New Immigrant wants to apply Nursing School

babyfriendly · Jul 11, 2018

Hi Charlotte, is there a specific school you're hoping to get into?

FWIW, I think Langara is a pretty simple process to apply. They need 2 specific English courses, Anatomy & Physiology courses, and statistics. They go by GPA only - don't care about volunteering or work experience. If you're a good student and get high grades in those pre-req's, you're in. It's a 36 months continuous program leading to a BSN & they have a January and September intake.

You can do your pre-requisites at pretty much any college - just check that the course you're taking will transfer as the specific course you need (they change the course numbers etc so you need to pay attention carefully). There's a website called "BC Transfer Guide" which shows which courses transfer directly from one college to another - our system is very integrated so most of the basic courses transfer, you just need to make sure it's exactly the correct course the receiving school is requiring.

I'd go speak to an admissions advisor at whatever college is closest to you and and see what you need to give them in order to be admitted and get started on the pre-requisites. They usually book 15 min appointments throughout the summer. They may require you to take an English and Math placement test in addition to providing the foreign education accreditation documents. Some people take the pre-requisites 1 or 2 courses at a time to improve their chances of getting a high grade. Many colleges have a summer semester so you can go year round if you want to spread out the pre-requisites.

Douglas's nursing program has way more pre-requisites & takes way longer to get into, BCIT & UBC both consider extra curriculars, work experience, volunteering etc.

hth!

Charlotte_18 · Jul 12, 2018

Greeting babyfriendly,

Thank you so much for the reply. We landed in Vancouver just this month and we are very new and do not have any friends here. It is very nice to meet you here. I really appreciate your time and help.

I am looking into VCC (LPN because BSN streams are closed currently) and the BSNs of UBC, BCIT, KPU, Langara, Douglas, TWU. (all schools in the Vancouver area) I want to prepare for all schools because I want to start my study here asap. The GPA of my bachelor degree is converted to 3.13, so I believe I have to work really hard for pre-reqs.

(1) When I take pre-req, can my average GPA increase, taking those pre-req marks into calculation? (are pre-req regarded as most recent undergraduate courses for a person with a degree?)

(2) Would you recommend pre-req at a specific college which can fulfill the requirement of most of the schools in GVA? Are you a current student? May I know base on your experience if you don't mind?

(3) May I know how long will you take to prepare for all the pre-reqs?

I will go speak to admission advisors as well. But may I keep asking you information if needed as you are very knowledgeable and kind. :)

Thank you again and have a good day!

babyfriendly · Jul 12, 2018

Charlotte, for Langara, they ONLY consider the grades for the 5 pre-requisites, not your grades from your previous degree. I will try to send you a private message with more info.

babyfriendly · Jul 13, 2018

Oh, just realized that as a new member I don't think you can access private messages yet (I think you need to have 15+ posts for it to work). Next time we're both online maybe we can make contact by email and then quickly delete our email from this thread... cheers.

Charlotte_18 · Jul 13, 2018

Hello Dear,

Sorry for late reply. I didn't know there is an option for PM. I search and search and finally see your message now. Thank you for the long and thoughtful reply. I can see your private message but I cannot send out PM. please email me

babyfriendly · Jul 13, 2018

Hi, ok, I've got your email. you can edit & delete it from the post for your privacy :)

pau88 · Jul 27, 2018

Hello, im also an immigrant in vancouver and have applied to nursing program at Langara. It took me 1 year to finish all the pre-reqs including some courses that I needed to take to be able to register to the pre-req courses since I didnt study highschool here. I had a hard time understanding how education system here works tbh. If you have any questions, I'll try my best to help you.

Charlotte_18 · Jul 27, 2018

Hi Pau88,

Thank you for the reply. I am happy to hear that you finished all your pre-reqs and applied to school already. Will you start in coming semester?

I have met with advisors from most of the schools and they all said I need to redo almost all of the pre-reqs since my previous degree courses are not recognized. (Even high school Math and Science courses cannot be accepted directly, need to be evaluated, they said) this is disheartening.

I am looking into both LPN and RN programs as I want to start schooling asap. I have a plan to sit for English and Math assessment at VCC next week and will enrol in ENGL course if result mark is eligable. I could probably enrol in only one ENGL course for coming semester, since most of other courses (such as A&P, Psych) are full already. I am late for this year.

I had a hard time to understand canada education system but Babyfriendly here is very kind and gave me many useful infos. Going to school for a single course as non-degree seeking student is new to me. Also, it would be very nice to get connected with you who have same international background.

I have healthcare degree abroad and thinking about applying to NCAS to qualify as HCA as well. Would love to know if you have any info about that exam style?

I would like to know more detail about how you prepared and made decision, and guidance and suggestion for me. I cannot send private message here because I am a newbie. but my email is [email protected] if you would like to post PM.

Thank you so much for your time and help :)

pau88 · Aug 4, 2018

I messaged you :)