West Penn School of Nursing?

U.S.A. Pennsylvania

Published

Has anyone attended the western Pennsylvania School of Nursing? If so id like to know if you liked it and why and would you recommend it to me as a male?

and you are right....application is due April 15th. I just registered for the April 14th test date. I just hope I can get in without my grades for this semester done yet. Otherwise, I could be looking at fall 2011. ugh.

What classes are you taking that you need to get in? See I was planning on going to CCAC's nursing but I missed there test by a point and you have to wait 6 months to retake it and that would mean me starting in the Spring and I just dont wanna do that. But I have my AP's done ( well i'll have AP II done this summer) and I'm in Micro now and have others because they were required for CCAC so I'm hoping to have those credits transfer so I"ll be taking core nursing classes, which mayb a class here and there that I might need. But that so exciting I'll kinda know someone Saturday! My mothers coming with me just becuase she recently graduated from nursing school but she went to CCAC so I just wanted her to see this program and what not. Wheere in Pittsburgh are you from? I'm originally from West Homestead by the Waterfront and went to Steel Valley graduated in 08... But now I live with my fiance in Millvale so were really close to west penn... Are you planning on living there at the school? And I"m stressing over this test:uhoh3:. I was so close for ccac so it's really hard to imange failing again. But one good thing about this test is that you can re-take it and in my case it would be in May. And that would suck going in fall 2011 but hey you gotta do what you gotta due?

Okay so let me start off by explaining that I was a music major at Seton Hill University for 2 years before I decided I wanted to be a nurse. I basically started going to WCCC(westmoreland county community college) this past year, and I haven't taken high school Chemistry, so I started there. I planned on going to WCCC's nursing program, but I failed Chemistry when I took it because my work schedule conflicted so much that I missed class all the time. I'm taking Chemistry a second time around this semester. It's easy, I get it, I have an A and go to every single class now. I won't be done with Chem until May 5th. That's the problem. :( As for other course I've taken, other than 62 credits worth of music education courses at Seton Hill, the only course I've taken that apply to nursing are General Psych, Developmental Psych/Human Growth, whatever you want to call it, Nutrition, Sociology, a computer class, 2 English courses, and right now I'm taking Human Biology with is basically a less hardcore version of A&P. I have yet to take A&P I or II or Micro, but honestly, that's all I have left, and I love science so it's not going to be a problem for me, as far as I can see, which is good. So I've found out that West Penn has the nursing students take Philosophy and maybe an Ethics class, but I'm pretty well prepared other than those things. I regret failing my Chemistry class so much. If that due date were like, a month later, I'd be in no problem. :(

And! I took the entrance exam at UPMC Shadyside school of nursing and I was in the 98 percentile for everything except for science, which I missed by 2 points, so I understand! It's funny how you end up finding someone with the same situation! lol I was so mad, and they make you "proove remediation" by taking college courses, so I took 2 sciences courses this past semester, so if I need to take that test again, I guess I will. I don't know...it's all very stressful. Hopefully Saturday will clear some stuff up. Sorry this is so long! lol

and I live in Delmont, PA, about half an hour away from Pittsburgh, so I would definately want to live there. My mom's been a nurse with the West Penn Allegheny health system for 20 years, and she works at Allegheny General and used to work at West Penn so she's coming with me on Saturday too! Yay nursing mommies! lol I graduated in 2007 from Franklin Regional. I'm so excited about possibly living there and going to school and taking time away from waitressing just focusing on school. It'd be soooooo nice, ugh.

Ya I totally get your situation. Before CCAC and deciding I wanted to become a nurse I wasted a year in Culinary Arts school at WCCC and the apprentiship program at Nemacolin Woodlands Resort. So I totally get your stressed and feel like you wasted time. I feel the same way. But ya I also have general psych and human growth and development psych and english and a computer class. But I figure I'll take the Nutrition either this summer or with west penn. And as far as ethics I think I'm gonna wait and take it at west penn as well. Do you live all the way out by WCCC? I remember driving out there that sucks bc it's a long drive... And ya my work schedule isn't so infering thank goodness.... I work at western psych as a student nursing assistant... it's basically a certifed nursing assistant job but 1. i don't have the piece of paper. and 2. They get to pay me less. But I love all the experience i'm getting as well as all i'm learing about psych nursing. And I don't think CHEM would be a prolbem just try and explain your situation I mean you'll have it done it's just gonna be getting your transcripts there. I also thought about taking Shadysides test but I'm gonna take west penns' 1st and try and get in there... because shadyside also starts in december 2010. And ya it is funny how you find someone with your same situation but it's also good because as my mother said when she was in nursing school.... you need a nursing buddy...LOL

hahaha yes we need nursing buddies. It's great that you're doing that student nursing assistant job...That's going to look INCREDIBLE as experience on your application! I'm hoping that on Saturday I can talk to someone and explain the situation, I won't lose hope, I've been working on this for a year...it'd be nice to not have to sit around and fill up my schedule with more nursing-related courses. I just want to go in, and do the whole nursing school thing. If I have to wait, it'll be okay I suppose. WCCC is about a 25 minute drive for me, but I just go to one of the branch campuses that is closer. WCCC's in a real pain in the butt area, it's too far, right on. lol. I don't know, I think this will be so much fun and I love nursing already, I feel like this was my calling and I let the fact that I love singing get in my way of going to school for nursing right out of high school. But, we all make mistakes. Hopefully I can get some mercy and have things go my way. I'm so glad I talked to you! I would've gone on thinking that the application deadline was May15th...i swear it says that on West Penn's website. Maybe someone should inform them about that. Maybe it'll all work out. I HOPEEEE!

