Nashville State Community College

received a letter today from the nursing dept. The list of books are the same as the list we received when we were at the first introductory meeting. I also cannot find those bucks in a package as listed on the sheet. I call the lww customer service and they said that the ISBN is missing some numbers and to contact my nursing department.

if anyone knows anything about books or have heard anything about financial aid and purchasing books through financial aid, let me know.

I'm very frustrated and nervous! The first meeting was rushed and we really didn't have time to ask questions. The whole process has been nerve racking because nothing has been fully explained. The book store says that the nursing department has not submitted the text book list that was due in April. I am counting on the bookstore having our books so that I can charge them to my grant. Financial aid said that before that can happen we have to be registered and tuition taken out first. Oh and the big one that they have not addressed yet "When exactly will we be accredited"?? If you look on the accreditation website, we are not even signed up to be looked at when the inaugural class graduates( as a previous poster first made us aware of this). I want a guarantee that our class will definitely be accredited! So this leads me to my next question, who will have more nerve than me to stand up and ask all these questions? lol..I admit I'm very shy. My mom is threatening to come to our meeting and demand answers lol...

Jellybean01- I'm frustrated as well. I just want all the stuff layed out in the open and not feel like I'm going into an unorganized program. I still have a lot if unanswered questions as well. I feel like the first meeting was a waste besides the papers we received to be filled out and they could have mailed those. Yes I put the think on the blog earlier so people could see that they are not in the process of being accredited like they told us they were. I just keep praying about this program everyday. When I talked to Financial aid they said that we need to be signed up for classes before the purge date and they have no idea about purchasing our text books so I'm assuming we have to purchase them out of pocket as well as the nursing kit, drug screening/background check, and stethoscope. It's overwhelming especially when you have so many unanswered questions. I hope during this meeting that they clear everything up and assure the students of their future in this program. I think we will also be doing CPR if they go by what they said in the previous meeting.

harriss88- The school is allowing students who qualify for financial aid to charge their books(obviously there is a need and a reason for this). I can't see how the cost of books should fall on our shoulders, when it is the nursing departments obligation to see that we are all registered in time to charge the books! This falls on them if they don't register us and submit the book list!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!I hope this is brought up at the meeting! When my friend called the nursing department to inquire about the book store not having the books in stock, she was told that she could purchase them online. This was after she told them that several of us had to charge them. That being said, I feel that was not an acceptable response. As far as the CPR class being held on the next meeting, that contradicts the August date that we were given in the last meeting. I also hope all this gets cleared up in the meeting, but like I said before, someone has to ask these questions .......... At this point, who knows???

I agree, this is very stressful. My Pell grant came through today, but no info on the stafford loans i applied for. Does anyone know if the eligibility for loans are supposed to show up on mynscc? Do they show up after grants, or at the same time? I am going to stop by the Financial aid office Monday, but now I am stressing that I am not eligible for loans.

pugmann- I know that if you qualify for a student loan you will see the disbursement amount on the website. I also know that the information is usually updated after the pell grant has been added. If you received a student loan in the past, you will get your loan money on the first day of school. If you have never received a student loan before then you will get it 30 days into the first semester, along with the remainder on your pell grant. The remainder of the pell grant will never be on the first day, always 3-4 wks later... I know it don't make sense since we need the loan money for school expenses prior to day one, but that is how it works. Make sure that you set up direct deposit in the Bursar's office. If you don't have direct deposit they will mail you a check that takes 1-2 weeks after the first day of school( if you had a loan before -otherwise it will be mailed around the 30 day mark). I wouldn't be too nervous about not being eligble for the loan, because chances are if you qualified for a partial or full pell grant you will also qualify for the loan. I hope this helps... Please let us know what financial aid says on Monday. Also, a quick tip-since you are going down there...Request to speak to someone behind the scenes. The girls at the desk never get things straight..Good luck to you..

Very frustrated. tried to find the books on the website last night and no luck. only one I could find was dosage calculations. Why weren't the books ordered so we could buy them at the bookstore? I, too, have never heard of a college that does not stock a required text and expects students to get them from a third party.

