low gpa, BA in psychology, want to be a RN

Student Mom to Three · Jun 26, 2011

Well- my first degree was in Psych- and I am just about finishing up my ADN. My GPA from my BA was a 3.5 and I had a 4.0 for all my required nursing pre-reqs. I was rejected by the ABSN program to which I applied.

I was totally bummed to not get into the ABSN at first- but now I am glad. My community college is greatly respected by the doctors and nurses at the local hospitals. The ASBN would have been about 30 to 40k. My ADN was only about $8k. Additionally, because I maintained my 4.0 I was able to get my second year entirely paid for by scholarship.

So, look around at some of the schools you are interested in and compare requirements, commitment and cost to make a decision about which program is best for you. In the end that it is what is important- what is the best fit for you.

Also, FWIW, you may want to very carefully analyze your difficulties with college the first time around. My ADN program is killer-hard. During our 4th quarter we were writing 20 page papers weekly (so relieved I survived that!). I have heard that ASBN programs are even more challenging- so think carefully about what you want to get into!

Good luck and have fun! I am enjoying nursing school after being a social worker for several years.

Bridgettea83 · Jun 26, 2011

Hello, Congrats on your choice to pursue nursing school !!! At any rate , when I first applied to nursing school a couple of years ago in Atlanta, I was turn down at least four times. With that being said, I went to get my BS in Health Services and start working on my Master in Public Health. I was able to raised my gpa to a 3.6. I applied this year and was accepted. I start this fall. You might want to try in take some classes to raised your gpa and then apply. Throughout my research in the Atlanta area, the average gpa is about 3.6 or higher. Research the nursing schools in your area, and ask them what is the average gpa of the students that they accepted. Most nursing schools have this information on hand. Just keep trying and never give up, if this is what you really want to do. Best of luck:nurse:

ashleyisawesome, BSN, RN · Jun 26, 2011

i know in my state you must have a minimum gpa of 2.5 to be allowed into a nurisng program. im guessing you still need some science classes and maybe some others to get into the nursing program, so maybe if you do well in those classes, it will bring your gpa up a little. i dont know how competitive schools around you are, some are really rough (turning away people with 3.5 or less). however, i had a bad experience and ended up with a 2.67 when i applied to the nursing school im currently in. i thoroughly explained my situation in my interview and they saw that my current grades were all very high, and i guess it worked because i was one of the 60 out of 400 applicants that made it in.

just think positively, work on bringing your grades up as much as possible, and be prepared to explain your bad grades. maybe taking some of those classes over to get a better grade is an option too? good luck!