Need advice! 😩😩

[Lchambless1990]

Hi y’all, my name is Luke and I am new to this website. I came here for a little advice if possible. Here’s some quick backstory:

I’m 31 years old and plan on applying to Nursing school. My goal is to get my Master’s in Nursing. I went to college between 2008-2013. During this time I became addicted to heroin and ruined my life. My grades were atrocious and I dropped out of college. My overall GPA was 1.9. 

In 2016, I got sober and moved to Florida. I’ve been clean for over 6 years now. In 2018 I went back to school to help with my grades and finish some nursing prerequisites at Valencia College. After 2 years there I ended up with a 3.4 GPA. I just recently took the TEAS test and got an 81.3%. I attached the results here.

I am looking for advice on schools. My overall GPA is at 2.3 and a lot of schools require a 2.5. I want to go for my ASN but am told that I can’t apply because of my overall GPA. I’m good friends with Thomas Brown, a popular doctor who wrote me a recommendation letter to help persuade school to accept me and disregard the horrendous GPA prior to Valencia. My good friend who works with him had Dr. Brown do the same for him and it worked. I have 5 recommendations from previous teachers from Valencia as well as my award for Most Excelled in Science from Valencia.  
I’m currently enrolled in a non profit school for the LPN program but it’s 25,000$ and it’s a lot of money. They took me for my GPA. 

I was wondering what anyone thinks I should do. Keep persisting with schools for an ASN program? Or just start the process with the LPN? The thing holding me back is the cost, as well as the time to even achieve an ASN after. 

THANK YOU for reading and taking the time out of your day.

[HiddenAngels]

I’m proud of you!!
Is there any way that you can take a class or two at a community college for say something like medical terminology or another math (if you like math) that can help boost your overall GPA?.  I’m saying this to curb you from paying the 25,000.

[K. Everly, BSN, RN]

Okay, HUGE congrats on your recovery! It says a lot about you! 

So, I see options here.

First of all, because your GPA was so low years ago with so many classes, you’re seeing now how hard it is to improve it because it takes a TON of credits to do so. Taking a few more classes to raise it probably isn’t a good option financially, or a great use of your time. They have calculators online that can tell you how many credits you’d have to take and get a 4.0 to fix your GPA if your interested in really finding out. 

One thing to consider is that some nursing programs have the option to take just your pre-req GPA, or just your GPA from the last couple years. I don’t know a ton about this but it’s worth looking into because a lot of ppl find this helps them immensely. 

Another option would just be to go the route of getting the LPN first, but make 1000% sure it is a reputable program that is accredited and will enable you to sit for your NCLEX-PN because Florida has a lot of nursing school mills that don’t actually lead to students getting licensed. What a nightmare, right!? $25k is a lot of money but if you’ll be making substantially more as an LPN than you would in what you’re currently doing, it could be worth it. 

Lastly, if your previous courses amounted to an actual bachelor’s degree, you could go get a masters in something healthcare related, like health informatics, or masters in public health etc. This would enable you to have a whole new degree with an entirely better GPA, and perhaps apply directly to an accelerated BSN or direct entry MSN program and actually get in. A girl in my accelerated BSN program followed this exact formula and was accepted in the program because of her excellent masters GPA, despite her awful undergrad GPA. Granted, a masters is expensive, and this is likely not the best choice for you, but it is AN option if you have a current bachelor’s, and you’ll always have that degree if you need it one day. 

If you want to get off the hamster wheel and stop playing these scenarios over and over with no certain outcome, make sure the LPN program is accredited and get started! 

[CalicoKitty, BSN, MSN, RN]

The LPN route is something some people take. But, the job market is more limited than an associates or bachelors degree. I would keep in mind that having a drug history can be a hindrance in nursing if there's paperwork for it (medical diagnosis, legal problems). And from what I read, if there's no paperwork, no good comes from offering honesty (but if there's a legal history, you also can't hide it).

[londonflo]

Your TEAS report has your full name on it. I would recommend taking that down as you have provided some very personal information here. 

[dianah, ASN]

9 minutes ago, londonflo said:

Your TEAS report has your full name on it. I would recommend taking that down as you have provided some very personal information here. 

TEAS report attachment removed, to comply with the Terms of Service (and protect member's anonymity.

[NICU Guy, BSN, RN]

Make an appointment to talk to the Dean in person. They might have suggestions of making you more competitive for a slot in their program. 

Do they allow repeating of classes to improve your GPA?

[londonflo]

 

On 7/6/2022 at 8:02 PM, Lchambless1990 said:

I have 5 recommendations from previous teachers from Valencia as well as my award for Most Excelled in Science from Valencia.  

Why not apply to the nursing program at Valencia? 

https://net1.valenciacollege.edu/future-students/nursing/

[PollywogNP, ADN, BSN, MSN, LPN, NP]

That’s exactly what I was going to say! The tuition is about $2500 per semester or less. My daughter got her paramedic at Valencia last year.

That LPN school sound like a For Profit school judging form the cost of tuition. Do they accept anyone that applies? What’s is the name of the school? I would like to check the NCLEX pass rates & see if they are accredited & that you can transfer courses to an LPN to RN program.

[Wlaurie, RN]

Hmmm....first thing that jumps out at me is have you ever been arrested for drug charges? Before you decide about where you want to go to school, need to figure this out first. When I was in school, last semester of school before sitting for the RN NCLEX a girl in our class was told she couldn't sit for the test because she had a Minor In Possession on her record. Had to hire a lawyer, not sure how it worked out for her. Don't spend a lot of money going to school if this needs to be figured out first. Good luck to you young man.

[RN WRITER NC, ADN]

All suggestions above are great and very important to consider.  As a second-career nurse who entered the clinical field after many yrs experience as a CNA and a Telemetry technician, I just have a question.  First of all, I wonder if you have done this kind of work before and know you love it?  Because the environment is changing, especially after the last two years with Covid.  Next, plan for the future.  I am an Associate degree RN.  I always planned to return for a BSN, because that is what everyone is told will be the baseline in Nursing.  I had good intentions toward trying for a BSN degree, I took prerequisites while in school for my ADN and tried then multiple times to enter school at a later date. But the stars just weren't aligned for me to continue to obtain my BSN.  My point is, as you are finding out; it is difficult to anticipate what your future holds for you to make these decisions now.  My suggestion is:  do what is possible with a plan for the future and persist like nobody's business!  A lot of your process will depend on your personality and how you achieve your goals.  In the end, I think you have done incredibly well already, so use that to build your self-esteem and also to show others you are serious about your goals.  Good luck and make sure you are doing something that you love!

[medicrn2]

I would first like to congratulate you on your sobriety !! That in and of itself is a testament to your willpower and drive.

 

I would check with your state board of nursing first to ensure that you are eligible to be licensed in your home state. If it turns out that you are not, my next suggestion would be to pursue a degree in public health.