Gateway LPN Program 2018

nursemama13, LPN · Aug 9, 2018

THe bookstore has our scrubs or you can get them from Apparel Pro in Tempe. They have our dress code list. You can wear any plain Hunter Green scrubs with the school embroidery on it.

ayvee · Aug 9, 2018

Hunter green? Barf. I think I am just going to bite the bullet and order the books new. My textbooks will be almost as much as tuition this semester, but I don't want to get a book missing the access code or get stuck in the rush, either.

Thanks for you help! Good luck to everyone here this semester :)

NurseDreams001 · Aug 9, 2018

It's almost that time. I'm a little nervous but excited as heck. Good luck soon to be nurses!! :happy:

nursemama13, LPN · Aug 9, 2018

I know, Hunter green! I wear that color as a PCT at the hospital I work at so I was really hoping it would be a different color haha. I hate the idea of spending $600 on books, but I think its inevitable in this case because of the "codes".

Things could change, but I have a friend in the evening cohort who says you guys are in class 3x a week for the first few weeks, then drop to 2 evenings to add a weekend clinical day. He just finished 1st block and said it was challenging, but not impossible. Excited to keep in touch and see how everything goes!

I just wish I knew which clinical day Day cohort will be assigned. I am antsy and have already put in my work schedule for next month so I hope it all works out okay! See you guys Monday evening for orientation!

NurseDreams001 · Aug 10, 2018

I too had to wear hunter green for work. If only they didn't have the company logo on them I could save a few bucks. Hopefully, we don't need any books for block 2. Looking at it that way doesn't make it seem so bad. *shrugs*

ayvee · Aug 10, 2018

I called the bookstore to verify they had the books/scrubs in stock and she said we also HAVE to get a tote for the program. Did anyone else hear this? She said it's $118, but "will last you the entire length of your program". I wanted to use my Harry Potter backpack for school.

uawildcat2009 · Aug 10, 2018

ayvee,

Are you kidding me? A tote? As in...a bag? For $118!?!? No way! That is crazy! How can they make you buy a $118 bag?

ayvee · Aug 11, 2018

I'm hoping that she is mistaken, I don't want to spend more money. I am going to wait until orientation for the tote, but will probably get the scrubs this weekend.

NurseDreams001 · Aug 11, 2018

It states on the FTPN application a fee for Books/Tote. I know for sure it's needed for the RN program. I would just wait until orientation to find out definitely. The tote contains supplies i.e foley kit, ppe, IV start kit, fake meds you would draw up, etc.

Laburns20 · Nov 13, 2018

Hello, I know that some of you were waiting to see if you got into fall 2018 or spring 2019. I got the email that i was not accepted into spring 2019 but hopefully fall 2019 I will be. Please give your feedback if you have started. :-)

Also what are the morning, evening and weekend schedules like?

ayvee · Nov 13, 2018

Hey Laburns!

I'm in the program now and I really like it! My instructors (class and clinical) all have their own separate personalities, but each of them has been able to teach me something, so that has been helpful. I am in the nights/weekend program. I attend lecture from 5pm-9pm twice a week (Monday & Wednesday) and right now have clinical from 5:45am-6pm every Saturday. Initially we had lab every Saturday, from 8am-4pm, but once that was over, clinicals were then put into place. Two Fridays I also had clinical at a different site, so my schedule was kinda crazy--lecture twice, then clinical, then lab! But, I made it and otherwise feel like my schedule was distributed well enough that it was manageable stress. There have been a few days where lecture or lab was switched to a day time schedule (8am-4pm), but that was maybe 3 or 4 times & I knew about it early in the program, so plenty of time to get the time off from my job. I will be getting my next block schedule tomorrow, so I can give you a general idea of what that might look like, if you are curious. I anticipate it may be subject to change, but I think it will give me a good starting point.

My feedback would be to just be prepared to study. There is a lot of reading, but it's doable. I feel like I may feel less stressed if I didn't work 40 hours per week, so I think I may scale back a bit next semester. I am also taking another class on top of this, so that could be it, but the general consensus is we all feel a bit stressed, so who knows if that is even a large factor. Make connections with your classmates, I've had great study groups during lab that helped a lot. Oh, and you do need that tote that I was surprised about in earlier posts, haha. I just overlooked it in the paperwork we got, it was a lot at once, but yes, it is $118, and is used many times during lab, so it's not something you can skip on purchasing. My only other tidbit I can offer is if you are interested in applying for the RN program after this, finish your pre-reqs and work on your co-reqs now, it's tough doing the program plus other classes with it, like myself (and a few others).

Laburns20 · Nov 13, 2018

Hey Avyee,

Thanks a ton for responding. That helps a lot. I was really worried about what the schedule would look like but sounds very doable. I'm glad you like the program. Thank you for the tips. Please continue to keep us updated with how things are going for you. I wish you the best of luck!