NVCC Class of 2014 Meet & Greet

mrdarkwhorse · Jun 8, 2012

My name is W. David Jenkins I am 24 years old

Traditional Track

1 1/2 years at NOVA

My goal is at least a masters degree

No previous degree yet (but I have pretty much all the credits needed for a gen. studies)

NAS 161 I took at NOVA Alexandria with Cindy Luongo & 162 I took at Annandale with Frasinel (he was awesome) I also took some courses at Lord Fairfax when I lived in Winchester

I have two dogs one of them is on the verge of 70 pounds so a lot of my free time is spent at the dog park

I have wanted to be a nurse for the past 5 or 6 years now but I never had the drive to try for it till recently so I spent the past year and a half getting all the required course work done and sent my application in on May 2nd (LOL). I have read through some of the past forums on this site and I saw some people say that close to half of the applicants who get in eventually flunk or drop out so hopefully that won't be you or me. I really can't wait for orientation so that I can meet my future classmates. I signed up the the 6-25 MEC orientation so maybe I'll see some of you there even earlier. I look forward to becoming a nurse with all of you...

copacetic · Jun 9, 2012

Hey, guys!

I'm Kelly and I've been stressing about getting accepted since January when I submitted my application. What a huge weight off my shoulders to get that acceptance letter!

I've been taking classes at NVCC since 2010. In that time, I've managed to complete all of the pre- and co-requisites, so, amazingly, I only have the nursing classes left to take.

Right now, I work for a large defense contractor. I'm not sure what's going to happen when I break the news that I'll be starting nursing school in the fall. :-/

Soooo... I'm in my 40s (but still feel like I'm 18!) and am a single mom with three kids (11, 13, & 15). My goal is to work in oncology. My mom and my little sister were diagnosed with ovarian cancer a little over 2 years ago. 'Nursing' them through surgeries/chemo/sickness is what really got me interested in nursing. The nurses that took care of them ran the gamut between fantastic to downright scary. It hit me like a ton of bricks that what I wanted more than anything was to be the kind of nurse I wanted taking care of my sis/mom.

So, here I am 2 years later and soooo excited for this Fall!

Just like mrdarkwhorse is wondering if he's the only male in the group, I'm also wondering if there are any other, um, old folks starting in the Fall?

See you guys at orientation!!! WooHoo!!!

MG0907 · Jun 9, 2012

hello everyone!!!! :)

name: molly, i'm 20 and i am a certified phlebotomist, but i have not worked yet because i focused on school this year to get into nursing :) i have also worked in hospice.

track: traditional

years at nova: 2, i graduated high school in '10

career goals: rn, right now. eventually np. (taking it one step at a time!)

previous degree(if applicable):none

classes taken at nova: all pre- and co-requisites and some gen-eds, i took 161&162 with dr. massie- he is an angel! he taught straight to nursing students giving us so many situations and nursing techniques!

these past four weeks+ of waiting was awful!

i cannot wait for orientation and for the semester to start!!!! but i know its going to be a hard 4 semesters and it'll be very demanding and i know previous classes have had a lot of drop-outs and fail-outs but i think we can all do it!

i can't wait to meet y'all on the 27th!! :w00t:

@meliflor i do not think we can buy books at another place or site. my friends who are in, and have done the program have told me you buy what they tell you to buy.... at the bookstore on orientation...-_- $$

@ copacetic i know you are not the only "old folk" , my very good friend who was accepted also is in her 40's with kids and 40's isn't old!!

Marmite75 · Jun 9, 2012

Hi everyone,

I am Marian, and I have truly enjoyed getting to know you over the last few months.

I am a 37 year old mother of two - both kids (5 and 9) will be in school this coming fall, so I am hoping to have more time to devote to my studies.

I currently hold a BA in Graphic Design, but have always been interested in human biology and health. I am so excited to finally have an opportunity to study nursing.

I have been attending NVCC for 2 years now, completing the pre-reqs and some co-reqs for the Traditional track (I am currently taking HLT 250, PSY 201 and PHI 227). I will have to still take PSY 202, CST elective.

I would love to get my BSN and maybe a MSN in Public Health so I can work for the CDC, but that is a way off. Right now, my focus is on getting my ADN and passing the NCLEX.

So, I guess I will be the other 'old lady' in the group. I am glad to hear there are some other moms, and folks with some life experience under their belt.

I cannot wait to meet you all in person at the orientation!

meliflor · Jun 9, 2012

Great! Nice to meet you all! Mr. Darkhorse, I think there is another male who was also accepted into the program! Copacetic and Marmite, you are not old!! I am so happy we have such a diverse class! Can't wait to meet you all! MG0907 thanks for your response, I wonder how expensive it will be... Are you guys all using financial aid or paying for the books out of pocket? I just want to know if it is possible to use financial aid, I think not, but I guess I'll have to bite the bullet and wait, or just pay up front. Nice to meet you all again! Still anxiously awaiting for the blackboard access! lol

LocallyGrown · Jun 10, 2012

Hi All-

Congrats to everyone who has gotten in! I'm very excited to get started on this season in my life!