What is the deal with the financial aid? I think some exceptions should be made for nursing students. It looks like we will have an outlay of about $ 1,200 before we even set foot in a classroom. I have worked and prayed so hard for this. Now I feel like I am being expected to go to fantastic lengths and jump through hoops just to prove that I really want to be here.

Readergirl- I completely understand. I contacted the website for our books because I could not find them online and a representative told me that our ISBN numbers are missing some numbers and then I tried giving her the title of the books and authors, and she still couldn't find them. She told me to contact my school because something is not right. That frustrated me even more. We have to spend all this money before the program even starts but we should be trying to save money since they recommend that we do not work while in the program. I know that this is only their second year having a program, but they need to be a little bit more organized and not expect us to jump through hoops already. I know that nursing school will be my first priority for these next 2 years, but it's not my only priority or obligation and I'm sure that pretty much goes for all of the students. The 20th can't get here fast enough.

Has anyone already purchased their nursing kit and or started the process of the drug screen and background check?

I'm going to order my kit and background check next Friday. I'm not sure who to go through for insurance though. Where ya'll getting yours from? I'm going to contact the book store Monday and ask them to contact the Nursing department. Maybe if several of us call, the book store will inform them that most of us are depending on our grant to cover the book costs. That might help get the nursing department on the ball!!They should have had all the kinks figured out by now. I wonder if I am making the right decision?

Harris88 and Jellybean01,

I agree with you both 100%. I am very frustrated, yet after all my hard work, feel very fortunate at being here, and don't want to be labelled a complainer.

Like you, Harris88, I am prepared to make this my #1 priority. I am prepared to not work during the school year if that's what it takes, but the financial aid department does not see it this way. When I called the financial aid office to ask about private student loans, they seemed shocked, and said absolutely not. I stated that if I weren't working, and am single, I can't live on the loan limits set by the school. They were shocked again and told me I had to work, all nursing students were expected to work. I stated that the department had given us a two hour lecture about not working, and they said they had never heard of this, and that in fact many of the students worked and were successful in the program. It was stated again that I needed to work to pay my share of my education.

Any other students with a BA or BS already who are frustrated by the lack of aid, and the low limits of the student loans?

Also, the whole thing about waiting for October for disbursement of the student loans is ridiculous. I did take out a student loan in the past, but it was at another school and more than 10 years ago. Will this count? Does it have to be at NSCC? If I give my notice and quit my job before orientation, then can't receive a penny in aid until Oct., what will I do? I do the Dave Ramsey thing, and am not an advocate of debt, but if it will enable me to concentrate fully on the program and be a nurse, I will do it. Many hospitals have loan forgiveness programs, and so does state for those going into rural areas or those who want to get a masters and teach. It is my decision, and for the school to say that they will deny or disapprove any private student loan that they get is just wrong.

I will be calling the bookstore this week, and encourage everyone to do the same. If the administration does not know the frustrations we are facing, they can't do anything about it. The school and financial aid office also needs to be aware that the nursing dept is STRONGLY encouraging students not to work.

Jellybean,

If you really want to be a nurse and have worked really hard to get here, you are making the right decision.

The choices in Nashville are very limited. Belmont, Aquinas, and Cumberland cost a fortune. Aquinas and Belmont have religion course requirements. At Aquinas you can get an associates and the cost is over $40,000, just for tuition alone, not even books or living expenses. Vandy does not have a BSN program anymore. MTSU is an affordable 4 year option, but is so selective, and they get six or more apps for every slot. Then there is TSU. I won't even comment. They were never a choice.

We all know what NSCC is like. It's like being in the 5th year of high school. They treat students like errant children. They are disorganized, condesending, and dismissive of student needs. All the rules are in force for the benefit of staff and faculty, not for us. That being said, I really, really want to be here. This is a chance at nursing school, fulfilling and dream, making life better for my family in the long run, and doing a job I love. For this I will put up with all the petty inconveniences.

Think of it this way. It is a seller's market. There are many, many more applicants in nursing school. That puts them in control for now, but if we can only get through the two years, we will be the winners.