Nursing Student balance Preventing NCLEX-RN attempt

[Nursinglife090]

I’ve excelled through my ADN program achieving high honors. Completed each courses with A’s and/ or B+’s throughout my rigorous nursing program. However I’m unable to take my HESI exit exam and sit for my NCLEX-RN because of my outstanding balance. I’ve worked so hard to get to this point just to be prohibited from obtaining my dreams. All of the stress, tears, and sleepless nights just to get to this point. Just to be informed by the bursars office that until my balance has been paid in full. I’m ineligible to sit for my HESI exit exam, and my transcripts along with degree will not be sent to the board of nursing. Transcripts have to be sent to the board of nursing from the institution you’ve attended. To verify you’ve attended an accredited institution to be deemed eligible to sit for the NCLEX-RN.

Any information on grants or scholarships would be really appreciated. Like many other students personal loans aren’t an option right now. I feel like I’ve exhausted all my options and I’m uncertain as of what to do at this point. Thanks in advance! Positive responses only ?

[TheLastUnicorn]

A cohort student of mine didn't take our ATI exit exam. Instead she got a copy of her transcripts sent to her, left them sealed into the envelope, and forwarded them herself to the BON with her application. I think, for our state this was technically the way out of state or foreign NCLEX takers were supposed to apply to sit for the exam, but, it worked.

However, I don't know if since you have a balance if your school would be willing to send a copy of your transcripts to you.

[Rionoir, ADN, RN]

Look at it from the school’s perspective - if they let everyone take the exam before paying their balance a lot of people would just skip out. Was this your balance just from this past semester? Most schools don’t let you continue if you hadn’t paid off a previous balance.

Anyway, you’re going to have to really be willing to make some big sacrifices here. When I went back to school the first thing I did was sell my car and downgrade which freed up a bunch of cash. Also start selling anything that isn’t nailed down - you can replace stuff. If you’re able to move in with a friend or family member and take a couple of jobs I’d do that too. Dinner might have to be beans and rice for a while as Dave Ramsey would say. Cancel anything with a monthly bill for a while, downgrade your phone plan. If you can’t move in with someone, then find the cheapest place you can rent like a room above someone’s garage. Make this bill your sole focus in life until it’s paid off.

And hopefully your school has a good pass rate...

[myoglobin, ASN, BSN, MSN]

On 12/2/2019 at 6:33 AM, Rionoir said:

Look at it from the school’s perspective - if they let everyone take the exam before paying their balance a lot of people would just skip out. Was this your balance just from this past semester? Most schools don’t let you continue if you hadn’t paid off a previous balance.

Anyway, you’re going to have to really be willing to make some big sacrifices here. When I went back to school the first thing I did was sell my car and downgrade which freed up a bunch of cash. Also start selling anything that isn’t nailed down - you can replace stuff. If you’re able to move in with a friend or family member and take a couple of jobs I’d do that too. Dinner might have to be beans and rice for a while as Dave Ramsey would say. Cancel anything with a monthly bill for a while, downgrade your phone plan. If you can’t move in with someone, then find the cheapest place you can rent like a room above someone’s garage. Make this bill your sole focus in life until it’s paid off.

And hopefully your school has a good pass rate...

Nothing against Dave Ramsey (his plan is great if you can execute it). However, as someone who has earned 70K for the last decade and still owes 150K in student loan debt I can tell you that everything I own would bring less than $100.00 at a garage sale or on Ebay. Also, I already practice intermittent fasting and only eat during about a three hour window daily (and then only low carb) and also fast for 48 hours every weekend during my RN shifts. Thus for me "beans and rice" would be a rare treat. My point is that "getting beyond this situation" may require the poster to go well beyond conventional approaches to consider some things that some might consider "radical". Examples might include:

a. Joining the military and taking advantage of their educational bonus programs.

b. Becoming a bartender and moving to an area where they can earn great money working three "double shifts" per week (places like Orlando for example near Disney World).

c. Starting a business. For example our "pool care lady" came to Florida from the UK after her husband died and having been a stay at home mother of five children. She learned "pool care' and has built a business over the last five years earning around 200K net and which is now growing further (as she has now hired some employees).

[BSNbound21, BSN, RN]

So many questions. 1) How did you get "high honors" with "As and/or Bs"? 2) Like others, why did you remain at a school you when you had no idea how you were going to pay for it? 3) You do understand that regardless of whether or not you sit for the NCLEX, you're going to have to pay that money back.

$8K is nothing for the education to become an RN. There are people on this board who pay close to $100K for that.

It sucks, but people have to pay for school. I don't know what sort of world you live in where you're hoping that your student debt will disappear. That's not really how it works.

My advice: You have to take out a personal loan. That's the only way, that's what other people do, and that's how you repay debt that you don't have money for.

