Looking for a career change but low gpa

[leeann58]

Hi!

I'm a 28 year old in Connecticut who is looking for a career change. I can't relocate due to kids/husband/etc and I kind of need to keep my job at the moment because we are paying for two mortgages.

I graduated with a 2.95 GPA in psychology 6 years ago because I had no idea how to study or be an adult and was a hot mess! I'm a couple courses away from a Master's degree in Industrial/Organizational psychology with a 3.7 GPA. I have stopped taking classes for the last couple of years because I realized it wasn't what I wanted to pursue.

I was looking into taking A&P and possibly some other prereqs through straighterline. Eventually, I'm considering some different options once I've completed my prereqs, including the Gateway community college RN program (and then work towards a BSN from there) or the BSN program at SCSU.

My question to you is what do you guys think is the best route for me to take? I'm not sure if straighterline would be the best way to go, but it fits much better with my schedule! I also am not 100% sure where to apply and where I would be accepted. Thank you in advance for your advice!

[quarterlifemess, ADN, RN]

Some schools look at an actual cumulative GPA. Some schools claim that they look at cGPA when they really look at GPA from the last institution attended or last however many credits. Some school look only at pre-req GPA and use science pre-req GPA as a tie-breaker. Some schools use a combination of several GPAs. All this is to say that you need to look at every school's admission requirements in your area and read the fine print. It is a daunting process but the devil is in the details.

It is possible to get around a low cGPA from a previous bad stint in college, as I have, but you have to work harder to prove that you have changed for the better. You will need a prereq GPA that is way above their minimum and a good TEAS/HESI score if they use them. You may need to write an essay explaining your situation or have recommendations from your professors.

As for any courses that you take that is not from the school that you are applying to, triple check that the courses will transfer in.

[Extra Pickles]

you just got good information from quarterlifemess. before doing anything online or anything else you have to talk with the admissions people in each college you are interested in attending. there's no point in taking courses that the college won't accept and there are a lot of online courses that aren't worth anything because they don't get accepted anywhere.

Talk to admissions counselors about your chances and what the job market is like in your area. sounds like you have a lot of debt and commitments and need to stay where you are, if there are good job prospects that's good but if not you could find yourself deeper in debt and without a job. be careful!

[FutureNurseInfo]

Go for accelerated BSN, if any schools around you offer such a program. Finish up your master's (you already put too much time and money into it, so why not finish it?). With your master's, your GPA will be much better. If you decide to do accelerated BSN (12-15 months), you will already have your degree (1 requirement), your fine GPA (another requirement), and your pre-reqs (see which courses may transfer from your bachelor's and master's degrees).