How do I respond to a poorly written request to be a nursing student?

bsnanat2 · May 27, 2011

i must say that i have not read all of the posts, but wanted to caution people from assuming that this was a foreign person who wrote this. most foreign students are very motivated and do a better job than this in writing. i have to say that i've seen many american students write this way and worse. if you doubt it, just check with your local university and see how many people they turn away or because of horrible application essays or the number of people in community college who have to take remedial courses straight out of high school.

OhioCCRN, MSN, NP · May 27, 2011

I have to say that it bothers me that people automaticaly assume that it is an international student... There are people i have gone to school with, born and bred in this country who write worse english than that... Ok... im off the soap box now....

Highschoolfuturenurs · May 27, 2011

This could be a foreign student who has worked their ass off to try and perfect our language, which let me tell you makes little sense in the grammar department. She may have just as well obtained her bachelor degree in SOMETHING, maybe it was online, maybe it wasn't..whatever the case may be I find it a bit disgusting that you jump to such conclusions that this person is illiterate/not a good candidate. While I agree that this is a poorly written email, and she may need a class or two on the English Language; this email shouldn't be grounds for not considering her, she is reaching out to someone who thinks can help her. And you come on a public forum and post it up and people are making fun of it. Maybe I am being overly sensitive but this just doesn't sit well with me. It just irks me that someone on faculty can act this way. How very unprofessional of you.
I was born here and english is my first language. But I sure as hell believe that if I were to go to another country and study there, & in their language, I would probably make many, MANY more mistakes than this person did.
Or maybe this person should go to med school...ha ha ha
Have you ever met a Dr with poor penmanship (my GOD, what has happened to our educational system, how did this man/woman not learn proper penmanship in kindergarten).... or met a Dr with crappy english?
I have.....

I'm sorry but why are you making the assumption that this is a "foreign student who has worked their ass off"? For both my parents English is a second language and they ALWAYS ask me to proof read everything for them even an email. Most of my life I have been surrounded by international students and you are right they do work their ass off to perfect their English. There is no way that an international student who strives for fluency in the English language would ever write an atrocious message like she did. Secondly, if she has a degree in psychology shouldn't she know English well since psychology students have to write a lot of papers?

To be honest I don't feel bad for this person. To me it to sounds like a young naive girl who was in a hurry and did not bother to proof read. She didnt take the time to write the email and this makes her seem like she lacks maturity and interest in the program. I know that whenever I contact my university or advisors I make sure that my email is formal and properly written. But a lot of my friends that are my age don't really care how they write. It's sad.

justavolunteer · May 27, 2011

Unfortunately, there are students who reach college after skating through the lower grades. Colleges devote a great deal of time these days to remedial instruction. It is one thing to need remedial math or English if you have been out of school for 20 years, then return. It is quite another to arrive fresh out of high school, only to have to take remedial classes (basically, high school revisited).

This is not necessarily a new phenomenon either. I had professors 30 years ago who would pull a pop quiz (short essay). They would tell me that I must have put a great deal of effort into the paper, just because I could use proper English. It wasn't effort so much as prior education that helped me out.

DPSGraduateNurse · May 27, 2011

I live in South Florida - very diverse community, and I have helped some of my friends (nursing students), where English is their second language, with their writing-style, grammar, etc. So it may very well be a foreign student, nonetheless, at least my friends are smart enough to know not to send an email as such without having someone proofread it especially with an interest in a nursing school/program OR any school or A job for that matter!

BabyLady, BSN, RN · May 27, 2011

I am a faculty member who monitors a web page for additional information or comments. I usually just have to point someone to web page or answer a simple question. Today I got the following question from someone trying to get into our second degree program. I have pasted the message just as it came. The nursing school name has been deleted for their protection:
I PREVIOSLY ATTEDED NURSING SCHOOL AT **************, HOWEVER, DO TO PERSONAL PROBLEMS I WITHDREW AND SWITCHED TO PSYCHOLOGY. HOEVER MY PASSION TO BECOME A NURSE HAS PLUMETED OVER THE LAST YEAR. I CURRENTLY WORK AS A CNA AND LOVE WHAT I DO... WOULD MY PRIOR ATTENDACE TO NURSING SCHOOL AND SWITCHING TO PSYCHOLOGY EFFECT MY CHANCES OF GETTING ACCEPTED TO YOUR ABSN PROGRAM? i AM HIGLY MOTIVATED MORE THAN I EVER TO BECOME A NURSE.
I don't know whether to laugh or cry at such a poorly written e-mail. I would like to know if she ever had to write anything in English at her previous program.
My question is: I would never want someone who is this illiterate to even enter my program. I could just tell her she isn't qualified (and from her description she doesn't have a bachelors degree yet and would be ineligible). Should I comment on her lack of professional writing skills, just comment on her qualifications, or both?

I have a feeling that the answer to your question will be answered when you receive her transcripts.

Also, if I were to guess, it looks like she probably sent that e-mail from her cell.

BrentRN, PhD · May 27, 2011

I have a feeling that the answer to your question will be answered when you receive her transcripts.
Also, if I were to guess, it looks like she probably sent that e-mail from her cell.

This brings up another issue for prospective students and younger RNs-- proper use of electronic devices for communication. I have students who would like to communicate through text messages. Most of our faculty prohibit it or do not know how. I limit texting to real-time needs to communicate such as being stuck in traffic on the way to clinical. All other communication must be by phone or e-mail (although I am old enough to remember when most faculty did not know how to use e-mail either).

