Helene Fuld College of Nursing

roseynurse345 · Jan 4, 2008

There are a few schools in the US with the name Helene Fuld. I go to the school in Manhattan, the area is not too bad, I take evening classes and take the subway and LIRR home. It is a tough school, you have to be committed and you should work part time in the program as recommended. However, so far I can't say I learned a great deal, it seems I learned alot more in LPN school. I would recommend to anyone thinking about the school, it would probably be easier and cheaper to take prereqs at a community college and then tranfer to HF, so you would just have to focus on the nursing courses. The nursing courses go so fast and there is alot of reading involved, in two weeks you can be responsible for as much as 8 chapters, and for clinicals there is really complex and annoying care plan. You don't have to wait a year, if you have scored an 85 or above in all your courses in LPN school, in fact you are exempt from taking their entrance exam. Hope this helps!!

determined1 · Mar 19, 2008

I attended Helene Fuld, NYC, last year. First off, like someone already mentioned, you can articulate straight in from LPN school 'IF' you have an 85 or better in ALL LPN classes. However, it is not recommended. The reason they perfer you have a year's experience is because you build on that experience. Take it from me, the unexperienced one, the nursing classes are tougher without it. The general courses are not bad. In fact, I loved my gen ed teachers! The nursing instructors are tough. Some even made it feel like "boot camp". I must even say that most of the classes, you are basically teaching yourself. You need to read the materials in the texts to pass the exams. They do not hold your hand. This is college. They don't chase behind you to see if you did your homework or whatever. The proof is in your grades. It's up to you!

I will tell you that its not impossible to do but I suggest some experience first. You choose your classes (try to be the early bird, though) whether you want day or evening. You also choose your clinical day. The Sat clinicals are reserved for night students. Weekday clinicals are twice a week. Also, you can choose from a 12, 18 or 24 month program. The 12 month is intense! With the 18 and 24, you are basically doing the gen courses first. I know alot who have succeded in this school but take heed in my opinions. Not EVERYONE survives.

I, for one, didn't. I was a B student there. I failed my first nursing class by less than 3/4 point but passed clinicals (you need to pass both to pass the course). When I retook the class, I did well in theory - got a B, but my clinical instructor failed me for her own personal agenda. Failing a particular course twice results in dismissal.

Since then, I enrolled in Excelsior College who credited me for all my classes in Helene Fuld. Now I'm working on that.

I hope this helps! Good luck on whatever you choose to do!!

margiesan · Mar 31, 2008

Determined and Rosienurse, thank you for posting. I have some questions. What is the passing grade? Do you have to be on or above the passing grade throughout the semester or do they evaluate your grade at the end of the semester? For example, if you're bomb on one test but you score high on the following tests to pull your grade up by the end of the semester.

I also had a question about the CLEP course. Do you need to worry about that if you have credits for say Intro to Psych?

Also, what was the pre-entrance exam like? Is that separate from the Chemistry/Math Challenge test? If you took the challenge, what was it like?

Lastly, for alumn and current students of HF, do you know where I can find a list of health care facilities that provide tuition reimbursement for HF? Any info would be great.

determined1 · Mar 31, 2008

The passing grade for articulation into HF is 85 as a final grade (end of semester).

For HF and Excelsior, any credits you may have will need to be college level. LPN courses do not count towards your degree. If you do have college credits, it can be transferred and you will not have to do the class/exam again.

The pre-entrance exam is adult general education. I believe I bought an exam prep book for that. You also have the opportunity to buy study packets. It is separate from the chemisty/math course.

The chemistry/math course is done after you take the pre-entrance exam, pass it and then be considered for enrollment. Once that is done, you will have to pay for the chemistry/math course (and books) out of pocket and pass it to be accepted into HF.

Most city hospitals would do reimbursement (such as Health and Hospital Corp which includes hospitals such as Lincoln, Jacobi, North Central, Bronx Lebanon, King County, Jamica Hospital, Gold Water, ect.) but I believe you have to be working with them for some time before they will consider it. In return, you will be in contract to work for them for 2 years for every year they cover. When I was in LPN school, they came and offered to reimburse us our LPN expenses for the two years of service as well. I attended the LPN program at Mid Manhattan Adult Learning Center.

