Macomb Community College Info

Hi! I'm just about at the end of my first year of MCC's program, so I'll take a stab at a few of your queries. 

Firstly, nursing students do have summers off! The nursing program is set up a bit differently than some other programs, as classes are either 4 or 8 weeks instead of the usual 16, but the program does follow the college's schedule for holidays and breaks. Regardless of which of the four start dates you end up getting, you will have summers and all holidays off (unless you choose to take non-nursing classes over the Summer). With the exception of the first 8 weeks, every semester will have a one or two day per week clinical requirement. Typically, these are during the week, but some speciality rotations like OB do have weekend requirements depending on where you are placed. You do not get a say in your clinical rotations, so it's very important to ensure that you have relatively open availability, at least from Monday-Thursday. Many of the rotations begin promptly at 7:00 AM and placements occur all over the Metro Detroit area (none are further than 45 minutes from the campus), so be proactive about arranging early morning childcare. I'm a mother myself, so I can commiserate with this hurdle. 

Secondly, the cost of the program for in-district (meaning you live in Macomb County) is AROUND $2500 per semester, with an additional upfront cost in the first semester for all books and supplies. The books and supplies are used throughout the program, so this is usually a one-time cost. FYI: you can almost always buy your books used from graduating students for a heck of a lot cheaper than the school sells them for. The cost for tuition is higher if you don't live in the county. The nursing program does have some additional fees, but the cost per credit hour is the same as the main school. The current per credit hour cost is easily available on the school's website. The number of credit hours changes a bit from semester to semester, but it's generally between 9 and 13 hours total. If cost is an issue for you, I strongly suggest looking into the many scholarship opportunities offered to nursing students. Many people in my cohort receive thousands of dollars per year via scholarship opportunities. 

Finally, the big one: GPA and TEAS scores. I am very hesitant to give you generalizations because it honestly just depends on the talent pool, but you'll want to aim for at least a 3.5 or 3.6, though the closer to 4.0 you are the better. DEFINITELY don't settle for less than an A- in anatomy and physiology, as that one class is 6 credits, so almost half of your total required GPA. It is extremely difficult to get accepted with a poor score in A&P, and you'll want to do well in that class anyway because it will show up again on the TEAS and again in nursing school and yet again when you're working as a nurse. Basically, know A&P at all costs! The TEAS is a bit trickier because Macomb made the switch from HESI so we don't have a ton of information on past years, but for my cohort pretty much anyone who scored an 80 or above ended up getting accepted. You could absolutely get accepted with a score in the 70s if your GPA is good, but an 80 or above would make you more competitive. 

I didn't intent for this to be quite so long, but I hope it helps! Good luck with the application process. It's a wild ride, but it's also a ton of fun. 

The schedule works like this: for the first 8 weeks, you have four fundamental classes. After that, all lecture classes are 4 weeks and all clinical rotations are 8 weeks. So while it looks like a hefty course load, in practice you'll really only be in two classes at any one time for most of the program (one clinical and one lecture). They move QUICK, though. Make sure you have good study habits as you'll be taking either a midterm or final exam every two weeks for the entire program once you're done with the first 8 weeks. Some instructors offer homework or extra credit to buffer your grade. Many do not. 

Honestly, the TEAS isn't all that bad in my opinion as long as you prepare. Give yourself at least 8 weeks to study, but if you do that you should do fine. I was almost 20 years out of high school when I took mine, and I got an 89 with 8 weeks of preparation. I could have scored in the mid-90s if I hadn't blown off studying for the English portion. Don't be like me - don't underestimate the English portion ? 

Hi was just wondering, did you apply and end up getting accepted?