Georgia Perimer Nursing

NeoNatMom · Feb 29, 2012

*Here is some insight I have gotten to scare me crapless to ever try...."I'm currently a nursing student at GPC, and I regret my decision. Everything that stillbetteryet outlined in the original post is still occurring. Most(not all) of the teachers are excellent, but I get the feeling they are frustrated also. Something is not right when you boast 100% NCLEX pass rates yet maintain 50-60% graduation rates, and many of those are repeats. IMO, they need to get rid of the current administration and bring in someone with a successful track record of professional administration. Someone who is an student advocate instead of someone who sacrifices students to enhance their reputation."

"it's a*crime*what GPC is doing to innocent, trusting nursing students. You walk in, willing to give 110%, and you DO give 110%, only to be mislead, swindled, ripped-off, and lied to. They could care less about you. They are not in the business of education. They are in the business of money. They recently received a huge chunk for their new program in Dunwoody (LPN-RN bridge), and it was all based on their numbers. You see, several years back, they were actually on academic probation for their low NCLEX pass rate. So they swung the pendulum in the opposite direction. In 2006, their NCLEX pass rate was 100%. This might sound good to you.....after all, this must be a great institution that trains their students well. Right?*

But the casualty for their new found success is YOU, the innocent nursing student. It's all about numbers to them now. As of 2006, out of 170 people to start the program, only 20 actually made it through. And out of those 20, how many had to beg and grovel in order to repeat a semester? Well, I happen to know several. What does this mean to a fresh nursing student coming into this program with wide eyes and a trusting heart?*

DISASTER!*

It's a crime. They have destroyed lives, broken spirits, trampled pocket books, and deterred many fine students from the nursing profession altogether. Fine, intelligent, bright, gifted, ambitious, and motivated students, all who were willing to give 110% to the program and to the nursing profession, smacked in the face, deceived, and tossed to the curb. Students who altered their lifestyles, studied 12 hours per day, held their breaths during clinicals hoping their psychotic and unreasonably abusive instructor wouldn't humiliate them in front of a patient. Students who despite the fact that they studied above and beyond the call of duty, crossed every T and dotted every I, formed study groups, created practice questions, visited the study lab, purchased supplemental study guides and analyzed study guides with a fine tooth comb........feeling totally prepared for the exam.......... went into the lecture hall for the exam and found that 75% of the questions were from a different planet. Questions that were never discussed or covered during lecture, questions that were poorly written and impossible to answer, and questions that made absolutely no sense to anyone in the class, slowly chipping away at your hard-earned GPA and self-esteem, because Lord knows you aren't stupid, but where in God's name did these questions come from??????? And lo and behold, the entire class fails the exam. Hmmmm. An entire class can't be wrong..... Kinda makes you wonder. Maybe it's not the students after all?*

What's really sad is: after pouring your heart and utter soul into the material, hanging on every word in lecture, putting your family on hold and taking out thousands in student loans, all to obtain your dream of being a nurse, everything is shattered in a matter of a few exams. Your heart is beyond broken, your mind is in a daze, friends and loved ones are asking "What the heck is going on?", and your dreams go down the drain. Do you think a single instructor or administrator at GPC gives a damn? HELL NO!:)*Do you think they lose sleep at night because you're life has become a living hell? Do you think that when you go to them and ask them, "What's the secret? What am I doing wrong?" that they actually care or give sound counsel?*

The REALLY scary thing is: after a couple of semesters in GPC's nursing program, your GPA is utterly destroyed, making you ineligible for any other nursing program. You CAN'T transfer into another RN program because your GPA is screwed! HA! NOW YOUR A PRISONER! You either stay and sell your soul to the devil, or find another career path. All of those pre-req classes you took? All that hard work and money to GET INTO the nursing program? The joy you felt when you made it in? EVERYTHING down the tubes. Because now, GPC has destroyed your transcripts. You can't go to Kennesaw, Georgia State, etc. Nobody will take you now! You've been forever tainted. Go ahead and paint a big read GPC on your forehead, because nobody will take you now.*

It doesn't matter to them how many people graduate. It only matters how many of those that actually do pass the NCLEX. Because that is the only number they are judged by.*

It can be argued that GPC wants to protect the nursing profession and all of the patients of the world from future potentially incompetent nurses. Maybe GPC is on a mission to save the world and protect the sick and dying from these horrible wannabe nurses who simply can't grasp the material? I mean really, they can't have these slackers going out into the world caring for patients, taking their lives into their hands!!!!!!!!!!! GOD BLESS GPC!*

I have advice for anyone considering this program. STAY AWAY.*

And if you choose to go ahead and give it a shot, because you think, "Well, I actually study really hard and I'm really smart and I will apply myself and I can do it! It won't happen to me..."*

YOU'VE BEEN WARNED!