Now, if you don't articulate and decide to work as an LPN for the year, you can probably then have them pay your way for your RN. :specs:

PS you can look up the website for Health and Hospital Corp for all of their hospitals.

margiesan · Mar 31, 2008

Thank You so much determined1! That's really helpful. I would have considered Excelsior but there seems to be some problems if you want to work in California. I'm going to NY now, but I'm going to CA someday.

Phillygryl, LPN · Jul 17, 2008

The thing about the school is this, they throw the work to you. I would venture to say, that most of the people who graduate cheat. By that I mean, they share care plans, assignments and study from old tests. If you are not fortunate enough to be privy to the care plans, etc. because the teachers there don't spend any time with you. They give you the lectures and then you are tested. There is no time spent reviewing clinical skills either. A lot of the students fail, but then they go to the teachers and beg them and I don't know whatever else, but they manage to graduate!

The proof of this is the fact that their pass rate for the state boards is very low. I personally know people who graduated three years ago and they still cannot pass the state boards. These were "A" students. They can't pass because when they were in school they cheated their way through. They have been trying to get a BSN program since I left in 2005 but the State told them no!! They have to raise their pass rate in the State Boards.

akanini, MSN, RN · Feb 26, 2009

Bump?? Anymore info?

NYSNOWBUNNY007 · Feb 27, 2009

[i would venture to say, that most of the people who graduate cheat. By that I mean, they share care plans, assignments and study from old tests.]

Phillygryl...Im sorry but im gonna have to disagree with quite a bit of your response:nono:..this is quite a bit of info i will state...especially on the quote above...I tell anyone who wants to attend this program...by all means DO IT...YOU GET WHAT YOU PUT IN..PERIOD...if those who graduated three million years ago CANNOT pass the boards...then...well....they just can't...I am the BIGGEST procrastinator on the planet!...lol...and i DO HIGHLY recommend that you do your pre-reqs BEFORE entering the school..make sure your science classes are no OLDER THAN 5 YEARS...and I have been doing great!...90% of the students are passing with high B averages...on the other hand it is EXTREMELY DIFFICULT TO CHEAT on exams...there is NO WAY...How can you cheat on exams that have questions on different numbers...your sitting on EVERY OTHER ROW...now on that note if there were cheating in the past then hey, thats the past and shame on those who did, you can't expect to come to a school and expect for it to be EASY, the school is well aware that we are ALL ADULTS and have our RESPONSIBILITIES..we are not children and you cannot expect anyone to sppon feed you ALL THE TIME.. when you face the boards its YOU the COMPUTER and GOD..lol..., you do realize that after graduation there is TIME for study right?..now you can't expect the WORLD to hand you an RN license ..this is something that is EARNED either traditionally or online you sacrificed your time to do it, not GIVEN..people must understand that this is a priveledge to be able to practice as an RN...i currently attend Helene Fuld now...I absolutely HATE it when there are people that put down a school that has such a strong foundation and reputation...Yes the school seems a little "ghetto", but do you realize where the school is located...IN HARLEM, one of the most dangerous known parts of NYC, and if you realize harlem is NOT what it was, it has come up a LOOOOOONG way, its looking reallllyyyy nice!!!!..your gonna get people from all walks of life!! there are the not so classy along with the ones who behave normally, at the end of the day i do not judge them b/c they are there for the same goal, to progress in life...HOWEVER...the teachers ARE there to help you if NEED BE...YOU MUST show initiative...why would i want to help a student that never comes to me for help or after class to discuss concerns??...c'mon now..In a class of more than 50 students do you really think ONE prof will sit there and say "oh this student over here looks like he or she may need help"..EVERY day i here the instructors say "any questions?, if any PLEASE come to me after class or in my office"....EVERY SINGLE nursing program has its flaws....IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO SHARE CAREPLANS...they are reviewed so meticulously...I have seen it with my own EYES...the other thing is that this shool is for LPN'S ONLY...On that note...we are there to further obtain the knowledge needed to become RN's to further ENHANCE the skills we ALREADY have..it is why you must have worked as an LPN for at least a year..unless the school has any other type of affiliation with other schools...so in closing my dear...not to insult or sound rude...but before putting a school down if you attended the school then I apologize for your experience, and to make such a broad statement pertaining to an entire institution thats kinda closed minded...however many that go there GRADUATE and ARE EXTREMELY RESPECTED in hospitals....you can not go on unless you have a 78...it has been changed to this...I beg ppl NOT to look at a school just on the passing NCLEX rate ONLY...this is not the case...just because a school has a high passing rate it does NOT mean its a GREAT SCHOOL...YOU GET WHAT YOU PUT IN...and it also depends on your financial situation...Helene Fuld College of Nursing has affiliations with TOP colleges of NYC and state...with NYU, Hunter college, SUNY Downstate, MERCY and the list goes on...ALL GREAT SCHOOLS and some IVY leagues...at the end of the day we all become the same thing...(RN's :nurse: ):heartbeat..MY :twocents: ..be blessed

