gpa 3.2

Kenelty · Oct 23, 2006

Whoever you talked to was a jerk, and no, your dreams of becoming a CRNA are not over.

I made it in with 3.25, so it can be done. Selection is based on several things, GPA is only one of them. They look at GPA, GRE scores, experience, how well you interview, references, etc....

Hang in there, and apply elsewhere.

SRNA312 · Oct 23, 2006

It DOES make it a lot more difficult but it can be done. 3.32 here. As you can imagine, the application pool is a very competetive one. With that GPA you will need something else to make you stand out because when they are selecting for interviews, all they have to look at are numbers and you better believe there will be more than enough numbers higher than that. Most schools also look at last 60 hours. You will need things such as a superb GRE score, great experience, Great recommendations (and I mean GREAT...because who can't find 3 people to write good things about them?). Also, taking various classes over to improve the GPA. Asking the various schools what you can do to improve your chances and then doing it shows initiative, which is a good thing. I had the GRE and 8yrs experience going for me. In my humble opinion, the lower your GPA, the longer you may have to wait to get in so you can build up years of knowledge. A low GPA and minimal experience isn't a good match.

passgasser · Oct 23, 2006

I have a number of thoughts. I'm going to be straightforward with you, but please do not infer that to be discouraging or rude. Much of what I am going to tell you is offered so that you don't waste a lot of money tilting at windmills.

First, before you spend a lot of money trying to retake classes to raise your GPA, check with the school that granted your degree. Some universities will allow you to raise your GPA this way, but there are a number of places that "lock" your GPA once your degree is granted. If that is the case, they will happily take your money, and all the great grades in the world won't help you. In any event, the transcripts from almost all universities will reflect both grades you earned in any given class.

I suspect it is possible that what you were told by that counselor may be based on more than just your cumulative GPA. Therefore, look at your undergraduate transcript, paying particular attention to the grades you received in the science classes, like A&P, pathophysiology, chemistry, as well as your math classes. If you received B's, and particularly C's in these classes, then the counselor you spoke to is probably correct. The practice of anesthesia is grounded in hard science, and the education of nurse anesthetists is almost entirely an education in science. If you struggled with these classes in your undergraduate program, that is a strong indication that you will not do well in anesthesia school. Schools are unlikely to admit a student who has a high probability of failure, and folks who did poorly in the science portion of their undergrad studies have a very high probability of failure.

There are a lot of nurse anesthesia programs out there, and each has it's own criteria for admission. For some, applicants' GPA's are the first discriminator. If the school you are interested in has such a policy, then your chance at getting an interview, much less being accepted, at that school are slim. For every slot in every anesthesia school, there are always several applicants. Therefore, if GPA is the first absolute discriminator, you may very well find you are not competitive.

On the other hand, many schools consider several factors beyond the GPA. For example, they will look at your grades in the science classes, at your grades in the nursing program, where you have worked, and your scores on the GRE. If you had a 3.2, but graduated 10 years ago, and recently took the GRE and smoked it, they will consider that as well, and you may very well get an interview. Then, whether you get in or not will strictly depend on how well you do in the interview.

No school that I know of allows you to apply for free. There is always an application fee, and that fee is non-refundable. So, before you spend a lot of time getting paperwork together, and spend a lot of money applying to various schools, call the schools you are interested in. Where ever possible, speak to the program director. Failing that, speak to someone involved with the applications committee. Tell them your situation, being very honest about your grades. Listen to what you are told. Then apply to those schools that are not likely to cash your check for the application fee and throw your application in the trash.

All too often, people in today's world want to believe you can be or do anything you want if you want it bad enough. In my experience, that simply is not always true. You may want to fly for the Navy worse than anyone who ever lived. But if you have less than 20/20 vision, then all the desire in the world won't get you there. In the same fashion, you may want to be a CRNA worse than anything, but if you simply cannot compete with the application pool, then you can spend a lot of money chasing an illusion.

