UW BSN 2018

[Hk2017]

Hi! I'm applying for the UW BSN for next fall. This is my second time applying to the program and I really want to get in! I thought I would start a discussion so we can all help each other out since the application comes out this month and the essay questions are already out!

A little about myself:

-When I applied for this fall my nursing prerequisite gpa was a 3.0 and I retook one class and I believe now it is a 3.2 which isn't that great but they accept anywhere from a 2.4-4.0 for this fall so I am not too worried about that.

-When I applied for this fall I only had 120 healthcare experience hours and when I apply for next year I'll have well over 1,500.

-I'm also doing a study abroad program in maternal and child health in December before the app is due and this year i managed to get a job at Mary Bridge Children's hospital and recently got hired at Seattle Children's. I also got certified in neonatal resuscitation.

Thanks all! I can't wait to hear back and get some advice!

[Concernedtaxpayer]

Attention Applicants to the 2018 UW BSN Class!

It has come to the attention of prospective students, parents, alumni, taxpayers and legislators that UW School of Nursing may be dysfunctional. It is the perception of many that the leadership of the UW School of Nursing is out of touch with the reality of the real world and nursing as exists today.

The proposed reduction in the 2018 BSN "Cohort" or class size is a public relations nightmare and potential legal problem for the University. The School of Nursing represented until April 16th that the Fall "Cohort" would be ninety six candidates. If the explanations and statements provided in this discussion by representatives of the School of Nursing are accurate than they have a problem...big problem.

Either the administration of the Nursing program is incompetent or they purposely misled the applicants for this year's cohort/class.

What can be done to reverse the proposed reduction?

1) Get Organized! - Time is of the essence and the applicants on the wait list need to band together and take action. Make a visit, in mass, to President's office and ask her to intervene in this matter. Broadcast the group gathering at the President's office via Social Media and notify media outlets of the planned gathering. Skip the Dean of the School of Nursing and go straight to the top! Contact your local legislator and talk to anyone that will listen.

2) Ninety Six(96) Slots - No Less! - Demand the proposed reduction be postponed or eliminated completely. It is ridiculous that a University the size of University of Washington can only accept and graduate ninety six BSN students in a given year, let alone reducing that number by one third. Competing Universities graduate double that number without impacting the quality of their programs.

3) Keep To The Facts! - Many of you have toiled long and hard to gain admissions to the School of Nursing and feel betrayed and angry. Channel that frustration and anger into action. Present your position to the administration and anyone that will listen in a rational, but firm manner. Do not accept the new proposed limits!

Points To Consider

1)The University of Washington does not like bad press or public relations, but it has a major PR problem that could affect its future ranking and enrollment for the School of Nursing.

2)The University of Washington has a potential legal problem due misrepresentation of the 2018 Cohort/class size. A certain administrator announced at the proctored essay the anticipated class size would be ninety six, but now that has changed to sixty four. The administration purposely misled applicants about their chances of admission and retroactively changed the size of the cohort/class.

3)Individuals on the wait list who are not accepted into the program have legitimate legal grievances regarding additional educational expense and potential loss of income. Many on the wait list will have to either re-apply and start the process over or transfer and delay obtaining their BSN. Each year of delay is a loss of income and experience for future nurses.

4)The decision to change the cohort/class size was arbitrary, misleading and potentially fraudulent. Your opinion matters and future applicants should be warned about the deception and dishonesty.

The University of Washington should be ashamed of its action in this situation and needs to be held to account by the all the vested parties including parents, students, taxpayers and the legislature.

The University should be serving the needs of the citizens and taxpayers of the State of Washington through education and training of willing BSN candidates. It is failing to serve the needs of humanity through its actions.

Make your voice heard - contact the President's office, media outlets and the state legislature - Help yourselves and prevent future abuses!

[missbeccajenny]

I greatly appreciate the information but I still think it's unprofessional and disrespectful to have not addressed the applicant pool sooner. It's damage control instead of having the initial decency to update the applicants of the changes.

[jaylang]

As someone who was also waitlisted, I think you should speak directly to the School of Nursing first instead of posting comments out of frustration online... It's definitely understandable to be upset, as I was too at first. I contacted them through the asknursing email, met with them Carolyn Chow, and feel a lot better after understanding the situation from her directly rather than hearing things from other people.

