Indiana State University BSN students

chaxanmom · Mar 15, 2008

Hey don't give up - Just a little encouragement - I am from Alaska and they too did not accept ISU at first - but Kim Cook at ISU was really great at helping get the program offered here and as far as I know the only Alaskan student. It took time and lots of effort and communication with the BON but they finally approved it. I was advised not to do EC and am really glad that I choose to follow through with ISU - they really are great and will do whatever they can to help you get through.

That's awesome! That's totally the kind of thing I was yammering on and on about with regard to being proactive. :yeah: :yeah:

Also, we thought we may be moving to Louisiana for awhile and it's not accepted there. Kim said there are options if that happened. We didn't end up moving so I didn't need to pursue that but anyway...yeah Kim is awesome for helping you out and if there's a way to make it work for you she will help you find it. She's sometimes hard to nail down though because she's busy so you may need to chase her a little. lol!

Priddyeyez · Mar 16, 2008

Yep. I posted it and asked for a sticky but it didn't get stickied. I don't have the file handy anymore but if you go under my name where it lists posts I've made it will be there. I forget the subject line but it should be obvious when you see it. :) HTH!

Thanks!:)

lvnandmomx3 · Mar 16, 2008

There are only 2 clincal sites in Ca. on that list and both are 300+ miles and 5+ hours away. I would be afraid that if I complete all the core classes and then the phase II part that I would not be able to get a local clinical. There are alot of hospitals in my area, a local clinical would not necessarily have to be one of the ones down the street, but I do not want to have to drive more than an hour to get to a clinical site. Does any one know if you have to know someone at a hospital that you would want to do clinicals at? Or do you just contact the person handling the contract at ISU and they will handle everything from there and then let you know if that site is a possibility?

chelleRN38 · Mar 16, 2008

Linda,

I am glad to hear from you. My name is Michelle and I am a current BSN student. There are a lot of new students but very few who are further along in the program. When I talked to ISU @ 6 months ago I was told that there had only been @ 6 graduates so far. Those numbers should be growing as those of us who have been doing this for a while *finally* gradate.

What nursing courses are you currently enrolled in? I have completed up to 324, I will be enrolling in that for the fall '08 semester. I am finishing up gen eds this spring and summer semester.

Was the test out you passed NURS106? I tested out of that one, I am studying to test out of NURS224 right now. If you have tested out of 224 I would love to hear more about it. I have been studying the course outline becuase I cannot afford the CSM modules either. I called TCN a couple of days ago to inquire about them and they told me that since I was not buying any other study guides from them the modules would be $624 each! I said thank but no thanks, I think I will take my chances studying. Geez, for that price I could just take the class.

Looking forward to hearing from you....

Michelle

Hi! I'm Linda and currently a BSN student at ISU - through distance ed. I have taken one of the tests and it was not so bad - basic nursing knowledge - if you mess up the first time you can take the test a second time - as soon as you are ready and the worst case would be that you would have to enroll in the class. I too cannot afford the TCN study guides so I am a little scared of the upcoming PEDS/OB tests that I have to take by the end of this semester. Anyway enough rambling and if anyone has questions or needs help just ask - I will do what I can.
Frozen in the North,
Linda

NICUrn2B · Mar 16, 2008

There are only 2 clincal sites in Ca. on that list and both are 300+ miles and 5+ hours away. I would be afraid that if I complete all the core classes and then the phase II part that I would not be able to get a local clinical. There are alot of hospitals in my area, a local clinical would not necessarily have to be one of the ones down the street, but I do not want to have to drive more than an hour to get to a clinical site. Does any one know if you have to know someone at a hospital that you would want to do clinicals at? Or do you just contact the person handling the contract at ISU and they will handle everything from there and then let you know if that site is a possibility?

Hi TracyLVN!

This is my worry too. I'm a hard working student with BIG goals and I don't want to get trapped waiting and waiting for a clinical site to come through (I know it can take up to a maximum of 6 months and quite frankly that is a lot of valuable time for me). I think that it is MUCH MUCH easier for people who know someone to get a clinical site. I was thinking... if I walked into a random hospital and asked them if I could do my clinicals there... what would they think? I'm pretty sure that most people wouldn't even know what the process is like or who to contact. Therefore, when you know some one, they know someone, who knows some one who can be your preceptor... .

I wonder what the ISU 'taking charge' situation is like....

I don't want to dig myself a hole when I can avoid it.... :stone

chaxanmom · Mar 16, 2008

Hi TracyLVN!
This is my worry too. I'm a hard working student with BIG goals and I don't want to get trapped waiting and waiting for a clinical site to come through (I know it can take up to a maximum of 6 months and quite frankly that is a lot of valuable time for me). I think that it is MUCH MUCH easier for people who know someone to get a clinical site. I was thinking... if I walked into a random hospital and asked them if I could do my clinicals there... what would they think? I'm pretty sure that most people wouldn't even know what the process is like or who to contact. Therefore, when you know some one, they know someone, who knows some one who can be your preceptor... .
I wonder what the ISU 'taking charge' situation is like....
I don't want to dig myself a hole when I can avoid it.... :stone

The guy who does the contracts is used to talking to hospitals and making the arrangements. They do this every day. I didn't have a contact person, I just got a main number and address and Mike took it from there. Traditional nursing schools have to set up clinical sites as well so hospitals are used to these types of contracts. Yeah they might be a little leary if you yourself started the process. I started mine at NIH but I do know someone there. My other clinical site was set up by Mike and he handled it until the contract was established then you go from there. From that point it's really not difficult. Like I said before though, you gotta be proactive about your education. You can't be a wallflower. You can't be like that when job hunting either so think of this as practice. :coollook:

NICUrn2B · Mar 16, 2008

So we tell them which site we're interested in and Mike sets it up? Can we tell them 6 months (per se) prior to enrolling in the specific class so that when we do enroll the clinical site is ready for the student?

chaxanmom · Mar 16, 2008

So we tell them which site we're interested in and Mike sets it up? Can we tell them 6 months (per se) prior to enrolling in the specific class so that when we do enroll the clinical site is ready for the student?

