Groveling for a Direct-Entry MSN Program

[Nosmas]

Dear Nursing Community,

Hi everyone, I'm brand new to the forum and I'm glad I finally found such a wonderful resource for all things nursing - only I wish I found it sooner.

I just recently graduated from UCSD '07 with a B.S. in Human Biology. I was a pre-med student but finally decided against it in my last year at UCSD. My real passion and heart was firmly placed in nursing, but due to the influence of friends and family and their notion that I'll be "selling myself short" if I didn't try pursuing medical school, I put my nursing education on hold. Luckily, I came across the direct-entry MSN programs which came as a sign that I may still have a chance at nursing. And so I followed my gut and applied to some direct-entry MSN programs - more specifically, I applied to California State University Los Angeles, UCLA, and Western University. My undergrad. GPA is not competitive at all (trust me - I'm thoroughly embarrassed at what it is), however, my volunteering experience has been pretty extensive. My question/problem is this:

I'm not feeling too confident in being accepted to any of the programs I applied to for several reasons. My GPA isn't competitive, and the classes I completed at UCSD, which I believed to be equivalent, was far from what they (the schools to which I've applied) wanted. I'm taking prerequisites right now, namely Physiology and Microbiology, and I'm still holding onto an inkling of hope that I'll be accepted. BUT if not....what in-all-that-is-good-in-nursing do I do then? I'm looking for a fast way to get where I've always wanted to be, which is to be an NP. But if I do get rejected then its a year setback. And within that year I have to decide what would be the best course of action to get an NP in the quickest most efficient way possible to save for lost time.

Do I just start over and earn my RN at a junior college, then apply to an Accelerated BSN-MSN program?

Or should I just volunteer for that sad year at a hospital and reapply to the direct-entry MSN program again?

Should I even think about an MSN at this point?

Or what other options are out there for me to take to boost my resume as a better candidate for an MSN program.

I am about to go bonkers with the stress and the pressure of not getting accepted and being left out in the cold and clueless about what to do in the coming year. I just hate the idea that I will have to put my life, literally, on hold for a year. My plan was to earn an MSN degree in the next 3 years, start working, and get married. My girlfriend just applied to the Cal-State LA BSN program which is 3 - 4 year program and we were planning to graduate pretty close to each other so we can settle down as nurses earlier. But this setback would push our plans further back and it is such a shame. Please, anybody, help!

[dedicatedone]

got it Thank you!