Pasadena City College RN program

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Hi,

I've heard that it's not recommended to work while enrolled as a student in an RN program. I'm applying for the Spring Semester at PCC and while I do intend to leave my current employer should I be accepted, I was wondering if there were people who made the attempt to work part-time or possibly in the summer.

Any opinions?

Thanks!

Hi everyone! I reapplied for PCC's RN program for FALL 2012. I had applied for the spring and I truly thought that I'd get in with my grades (at least their counselors led me to believe so), but was denied. What really perturbed me was that several of my classmates that did get in the coveted program had an overall GPA of 2.8, and grades of Bs or less in the four main classes used for selection into the program!! A close friend of mine spoke to one of the women that worked there and she told my friend that their computerized system follow an ethnicity quota. I suppose that could explain why students with low GPA's were able to get into the program. Anymatter, I hope that I get in somewhere! This is driving me bonkers!

According to their info, they do a random lottery for all the candidates that meet the 75% cut score using the Chancellor's formula. You can get above 75% with a 2.8 GPA depending on the other criteria. Most community colleges around So Cal use some kind of lottery so it's hard to avoid.

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So, here's the Chancellor's formula:

SCHOLASTIC ELIGIBILITY:Scholastic eligibility is determined through a statewide approved formula (California Community College Chancellors Office Pre-requisite Validation) which calculates the student’s probability of successfully completing the ADN program. The formula uses the following criteria:

1. Core Biology GPA – all Anatomy, Physiology, and Microbiology courses taken at the college level.

2. Core Biology repetitions – the number of times a student has repeated a Core Biology course including withdrawals.

3. English GPA – all credit English course grades regardless of the level of the course.

4. Overall GPA– the college GPA as it appears on college transcripts.

5. Students must have a minimum score of 75% designating the probability of successfully completing the ADN program, to be eligible for admission.

So, I (and other applicants) worked hard for my 3.9 GPA and grades of As in all the core classes used in the Chancellor's formula. How do the classmates that I know, (one with a C in anatomy, and Bs in her other core classes) with GPAs lower than a 3.0 and barely passing grades in the core classes, become chosen over students with near perfect scores? My friend, who tried to get in with PCC, has a 4.0 and she was denied. She went to their office and spoke to someone there who told her that the computer-generated list is based off an ethnic quota. This bothers me because PCC's nursing councilors had me convinced that my grades would get me in, not the color of my skin. Hopefully, my friend and I will get in somewhere.

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i'm not saying it's right or wrong either way. i understand the frustration. i was just pointing out that you don't need straight a's to score a 75% with the chancellor's formula (there are excel sheets out there that help you figure it out). you can have an overall gpa of less than 3.0 to still make the cut. because they use a lottery after they've identified the 75+ percenters, it's probable that someone with a 2.8 gpa would get in over someone with a 4.0 gpa. it's just the luck (or bad luck) of the draw. the community college system is not merit based in most of la county.

maybe there is an ethnicity quota just like some people think there is a male quota in these programs. i can't say with any certainty. but i would think that in a city with a large latino population like la, you could find enough candidates to meet that quota without having to go below the 75% cut off score. who really knows what happens behind those nursing department doors? but you just gotta keep trying and hope for the best. that's really all you can do.

good luck to you.

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Awww... I'm sorry. Yeah, it's really frustrating and I'm sure it's the same for all applicants that have been denied acceptance into the program. The woman that worked there told my friend that they divide up the 60 applicants to something like 10 asians, 10 native americans, 10 males, and so on. But it doesn't matter. Forgive me for feeling bitter about the whole process. I have to keep telling myself that it's not personal, I just didn't get picked via lottery. It's also my fault too because I put all my eggs into the PCC basket when I should have applied where ever I could. So, I applied (again) to PCC, County, and I'm in the process of applying to National University. Thank you for specifying how the lottery system works. I hope that we both get into a program. Good luck to you too.

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So apparently, PCC is going to change their way of selecting pre-nursing students. I guess they (not certain who "they" are) are not happy with how the nursing director is handling things. Hopefully, the changes will be a good thing.

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Wow, no updates?

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I know! Seriously, they are taking so long.

Has anyone sent them TEAS scores?

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They don't need it.

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Don't know if anyone is still reading this but has pcc sent out any acceptance emails for fall 12?

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I haven't received anything from them. You can probably call them to find out what's happening. I'm not considering PCC anymore since I got accepted somewhere slightly closer to me.

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I haven't received anything from them. You can probably call them to find out what's happening. I'm not considering PCC anymore since I got accepted somewhere slightly closer to me.
congrats willowita on getting into a better program for you !
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Thank you and good luck!

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