Phillygryl, LPN · Feb 27, 2009

Dear Snow Bunny:

You are living in a dream world!! Yes, from what I can understand and from what I observed when exams are given at Helene Fuld, they take extreme precautions NOW because they know a lot of cheating goes on.

The facts, however, will not bear out your statements! Helene Fuld applied to the State of New York to have a BSN program about 4 years ago and it was denied because of low pass rates on the State Boards!!! They don't have a BSN program yet. I think the pass rate on the Boards is about 70% I was told it is getting better. Check the stats the numbers don't lie. I suppose they are also riddled with complaints from students. There exist Helene Fuld graduates who were A students who were unable to pass the State Boards for up to 3 years after they graduated!!! How can you explain this unless they cheated in school but maybe my assumptions are wrong. What I say is based on what I saw not on speculation, what I wanted it to be or what I thought it should be It is based on facts. Some students who were in my class cheated their way through but it was ok as long as you kissed up to the teacher. How do I know they cheated, I saw them look on other people's paper and ask answers to questions, share care plans, etc.

Basically, the school is good. I am not saying it is the worst school on the planet (but it has to rank high up there). However there needs to be more student support, at the time I went to the school, the library closed at about 8pm. Sometimes my classmates and I wanted to study after class, but we couldn't use the library and even if you did get in, there was not a lot available in the library. No skills are taught or reviewed in the clinical lab.

There are no tutoring services available and no computer simulations or anything to help you with the clinicals. Just recently they added some NCLEX preparation classes for graduating students.

Next with the clinical aspect. The semester I was at the school they had a checklist of things you were supposed to do in clinical, but it never really adhered to or filled out, if you ran into a glitch or stuck out in clinical that was it for you, the teacher would zoom in on you and ride you like a horse from here to Texas until you collapsed!!

Don't tell me what a top rate school is because I graduated from one Long Island University. You don't find the things going on there that occur in Helene Fuld because the program is designed to help the students. I know LIU has a 4 year BSN program and Helene Fuld is an accelerated program. I thought it was an accelerated progrm not an abbreviated program!!!