[Cowboyardee]

On 12/1/2019 at 12:54 PM, Nursinglife090 said:

That's what I'm so worried about taking such a long time to come up with 8k+ and decreasing my chances of passing the nclex because of the amount of time to come up with the money. I'm not able to take out a loan nor do I have a co-signer it's just me literally.

Thank you!!

If you're a good student and you study enough, you will be able to pass the nclex whether you take it now or in a few months. Keep studying, and you'll be fine.

If you have a shred of credit and you look hard enough, you can find some institution willing to lend you money (possibly at a pretty terrible interest rate, though the sign on bonuses you mention being offered in Michigan might solve that problem).

If you're able bodied, and not currently taking care of sick/needy children or other loved ones, you can find ways to make 8k quickly by thinking outside of the box and giving up on your personal comfort for a few months.

Apologies if your life circumstances truly prevent you from trying these options. If that's the case, consider asking anyone who you think might be sympathetic for help. Sometimes people surprise you with their generosity if you just put it out there.

But otherwise, it sounds like you might be looking for an easy solution to a problem that requires a hard (but thankfully temporary) solution instead.

Best wishes.

[Horseshoe, BSN, RN]

On 11/30/2019 at 6:08 PM, Nursinglife090 said:

All of the stress, tears, and sleepless nights just to get to this point. Just to be informed by the bursars office that until my balance has been paid in full. I’m ineligible to sit for my HESI exit exam, and my transcripts along with degree will not be sent to the board of nursing.

You sound like you are surprised by this. Of course you must pay for what you have received. If they didn't have this leverage over the students, a boatload of them would have no incentive to ever pay what they owe. Surely you can understand that, right?

Your choices seem to be get a loan, get a job, or get someone to just give you money. I don't see how you are going to nab a scholarship for education already received.

I guess you could try a crowdfunding site. Stranger things have happened.

[caliotter3]

On 12/2/2019 at 2:35 AM, TheLastUnicorn said:

A cohort student of mine didn't take our ATI exit exam. Instead she got a copy of her transcripts sent to her, left them sealed into the envelope, and forwarded them herself to the BON with her application. I think, for our state this was technically the way out of state or foreign NCLEX takers were supposed to apply to sit for the exam, but, it worked.

However, I don't know if since you have a balance if your school would be willing to send a copy of your transcripts to you.

No school I ever attended would release transcripts with money owed the school. Like getting your car back from a mechanic after getting repairs, without paying the mechanic. They have something you want, you should give them what they want. Otherwise very few would pay up at the end.

[Mergirlc, MSN, APRN, NP]

2 hours ago, caliotter3 said:

No school I ever attended would release transcripts with money owed the school. Like getting your car back from a mechanic after getting repairs, without paying the mechanic. They have something you want, you should give them what they want. Otherwise very few would pay up at the end.

^^^ This is so true. A few months back I had to request a transcript from a community college I went to and it even states this on the transcript request form. This is what my college has on the actual printed and online form:

"Transcripts will not be issued until all monetary holds or obligations (Library, Financial Aid, District Office, etc.) are cleared."

So unfortunately, it just comes down to you either getting a loan or working until you can make the payment. Don't feel bad or embarrassed about going out and getting a regular non-nursing or healthcare job to pay. Sometimes you just have to hussle in life and this is one of those times. Good luck to you

[hppygr8ful, ASN, RN, EMT-I]

On 12/1/2019 at 9:10 AM, Nursinglife090 said:

I'm hoping that I can find an
organizations thats willing to pay off my nursing graduate balance. In return I'll sign a 2 year contract stating I'll work for the organization for 2 years. There's so many organizations here that are offering 7500 k- 15000 k bonuses in Michigan. I'm hopeful that the sign on bonus can be applied directly to my balance. Some organization here give new grads 90 days to obtain RN license. I don't qualify to take out personal loans. I owe 8500k to my school.

I am not trying to beat the OP up but it's seems like some sort of modern idea that people should be able to go to college for free - or that somehow my tax dollars should be used to pay-off someone's education. I was born at the tail end of the baby boom and such a notion would never had occurred to us. I worked through college all three times I went and paid back every cent within three years of graduating. Lest you think this was all a million years ago I go my RN in 2002. As a homeowner I cannot risk liens being placed on my home and property. There are always methods to pay what you owe and responsibility sucks. My own son will turn 18 in January and because college is so expensive he plans to go to work and attend community college for two years. He will receive some help from us but he wants to do it on his own and I say more power to him.

What I do not understand and as others have pointed out is how the predicament occurred with OP knowing it was coming. Surely there was plenty of advance notice - so it is time to get a job or two and as has been mentioned cut all unnecessary expenses including that morning cup of Star-bucks and get it paid off. My son was looking at the military last hear and for a High school graduate he was offered a twenty thousand dollar sign -on bonus payable on completion of boot camp.

This may be a option for OP.