Getting into a Good, cheap nursing school

[bpharkins7]

I currently am finishing my pre req's for nursing school... but my GPA is quite lower than I want and I feel like I'm running out of time to get my degree... I'm currently 20 years old and will be 21 this year.. My GPA suffered when I started college early and I went party raving (which obviously I now regret. So now I am making up all these semesters for that ONE semester I went crazy. So my question is.... Is there any schools out there that will accept an applicant into the ADN program with a GPA lower than a 3.0? Is there any other factors that they mainly look at besides the ACT or your NLN? My ACT is a 20. and I'm going to take my NLN in April or the fall. I want to be in nursing school by Spring 2014. Any suggestions or help ? I know I am bringing my GPA up slowly with side classes at the moment and pre reqs but its slower than I am wanting. Please help! Suggestions on schools are happily considered as well :)

[loriangel14, RN]

20 and you think you are getting old? I was 38 when I started.

[BeccaC623]

I really don't know anyone who has gotten into nursing school with a GPA under 3.0...Actually, I don't know anyone who has gotten in with a GPA less than 3.20-3.30.

I have a 2.73 and was accepted. It all depends on the school, the number of applicants, and test scores at some schools. My ADN program looked at your entire GPA, not just prereqs as did most in the area that I applied to (can't say that all did because I only applied to 4).

Edit: as I said previously, I had a letter of explanation for WHY I had the 2.73 and how my current GPA of a 3.54 at the university I attend is more indicative of my actual academic abilities, but they looked at my GPA as a whole.

[Medic/RN2B]

I see a lot of people saying that schools will accept people with 2.50 GPA's...But really that's just the minimum GPA that you can have to *apply* to the program! I really don't know anyone who has gotten into nursing school with a GPA under 3.0...Actually, I don't know anyone who has gotten in with a GPA less than 3.20-3.30. Its getting incredibly competitive out there and only the best GPA's and test scores are going to make the cut. I don't mean to be a downer but that's just the truth. As for "running out of time to get your degree"...You have PLENTY of time! You're only 20! A lot of the people in my prerequisite classes were in their 30's and 40's...even 50's. Its never too late to get your degree. Don't be discouraged by the other people you know who will be graduating with their degrees soon. Most of them will struggle to find jobs after graduation because of the economy. You are going in the right direction wanting to become a nurse. Take your time. You should apply to an ADN program because they will only look at your prerequisite grades and not random course work that you did in the past. But if you failed or got a D or C in a prerequisite course you should retake it because it will bring up your prerequisite GPA significantly. *Most* ADN programs only take the GPA of the courses that they require to get into the program. They will be cheaper and you can just do an RN-BSN program later on. This would be the fastest and best option for you considering your GPA.[/quote']

You are right...our school requires a min of 2.5 gpa BUT that is just to apply. They dont even use your GPA in the selection process. They weight 4 pre-req classes and subsections of your TEAS and do it that way. The only way your GPA is.looked at is to make sure u are at the min and in case of a tie breaker.

[bpharkins7]

That's awesome!! Glad to hear from someone local... I'm at the BCTC Cooper Campus and that helps so much!

[bpharkins7]

Thank you for all the feedback you all have given me... It really is an eye opener to say the least on different programs.. I appreciate all of your alls input!

[stephanie.]

I did an academic "fresh start". It doesn't work for everyone but in my situation I had to if I wanted to get into nursing school. Just a thought.