Possible new student - any input would be appreciated

cincinursemary · Jul 1, 2012

I have been happy with it overall. I love the 5 week sessions. It makes it go really fast. But I did have a problem getting my transcritps read. I sent them in Nov 11 and didn't get an answer until 2 weeks before I started in March 12.

I am a diploma grad and they are holding my credits "in escrow" until I finish 2 nursing courses (minimum of a B). then they are supposed to add those credits. I have my first 2 nursing courses done, but so far they haven't changed my degree audit.

But according to them, I have a boat load of other general ed courses I have to take. But I'm glad I am doing it. I like EPIC for the most part, and am taking STATS now, which isn't as bad as I thought it would be.

If you start here be prepared for doing everything APA formatting, even discussion board posts.... uggh, that is a pain.

But besides that, I 'm generally OK with it.

LindseyRN86 · Jul 2, 2012

I start in the fall and am very happy so far. Applied late March and was accepted the end of April. Transcipts were reviewed by June and I pretty much know what I need to take along with the nursing courses, they say that by July I will have my DARS done and I will then 100% know what needs to be taken. They are very professional, prompt, and kind. I would recommend them!

Shuggypie, ASN, BSN, RN · Jul 2, 2012

I applied last year in August, my transcripts were reviewed, and I was told I could start in October. I refused to start though until my DAR report was completed, which wasn't until February. I didn't want to start and then find out that I needed alot of classes which wasn't necessary at another college. Luckily, most of my classes were accepted. I haven't had any other issues that weren't taken care of promptly.

VinoLover2030 · Jul 3, 2012

I work night shift and have had great success with this program. There are some requirements I would get out of the way prior to starting. Chemistry, child development,humanities(ethics etc) and Microbiology and junior compostion. It will a be a challenge to get these courses in as they are 14 weeks and you will probably only want to do 1-2 course at a time. Chemistry requires a lab. There is an online lab but it will cost you 1200 for one class. Micro does not require lab but I would take it if offered. Hope this helps

Simply Complicated · Jul 4, 2012

I'm very happy with the program. I started in March. It took a while to get my transcript eval done, but it's really not that difficult to go through and see what you think you will need. They are pretty generous with accepting classes, so unless there is some reason you think a class may be questionable, than you're probably good.

chuckster, ADN, BSN, RN, EMT-B · Jul 4, 2012

I've probably been the biggest complainer about the admission and evaluation process at OU - or at least the most vocal with those complaints. While I believe that my gripes were by and large justified, the end result was more than satisfactory.

It did - and probably still does - take far too long for your final DARS to be completed. In my case, I was in my second course in the program before it was done, close to 9 months after I submitted my application and transcripts. My understanding is that this was not that unusual however, the process seems to have gotten better of late. With respect to the DARS itself, my advisor really did everything possible to ensure that I got the most credit possible. One example: Colleges usually will not give credit for courses completed at the graduate level, and this is the case at OU. My advisor worked with me however, and exempted me from a number of courses on the basis of my Master's degree. By comparison, another school that I applied to insisted that I needed to re-take a number of undergrad courses, such as statistics, and would not recognize the four grad level stats courses (each of which was much more comprehensive than beginning stat) I'd taken as meeeting their requirement.

My experience was not unusal - nearly everyone I've heard from in the OU program has been positive about the end result. There may be other schools out there that also go out of their way to give you a fair and equitable evaluation but I can safely say that OU does a great job in this area. In my opinion, it's well worth taking the chance and starting the program since it's highly likely that your evaluation will be positive.

Good luck with your decsion.

mtsteelhorse · Jul 5, 2012

I agree with chuckster. OU is very generous with transfer credits. Review your transcripts and compare them with OU's requirements. I really like the 5 week format and the program zooms right along. I vent my fair share but I would at any school, lol! I would definitely recommend OU.

JennRN65 · Jul 10, 2012

Well, submitted an application and was notified that I am not eligible for the flexible start program and the earliest start date would be spring 2013. I would be just about done with another program by then.

Oh well!!! Thanks anyway!

chuckster, ADN, BSN, RN, EMT-B · Jul 11, 2012

Well, submitted an application and was notified that I am not eligible for the flexible start program and the earliest start date would be spring 2013. I would be just about done with another program by then.
Oh well!!! Thanks anyway!

A spring 2013 start would (I think) be for the semester beginning in Jan. If you've found a fully accredited program that charges anywhere near the $155 per credit that OU gets and you can complete in 6 months instead of the 12 - 18 months the OU program takes to boot, I say go for it! Best of luck to you.

rninme · Jul 13, 2012

I have been happy with it overall. I love the 5 week sessions. It makes it go really fast. But I did have a problem getting my transcritps read. I sent them in Nov 11 and didn't get an answer until 2 weeks before I started in March 12.
I am a diploma grad and they are holding my credits "in escrow" until I finish 2 nursing courses (minimum of a B). then they are supposed to add those credits. I have my first 2 nursing courses done, but so far they haven't changed my degree audit.
But according to them, I have a boat load of other general ed courses I have to take. But I'm glad I am doing it. I like EPIC for the most part, and am taking STATS now, which isn't as bad as I thought it would be.
If you start here be prepared for doing everything APA formatting, even discussion board posts.... uggh, that is a pain.
But besides that, I 'm generally OK with it.

I am also a diploma grad - and I went through the same thing until I had completed x number of credits. Then instead of rec'ing 40 credits for an ASN - I rec'd 60!