Need some advice

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

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Hello I'm an 18 year old male turning 19 soon in my second full semester at a community college in Los Angeles. The CC I'm going to has an ADN program and I went to a counselor to make a Student Educational Plan for me. Does this seem right or does it seem longer than it should be?

Fall 2014 (done):

English 101

Communications 101

Biology 03

Winter 2015 (done):

Sociology 01

Spring 2015:

English 102

Math 125

Anatomy 01

Summer 2015:

Anthropology 121

Fall 2015:

Statistics 101

Chemistry 051

Cinema 102

Spring 2016:

Physiology 01

Humanities 01

Political Science 01

Fall 2016:

Microbiology 020

Psychology 041 (I passed the AP exam for psychology in high school so I don't need to take the intro psychology class)

History 05

All of those classes would fulfill my prerequisites to get into the nursing program for an ADN and general education transfer requirements to transfer to a CSU for a ADN to BSN after I complete the ADN program.

That huge loan debt is ridiculous... Trust me you'll end up having to pay them while looking for work. I've never heard anyone come out is west coast saying they were glad they did that... If anything you hear... You're so lucky you went to lavc!

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Wow, does your CC require all of those classes as prereqs for ADN? For most CSU BSN programs, the only other class you would have to pick up as a prereq is critical thinking.

I go to a CSU and my programs prereqs are statistics, chemistry, anatomy, physiology, critical thinking, communications, English, and microbiology.

When you start applying to ADN programs, you may as well apply straight to some BSN programs as well and see if you can get in.

It looks like you're in the LA area? That's going to be a tough area to get into a BSN (in the traditional program AND the bridge), but if you do well in your prereqs and your entrance exam, I think it would be wiser to go straight for the BSN if possible. Perhaps you could make an appointment at some of the CSUs that you are interested in and make sure your CC classes would transfer and fulfill the program's requirements. I just don't see the point in going an additional 3 years unless you really have to (I.e. you don't get into the BSN program).

BTW, I personally avoided private schools because I don't feel they are worth the money. I have friends who are going to be no less than $100K in debt for a BACHELORS! The good thing about CSUs is you can use state aid. I qualified for a Cal grant (completely need based) and my tuition is completely paid for by the state. All I have to pay for is my books (about $300/qtr) and my student Union fees (about $450/qtr). Anyway, that's just my two cents on private schools.

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Some of the classes I listed in the OP aren't prerequisites for the program itself but they're GE/transfer classes. This information about the ADN program is from the schools website:

Nursing Program Prerequisites

1. Anatomy 1 (minimum of 4 semester units or 6 quarter units) and Physiology 1, (minimum of 4 semester units or 6 quarter units).

-OR-

Physiology 8 (minimum of 4 semester units or 6 quarter units) and Physiology 9 (minimum of 4 semester units or 6 quarter units).

2. Microbiology 20 -or- an equivalent General Microbiology course with lab (minimum of 4 semester units or 6 quarter

units).

3. English 101 (minimum of 3 semester units or 4.5 quarter units).

4. Psychology 1 (minimum of 3 semester units or 4.5 quarter units).

5. Psychology 41 (minimum of 3 semester units or 4.5 quarter units).

6. Chemistry 51 or equivalent (see counselor for special case where one year of high school may suffice).

7. Math 115 or higher or placement in Math 120/125 or higher level math course.

To graduate from the college and receive an AS degree in nursing, the following Program and General Education requirements must be completed by the deadline listed below. The Nursing Department Faculty

strongly encourages students to complete all coursework prior to entering the Nursing Program.

• Communication 101 (minimum of 3 semester or 4.5 quarter units) must be completed prior to entering the 3rd semester of the Nursing Program.

• Sociology 1 or Anthropology 102 (minimum of 3 semester or 4.5 quarter units) completed prior to entering the 4th semester of the Nursing Program.

• Humanities - three semester units, under graduation Plan B, completed prior to entering the 4th semester of the Nursing Program.

• Social and Behavioral Science Requirement – three semester units, under graduation Plan B, completed by the end of the

4th semester of the Nursing Program.

• Kinesiology - one semester unit course, completed by the end of the 4th semester of the Nursing Program.

• Math 125 – For students who began their continuous enrollment within the Los Angeles Community College District Fall 2009 or later.

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So I just had a meeting with a different counselor and this is getting ridiculous lol. We went over my educational plan and she said all of the classes I needed (prerequisites and GE) were there but the other counselor mixed all of them up. She said that I should prioritize my prerequisites first then proceeded to layout a new educational plan. Basically she wrote that I should take physiology and microbiology by themselves or MAYBE with 1 other GE class so "I can make sure I get an A in those important science prerequisites". That would take FOREVER. She saw that I was taking English 102, Anatomy, and a math class this semester and said that English 102 "can be difficult" and suggested that I shouldn't have a schedule like this while taking anatomy. So far I have a B in math (not my best subject), A in English, and B in Anatomy (it's the most challenging class I have taken so far). It sounds like these counselors just want me to be there forever.

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I'm glad you talked to someone else. I was similarly disappointed at how many prereqs I needed and how long it would take, but that is just crazy. Sounds more like the first couple years of a general bachelor's.

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I'm glad you talked to someone else. I was similarly disappointed at how many prereqs I needed and how long it would take, but that is just crazy. Sounds more like the first couple years of a general bachelor's.

This other counselor's suggested path would take me like 2 or 3 extra semesters totaling 6-7 semesters instead of 4. So it would take a little more than 3 years instead of 2 just to apply to the ADN program. This counselor seemed very knowledgeable too when it came to the nursing program but what she's suggesting just sounds ridiculous. At that rate it would take me like 7 years to get a BSN.

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Jeez. I was skimming and I missed that. If it really came down to it, I wouldn't go to that school. I'd probably try to talk to someone that is actually in the nursing department. If going to another school isn't possible at the moment, I'd find a school you could eventually move to, figure out what their prereqs are and if they'll transfer, and only take those prereqs at this school. That is ridiculous. I would probably also see if you could test out of any of the math or science requirements.

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Take some of the classes in the summer and winter. 7-8 semesters would then equal 1-2 years for pre reqs all the while making sure you kep a high gpa. Getting things done faster and getting a lower gpa will only hurt you in the long run by making not eligible to apply to public schools

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I'm taking a class every winter and summer like sociology, anthropology,humanities, etc.

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