It's a lot more than just "having more space"; they have to try to schedule clinical rotations at hospitals and other healthcare sites, while other nursing schools and programs in the area are doing the same thing. The problem with the nursing shortage is that it is difficult to find nurses who are willing to be a preceptor and help teach nursing students since they would be juggling caring for their patients while teaching a student on their shift. In addition to this, it can be risky as some patients may be upset or even threaten to sue a nurse or hospital for allowing a student to provide them care.

The SoN is definitely trying their best to figure out what to do. They would not have made such a long waitlist if there wasn't even the slightest chance of having more spots open up. Try to be optimistic that you even made it this far knowing that 600+ people applied. If you had known that only 64 people were going to be admitted before applying, what would you have done differently on your application? These are people who reviewed your application, at least you were not outright denied.

[elm72]

@jaylang

I agree that what happened with the curriculum and the available spots was unfortunate but beyond anyone's control. It is not as if the admissions committee WANTED to cut 32 spots. I've talked with professors from other nursing programs, current nursing students, and BSN graduates recently and they've all mentioned how difficult it is to secure clinical spots for students while competing with other programs. But we're all also just sad and upset and confused and I think posting our frustrations online is what's helping us get through all this (through some kind of shared understanding). That being said I appreciate the fact that you posted what you learned from Ms. Chow here. I think it further clarifies the situation (that it's not as simple as a curriculum revision).

I also do NOT think that skipping directly to the UW President (over the dean of the SoN) to file some sort of legal action is the right decision. We may feel disrespected but I don't think that calls for disrespect towards them. At the bottom of my heart I wish they did not cut the available spots this year (of all years) by about a third, but at some point we are going to have to respect the decisions they made under these uncontrollable and unfortunate circumstances. Who knows, they might just get through the entire waitlist this year (we shall see).

I think both the applicants and the SoN can use this unusual situation for future reference. Although it was likely unintentional, a lot of the distrust and anger came from the lack of initial communication between the SoN and applicants. I think I may have said it in a previous post but this year's situation may help the SoN to improve the handling and communication of information for future years. But @jaylang like you said, as applicants, we should be thinking about how we could improve our applications for next year, now that hopefully most of us have cooled down a bit-I know I have (I took on a few new hobbies to get my mind off things because at this point we just have to wait and see).

[chrismpark]

I would like to take this time to retract my comments made in the past week and clear some things up with everyone that is willing to read this.

I understand that a lot of us are on edge over what has transpired. The sudden reduction of the Fall 2018 cohort from 96 to 64 is definitely a huge shock to those of us on the waitlist. After meeting with Carolyn Chow, I had the opportunity to converse with her and figure out what exactly happened this year.

First of all, I want to clarify that she and everyone involved in the recruiting committee were working tirelessly to figure out a way in order to admit as many students as humanely possible. This was something that was entirely out of their control, yet they have been constantly holding meetings and planning on how to remedy this situation. In order to even attempt to admit the full 96 student cohort, they would have had to improvise and ask CVS, Walgreens, etc. to act as a clinical site, and that would be a disservice to the students and the faculty. We as applicants would want nothing but the absolute best student experience possible, and I can assure you that the faculty have tried everything that they can.

Secondly, I encourage everyone on the waitlist to at least give Carolyn or someone in reach a chance to explain to you exactly what happened. Meeting with Carolyn has helped me grasp the magnitude of the situation and also helped me to understand that we are not the only ones suffering. Yes, the news about the cohort size being cut down is rough and seems disappointingly unfair. But without understanding the context and circumstances that led to this situation, we should not be attacking the UW administration for something that they could not have controlled.

I am not forcing anyone to change their minds and agree with me. Knowing that I'm stuck deep in the waitlist still hurts. I tried my best, and I am sure every one of you did as well. All I ask is that you keep an open mind about this situation and at least reach out to learn about what has really happened.

[NICURN2020]

Thanks so much for all of the information. I hope they can find a way to remedy this situation.

[ytoz]

Does anyone know if the waitlist moved up? I might try to contact them today!

[acraig2]

Does anyone know when the people on the waitlist will hear about their position now that it is after the 23rd when we were supposed to let UW know if we wanted our spot on the waitlist, I'm guessing that was also the same day for the people that got in to accept or deny their letter.

[hra7]

@acraig2 I do not know about any movement or when we are supposed to be contacted, but the intent to enroll was also due on the 23rd for people who were accepted.

[almondmj]

Has anyone received any updates?

[elm72]

I'm fairly certain that we have to actively seek out the updates (they most likely do not just automatically update us each time).

[hra7]

I called today and it looks like only one person did not accept their offer because I only moved up one spot.