HELP!! IN NEED OF DESPARATE ADVICE on GPA and accel-BSN!

caroline82 · Feb 27, 2009

Hi there, first of all, try your best to bump up your GPA a little more and get As in all the prereqs for nursing. If you are graduating in 2010, my advise is to continue graduate studies by applying to all the above mentioned schools. Do not go 3 steps forward and 4 steps back by applying to community college. You will be a college graduate and you want to continue as one. From what I have heard it all depends on your major when it comes to GPA. Don't expect an English major and a Chem. Eng. to have same GPAs. The reviewing committee doesn't other. They do expect an English major and a History major to have higher GPAs. I believe they look at your application as a whole, essays, resume, references ect. Try your best and good luck!!!

edogs334 · Feb 27, 2009

Since you have about 2.5 semesters (and summer if you choose to take extra courses) left in your first degree, yes, you should raise your GPA to at least a 3.0 (pref. a bit higher) before you apply to nursing school. I definitely agree with the other poster- although many CC programs offer solid nursing education, it WILL matter what kind of degree you have (and what school you went to) when it comes time to look for a new grad position. The sad fact is that more and more facilities- esp around Boston- prefer (or even require) a BSN to start a new grad position. I've personally worked with some stellar ADN nurses and some not-so-steller BSN nurses, so I'm not the one who invented that policy. However, the fact of the matter still stands- the higher level of degree you have (and the more reputable your program), the more competitive you will be. Also, if you haven't already, you should get your CNA and try to get a position as a patient care tech in a hospital. That way, you'll definitely have a solid idea of what nursing is about, and you will cultivate some great sources of recommendation as well. If you want to do a community college program in addition to finishing your first BS (or BA), then check out Bunker Hill's Patient Care Assistant program: http://www.bhcc.mass.edu/inside/89?programID=45&year=2005

I don't know if the program still exists, but it will apparently give you acute care skills and experience that other CNA programs don't- thus making you more marketable to hospitals.