My chances of getting into a nursing program in California?

[jaidon84]

Hello, I am a 23 year old male pre-nursing student in California. I keep hearing that one needs straight A's in all their pre-nursing courses to have any chances of getting into a nursing school. Is this true? I am a little worried, since although I have A's in all my prerequisite courses(nutri, psych, stats, etc) it seems like I will attain B's in my Bioscience courses. Im in Microbiology now with a B, and yet to take anatomy and physiology in spring/summer. Did anyone here get into a nursing program- adn/bsn in California with B's in their Bioscience courses? Usually I hear that only 1/3 classes can be B, but 2 should be A's to realistically have a chance of getting into a program. I am not picky and will go to any CC or state school that accepts me. Please do not comment if you got into a private school and do not recommend either. I cannot take out loans due to religious reasons. I am specifically asking for those who got into state schools or community colleges. I do have extracurricular experiences: I am employed as a caregiver and will be volunteering in a hospital by next semester. By summer I'll be CNA certified. Those who got in can you tell me how was your Bioscience grades and how many times did you apply, if you were waitlisted how long were you waitlisted for?

Thank you, I truly appreciate those who comment and give me some insight.

[TheDudeWithTheBigDog, ADN, RN]

Thanks for response. Congrats for getting into Sac thats awesome!! Yeah if thats how state schools run for the most part (absolutely having a 4.0....) then I won't even bother applying and i'll just stick to community colleges lol. I am closer to SF bay area and just 1 hour away from Sacramento. I will definitely not get a C, my grade is at an upper B as of now for microbiology. But then again I still have a chance to Ace the anat/physio in following semesters. I'd definitely would consider going out-of-state especially Nevada, Arizona, or NM. Thats probably as far as i'll go. I did not really consider getting an LVN, just because its one year and a half of separate schooling on its own.

Call the schools and talk to their nursing department. Unless you hear it from them that you need grades at that level to get in, then assume it's not true.

You're asking nursing students and nurses about the administrative decisions made at a school... Why not ask the people at the school who make that decision? They know way more about it than any of us ever will.

Forget these forums. Make a list of schools you're interested in going to, call their nursing departments, and go over the probability of you getting accepted. Because again, you don't know that it's grades that are making that cutoff. It might be, and probably is, more in depth than just getting straight As in completely objective classes. Anyone can do that.

[jaidon84]

@ tonyl1234

Thanks for the tip man, will do. I didn't think about calling them at all actually.... but will definitely do that since i'm open to all possibilities to make it work. I agree overall that they want more than just grades.

[NursingHopeful95, ADN]

I think it really just depends where in California you are. I've heard that it's pretty competitive in Northern California and of course in LA. I'm about an hour away from LA and live in the valley. I was extremely lucky to get into a CC program here with a 3.2 cumulative & a 3.9 science gpa. I have friends who have gotten into programs here with one or two B's in their core science classes.

However California is a competitive state point blank. My best advice to you is get the A in everything else that you can and do what you can to make yourself a competitive applicant it's good that you'll be getting your Cna, I know some schools give extra points for having it. Also have a backup plan ready before you apply (retake the B, etc). Good luck!

[NICUismylife, ADN, BSN, RN]

As others have mentioned, many of the community colleges throughout the state have a lottery system. As long as you meet the minimum requirements, your name goes in the hat along with everyone else.