George Mason University (GMU) Accelerated BSN Fall 2016

Moved to the Nursing Schools, Colleges, and Programs forum

Hi there! I posted in another page but I'll just throw that message over here. Great job on the HESI exam!

I have a 3.4 overall GPA with a 3.9 in Nursing prerequisites (All classes were A's with the exception on Statistics). I wish my overall GPA was higher but it is what it is. My degree was in Hospitality Management from the University of Central Florida. At the Information Session, an adviser said I was in good standing to at least be accepted into George Mason, but I am still unsure if I'll be accepted into the Nursing program. Here's to hoping!

My HESI A2 score was a 90. I would like to get a little higher, but I feel like 90 is still pretty decent.

I've already been accepted into Shenandoah's program and opted not to apply for George Washington's program for the simple fact that it is the most expensive in the area (albeit being a great program). At the end of the day, passing the NCLEX is what matters, right? George Mason is definitely my first choice though.

I obviously don't have much knowledge on how they judge applicants but my guess is Nursing pre-reqs and HESI scores are most important (to judge on our ability to master similar material as well as passing the NCLEX).

Hi,

I was accepted to the accelerated program for 2015. I was quite shocked, as I didn't think my grades were good enough. My undergraduate GPA was a 2.6. I had to take all of my prerequisites again and I managed A's in everything except A&P I and II. A&P I, I had to repeat. I took that online through NOVA, got a D the first time around and managed a B the second time around. My HESI score was a 88% overall. I think my video was decent, along with my essay and resume. Please don't get hung up on grades. I definitely think they are looking at more than just grades. The professors and administrators of the program are great! Good luck to you all! Hopefully you'll find out next month. I found out by email the end of March last year.

Thanks for the info! I got my acceptance into GMU today but yea, I would expect to hear back from the program for awhile yet.

How are you enjoying the program so far?

@al591 Thank you for the feedback. I'm stressing a lot, so it's nice to hear from someone who was in a similar position to me. I'm pleased to hear that you are liking the professors! If you have any other insights about the program and your general experience I would l would really love to hear them. I'm just got accepted to mason as a transfer and I'm so so excited to hear back from the nursing school. @danishep Congrats on getting in as a transfer, hopefully we will both be admitted to the ABSN program for the fall

I'm in the accelerated BSN program now, and last year, we got our SON acceptance letters by e-mail on about March 31.

I think the SON ABSN admissions committee looks at a lot more than just grades, and I also think that they consider each student holistically on the sum of his or her merits. I applied to GWU and GMU, and I thought I would be a shoe-in for GWU and was worried about my application to GMU. Turns out that GWU uses NursingCAS, which is an entirely online application system, and I suspect that my less than stellar previous undergrad GPA worked against me in a system that has electronic screening before an application is ever seen by a human being. When I submitted my transcripts to the GMU SON, I addressed the fact that my post-graduate academic record was much improved over my undergraduate academic record, and judging by the fact that I was admitted, I would say that the admissions committee looked at everything I submitted in making their decision.

The ABSN program is definitely a competitive program, and there will be days that you wish you had just a little more time to master a concept and you hate yourself for signing up for an accelerated program, but the payoff is totally worth it. I mean, I started in August, and I'll be a nurse by September!

Best of luck to all of you!

Accepted to Marymount and Shenandoah! Just waiting on GMU now! Wish me luck :)

ACCEPTED TO GMU! I could not be more excited!!!!

So happy for you lisacatherine6! Me too! Glad we get to stop worrying! Is this your first choice? It's mine. I accepted my spot already and I believe I paid my enrollment fee but I didn't receive any email afterwards. What about you?

Congratulations! The wait is finally over :) It is my first choice. I have not formally accepted my spot yet or paid my application fee (I took the evening to celebrate). I will look into it tonight or tomorrow evening and get back to you on that!

Hi there greenbean74! Based on your experience so far, Do you think it's possible to work while enrolled in the accelerated program? I haven't informed my current employer about my plans to enroll this fall, but there is a possibility that I could work part time. Do you think it's possible? Is anyone working while in school?

And do you know how soon after graduation that people from the last cohort were able to find jobs? I asked the admissions people and they said they didn't have any information on that, so I was curious if people usually ended up getting hired at the same place they did clinicals. Any info would be much appreciated!

Hi there, Trhl09!

Working during the program is definitely a challenge, but some of my classmates are doing it - and by some, I mean very few. I have one friend who has continued her job in a nursing home part-time during the program. Another guy had started working as a clinical tech in a hospital before the program started and managed to do ok juggling his responsibilities. He changed roles to a unit secretary at some point and finds that to work better with his schedule. There may be a few other folks that are working in part-time tech positions, but I don't know of anyone who has managed to hold on to their previous professional job while in school.

If you are working in a healthcare role, then it might be possible to juggle school and work. But if you're working a regular 9-5 office day job, then you might want to reconsider. Of course, it is all so personal, and you will have to figure out what works for you. The program administrators strongly discourage working during the program, because the program is incredibly intensive (and it is!). I had left the option open with my previous employer to work part-time for them once I got settled into my academic routine, but by the time I got settled into a study rhythm with my courseload the first semester, I couldn't imagine finding time to work as well.

The program is intense. They aren't just saying that. You're getting what amounts to four semesters of full-time coursework crammed into two full semesters, one two-week winter intersession, and both summer sessions.

As for jobs after graduation with the previous cohort, I have no idea!! I actually met a woman at my clinical site yesterday who was part of the 2015 ASBN graduating class and was on her lunch break at the hospital, and I have purchased some used books/supplies from another woman who was in last year's cohort and seems to have found a job with no issues. So, my sample size of two is promising!

I am pretty confident in our ability to secure jobs when we finish. However, one thing to keep in mind as you plan your finances and whatnot for the year: You will graduate in early August, but you cannot sit for the NCLEX exam until after your final transcripts are received by the state board of nursing, which could take several weeks. We have been told to expect to take our NCLEX about a month after we graduate. That means we won't be graduating and starting jobs right away - but that's ok, because it gives us about a month to prepare for the NCLEX without taking time away from our other academic obligations.

Sorry if this is too rambly!! I'm glad to answer any other questions.

One more piece of advice: As your cohort coalesces, you may want to form a facebook group to take your discussions private and start to get to know each other. One of my classmates started one for our cohort a month or so after we received our offer letters. It was really helpful to us as we geared up last summer, and it has continued to be really useful throughout our program.