The people and instructors who run this program are nothing short of criminals. I have seen many lives destroyed, time wasted, money down the drain, and spirits trampled.*

The drug calculation test is the least of your worries, trust me. Passing it with 100% is no big deal. Study the formulas and do the problems. What you should be worrying about is the UNKNOWN. The stuff you can't see coming around the corner of this farce of a school. The instructor who purposely withholds information to watch you fail. The faculty who purposely doesn't recommend supplemental material. The clinical instructor who sets you up to fail. THIS is what you have to sweat about. The frickin' math test? Give me a break! That's a piece of cake! If you can't pass a drug calculation test, then.... I dunno. It's the other stuff that'll REALLY gettcha! Because there is absolutely NOTHING you can do to prepare for it.*

You've been warned."

and yes sirrrrr, that last quote was all one person!

Columnist · Feb 29, 2012

Moved to GA Nursing Programs for better response.

Stewart22 · Mar 1, 2012

I appreciate you telling me all of this. Now I am freaking out. I applied to Georgia State 2x and did not get in. I am not getting any younger.

Are you a nurse? What are you doing now? Where did you go to school?

Currently, I am taking a course at GPC and I have taken my Anatomies and Microbiology there as well. I got all A's in the program, while other people struggled. Are you saying this doesn't matter? Does the Nursing program completely differ from their regular courses?

Thank you for your feedback.

FitMommyRN · Mar 2, 2012

Currently, I am taking a course at GPC and I have taken my Anatomies and Microbiology there as well. I got all A's in the program, while other people struggled. Are you saying this doesn't matter? Does the Nursing program completely differ from their regular courses?

The nursing courses are completely different. It really is a completely different question format from what you're used to. A&P and micro are, for the most part, knowledge regurgitation type exams. Nursing exams are (as they should be) knowledge application questions. I'm not sure how it is in other programs, but at GPC they're like this: Each exam question is sort of like a mini case study. In the tag (the question), you'll be given vital signs or lab numbers for example, and you'll have to choose the correct nursing action. Or you'll be given a tag with multiple patients and their issues and you'd have to choose the most immediate needs patient. Those are really basic examples. Out of the four multiple choice options, two can be easily disregarded, but two options can both be correct but one is MORE correct, if that makes sense. People who don't study concepts over facts and who don't do LOTS of practice questions (from any source really, even NCLEX study guides) won't do as well.

I don't mean to post stalk you, but I want to reassure you (and we're officially on spring break so I have time to kill WOOHOO!!!!) that the doom and gloom posts about how GPC doesn't care are simply NOT TRUE. If they honestly didn't care then they wouldn't have procured their own nursing department counselor. They wouldn't require students to meet with their advisors and go over exams if they score under 75. They wouldn't stop what they're doing and sit with you (with tissues) and listen to you pour your heart out because your patient in clinicals is terminal and it breaks your heart (that was me in my first week of clinicals with my AMAZING clinical instructor). They wouldn't high five you after you nail your skills check off (happened to me last week). They wouldn't stand, patiently, and check blood pressures with you over and over and over and over and OVER until you nail it perfectly. If they didn't care they wouldn't tell you how proud they are of you, or give you their personal numbers if you have questions, or do silly things like whip out a ukelele and sing a song about dosage calculations or hand out candy on Valentines day.

DON'T listen to the hateful posts. Take a deep breath and rest assured that you can do this program and be successful. Keep in mind that dissatisfied people yell louder and longer than satisfied people. Then there's me, who feels the need to defend this amazing program and will do so as long as I live.

maccheese · Mar 2, 2012

Again, I agree with my classmate. Besides GSU, what other programs have you applied ffor. If you have prereqs for GSU done, you have prereqs for any program. They require some extra stuff.

I appreciate you telling me all of this. Now I am freaking out. I applied to Georgia State 2x and did not get in. I am not getting any younger.
Are you a nurse? What are you doing now? Where did you go to school?
Currently, I am taking a course at GPC and I have taken my Anatomies and Microbiology there as well. I got all A's in the program, while other people struggled. Are you saying this doesn't matter? Does the Nursing program completely differ from their regular courses?
Thank you for your feedback.