I am currently a third year York University student hoping to apply for second entry nursing at York
only next year (yes I am going through the strike).
Since applications open in November, I thought it would be best to get this forum started. I am hoping to get more insight into the program and I hope current and past nursing students would share their views on the program and how job searching went. Also, what nursing specialties do most York nursing graduates enter as I am hoping to get into public health. Furthermore, share your insights on Humber, McMaster, U of T, Trent, Queens, Western, Ottawa and Nippissing. (I think that is all) and don't forget to include your acceptance GPAs.
Hi everyone! I'm currently a first year nursing student at U of T, so feel free to reach out if you have any questions about the application process or program! :)
Hi everyone! I'm currently a first year nursing student at U of T, so feel free to reach out if you have any questions about the application process or program! ?
Hi! Thanks so much for taking the time to post. I had a few questions:
1) How would you find your class distribution of who got in? In terms of prior experience, GPA, or masters applicants?
2) How is the class dynamic? Is it a community or are most people the type to go to class then go home without any socializing?
3) Are your preceptors in your placements nice? helpful?
4) What is the biggest challenge you've experienced in 1st year that you have learned to overcome?
5) I heard there are many papers due each semester. How long are they in length?
6) Are there opportunities for work/volunteer? (ie. research with profs, etc.)
7) Are you having an overall positive experience? Can you make any generalities in terms of your first year class - ie. are the majority liking the program?
8 ) Was there anything that surprised you or that you weren't prepared for?
9) Why did you want to pursue nursing?
That's all I can think of!
Thanks for taking the time to respond to any of these questions ?
Does anyone know when Queen’s and McMaster are suppose to send their next round of acceptances? I know Western started another round of acceptances last Friday, are they still sending them out? Or do they send them out all at once on the same day?
McMaster's admissions told me on Friday that offers are going out this week!
Hey JessBeeee! Also a first year nursing student, thought I might answer some of your questions ?
1) How would you find your class distribution of who got in? In terms of prior experience, GPA, or masters applicants?
Everyone I've spoken to seemed to be very diverse in their prior experiences. GPA-wise, I can't speak for that since I didn't really ask people about that, and I only know of 3 people who have their masters. (I don't have one, haha)
My final year GPA was a 3.57, and I have 3+ years experience of volunteering in princess margaret hospital and one summer in toronto western. No research experience.
2) How is the class dynamic? Is it a community or are most people the type to go to class then go home without any socializing?
Depends who you make friends with! Some people are very social and love to do things every week, and some people like to go to class and then go home. Everyone is incredibly supportive since we're all in this together!
3) Are your preceptors in your placements nice? helpful?
From my experience, my preceptors were amazing people! Some were a little rough and expected a lot, but it kept me on my toes.
4) What is the biggest challenge you've experienced in 1st year that you have learned to overcome?
My biggest challenge to overcome was stepping out of my comfort zone and being open with getting to know people. I did my undergrad at UofT and I felt the environment was very competitive and borderline cutthroat, but the people in the program are the total opposite!
5) I heard there are many papers due each semester. How long are they in length?
There is a paper for every class and they can vary from only 500 words to 6-7 pages, double spaced. It just depends on the content they want you to include and write about. I find most people have a hard time staying within the limit!
7) Are you having an overall positive experience? Can you make any generalities in terms of your first year class - ie. are the majority liking the program?
My experience has been more positive than I anticipated it to be! The professors are incredibly kind and supportive, and because the class size isn't that large, they remember names! We're all working toward becoming RNs and I feel that because of this shared goal, we're all extremely supportive in helping each other meeting that goal. The things we learn in class are highly applicable to our placements.
8 ) Was there anything that surprised you or that you weren't prepared for?
In terms of academics, I feel that the workload wasn't as much of a surprise because of my previous degree. It's definitely very time consuming but I think we're forced to figure out how to manage that on top of having clinicals twice a week for 8-12 hours each day, depending on the rotation.
In terms of clinicals, I was not prepared for how involved I would become in patients lives. It's often overwhelming thinking about how much of an impact I can make for the people I am caring for (for better or worse). I think with the variety of placements we get, we pick up tips and tricks that we can take along and slowly become comfortable, but it's hard when facing difficult situations regarding people's lives and health.
