Nursing Schools around Cincinnati/Dayton Area

CrufflerJJ, BSN, RN, EMT-P · Apr 3, 2012

I'd encourage you to consider the University of Cincinnati's Accelerated Pathway (accel BSN) program. Should you go that route, work HARD to prep for the GRE test. Waaaaaay back when I went through the Accel Pathway program (2007-2008), UC's Graduate Scholarship, which covered ~60% of tuition, was based solely on your GRE score. If you had a score >1100, you were eligible. I'm not sure if this is still the case or not.

Unlike some nursing programs, I found that UC's accel BSN program did not go out of its way to thin the herd. If you performed at a reasonable level, you would make it through the program. If, on the other hand, you relied on Lady Luck and were unwilling to ask for help, you were screwed. Out of ~48 who started in my cohort, 47 finished.

pbolton70 · Apr 3, 2012

I appreciate your reply. Looking at their programI see there is 3 phases and after phase II you get your BSN. How long did it take you to phase II (BSN)? Was there a long waiting list?

CrufflerJJ, BSN, RN, EMT-P · Apr 4, 2012

I appreciate your reply. Looking at their programI see there is 3 phases and after phase II you get your BSN. How long did it take you to phase II (BSN)? Was there a long waiting list?

You'd need to contact UC to determine the current waiting list. I dunno. That being said, I was on the "wait list" (~#15, as I recall) when I first applied. Things worked out in my favor, and I had a slot available for me when I started the program.

Phase 1 is the pre-coursework needed before you start the actual accel pathway program. In my case (since I had a prior degree in Chemical Engineering), I started my prereqs 9/2006 and completed them 6/2007.

Phase II took from 6/2007 - 8/2008. The final quarter was just precepted clinical time. Actual coursework was finished by 7/2008, and my clinicals/precepted hours were finished by 8/2008.

It goes pretty quickly.

routtl1 · May 22, 2012

Hi, I was recently accepted in UC's accelerated pathway and was wondering what your opinions were on the program? I've been accepted into all three phases and am finishing my phase one coursework this summer and fall semester. How long did it take you to get placed into a phase two cohort? I know that sometimes they fill up pretty quick. Also, just curious, what did you end up doing after finishing the program? And would you recommend the program to others? I see that it took you just over a year to finish phase two; how long did phase three of the program take? Did you also work part time while completing phase three and was it manageable? Thanks so much for your help! I really appreciate it!

-Lisa

CrufflerJJ, BSN, RN, EMT-P · May 23, 2012

lisa -

while i was on the waiting list one accepted to phase 1, i had no wait at all by the time i was ready to start phase 2. there was an open slot available for me.

i've not done any phase 3 work, and am currently working in an icu.

note that the commens below are based on my 2007-2008 experiences. i'm not sure if things have changed over the past 4-5 years.

the uc accerated pathway program is decent. not perfect, especially in terms of communication from the college to the students. this is frustrating at times. my best advice would be to suck it up & keep moving forward. knowing what i do now, i'd still go through uc's program again. for the most part, i found the instructors helpful and the program director (who may be retiring at the end of this year....waaaaah!) simply exceptional.

the fact that my cohort started with 48 students and graduated 47 should tell you something about the program.

one warning i'd like to pass along - if your plans are to pursue uc's women's health np program for your phase 3, good luck in lining up a clinical site/preceptor in a women's health/ob-gyn setting. a member of my cohort recently emailed me the following:

i have concerns for myself as i have been out of school for a year and a half and i have only 2 quarters (or semesters now) left to complete the whnp program and i have been xxxxxx (excuse my language) around by uc throughout the whole process. my issue is finding an available preceptor for clinicals in a women's health/ob-gyn setting. i have tried numerous times calling just about every practice in cincinnati and nky about 4 times around now without any luck. most practices refuse any students anymore and others don't bother to call back or just don't want any students with them. anyways, i have voiced my concern to numerous people at uc con (advisor, program manager, and other) and they basically shrug it off and say "keep trying". my advisor is an issue as well as i have talked with 3 people in the last year who all claim to be my advisor but they all say someone else is, so it's just been a miserable journey through this whole thing and i can't seem to get anyone at uc to empathize or assist me at all. i really want to just finish somewhere else or go somewhere else altogether for another degree but i feel like i will be xxxxxxxx myself if i never finish. i just am so fed up with uc i can't stand it.

routtl1 · May 30, 2012

Thanks so much for responding! I really do appreciate your help and will definitely take your advice into consideration!

CrufflerJJ, BSN, RN, EMT-P · May 30, 2012

You're quite welcome!