Anyone got into any WA State Nursing Programs this Fall? (Or on the process of applying)

OliveOyl91, BSN, RN · May 29, 2017

I have only applied to Lower Columbia College in Longview, WA, so far. I finished all my prerequisites there and if I'm not successful this application cycle I will be looking into other schools for the next one as well. I am scheduled to take my TEAS test on June 16th and currently have a 3.5 GPA from LCC. I will know a few weeks after taking me TEAS if I made it into LCC's Fall quarter cohort or if I was wait listed and placed into their Winter quarter cohort.

As confident as I am with my grades and testing abilities, I wouldn't have a chance of getting into Clark College's nursing program in Vancouver. You pretty much need a 4.0 in order to get in and there are so many people that apply each cycle. I work as a CNA in a hospital in Vancouver and often having Clark nursing students on my floor. I live on the Oregon side of the river and have looked into Clatsop Community College and Clackamas Community College for their ADN programs, but am also looking into larger BSN programs at Linfield and WSU.

I'm hoping to do well on the TEAS to help boost what my GPA may be lacking.

mlcong19 · May 29, 2017

It seems like nursing schools are getting more and more competitive every cycle and it stresses me out. The TEAS VI really dragged my points down. I wish I can take it again but I already took it twice last December. It sucks that I have to wait another year to re-take it.

If I don't make it this year -- Fall or Winter, I am thinking of pursuing Respiratory Therapy since both programs have kind of similar pre-requisites.

Anyway, Good luck! I hope you get accepted at LCC. :)

OliveOyl91, BSN, RN · May 30, 2017

Thanks! :) It's a good thing that they have high standards, but for folks like us who are still well above the set standards, it's difficult to land one of the few spots available. For such a high need for nurses, there aren't very many program spots available. A coworker of mine was just accepted into a respiratory therapy program in Vancouver. She had to take the HESI exam. I can't remember which program at the top of my head, but she's very excited.

Thanksforthedonuts, BSN, RN · Jun 2, 2017

All I can tell you is to run FAST AND HARD from Seattle Central! Their program has fallen to bits in the past two years and they leave their students severely lacking in preparation. I haven't gone there but I almost did! I am so so so glad that I rejected their acceptance into the program.

I have heard good things about BC and know at least a dozen nurses who have graduated from them.

Why don't you consider universities? Have you taken the general prerequisites that most universities require? You will need to eventually if you want to bridge to a BSN anyway.

Thanksforthedonuts, BSN, RN · Jun 2, 2017

My intention is not to bash Seattle Central, but this is what I have been hearing from multiple sources. Maybe there is a user on here who has actually gone there and can give you greater insight.

Ghosty1981, ADN, RN · Jun 4, 2017

With your Shoreline application did you have volunteer hours? What was you point total for this application if you don't mind me asking.

I'm guessing that without volunteer hours you are hovering around 100 points, and if that is the case you can make it up by volunteering for 100+ hours and maybe retaking one of your lower A+P classes. This past quarter had a higher than typical cut-off, but they usually hover around 103 points according to the director.

One nice thing about Shoreline is that you won't have to worry about your test scores, so if those are dragging you down you might want to retry this route.

61005 · Jun 8, 2017

First I would like to tell you all to NOT give up! It took me a year to get into nursing school and making myself as competitive as possible. I did end up re-taking the A&P sequence to get A's and this time around I applied to 5 schools and got into 3. I applied to Clark and a few in the Portland area as I live in SW WA. I ended up giving up my spot at Clark as although it's a great school and super difficult to get into I did extensive research and realized schools on the other side of the river (they are just as competitive) have an excellent reputation in the healthcare community and higher NCLEX pass rates than Clark. I would suggest before accepting a spot anywhere make sure you do your research in these areas. I know several physicians and nurses who practice at multiple area hospitals and they have all said hands down PCC and CCC nursing students are by far the most trained and prepared.

As far as respiratory therapy I also applied to MHCC's program for a fall start and was accepted. It's a great program and it's a great school and it was a tough decision for me but I ultimately decided to follow my dreams of becoming an RN. Keep in mind potential job opportunities when deciding between nursing and RT. You are correct that many of the prerequisites are similar to the nursing pathway. I know at my interview at MHCC they mentioned that in Oregon there were only 2 community college's that offered this program and one of them was eliminating theirs so it made the applicant pool even higher at MHCC. I would be SUPER cautious about for profit schools as many times your credits earned there will not transfer should you decide to pursue your degree further. An example would be receiving your ADN and then wanting to move forward to get your BSN you essentially have to start all over. This was confirmed by WSU-Vancouver RN-BSN nursing program.

Sorry for the winded reply but just wanted to provide some information as I've been there. Don't give up on your dreams, you might have to re-take a class but you will get into a program and all this stress and hard work will pay off- trust me!

OliveOyl91, BSN, RN · Jun 9, 2017

I really wish that Washington community colleges would hurry up and all put to practice the "Associate in Nursing - DTA" degree. Clark College is "in the process of adopting" the state-wide degree. I attend Lower Columbia College and they already have that degree (and its prereqs) in affect. Even though my prereqs are all done at LCC, if I wanted to apply to other ADN programs in Washington, I would have to complete another two or three prereqs.

mlcong19 · Jun 23, 2017

Hi Thanksforthedonuts, I heard from a few people that Seattle Central has a very disorganized program. Do you know in terms of what? Is it the scheduling? The teachers? Lesson plan?

The reason I'm curious about all these is because I just got an acceptance letter from Seattle Central this morning and I only have 8 days to think about whether to accept the spot or not. But hearing all these negative things about the college makes me have second thoughts.

I also got waitlisted on BC, prob is I'm on the 15th rank... so I'm not really so sure about getting into fall cohort.

So it's kind of a tough decision for me right now.

mlcong19 · Jun 23, 2017

I only got 84 points. One reason could be my volunteer hours; I didn't have that much (only 60 hours, I think) and my GPA isn't really as outstanding compared to other applicants.

Idk about universities, they seem to have more complex pre-reqs compared to other colleges. Also, I want to get my ADN first, get licensed and work as a RN, save up, get some work experience and proceed to BSN eventually.

Ghosty1981, ADN, RN · Jun 24, 2017

I hate to bring bad news, but 84 points definitely won't get into Shoreline even with full volunteer hours (6 points). You could retake your classes and up your points, but you would likely be better off applying to other places.

This isn't to say that you're not qualified for nursing school, just that Shoreline's admission system is stacked against your particular case. If you got accepted to Central, why not just accept? Is there a penalty for dropping it if something better comes along?