Low GPA, wish to get into a nursing school in California

[blankmuse]

Hi all,

I have been in community college for almost 2 1/2 years. I am trying to apply to a nursing program by Fall 2012 and I feel a bit discourage due to my GPA.

My choices for nursing schools are: Samuel Merritt, University of San Francisco, Chico State University, CSU Bakersfield, SJSU, SFSU, and CSU East Bay.

It's not yet at a competitive level, but I feel by Fall 2012, I can only achieve a 3.0 cumulative GPA and as for my science prereqs; I have gotten a D in Microbio and Anatomy. I plan to retake Anatomy in Fall '12. I'm aware that many of the schools that have nursing programs go by points system. My science pre-reqs GPA may range from 3.25-3.4 depending on the requirements that the school counts towards their calculations.

At the moment I am retaking Microbio and taking probability and statistics for the first time as well as Sociology. Also I am volunteering at a hospital.

I really want to get into USF as my first choice since it seems I might have a better chance at getting accepted in a private university rather than state universities. My pre-req for USF may range from 3.4-3.7 I believe. I still need to to talk to my counselor about what to do because I feel like I'm stuck in a rut.

However I feel that my cumulative GPA will not meet competitive requirements. Also I went to two different community colleges and hence have two different GPAs so I'm not sure how the colleges would calculate a cumulative GPA. My current GPA is 2.73 but it should raise to 2.89 if I get straight A's this semester and possibly raise to 3.01 if I remove the D I got from Anatomy with transcript renewal. I have a 4.0 at the second college I attended.

Any suggestions will help. Thank you.

[zzbxdo]

You can call them directly and find out yourself.. Or ask people over the interweb and risk getting outdated information. Last time I had a friend browsing smu you have to take their own speech class.

[apeters1]

how are things going now? what did you do?

[lindsayCalifornia]

I know you posted this 4 years ago but I want to thank you for your insight. I am beyond scared of applying to nursing schools because of fear of rejection and application period opens tomorrow but I feel like I froze under the pressure. Hearing how you got reject 3 straight years but didn't give up really inspired me. I guess there really isn't anything to fear, I just have to go for it and if they don't accept me I know that it's not a death sentence for my dream. Thank you, I hope you're enjoying your life as a nurse!

[ChiDashYan, CNA, EMT-B]

Hello!So I am here to assure you that it is completely possible to get into nursing school.I graduated from Berkeley with a 2.7. Since I already had a bachelor degree, it was very difficult for me to find a program since it's mostly second bachelor programs or masters programs whose GPA averaged around 3.8. Anyway, a couple of years ago, I was stuck in a rut too. I constantly got frustrated because I felt like there was nothing I could do about my low grades from Berkeley. However, there is a LOT you can do to cover up your past.1. Get your CNA certificate. I got mine from NCP in South SF because it was cheap and only two to three months in length.2. Get a job as a CNA or a related career. You learn A LOT by doing this kind of work. It tells schools that you are ready for the nursing world.3. Retake your bad classes and get good grades. Take new classes that demonstrate you are a good student.4. After you get a job, make connections for good recommendations, preferably from your boss and/or RNs.5. Get experience in long-term care facilities, hospitals and in-home. Make sure you learn from your experiences and include it in your essays and interviews. Really show case that you are dedicated to the profession.6. Brush up on basic education and master the TEAS.I applied to USF, Samuel Merritt's FNP and SFSU for three years straight and was rejected all three years. These are probably the most competitive programs in the Bay.This year, I applied to Dominican in San Rafael for their bachelor program and was accepted! I was beyond elated because it was the first time I was thrown a bone in three years. I also applied for the case management masters program this year at Samuel Merritt and was recently granted an interview. I'm nervous as hell, but I hope I can get into this program.Anyway, I thought I would just throw out that there is a lot to do to make your application outstanding. It's not just all about grades. Good luck, and send me a message of you have any questions.

This is exactly what I needed to read . I have a BS in healthcare Administration with a very basic GPA . My GPA was not low because I was not capable but for other reasons. Now that I want to become a nurse I am so scared and overwhelmed I have no idea where to start . This gave me a little motivation