GPA and getting into Nursing School

JaxiaKiley · Sep 24, 2006

Some schools will replace the F with an A, some average the two together. It just depends on the school.

Look into your school's "fresh start" policy. These policies basically let you disregard anything over 10 years old. The kink is it is usually an ALL or NOTHING policy.

Good luck!

Jules A, MSN · Sep 24, 2006

Talk to someone at your school. Its not as uncommon as you may think. If you had some good grades along with some Fs that would surely show that you could do the work if you had attended the class. Good luck, Jules

krenee · Sep 24, 2006

Hey, wow - I did the EXACT same thing. It's just funny to know that I'm not alone! I'm desperately trying to get all As in my pre-requisites at this point to get my GPA up. I assumed if it became necessary I could explain what happened - and if I get all As at this point it should make it obvious that I've changed!

Good luck to you!

Kelly

romie · Sep 24, 2006

You may have to consider the schools request for all transcripts of every school you ever attended. If you leave out a school, you could be considered falsifying your application, which could very well lead to expulsion from your program, even after you have been admitted.

I was tempted to leave off my application the fact that I had attended and withdrew from a nursing school. But I decided to be honest and disclose that fact. I included another letter in my application that explained the circumstances in which I left, that it was due to financial hardship and not lack of skill or interest. I got accepted.

You should probably at minimum include a letter explaining the circumstances of your schooling back in 1990, that you were young and undecided and now you are wise and hardworking, ect. You could point out your current GPA.

It also depends on the admission protocol for your school. If it is a lottery system, then it really doesn't matter how high your GPA is over the minimum; you have the same chance as anyone else. If it is a weighted system using points, then you should emphasize your recent success and work history, volunteering, ect

floyd · Sep 24, 2006

Thank you all for your advice. It is nice to know I am not the only one out there who totally screwed up their gpa just out of HS. I will see about attaching a letter of explanation to my application. Hopefully it will make a difference!

Jilaweez, BSN, MSN, RN · Sep 25, 2006

Don't worry, I did the same thing. I know it is different at all schools but where I go you could retake the class and replace your lowest grade. It doesn't come off your transcripts but only the higher grades average into your gpa. I had loooowww gpa and now have 3.8gen ed and 4.0 nursing pre-reqs. We live and learn. I think it shows you can change and perservere no matter what you did in the past. Best wishes.

lisabeth · Sep 25, 2006

I did the same thing, but with just one class. I have a 3.3, but the nursing instructor told me they just look at the nursing pre-requisites, so I have a 3.7. You might want to check. They may not take that into account. Good luck.

MB37 · Sep 25, 2006

My school accepts only on the basis of cumulative GPA. They award no points for anything else, give no weight to nursing prereqs, and do not care if you have improved since freshman year or your first time in college. They accept 5% of their applicants, on average. I don't know if they offer academic amnesty. Just saying, it really does vary. So many places take entrance tests, care about work experience, only look at your prereq GPA, or do lotteries or waitlists that it's really important to find out directly from the schools in your area. I just went to a meeting last week - they have one every wednesday - and she told us everything we needed to know. Good luck to you, I'm sure you can find a school that doesn't care what happened 16 years back.