I'm Stuck!

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I have been going to school to get my bachelor’s degree in biology as a full time student at a private university. I started college right out of high school-- it hasn’t been easy and I haven’t done very well.

This past October my mom had two aneurysms that ruptured. It was a complete shock and surprise. Needless to say she was in the hospital for about a month. I, along with the rest of my family, was along her side the entire time. My mom is now back at home recovering from the ruptured aneurysms and the resulting stroke. I am helping her out around the house and taking her to therapies most days of the week. I was granted a leave from the University that I attend for the semester and they were grateful enough to partially reimburse my tuition. With any luck, I will graduate December 2007 with a bachelor’s degree in biology and in the end I will have about $110,000 in student loan debt.

I originally started out pre-med in college and have continued on with a biology degree, taking all the prerequisites for medical school. After my sophomore year, I knew I would never get into medical school with the grades I was getting so I have been coasting through college ever since. My grades got worse because of my lack of direction.

I would really like to go to nursing school, but I don’t think I will be able to finance another education. There appear to be a couple of options that I have for nursing school, but I’m not too sure what I should do. When I graduate and if things go as planned, my final cumulative GPA will be about 2.85. My GPA is going to limit my options so it looks like community college programs that offer associate degrees in nursing are going to be my only good options.

After my mom’s illness and being around hospitals, it has really got me seriously thinking about nursing. These past two months have really helped me figure things out and have given me the direction that I need. I’m a motivated person and I have no doubt that I will do well if I get into nursing school.

If any of you have suggestions on what my next steps should be regarding nursing school or if you have any advice, I would greatly appreciate it. I have also enjoyed reading all of your comments of these forums. The information has been helpful. Thank you.

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Specializes in Looking for a career in NICU.

I'm gonna give it to you straight...

I think you need to transfer to an in- state school immediately.

When you graduate, your student loan payments will well exceed $1100 per month, and on top of that, you are very close to getting your financial aid cut off completely since you haven't graduated with your first BS degree...they cut you off after you have completed so many hours without graduating, and with most of your debt, the interest is racking up every day.

My advice is graduate as soon as possible. Take all of your transcripts to your advisor and see what you can major in to get you out the quickest. Then see what kind of job you can get, and see if you can stay with your Mom for a few years for free while you put every penny toward that student loan, otherwise, you'll never be able to afford to live on your own by the time you add rent and everything else. Do not take out any credit card debt or buy an expensive car.

I would not consider going back for another degree until you have reduced your student loan by at least 50%...get an ASN in nursing if you wish, and that way you can be WORKING when you work on your BSN and find a part-time, PUBLIC STATE school....none of that high-priced online stuff, you have way too much debt to rack it up again.

You can NEVER bankrupt a student loan. I blame your financial aid officer at your school for not advising you better, b/c no student should graduate from an undergrad school...private or not...with a debt that high.

I worked in finance for the last 10 years, and I cannot tell you how many people have ruined their lives with student loans that they cannot repay. You have got to come up with a plan to get rid of the debt as soon as possible, or else you won't be able to afford to live even on a poverty level.

I know that some students choose private schools for a variety of reasons, especially with nursing because the chances are better that they may get in, or it may be the only school in the area. Your GPA is always worth more to a recruiter than where you graduated from. It is very, very rare these days for the school where you graduated from to matter or even be an issue in hiring.

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Thank you for the reply.

I know the student debt is going to kill me. My mom has agreed to let me live with her for free until my student loan debt is paid off and I plan on doing so. Bankruptcy is not an option-- my mom cosigned all the loans and will not let it happen.

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I know the hospitals around here pay for employees to go to school if the employee agrees to work for a certain number of years after graduation. Check it out. You only have to work at the hospital to qualify. Going to a community college for your ADN is the best route. All RN's have to pass the same NCLEX exam no matter where they went to school or whether they have an ADN or BSN degree. You don't really learn to be a nurse until you graduate and are working anyway. Nursing school teaches you the language and how to pass nursing tests. If you really want to be a nurse I'm sure you can do it.

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Thanks for your suggestions and support!

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Specializes in Looking for a career in NICU.
I know the hospitals around here pay for employees to go to school if the employee agrees to work for a certain number of years after graduation. Check it out. You only have to work at the hospital to qualify. Going to a community college for your ADN is the best route. All RN's have to pass the same NCLEX exam no matter where they went to school or whether they have an ADN or BSN degree. You don't really learn to be a nurse until you graduate and are working anyway. Nursing school teaches you the language and how to pass nursing tests. If you really want to be a nurse I'm sure you can do it.

I forgot about that option, thank you for mentioning it to her.

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Specializes in LTC.

Honestly with your GPA any MN nursing school is going to be hard to get into. A lot of them look at grades and community colleges aren't much more flexible than some of the four year schools.

One option that I've found is that the U of MN looks more at your essays than your grades. Why not apply for them? A lot of MN hospitals also have loan repayment options.

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Specializes in ED.

Wow, that is quite the loan. I would say to not go any more in debt with more schooling at this point. I would try to work and start paying. I go to a community college in MN for nursing, I am in my first semester. For the full 2 years it is at least $7K. It is also very competitive, especially in some of the community colleges. They get so many applications they can be very selective. I'd say the average GPA to get in is in the high 3's. Over 3.5 for sure.

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If you are serious about nursing school, there are ways to do it without going further into the poor house!. One company we have here is called Physicians Manpower. I don't know alot about them other than some of the girls I went to school with used them and they pay for your school with a repayment commitment of time at one of the hospitals they contract with. I don't know if they are everywhere or not but I think something like that would be your best bet. Good luck!;)

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