It's not Mike anymore, it's Mark. When I started it was Mike. :) Tell them a couple of different places as soon as you are accepted into the program so they can begin the contract process. It took I think 2 months for mine to get set up. A couple of weeks for NIH but obviously that's different since my friend set it up for me. The one that took a couple months was started from scratch. They're not going to deal with a contract for someone who isn't even a student though. That would be a waste of time because after all that you may not go there.

lpnaccomplished · Mar 16, 2008

Hello All. My name is Danika. The information posted here has been extremely helpful and some-what of a relief. There's a guy coming to my home on Tuesday to talk to me about The College Network and Indiana State University. I have read most of these messages regarding TCN, EC, and ISU. I guess after talking with him Tuesday I'll have everything I need to make the final decision about the route I plan to take this year to work towards my BSN. This forum is extremely helpful. I felt lost at first but things are coming together.

akdukefan · Mar 16, 2008

Hi TracyLVN!
This is my worry too. I'm a hard working student with BIG goals and I don't want to get trapped waiting and waiting for a clinical site to come through (I know it can take up to a maximum of 6 months and quite frankly that is a lot of valuable time for me). I think that it is MUCH MUCH easier for people who know someone to get a clinical site. I was thinking... if I walked into a random hospital and asked them if I could do my clinicals there... what would they think? I'm pretty sure that most people wouldn't even know what the process is like or who to contact. Therefore, when you know some one, they know someone, who knows some one who can be your preceptor... .
I wonder what the ISU 'taking charge' situation is like....
I don't want to dig myself a hole when I can avoid it.... :stone

I totally understand that it is a scarry process -in Alaska I had no contact and a very determined University that overtook everything making it even more difficult. I got so many doors shut in my face - saying they were too overwhelmed but one finally came through because I didn't stop pushing back. I still think it will be a battle to finish but in the end it will be well worth it. Mike was the guy at ISU who helped after the contact name and number was given to him. The nursing department professors are even great in helping you through - they offered to call and they gave me an incomplete and let me finish theory and just bent over backwards for me - use your sources to lean on - whether they been in CA or Indiana or wherever. Contact the BON they are a great resource as well.

Linda

akdukefan · Mar 16, 2008

Linda,
I am glad to hear from you. My name is Michelle and I am a current BSN student. There are a lot of new students but very few who are further along in the program. When I talked to ISU @ 6 months ago I was told that there had only been @ 6 graduates so far. Those numbers should be growing as those of us who have been doing this for a while *finally* gradate.
What nursing courses are you currently enrolled in? I have completed up to 324, I will be enrolling in that for the fall '08 semester. I am finishing up gen eds this spring and summer semester.
Was the test out you passed NURS106? I tested out of that one, I am studying to test out of NURS224 right now. If you have tested out of 224 I would love to hear more about it. I have been studying the course outline becuase I cannot afford the CSM modules either. I called TCN a couple of days ago to inquire about them and they told me that since I was not buying any other study guides from them the modules would be $624 each! I said thank but no thanks, I think I will take my chances studying. Geez, for that price I could just take the class.
Looking forward to hearing from you....
Michelle

Michelle,I

did test out of N224 and I can't remember much about it except bing totally stressed out - kinda like I am now for N328 and N330. I studied the course content and a NCLEX reveiw book for the quetions and that was it - If I remeber correctly alot of the questions were common sense type stuff if you knew the content. I took that test last year and so much has happened since then - sorry I can't remember much else. Currently I am enrolled in N 424 but that is sorta on hold - I guess I will get an incomplete if I don't finish by the end of the semester. I had such difficulty with getting the clinicals set that I just finished N324 clinicals now I just have to submit the paperwork and hope to be back on track by next week. I am also taking SPN102 through IVY TECH - can you say super hard!!!!!! :banghead:That class is taking up so much of my time that I don't put much into Nursing - which I hate! :crying2: Hopefully since I have a week off from IVY TECH next week I can get back on track with Nursing - I hope to graduate in DEC 08:yeah:Anyway should fo back to working on school stuff - feel free to email me anytime not just the DB. TTYL - Linda

akdukefan · Mar 16, 2008

Hello All. My name is Danika. The information posted here has been extremely helpful and some-what of a relief. There's a guy coming to my home on Tuesday to talk to me about The College Network and Indiana State University. I have read most of these messages regarding TCN, EC, and ISU. I guess after talking with him Tuesday I'll have everything I need to make the final decision about the route I plan to take this year to work towards my BSN. This forum is extremely helpful. I felt lost at first but things are coming together.

Danika,

Keep on truckin - if you really want to have that BSN you will find the right way for you - I have to plug ISU - they are great and I did 98% of it without TCN - they are expensive and sometimes you can find the classes you need to meet the requirements for ISU through the Community College system - Try IVY Tech - they make room for ISU students if need be. Also look at your local community college or even university for generals - most schools now have online classes and you can take them and transfer them to ISU!

Linda