Nursing School in California

caliotter3 · May 16, 2020

In general, competition is keen. Highly recommend that you call the nursing advisors at all considered programs and discuss or make an appointment to discuss. Be sure to bring an unofficial transcript. Other than that, you really would improve your chances if you repeated physiology even if all you get is a B. At this point that C will be your downfall where they outright reject you.

Jorge Salazar · May 16, 2020

4 hours ago, caliotter3 said:
In general, competition is keen. Highly recommend that you call the nursing advisors at all considered programs and discuss or make an appointment to discuss. Be sure to bring an unofficial transcript. Other than that, you really would improve your chances if you repeated physiology even if all you get is a B. At this point that C will be your downfall where they outright reject you.

That is exactly what I thought. But I am really hesitating by the fact that some programs either don’t allow more than 1 repetition or subtract points from their admission criteria. In fact, I’m already struggling because some places count that W as a repeat. A good thing is that some programs include in their science portion Chemistry and stats. I have A on both, so that boosts up my GPA.

Mergirlc, MSN, APRN, NP · May 16, 2020

Do not be content w/ the "C" in Physiology. This will be your downfall. The receiving a "F &W" in Anatomy and Microbiology w/ retakes doesn't look great, but at least you were able to retackle it and get an "A" in both, so that goes in your favor. What you have to remember for California is that it is extremely competitive. You are going up against people who have a 4.0 in their pre-reqs without any retakes.

The good news is you have healthcare experience so that definitely counts.

All I can really say is that you are doing the right thing by spreading out and applying everywhere. Keep applying everywhere - including out of state! That is all you can really do at this point because everything else is out of your hands. Either you're going to have the qualifications needed to get in and if you don't.....then try to contact the advisors or counselors for each of your programs that you do not get into & ask what you can do to be more competitive.

Good luck to you!

Mergirlc, MSN, APRN, NP · May 16, 2020

Another thing I just wanted you to think about is, do you have a plan if for some reason getting into nursing school takes longer than expected? While you are applying to get into a nursing program, I might suggest to possibly think about attending a CSU school and attempting to get a bachelors degree, if you can afford it. By no means am I advocating to get tons of loans to get a bachelors, but if it's something you might be able to do without much or any debt, you might consider this while you're waiting on nursing school.

The reason for this is, if for some reason you cannot get into any nursing program for a few years, you could always get a bachelors degree and then apply for an ABSN - accelerated bachelors nursing program.

Just a thought for you to think about

Jorge Salazar · May 16, 2020

9 minutes ago, Mergirlc said:
Do not be content w/ the "C" in Physiology. This will be your downfall. The receiving a "F &W" in Anatomy and Microbiology w/ retakes doesn't look great, but at least you were able to retackle it and get an "A" in both, so that goes in your favor. What you have to remember for California is that it is extremely competitive. You are going up against people who have a 4.0 in their pre-reqs without any retakes.
The good news is you have healthcare experience so that definitely counts.
All I can really say is that you are doing the right thing by spreading out and applying everywhere. Keep applying everywhere - including out of state! That is all you can really do at this point because everything else is out of your hands. Either you're going to have the qualifications needed to get in and if you don't.....then try to contact the advisors or counselors for each of your programs that you do not get into & ask what you can do to be more competitive.
Good luck to you!

That is actually a great idea. I will try to reach counselors for more info. I bet they now more about the stats of who gets in into the program. The only inconvenience is the distance if I try to contact one far from San Diego. I’ll write some emails and make calls to figure out how to talk to one. Maybe an appointment with one over the phone would be one option. Thanks!

Jorge Salazar · May 16, 2020

24 minutes ago, Mergirlc said:
Another thing I just wanted you to think about is, do you have a plan if for some reason getting into nursing school takes longer than expected? While you are applying to get into a nursing program, I might suggest to possibly think about attending a CSU school and attempting to get a bachelors degree, if you can afford it. By no means am I advocating to get tons of loans to get a bachelors, but if it's something you might be able to do without much or any debt, you might consider this while you're waiting on nursing school.
The reason for this is, if for some reason you cannot get into any nursing program for a few years, you could always get a bachelors degree and then apply for an ABSN - accelerated bachelors nursing program.
Just a thought for you to think about

That is a good option as well. You see, my main goal is to become a NP. I also thought becoming a physician assistant (that is why this is a good idea.) But, I just realized that the RN pathway was better because I already have the prerequisites and I am a caring person. I truly love to be a CCMA, but their scope of practice is really limited. I will try to apply to nursing schools, if no luck, I will take this in consideration.