I have always insisted my students' e-mail be written professionally. Once I had a young man who chastised me about my reply that corrected his errors. He replied that I was "not his grammer teacher" (and yes that is how he spelled "grammar"). I told him that I expected graduates of our program to know how to engage in professional communication with colleagues, so yes I was his grammar teacher too.

Is using a cellphone an acceptable excuse for poor spelling? Even if it is that still doesn't excuse poor vocabulary or grammar. Should I insist on sentence case in messages and not all caps?

Black Jade, BSN, RN · May 27, 2011

Some of you hit right on the nail as far as assuming this was written by a foreign student. I come from a foreign background and I do make an effort to write and speak proper English. My best friend came to the United States speaking only Spanish, yet she graduated as a high school salutatorian and now speaks and writes perfect English. It's about making first impressions whether you are in the business world or social network.

I thank my teachers for instilling in me the proper way to use grammar and punctuation by using a red pen across my papers as well as reminding me to cross my T's and dot my i's; my father for always telling me to "Go look it up in the dictionary" whenever I didn't know what a certain word means; spell check and Google for checking my spelling, and thesaurus for knowing there are other ways to play with words.

Moogie · May 27, 2011

Is using a cellphone an acceptable excuse for poor spelling? Even if it is that still doesn't excuse poor vocabulary or grammar. Should I insist on sentence case in messages and not all caps?

It's difficult to type accurately on a very small keyboard like a cell phone or an iPod. Therefore, unless it's absolutely necessary, (i.e., can't make it to class because of a blizzard) I don't text and I don't use my iPod for professional communications. I think it's a mistake to send out something important, such as an inquiry to a school of nursing, using a small, unreliable keyboard. I also realize that not everyone has a computer, but most people have computer access. Use the computer at the library to send an important message. First impressions count and this prospective student has made a very poor one on you that could negatively impact her future career.

I have always insisted my students' e-mail be written professionally. Once I had a young man who chastised me about my reply that corrected his errors. He replied that I was "not his grammer teacher" (and yes that is how he spelled "grammar"). I told him that I expected graduates of our program to know how to engage in professional communication with colleagues, so yes I was his grammar teacher too.

Absolutely! I wish more nurse educators felt this way. Health care professionals often get into bad grammar habits because they need to be concise in charting, but that's no excuse for not knowing proper grammar and spelling. Poor grammar and spelling make the professional look ignorant and often make others question the accuracy of that professional's clinical judgment. If someone can't figure out the difference between there, their, and they're or lose and loose, can others be certain that this person knows how to stage a decubitus?

I hope this episode points out how important it is to use professional communication at all times when you are a nursing student or registered nurse. You ARE being judged. I require my students to use proper spelling and grammar in e-mail and clinical writing, not just term papers.

Your points are very well-taken. I wish I could give you a dozen kudos!

BabyLady, BSN, RN · May 27, 2011

This brings up another issue for prospective students and younger RNs-- proper use of electronic devices for communication. I have students who would like to communicate through text messages. Most of our faculty prohibit it or do not know how. I limit texting to real-time needs to communicate such as being stuck in traffic on the way to clinical. All other communication must be by phone or e-mail (although I am old enough to remember when most faculty did not know how to use e-mail either).
I have always insisted my students' e-mail be written professionally. Once I had a young man who chastised me about my reply that corrected his errors. He replied that I was "not his grammer teacher" (and yes that is how he spelled "grammar"). I told him that I expected graduates of our program to know how to engage in professional communication with colleagues, so yes I was his grammar teacher too.
Is using a cellphone an acceptable excuse for poor spelling? Even if it is that still doesn't excuse poor vocabulary or grammar. Should I insist on sentence case in messages and not all caps?

I agree with every point you are making...100%. I have always made it a point to write as well as I can and I am truly embarrassed, when spell check and my own eyes missed a typo that I end up catching after the message is sent...no matter how casual the communication.

Stand your ground..you are teaching a very valuable lesson.

However, I did have one professor that the first time that I sent her an e-mail to ask a question, I addressed her as "Mrs. Smith"...the e-mail she fired off in response was, "I'll answer your question when you learn to address me properly."

Now, at first, I thought I missed the fact that she had a doctorate. I checked her credentials in our college catalog and on the website...nope, she didn't have a PhD or a DNP. She had an MSN. I was at a complete loss of why she got upset.

I went to class that night and was telling a classmate, who had her the semester prior, my situation and she laughed and said, "Oh, she does that to everyone..what she wants to be called is 'Professor Smith' ", which is NOT a form of address used at our college, nor had I ever seen anyone use it in print nor salutation in any of my classes.

By the time I got home, I was furious. I forwarded the email to the program Dean and said, in a very professional way, that her request was absurd...and the dean agreed.

SpEdtacular, MSN, RN, EMT-P · May 27, 2011

Wow. There was an interesting discussion along these very same lines in the thread "That having been said..."

It's as if they have no clue that writing in this fashion reflects poorly on them and gives the reader the impression that they are at least lazy if not ignorant. :smackingf

hiddencatRN, BSN, RN · May 28, 2011

i must say that i have not read all of the posts, but wanted to caution people from assuming that this was a foreign person who wrote this. most foreign students are very motivated and do a better job than this in writing. i have to say that i'ven many american students write this way and worse. if you doubt it, just check with your local university and see how many people they turn away or because of horrible application essays or the number of people in community college who have to take remedial courses straight out of high school.

i agree. i used to tutor writing and in general the esl students had much better grammar and etiquette than the students born, raised and educated in the local city schools.