Name: Liane Guarnieri

Track: Traditional

Career Goal: ADN for now (with an interest in further education in the future)

Previous Degree: No previous degree but a few classes have been taken

Classes Taken: All pre-req's and I'm currently taking HLT 250 & PSY 201 (already took Med Term)

Like the above said, my name is Liane. I'm a 35 y.o. stay-at-home mom of 3 kids (13, 11, almost 6). I have been at home since I was 8 months pregnant with my first one and have loved every minute of it. Having said that, it was and is a lot of hard work but worth it. I'm very grateful to have the opportunity to be at home with my kids. Now that they have gotten a little older and the youngest is in school, I felt it was time to get back into doing something for me. I've always had a passion for health and matters involving people, so I thought this would be the perfect time for me to pursue that career path. Besides taking care of the kids and home, I do a little bookkeeping on the side (very minimal hours per month).

I am thankful that I will have fellow students that are my age so I don't feel like the old lady compared to the younger ones. Even though I'm 35, I still feel like I'm in my early 20's! I'm glad that we are all very diverse and hopefully we can learn from each other.

Good luck to everyone and see you all at orientation! I'll be coming back the night before from our family vacation because I would NOT miss this opportunity for the world!! Also, I've signed up for the July 13th session.

aj123 · Jun 10, 2012

Hi all-

I thought i would join a facebook forum but i guess no one knows how to do it? hahah (i just got a facebook today!)

My name is Maria, I am 26 yrs old, married no kids.

I also took Massie for my NAS classes and he is a very good teacher. I really did learn a lot! His classes are very tough but you really do get out of the course knowing your money is worth it. He is one of the professor in the nursing program so he knows the structures.

I graduated hs 2005 and did not go to college right away. I did not know what i wanted to do so i just worked. Then my mom had breast cancer right after highschool and just like COPACETIC, i knew i wanted to be a nurse! I took care of my mom during all her treatment until she got better. I started taking prereq 2010.

This is my 2nd time applying to the program so i am estatic when i got the news in the email. I will be using loans since i did not get any grant this year.

I also have a full time job! and a part time job in the weekend.

After getting my RN, i eventually want to start working and get my bachelors degree while doing that, CRNA is what i want to become eventually and i want to also pursue research - cure against breast cancer.

I cannot wait to meet everyone!

I am going to July 13th as well!

See you all!

and CONGRATULATIONS again!

mrdarkwhorse · Jun 10, 2012

Yeah Etrips is the only other guy who has signed on that I have seen.

mrdarkwhorse · Jun 10, 2012

Hey I created a facebook page it's "Northern Virginia Community College RN Class of 2014" NVCC Nursing was already a group so I figured a long name was better than nothing. Anyway I guess let me know if someone else has already created a group that you all have already joined, so I can join too.

LPN-RN2012 · Jun 10, 2012

Hi Everyone,

My name is Teresa I am 38 years old, married with 2 kids 9 and 13. I have my LPN license which I got in 2010 but have never worked as an LPN, I decided I really wanted to be an RN so decided to just go to school because everyone I talked to said once you start making money (I didn't work while at LPN school) it is really hard to stop making it to go back to school and I really didn't want to wait any longer!!

Waiting on that acceptance letter was the longest wait ever and I didn't even submit my application until May 14th but that is over now I am just so excited to get started, I am so happy to see so many "older" people in the program even though like everyone else I don't feel old but I am!! :)

I am not sure yet what nursing I want to do, I do know I am getting my BSN as soon as I have my license. I am paying for all my school out of pocket I am so so lucky to have a supportive husband!!

I am really looking forward to meeting everyone and beginning this amazing journey. I am signed up for the August 3rd session because I will be gone for the first ones!!!

I will look for the facebook page and join!!

mrdarkwhorse · Jun 10, 2012

I am glad that we have such a diverse dynamic so far in this class, not that I don't like people my age or younger. I am not from NOVA and I don't know many people here other than my girlfriend who teaches high school and is attending George Mason for her masters in education, so I am looking forward to the chance to make some real friends with similar interests and goals. My parents live in Winchester, and my sister just moved to Cincinnati to begin her Med-Peds residency. Are most of you from here (or NOVA in general) originally? I grew up overseas in southeast Asia, western Asia, eastern Europe and England, but I was born outside Chicago (though I do not consider it my home) so most of my friends are spread out around the world. I moved back to the states in 2009 and began my journey towards nursing in 2010. Is anyone interested in creating a study group? I know it's a little early to be thinking about it, but I would like to be as prepared as possible for the trying times ahead. I love learning, but school has never been my favorite thing in the world. It has been so different over the past year or so because I am learning something that truly interests me. Becoming an RN will be tough and will require a lot of effort, but I know that in the end it will be worth it and satisfying. I am not so worried about my grades (of course I prefer A's) as I am about actually learning the content, so I can do the best possible job when caring for patients in the future. I heard from a classmate during the spring semester who is going to the Marymount accelerated program that they cannot get less than a 78%. I don't know if that means per semester or per test(i think that would be a little extreme, but anything is possible) or a running 78% throughout the semester. Does anyone else know what NOVA requires in that regard?