I want to be an R.N.!!!!!

mical · May 8, 2014

Hello AllNurses, I'm very interested in becoming an R.N. I'm hoping that I could get some advice on the best course of action I should take. I'm currently working a full time job as a Honda technician (mechanic) during the Times of 8-4:30. I would also like to attend school fulltime but am not sure if it is a reasonable goal. I'm a bit confused on how to get into the trinitas program. Do I just apply to UCC and get in? Or are there requirements before I can even consider applying to trinitas. Any tips or advice would be greatly appreciated, thanks!

Hi,

For the Trinitas program you need to major in nursing for that program at Union County College. When you register/declare your major, you have to specify that you want to go with Trinitas over their other nursing program, which is Muhlenberg.

After that, you'll start your general education requirements and you'll receive an invitation to attend the school of nursing when you meet the requirements. There is no test to get in, but the program is strict and rigorous.

Best of luck to you! :)

mariafrances03 · May 15, 2014

I'm currently in Trinitas and also work full-time - it's hard but doable depending on your general life situation (I work and live on my own but I am single/no kids). A lot of people go for the Trinitas program who work because you can do the program on nights and weekends. Most other schools have classes that only run during the weekdays...as far as I know but there are also "intensive" programs where the nursing portion is finished in a year and a half (if you have your pre-reqs and previous college degree).

If you have previous college credits, like English, math, etc., you will likely be able to transfer them. If you don't - no worries - just start taking them now. You'll probably be able to do the humanities requirements online, but the science classes have a lab component as well as a lecture so those may not have online options (definitely not for the lab).

Don't be fooled by the fact that it is a "2 year" program - it's going to take more than 2 years, unless you have every single pre-req done.

To get into Trinitas, you first apply to UCC - and declare Nursing-Trinitas as your intended major. That will get you into UCC so you can start your prereqs. To get "in" to the nursing program, they use a scored rubric based on your GPA and the number of credits completed. That is used to determine who gets invitations to the first nursing class, NURE 130. If you haven't taken any classes yet and don't have a GPA, your score will be a zero so it's unlikely that you will get a spot immediately upon starting school, but it doesn't cost anything to submit an application for invitation, so you never know! There is no entrance exam, which is a good thing and a bad thing. It's good because it gives those who REALLY want to be a nurse but may not be great at standardized testing a chance to go to school. It's bad because sometimes people take that to mean it's an easy school, but it's really not.

However, if you need to work full-time (like I do) I STRONGLY recommend completing all (or almost all) of your pre-reqs BEFORE starting the nursing classes. This is for two reasons:

1. Most of the prereqs, if taken at UCC, will directly transfer to other schools - 2 year and 4 year. There's a website called njtransfer.org that will show you the equivalents for each class at all NJ county colleges and shows the equivalent class at 4 year schools. It will probably take at least a year (in the event that you took 15 credits of pre-reqs a semester - which is A LOT) to finish them, probably more and you may not be living in the same place or your life may change in that time. If you need to go to another school for location or you decide to do a BSN instead of the associate's degree, then you have the flexibility to make that change. Once you start the nursing courses at Trinitas you are pretty much locked in, as I don't think any schools will accept the individual nursing classes as transfer classes (once you finish the program and get a license there are plenty of RN to BSN programs, but I haven't found any programs that will take a Trinitas transfer - maybe Muhlenberg but I don't know).

2. The nursing classes are VERY challenging. There are 5 nursing classes at Trinitas, four of them have 12 hours a week of clinical plus a 4 hour lecture, so that's 16 hours a week. If you're working, you will have time for school, work, and usually sleep but not much more. Again, it IS doable (I don't want to discourage you) but I want you to know it is not easy. I picked Trinitas because I live in Union County and that is our county's school, but I didn't find out until AFTER I started that it is considered a tough school but has a good reputation. Also, Trinitas is expensive once you start the clinical courses. While the UCC credit rate is not bad at all (in terms of tuition costs) - about $150/credit with fees, etc., the Trinitas courses with clinical components are approximately $6,000 - each (total per class not 6k per credit). It's a lot of money, and you need a C+ to pass. So you want to focus all your attention on the nursing classes without having to worry about Chemistry and A&P, etc.

Plus, getting your prereqs out of the way means that you will be better prepared for the nursing classes.

I know I wrote a lot but one more bit of advice. I was (and still am) a certified EMT for 5 years before I started nursing school and it has been the main reason why I haven't failed out. If I could give anybody considering nursing school a piece of advice, it would be to volunteer with a local EMS and get your EMT certification (if you volunteer for a year, your squad will cover the EMT school costs). The course, part-time, takes about 6 months and by the time you're done you will know SO MUCH that will help you in nursing school: vital signs and how to take them, symptoms of major emergencies (heart attack, stroke, shock), oxygen administration, etc. Also, going from a mechanic to a nurse is quite a change (although that doesn't mean it's not the right change for you) but by being an EMT you get a taste of what the healthcare field is like without spending any of your own money (if you volunteer).

Best of luck to you! Let me know if you have any other questions.