9) Why did you want to pursue nursing?
To be honest, I didn't think I would be pursuing nursing for the majority of my undergrad until last minute when I had to figure out what to do after graduation. What I knew for sure is that I wanted to do something patient-related. I did some research about nursing and I think I started to become interested in the first line care aspect of nursing. It brought together my interest in disease/physiology with the social/humanity side of me and nursingseemed to be the perfect fit. I don't regret it!
Hi! Thanks so much for taking the time to post. I had a few questions:
1) How would you find your class distribution of who got in? In terms of prior experience, GPA, or masters applicants?
2) How is the class dynamic? Is it a community or are most people the type to go to class then go home without any socializing?
3) Are your preceptors in your placements nice? helpful?
4) What is the biggest challenge you've experienced in 1st year that you have learned to overcome?
5) I heard there are many papers due each semester. How long are they in length?
6) Are there opportunities for work/volunteer? (ie. research with profs, etc.)
7) Are you having an overall positive experience? Can you make any generalities in terms of your first year class - ie. are the majority liking the program?
8 ) Was there anything that surprised you or that you weren't prepared for?
9) Why did you want to pursue nursing?
That's all I can think of!
Thanks for taking the time to respond to any of these questions ?
Hi JessBeeee! coffeeboi answered most of these already but I'll add what I can:
1) How would you find your class distribution of who got in? In terms of prior experience, GPA, or masters applicants?
There's definitely a mix of people; a lot of people had extensive volunteer work and research experience although U of T looks at the entire application as a whole when making their decision. I had a fair amount of volunteer experience (mostly at one pediatric oncology camp), no research experience and a 4.0 GPA and I was accepted in mid-April. I know a couple of people who have Master's degrees but overall I'd say lots of people in the program come from diverse backgrounds and experiences!
2) How is the class dynamic? Is it a community or are most people the type to go to class then go home without any socializing?
There's definitely a sense of community in the class; U of T accepts about 175 people per year so the group isn't that large. ? Many people will share class notes or recordings with each other and are very supportive! Lots of people definitely like socializing and others are more homebodies so you would probably be able to choose either.
3) Are your preceptors in your placements nice? helpful?
Personally, all of my clinical instructors have been wonderful and supportive! I I know a few people whose experiences haven't been as great but overall I'd say the CI's are quite good.
4) What is the biggest challenge you've experienced in 1st year that you have learned to overcome?
Overall I'd say just mastering some of the clinical skills and working on time management.
5) I heard there are many papers due each semester. How long are they in length?
I think there's about ~7 papers overall for first year and most are 6-9 pages in length. Some of these are just essays and some are more 'projects' such as a community health assessment and nursing care plans which require additional templates and charts to be filled out on top of the page limit.
6) Are there opportunities for work/volunteer? (ie. research with profs, etc.)
I'm not sure of any related work opportunities during the school year but there are a few summer employment opportunities. These tend to be very competitive and include the Bloomberg Undergraduate Research Program (accepting ~12 people this summer), and externships at hospitals such as SickKids, Holland Bloorview and Michael Garron. In terms of volunteering, Bloomberg has a Nursing Undergraduate Society (NUS) that people run for positions in and opportunities at a student-run clinic called Imagine. Being in Toronto there's lots of other opportunities at local hospitals and organizations as well. That being said, the program schedule can be quite heavy at times so don't commit to too many things early on as it may be overwhelming!
7) Are you having an overall positive experience? Can you make any generalities in terms of your first year class - ie. are the majority liking the program?
My experience has been great so far! I've had awesome placements at hospitals such as Baycrest, Mount Sinai, St. Michael's and Toronto Western. I think overall people really enjoy the program.
8 ) Was there anything that surprised you or that you weren't prepared for?
I think overall the program prepares you well for clinical, but it's important to take initiative to review your skills and advocate for opportunities to practice them during your placements and make the most of it!
9) Why did you want to pursue nursing?
I always knew I wanted a career in healthcare but wasn't sure exactly what. I volunteer for a pediatric oncology camp and that helped me decide that I really wanted a hands-on career working with patients and nursing was the best fit for that!
minnie_mimi
10 Posts
Hey, I just checked myfile and it changed from no decision, currently under revision to admitted! I didn't get any emails yet though.