Ya things will work out. I'm sure they'll understand, they women I always get on the phone I believe her name is Jackie is always so nice and willing to answer any questions without making you feel like your wasting her time, which is how I feel when I call CCAC. And I have told her that is says May 15th and I guess she hasn't relayed the message. But oh well. So your planning to live at West Penn? That'll be fun and I think it's like only $600 per 10 wk term which isn't bad at all considering apartment rentals around the city. I'm luck enough my fiance owns our property so we don't have the rent mortgage business. And your like right in the Heart of shadyside and close to a giant eagle and a bunch of little food places. Also port authority can get you anywhere...lol that is if you don't drive. But I'm planning to use their shuttle serivce and free parking at the one lot they listed in the brocherre thing bc parking in oakland and any of those areas in ridicilous i know i work in oakland and pay and arm and a leg....lol and ya i always felt nursing was mine too i just wanted to cook because i loved it so much.. i still do i just saw 1st hand the life style that a chef has and i don't want it at all... I mean it's like no set scheudle and no set $ and you don' t have time to do anyhting. I mean i love cooking but i need strudcture and one day i hope to have a family and being a chef that would not be able to happen at all. But I too am so happy I'm talking to you it's nice to see someone else in my same situation and that like i'm not the only one... as i used to feel like...Lol there's more of me out there!!!...LOL

Heyyyy! when exactly did you end your chemistry class? How close to the deadline were you? I end my Chem class on May 5th and the application deadline is May15th....I'm worried about the same situation that you were in...I can't believe that!!!I'm so worried! I just applied and I obviously can't finish the class any faster because I'm taking it this semester. jeez. And I didn't know that the school was on probation either...that sucks!

I want to say that my chem class actually ended after the deadline. I can't remember exactly when the deadline was though, but my class should have ended around when yours is this year (with final grades being due a week later, and transcripts being sent after that.) The deadline may have been in April.

yikes. things aren't looking good.

Yeah Alyson, either way, I'm so excited. I cook and waitress at a restuarant, so I know, it's terrible. Bad hours, no set times, the pay isn't that great, it's just a huge pain in the butt when your lifestyle has to revolve around "omg I donno when I'm gonna be scheduled to work" so it's just irritating for me. that's the last thing I want to do, be stuck working at the restaurant. I love cooking and I love people though. lol. I was a music education and sacred music double major and i basically decided that if I was going to be successful, I'd have to be the best ever and on top of that, there are NO jobs in music because they keep cutting down the arts in schools. My best bet was getting a job working at a church where they can't afford to pay very well and they depend on you way too much as a musician. It was stressful. After all that, nursing seems like it's rewarding and a good career choice, and god, let's talk about how many OPTIONS you have! There are a million different things that nurses can do. I want to eventually be a CRNA. I'm getting a little ahead of myself, but hey, my hopes are high.

Sara,

Ya those are my hopes to.... To be a Certified Nurse Practioner.. But for right now RN is good? Have you also heard any of these rumors that the schools on probation? I'm not sure what they are or anything but I was reading some older posts and saw that so I'm not sure. I hope not or if they are we'll be the class to get them outta if :) lol. But besides that I'm excited and can't wait till Saturday to get and see more things.:) and ya I hated not knowing my schedule or even worse what my paychecks gonna be. And ya there are so many options with nursing it's ridicilous.

yes, I've been hearing lots of rumors, I hate to say it. I read some in older posts....

My mom worked as a nurse at West Penn specifically, the hospital where the school is based out of, and she said that it's one of the only hospitals to ever get Magnet status, which is like, resembling excellence in nursing and saying the nurses love working there. They are up for reevaluation of their Magnet status this year and my mom says she's not sure if they'll get it this year, because apparently a lot of things have gone wrong, I'm not exactly sure. But that makes me sad. lol I don't know, I'm just really excited for Saturday, I can't wait to see how things are down there. If i can't get in this semester, perhaps I'll be there next year when you're a senior and you can be my mentor :) lol maybe that'll work out better that way, who knows. I keep thinking, I don't have my A&Ps or Micro done yet, maybe it's a sign that I need to finish those before I go into nursing school. Haha

Oh! and I decided that if I can't go into nursing school this year because of my dumb old chem class, I'm not going to waste time. I'm gonna go take a CNA course at CCAC, and work as a CNA to get some experience before I go down to West Penn. Maybe I'll go work there as a CNA. haha....oh gosh, who knows, really. :)

saturday needs to get here now!!!

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