Long Beach City College Nursing Program

U.S.A. California

Published

If anyone has graduated from here or is currently going there please respond ASAP. Need some info.

If anyone would like to meet up at the campus sometime..I'd love to meet fellow students! Though I have a good year to get pre-reqs done!!

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i'm finishing the program in dec 08. it was a tough 2 years for some. but i found it pretty easy. it's just a bunch of bull assignments and case studies that make it hard. i started 2 years ago and i think my class has lost about a total of 20 out of the original 60. just yesterday we took our ped/critical care final and we lost 5. but hooray for the rest, its on to preceptorships starting this monday.

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I am attending LBCC right now, taking the prereq's this current semester and the taking last prereq next semester- physiology...Then I will be applying for the program...I can't wait..But at the same time, I am scared to death!!

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;) I am working on my prereq's at LBCC..What is eveyone taking right now?
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I am planning to begin my prereq's this fall and looking at both LBCC and PCC. Can you tell me what you thought of the quality of your education at LBCC and what other school you considered and how you decided on LB? Thanks for your help!

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Hi Jane2009,

I only applied to LBCC, so I cannot compare it with any of the other local schools. I'm 2 weeks into the 2nd half of my 2nd semester in the RN program (each semester is split into 2 - 9 week sections and you have to pass the first 9 weeks in order to move on to the 2nd half).

So far, it's been tough - lots of studying, lots of skills to practice and master and lots of work yet to do. You spend at least the first 9 weeks doing CNA (nurse assistant) work in a long term care facility - so don't think that RNs don't wipe butts and give full bed baths and all that goes into taking care of a dependent person. I have heard many people say "I didn't think RNs did THAT kind of work".

The hospitals that I have been in so far seem to look forward to the LBCC students coming in - and we are (or appear to be) highly recognized (not that the pure white uniforms and red patch are easy to hide.)

Make sure that you do really well in your science pre-reqs and can pass the TEAS test. Entry into almost all of the programs are based on high science grades and passing the TEAS at whatever level the school chooses.

LBCC has information meetings with the director of the RN program (I don't recall the dates/times but you can look on their website or call them for info) that I highly recommend you attending for any school that you are thinking about attending. It will give you a slight idea of their expectations - though I don't think that there is ANYTHING that can really prepare you for nursing school. It is UNLIKE anything I have ever experienced.

If you have kids or a family that depend on you for anything, it will be unlike anything they have experienced either - I have a 20 year old in college and I work full time as well and absolutely have NO LIFE outside of work and school!

Good luck, if this is something that you really want, you will find a way to make it work.

Robin (Grumpygs)

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Hi Grumpygs -

Can you give me some insight into the math tests that are required each semester? Math is my worst subject and I want to start studying now as I will enter the program in January 2010. Any other advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks -

Char1932:confused:

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Hi Char1932,

The math tests that are required each semester are comprised of metric to household measurement calculations (teaspoons to milliliters or ounces to milliliters for example) and drug calculations which can vary from tablets and capsules to IV (intravenous) calculations.

There are also special rules about rounding that most of the drug calculation books cover in part, but most of my information about that came from the CTE Center on the Pacific Coast Campus at LBCC - they have tons of worksheets that help with drug calculations.

Get yourself a good nursing drug calculation book - there are a ton of them out there and practice as often as you can.

Math isn't my strongest subject either, but I have taken several math classes, practiced with the drug calculation books and through RN Workshops at the CTE Center on the Pacific Coast Campus. The staff at the CTE work really closely with the nursing instructors and they have really good information as well as offering practice tests.

Good luck in your future as a nursing student and eventually a nurse!

Robin (Grumpygs)

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Thank you so much for the information and quick response. I will follow your advice and will get started right away so I'm ready in Jan 2010.

Thanks again!! :)

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hi again -

can i ask another question, please? since finding out that i was accepted to the lbcc rn program, many people are telling me that it is a mistake to attend. they are advising that the curriculum is very difficult but more so are the instructors. is this true? do you think you made a mistake attending lbcc? thanks again for your input.

char

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Has anyone graduated from the LVN program and plan to apply to the RN program?

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Hey Char - (in re-reading this, it may be much more than you wanted to know -LOL!!!)

It is true that LBCC has a tough program and yes, some of the instructors are tough (mean, unfair, but then everyday people are the same...) It depends on your attitude and how well you deal with the stresses of the program. Also, once you get through the first 2 semesters, the instructors are mostly very sweet and helpful (there are of course always one or 2 that have their 'days') but you are only with them for such a short period of time, that most people just tough through it...

I think of it as practice for the mean, unfair, difficult people that I will be taking care of in the future. The other thing is, do you really want an easy program and then to get into a hospital and have no clue what you are doing and then have the already busy nurses have to stop what they are doing to 'help' (if they will...)? I've heard a lot of hospitals have a 'sink or swim' attitude and many new nurses quit because of lack of support in the first year - not a good statistic...

Actually, when I started (I'm now finishing up my first half of my 3rd semester in the RN program), I thought of the nursing program as boot camp - something that I would totally hate and that I just needed to get through to get to where I needed/wanted to be.

So, I guess the questions are - Are you tough enough to make it through a tough program? Do you want to be a nurse for the 'right' reason - think about why you want to be a nurse and then decide if it is worth 2 years of torture - because truly, some days/weeks are true torture and many question why they are continuing on...

Also, do you have a support system in place - someone to cook for you, clean up, run errands and such? I don't remember if you put anything in a previous post about your situation - but this is important. The people in your life now will have no clue about what you are going through, and will not understand the stress that you are going to be under. You have to prep them (as well as yourself) for you not being available to do things for others or to hang out with friends/family/children... - but get them to agree to help you if you need it.

My friends and family all know that I am almost totally out of touch for the next 8 months (and have been since I started the program) - but they will call and leave messages/emails and such just to check in, knowing that when I have a free moment, I'll update them that I'm still living and breathing... My daughter is in college out of town and has to fend for herself most of the time, my house is a mess, I haven't had a home cooked meal since the summer, I squeeze in a lunch out with an old co-worker about once a week (which is often an adventure itself), but if I needed one of them to come clean up, or make a meal, or run to the store for me, they would be here in a heartbeat.

I don't know if any of this makes sense to you or not, so I may just be rambling (been at school since 8 am today). Let me know if you need clarification on any of this.

In the end, would I attend LBCC again - YES, I would, a hundred times over...

Robin

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