NYSNOWBUNNY007 · Feb 27, 2009

Dreamworld huh?...LOL!...you have the right to your opinion...i'll give you that one...Never once did i mentioned that YOU in particular DID NOT know what a TOP rated school is..LIU shmell I U....whatever...it is obvious you take things personal and are not to keen on constructive criticism...if you are upset at the fact that HFCN has not gotten their go ahead to become a BSN program is that for me to come out with a sword and shield and fight the school!?...LOL...let me ask you this...you DID attend helene to become an RN right?..Im sure as everyone else there when they saw or heard that the program can be completed in a year its what ATTRACTED many..There are many personal reasons to attend an ADN program first and off to a four year school in your case you chose LIU ..and thats wonderful...I have a couple of friends who went there..and its all Gravy...HOWEVER....any time you attend another school...it is a DIFFERENT school right?...you are going to see differences in the institution whether it is POSITIVE or NEGATIVE...Im not going to sit here and argue with a superficial being..it'll be preposterous...whether helene gets their BSN program or not...at the end of the day many students there will continue to attend and graduate...and move on...even if helene shuts down after i graduate(which i seriously doubt it, they've been reputable for yearrrrss)..So what!?!...I made it work for ME...every institution has its reputation...EVERY nursing program has its CHEATERs...now...I have absolutely have NO time to sit in class and worry about the next to see if he or she is cheating...Im there to do what is best for ME..and im sure there are many like myself...you want all of your classmates to pass...you become close...but if they opt to cheat who are they hurting?..they are adults and are responsible for their own actions...I know of 4 year institutions that do NOT have simulators...and their students graduate right?...honey..the REAL deal is learned in the REAL world...in the meantime we must obtain our theory...there are many students that graduate from wonderful schools as well as not so good schools and not do so great on the units as well as do great...its all on the person...and please any members that may want to add your opinions please do so...its not about what school is the best...its what YOU obtain...and what you make out of your experience..unfortunately there are many who want to be spoon fed and want their hands held through out the program....and that is done with a method behind the madness...b/c if you ever find yourself in a situation on a unit or anywhere else...YOU ARE ON YOUR OWN, just as HELENE teaches and warns YOU...unfortunate for those who have been "A" students...but many book smarts may not have the COMMON sense...then you have those "A" students that DO have the common sense...whether the school is accelerated or "ABBREVIATED"..LOL!!..as you may call...I apologize for your not so great experience again..I am truly happy you are now an LIU graduate...remain positive and good things in life will come to ya..good luck....and i end with EXPERIENCE is a good thermometer for what to EXPECT in the FUTURE.......:typing:heartbeat

Phillygryl, LPN · Feb 27, 2009

Snow Bunny:

I really am not trying to be hostile toward Helene Fuld, or maybe I am. I just think they provide inferior education. By the way, I graduated from LIU in 1976 and pursued an MBA in 1980. When I was in undergraduate school, it was all the buzz, LIU was in jeopardy of losing its certification. I was not sure exacly what that meant but the "word" was that our degrees when we got them may be worthless!!! The school restructured its curriculum or whatever they had to do to satisfy the State and there was no more talk about that.

Snow Bunny, the fact that Helene Fuld has such a low pass rate means something. There are nursing schools that actually have a 90-99% pass rate on the State Boards. I think that means something!!!

I suppose you are absolutely right but I never heard it said about how difficult the school was until I was in there!!! Not being from New York City probably didn't help. One LPN I worked with said he had gone to Helene Fuld one semester but once he saw how the classes were conducted, he turned around and walked away I asked him why he said "They don't do any teaching there" they throw most of the work at you!! Those are his words. Was Helene Fuld for him NO! was it for me NO! you don't know until you are in the middle of the water and then you are thrown off the boat. Some of what I am saying is for dramatic effect, but you know what I mean.

Some people need a little more support. I got involved in a study group, but I lived in another city so it was difficult I used to come into NY and go to Bellevue and study with a group. (They are open 24-7 by the way).

LIU being all gravy I don't know what you mean. I did look into the program after the fact and one difference is that all of the courses are broken down. For instance, instead of Med Surg II which you get at the end of the Helene Fuld program and so many people fail, from the very beginning of the LIU nursing program you are taking Pathophysiology courses . I believe there are three or four pathophysiology courses and there are separate nutrition and Pharmacology courses that are not required at Helene Fuld. For me, understanding something thoroughly is what matters, because once I understand it I will be able to answer questions about it in the future no matter how the material is presented. In Helene Fuld I did not have enough time to get that comprehension the matter just came too fast. By the way, I passed all of the theory courses at Helene Fuld I failed clinically.

At Helene Fuld there are about 5 or 6 nursing core courses you need to pass to graduate. At LIU there are about 15 and I not counting the prerequisites. Just a little more insight into my preceptions.

NYSNOWBUNNY007 · Feb 27, 2009

oh yeah i agree with few students walking out,yes and its seen everywhere you go...you have to give it a FAIR shot...call it inferior or superior education...there a doctors out there that are scary...and it takes people like us to advocate...schools are schools babe....and we all must face the music...its the nature of the beast...unfortunately...but the good news is....we become RN's!...we need more...so however we get it...we get it...:heartbeat:typing:heartbeat