Need Loma Linda University Feedback

Daytonite, BSN, RN · Feb 17, 2008

Loma Linda has an excellent nursing school. However, you must follow the religious rules while on campus. That includes dietary (no meat), no smoking, and you must attend chapel services and they do take attendance. I know of students there who were disciplined for having the smell of cigarette smoke on their clothing. Off campus you can do what you want. The entire town, however, is pretty much enhabited by a 7th Day Adventist population.

DeLySh · Feb 17, 2008

delysh,

thank you so much for your quick response! i was not expecting it...and happy that you did :)!!! recently, i received an acceptance letter from loma linda university (llu) school of nursing for the accelerated masters program.
i am contemplating on whether i should go to llu or not. i don't know anyone going to llu son....and i wanted to ask someone who has been through it..as yourself =)!

here are a few reasons for my contemplation:

1) my protestant christian denomination is presbyterian...and definitely christianity is a huge part of my life...it honestly makes up who i am today. i understand sda somewhat because my best friend was a sda...so i grew up in that environment. i completely respect sda beliefs and views. but i'm wondering if that will affect my studies at llu and my religious beliefs. i understand i will need to go to chapel every week and take a few religious studies classes...but i wonder...will llu try to convert or make me conform....will there be any sense of pressuring? will they force me to believe them? or will they respect my views and let me respect theirs? if i choose to go to llu, this will be my first experience at attending a religious private school, so not sure how everything is constructed. i went to public schools all my life.
daytonite is correct. they are religious and do have specific requirement but they do not expect you to convert nor do they pressure you to do so. they base their beliefs on the sda church but it's mostly just christianity centered. the dietary restrictions are there but you do not have to follow them. in nutrition courses you will be taught that a meatless diet is best. but they respect that many students do not practice their religion and they do not treat you any differently if you do. like i said previously, i often see students with starbucks in hand and meat in their lunches. not a word is said to them. however, the entire campus is no smoking so if you smoke you will not be able to on campus. they do ask that you do not engage in certain behaviors while a student, such as cohabitation, alcohol use, drug use and the like but it's on your honor. the chapel services are like big assemblies. there is singing and prayer but if you don't want to participate you can respectfully sit in your seat. no one will bother you as long as you show up. the chapel services are nice. this month they are having dr. gray (of women are from mars fame) speaking. they are highly motivational and nice to hear. they are not so much sda focused as they are christianity focused. they do take attendance and it does count against you if you are not excused (as in llu scholarships). if you are not excused and miss more than 2 a quarter, there are make up assignments to do.
2) i understand sabbath and saturday, where sdas worship on saturdays........and that there won't be classes or clinicals on that day. but now i'm wondering...will we have classes, seminars, conferences, clinicals, etc....that i would need to go to on sundays? clinicals...i figure some would occur on sundays...and there would be no way of getting out of that since the hospital never closes. i go to church on sundays...and wondering if it'll be a problem.
yes, their sabbath is on saturday, but there are no classes or clinicals on sundays, either. like i said previously, classes and clinicals are finished by friday afternoon and pick back up on mondays. this is not true of the senior practicum clinical because you make your own schedule so you could conceivably schedule yourself for sunday but friday night and saturday day are never allowed while you are a student. i believe, though, that the track you are in doesn't have the senior practicum requirement but i could be mistaken.
3) after graduation, wondering if i'll have a hard time finding a job at an institution that is not sda affiliated? such as...ucla or cedars-sinai...since i would be graduating from a sda/religious university?
many of my classmates do not work for sda affiliated employers. it does not matter. i have former classmates at st joseph in orange, choc, hoag, cedars sinai, ucla, kaiser, etc. they are all over. besides, if i found an employer who would base their decision on whether i went to a religious school or not, i don't think i'd want to work for them anyway. kwim?
4) also, this question is specifically for you delysh. you said that you're still currently a student at llu..that's now in the graduate program. did you start off like i did? have a b.a./b.s. and took the accelerated track? i applied for the accelerated masters and i'm wondering how that works...because on llu's nursing website...i only saw a study layout similar to the accelerated bachelors' ....and on the accelerated masters study layout...it just states that i would start graduate courses in the 7th quarter...now from that time, how much longer do you need to graduate? would i need to apply for the graduate program separately after i finish the bachelors portion? or is it assumed i begin graduate courses right away?

i had a ba in biology coming into the program but did not choose the acc ms route. should have since i'm here anyway. the problem with that route, though, is you will only have an as to practice as an rn while you complete the ms after 6th quarter. while that doesn't bother most people, it bothered me because it's not an official as in that i could not use that degree to practice outside of california should i chooses to move. i felt that the extra two quarters to complete the bs was worth it to have a portable license/career in case i could not finish the ms for a while. i guess i feel that life sometimes gets in the way of your plans and i wanted to be in a good position just in case. if you are accepted into that program, i don't believe that you have to reapply to the ms program. i had a classmate decide in the middle of the bs to do that and she just continued on her merry way without a hitch. from the time you begin your ms courses, it could take as little as two years or as long as you needed up to 5 years, i believe, depending on how many classes you take at a time. i am taking the ms slowly with only 2 classes at a time as i am now working (at lluch hehe) and trying to start a family. whatever you choose will be ok.
i would appreciate any feedback and apologize for the ridiculously long post! i just need to make sure that i'm choosing the right graduate school for me. unfortunately, i have till this coming week to decide. talk about short amount of time, huh?

thank you so much!

i believe llu is one of the best programs out there. they truly care about your success while not babying you at the same time. there is a way to work everything out if need be. i took the nclex in feb 2007 before graduation and passed with 75 questions. they just started incorporating the kaplan study course into the regular curriculum to help the students pass. it doesn't cost anything extra and their pass rate is climbing rapidly. you will get out of it as much as you put in and i think that's true of anywhere. but all things considered i think i made the right choice in going to llu and encourage you to seriously consider it. if you can, go down to the school on wednesday and look around. talk to people on campus. attend the chapel service at 8am to see what it's like. and feel free to ask me anything you like. i love talking about this program. it has changed my life for the better in so many ways.

good luck!

delysh

kalimuse · Mar 5, 2010

dear delysh,

although it is over two years later, i found your posts detailed, informative and exactly the kind of info i was seeking. i am attending victor valley college and have just submitted my application to csusb for fall 2010. i will finish my csusb pre-reqs by the end of this spring. however, i am also seriously considering llu, but would need to attend summer and fall semester at vvc to finish llu's pre-reqs.

one of the main reasons i am interested in llu is because i have heard that its clinicals are so strong. i did more research and found that llumc is the only level 1 trauma center in riverside and san bernardino counties. the clinical sites for csusb does not seem to include a level 1 trauma center (from what i could find). do you have any feedback from other nurses/students about llu clinical experiences vs. csusb? are you a stronger candidate as a new grad (in general) to employers if you have worked at level 1 trauma center?

also, my current science gpa is 3.7, overall gpa is 3.88, and my teas is 91.8%. i do not know what my chances are csusb for acceptance because i heard that there were over 1500 applicants for 44 spots for fall 2010. yet, if i were to be accepted at csusb, i am considering passing on them to try to get into llu. i am very nervous about this though becuase i know that it is difficult or there are long waiting lists to get into most nursing programs in this area. i would appreciate your thoughts, and anyone's feedback in regards to this. thanks!