Again, I am not trying to discourage you. If, after reading all I have written, you still want to try, then I ENCOURAGE you to go for it. At least two posters here have attested to the fact that it is possible to get in with a GPA similar to yours. But I encourage you to be honest with yourself.

piper_for_hire · Oct 23, 2006

Don't forget the 5th element! (love that movie - my apologies for my poor taste. ;-)

Yes - it's experience, GPA, GRE, reccomendations - but everyone forgets about the crucial 5th part of the equation - luck of the draw. The reason that there is no magical set of numbers or experience that guarentee admission is simply because every year different people apply. You never know who your competition is or who the people are that are evaluating you. If you get past all of that and get an interview or two or three - you're practically there!

-S

passgasser · Oct 23, 2006

OK, I've gone back and looked at your other posts, and I feel there is more to be said. Again, I simply want to be very honest with you about your chances to get into a CRNA program.

According to what you have written before, you did very poorly on the GRE. Understand that when considering applicants, there are only a few things the schools can look at as predictors for how a potential student will do. These include cumulative GPA, GPA in relevant coursework (i.e. the sciences), and the GRE. Look at your application as it would be viewed by an admissions committee. Your GPA meets the required minimum, but only by a small margin. Your GRE scores are poor. You can retake the GRE. But, you need to be aware that you will have to request that your scores be forwarded to the schools to which you wish to apply. In reporting your scores, all your scores for the last five years will be reported, not just your highest scores. So no matter what your highest score is, the admissions committee will see that you had to take that test more than once to get that score.

Now, compare your application with the pool of other applicants. There will be many others with higher GPA's, along with higher scores on the GRE who only took the test once. Put yourself in the shoes of the admission committees. Which applicant do you think has the highest chance of success? Which applicant will you accept into your program? Remember, there are more than enough applicants out there that no school has to accept any student who, on paper at least, appears to have a high potential to fail. Why would they want to? All that does is leave an RN with the debt load of a CRNA.

Am I saying you have no chance? No. But the blunt, honest truth is that your chances of being accepted are razor thin at absolute best. I am saying that you could end up in a pursuit which will leave you out several hundred dollars or more, with nothing to show for it. In the end, you have to be honest with yourself.

dogbone · Oct 24, 2006

Go for it....3.1 gpa here....got in first try. Study up for your gre...get some good experience and get some lor's that rock. Some schools look at last 60 hours....don't give up the dream and work your orifice off if you really want.

Regards

garfieldrn · Oct 24, 2006

Gasspasser, thank you for your honest opinion in this matter. I do agree with you...but I just did not want to give up so easily. I guess I am trying to look at it in a pessismistic way....I am going to take some chemistry course and physics and hope that it would help. I am hoping that the schools would look at my last 60 credits of my transcript, since it was my freshmen year that lowered my GPA. Anyways, thanks to everyone that replied.

bisson · Oct 25, 2006

i say don't give up. I'm in New York, and nursing schools here are killer to get into. in a public community college you have to have a whooping 3.8 gpa. I missed it by a tenth of a point and was crushed not to get in. I transfered to another school that was suppose to have a lower GPA but that was all BS and i ended up not getting in there ( thank god I only wasted 1 semester there) . I than decided to just go ahead and apply to a private school, and low and behold, I got into all 3 of them because i did so good on my entrance exam and I did have a good gpa.

so yeah, I could have gave up after not getting in to my original school. but I didn't.

I thank God that I did not get into a public nursing program. I would have not made it out. my school is great and i'm glad this is where I ended up.

make strategic moves , think fast, and i wish you all the success in life.

piper_for_hire · Oct 25, 2006

bisson - sounds like you're talking about nursing schools, right? Things are a little different with anesthesia schools.

Feyd71 · Oct 26, 2006

Hello all, I have an interview (more like 3-4 the same day) for CRNA school and was wondering if anyone had some tips or advice for the interview. I have a 3.8 last 60, a 3.5 math and science and a 3.65 overall GPA. I scored a 418 which is a 55 on the MAT (I took the quick, easier and cheaper way by taking the MAT since they accept it, does that look bad)? Anyway thanks for any help.

piper_for_hire · Oct 26, 2006

I know it's a cliche, but just be yourself. You're probably thinking all about the technical aspect of the interview, but it will mostly be simple stuff. If you've gotten to the interview, they already think you're good enough on paper. What they're really interested in is your personality. Are you the kind of person they want in their program? Do you seem like someone that can handle the stress? Do they want to see you every day for the next 2.5 years? Expect to talk a little about what you wrote in your persoal statement too. Hope that helps.

-S