC does not put any of their scholars in the ICU, nor does it accept new grads into their ICU. Since the majority of the class is WHC, that means none of those people end up in WHC.

The entire program, however, is oriented toward critical care (to the expense of other things). If you want to do ICU, this is the place.

froyoaddict · Mar 24, 2010

To those of you currently enrolled in this program: is it REALLY worth $72,000? I have heard lots of negative things said about it, which makes it seem as though you are just paying for the name. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

gkvegan, MSN · Mar 25, 2010

During my interview day they told us that a lot of our classes are actually shared with the traditional nursing program. Plus you have 4 open classes to take that are either prerequisites or, if you finished those, anything else you want. So those 4 classes will most likely be on the main campus. The isolation won't matter because as you said you won't have anytime for campus activities anyway.

One of my disappointments has been that the second degree program isn't integrated at all with the university. It isn't even integrated much with the traditional nursing program. Unless you really make a point of getting involved in main campus activities (which you won't have time for anyway), you really are on an island by yourself. The location of the school on the northern part of campus just exacerbates the isolation.

Sitch321 · Mar 25, 2010

I heard similar numbers from one of the faculty (450 applicants, 140 interviews) but I was told that although they have room for 55-65, they send out around 100 offers, because they know not everyone will except. I have the same reservations as some of you about moving away, and the commitement of the scholarship; almost 5 years in DC!!

I also hope that they found enough of us that they like, so they wont send out additional interview offers. I gotta know NOW!

starbrite471 · Mar 25, 2010

I have a question that I was afraid to ask during the interview day....

For the WHC scholarship, does anyone know the details on what happens if you don't end up completing the entire 3-yr. committment? I've heard there is a payback arrangement in place, but does anyone know specifically how it works? Is it a straight deal, like if you leave after 1 yr. you'd pay back 2/3 of the tuition, after 2 yrs, 1/3, etc.? Or is there a more stringent "penalty" for leaving earlier? For me, I think the scholarship is a fantastic deal, but I'm unsure if WHC offers ample opportunities for the area I'm interested in, and I don't know how unhappy I'd be working 3 years in another area that is not my "passion."

Thanks!

gkvegan, MSN · Mar 25, 2010

Yes, it's prorated just like you said. What area are you interested in? I know for sure I want to do peds so I am not even applying. Three years is a long time to do something you don't like especially in nursing.

I have a question that I was afraid to ask during the interview day....
For the WHC scholarship, does anyone know the details on what happens if you don't end up completing the entire 3-yr. committment? I've heard there is a payback arrangement in place, but does anyone know specifically how it works? Is it a straight deal, like if you leave after 1 yr. you'd pay back 2/3 of the tuition, after 2 yrs, 1/3, etc.? Or is there a more stringent "penalty" for leaving earlier? For me, I think the scholarship is a fantastic deal, but I'm unsure if WHC offers ample opportunities for the area I'm interested in, and I don't know how unhappy I'd be working 3 years in another area that is not my "passion."
Thanks!