Thank you

caliotter3 · May 16, 2020

As you continue your research, make yourself a binder with a sheet for each program and a spreadsheet to keep yourself organized. Decide your priorities, and at first glance, approach those programs first that look to meet your priorities, then continue, and so on, and so forth. Even if penalized, I really think you need to raise that C in physiology. Be aware that CA community colleges will not allow you to repeat because you passed. You may need to repeat physio at another school. Check out some of the online options and take plenty of time to prepare yourself to get that A. Khan Academy, prehired tutor, a battle plan, anything and everything you think you will need to insure that A short of bribing an instructor!

Jorge Salazar · May 16, 2020

11 minutes ago, caliotter3 said:
As you continue your research, make yourself a binder with a sheet for each program and a spreadsheet to keep yourself organized. Decide your priorities, and at first glance, approach those programs first that look to meet your priorities, then continue, and so on, and so forth. Even if penalized, I really think you need to raise that C in physiology. Be aware that CA community colleges will not allow you to repeat because you passed. You may need to repeat physio at another school. Check out some of the online options and take plenty of time to prepare yourself to get that A. Khan Academy, prehired tutor, a battle plan, anything and everything you think you will need to insure that A short of bribing an instructor!

Thank you! I am certain now that I can aim for that A. As I gave my best efforts for the other two recently. I just learned the hard way that school and grades are very important. And here I am right now.

caliotter3 · May 16, 2020

Physiology is an excellent choice of a course for most people to take by itself if they want to aim for that A. Assume you already know to marry yourself to the instructor, ask questions in class, go to every office hour, start out by asking for tips on how to study and learn the material. Get into a study group, lots of things you can do. If you want to spend the money, I suggest doing a dry run with an online course from out of state. If you get your A, mission accomplished. If not, do it again elsewhere until you get that A. Just a thought when I think of the manager I had one time who told me he took college algebra five times before he passed it and got his degree. Something to be said for perseverance.

BrittL · Jun 1, 2020

Hi Jorge,

I'm also a CMA and just went through the whole CSU transfer nursing program process (I will be attending CSULB Fall '20). While I can't advise you on out-of-state programs, I can tell you that the CSU programs are extremely competitive. I have a 4.0 GPA, 90.7% on TEAS, fluent Spanish speaker, and have worked as a CMA for 3 years. With that information, I was accepted into 4 of the 9 programs I applied for. You mentioned having a C in physiology, many programs will not accept grades below a B for the core sciences. Due to the high volume of applicants and limited available spots, it is unlikely to get into a program with out A's in anatomy, physiology, Chemistry, and Microbiology. I've heard that private school programs are much easier to get into, but they typically cost significantly more. A lot of community colleges have great programs and many select students via lottery versus grades.

Since I just went through the whole application process, feel free to ask me any questions. Most programs will not consult or review transcripts of applicants, so your best bet to to ask your own school counselors. Mine were helpful but also gave me some bad advice (primarily incorrect pre-reqs and application processes).

Best of Luck!

Jorge Salazar · Jun 2, 2020

Hi Britt,

Congratulations for your accomplishment! Getting accepted into a Nursing program at a CSU is not easy as you mentioned. Definitely, my best try would be community colleges. I just feel even with my stats is going to still be complicated, but should be easier than a CSU. I found posts created here about programs at schools I’m interested in. I like this forum because everyone shares GPA’s and TEAS score. That gives me an idea of what to expect for each college. I will try to apply to as many as I can. If I have no luck, I will consider out of state. I have read that is not really complicated to transfer a nurse license from a state to another. I guess once someone becomes ADN, everything is so much easier.