michewa

k... kinda figured that's how it all went down, but wasn't for sure so thank you so much for being patient and spelling it out for me :) whew! can't even tell you how relieved i am right now!!! what a weight off my shoulders--at least until i have to start paying it all back, but for the substantial payoff of a more enjoyable job and bigger paycheck it'll be worth it. yay!

ok, so i feel like a bit of a moron in that i'm still a little confused about all this. from reading through the posts, i know there's money out there and available, but am confused about the cap the school has put on loans and whether i'm technically allowed to borrow anything over that. Even though i qualify for alternative loans the school's handbook states "Alternative loans cannot exceed the Cost of Attendance, minus Federal Stafford loan eligibility, minus any other sources of financial assistance the student may have received." looking into the sallie mae loans, even though some don't require school certification and the check can be dispursed directly to me, it still said they were required to make the info available to the school. ...just don't want to plan on the money and get into trouble for it later.

just thought i'd add my two cents in... as a travel nurse i've worked in several different hospitals around the country and agree that many MDAs get their panties in a bind when it comes to CRNAs. working in recovery areas, i'll be the first to admit that--at some hospitals--there was a collective groan emitted whenever we saw a CRNA wheeling towards our station because we knew the patient would still be intubated, not even close to awake, and the neo/cardene/dopa was most likely being titrated on a roller clamp. in short...just a mess that shouldn't've been. at other hospitals, it was just the opposite--the CRNA patients were well managed regardless of their acuity and the MDAs were bringing out trainwrecks of their own making only to disappear as soon as the patient was dumped. Most of the time it was a mix of the two, and generally--at most hospitals--if the CRNA was competent, knowledgable and did a good job she/he had the respect of their peers. case in point, while working in a surgical clinic a coupla years ago there were a couple of fresh-outta-residency MDAs freely asking 'old' CRNAs for advice and to 'take a look' at some of their cases. While i'm not saying the anesthesia world is perfect and free from prejudices of any kind, i am saying that there are many well-respected CRNAs and many times (from what i've seen) the level of respect granted goes hand in hand with competence and mastery of the profession. it may seem unfair that CRNAs have to constantly 'prove' themselves to gain respect while the MDAs are granted it from the get-go related to the initials behind their name, but it's not a hopeless cause and a mentality that can't be changed. so instead of griping about it and pointing fingers discussing how 'unfair' it is, start by being competent and then get involved and change the dynamics

hey all...have actually accepted an offer for a school in nashville, and so didn't interview with tcu or wesleyans but have had several friends that did. just know you're basic icu stuff as well as things specific to your unit (example: i worked in a neuro/trauma unit and they asked a coupla people to trace the path of csf through body and what clinical symptoms you'd have if there were trauma/damage to different areas of the brain, etc.) be able to interpret abg's and swan numbers knowing the interventions to make to correct the problem as well as the mechanism of action of ACLS and unit-specific drugs. as for missing the boat, have known people that both found out within weeks of their interview as well as some who didn't find out until march/april, and some that were put on the wait-list but still got in. if you can be flexible, mark that you're willing to go to any clinical site on your application as that does help (especially if you get put on the wait-list) hope that helps...

thanks for the tips...very helpful :)

ok, so i just got accepted to anesthesia school and was extremely excited...until i read the student handbook and came across the phrase "the maximum amount that can be borrowed while attending is $55,500." inital thought...cool, i'll have 20k left to live on. then my basic math skills kicked in and realized that left me just over 700 bucks a month....and unless i plan on eating ramen noodles while living in my tent on the river bank, that just ain't gonna cut it. (and, of course, there's a little clause in there as well about being forboden to work during the course of study). i had just assumed that i'd be able to borrow enough to cover ALL my expenses. so my question is, do personal loans (that don't get paid to me thru the school) count towards this total? or is it more of a 'don't ask don't tell' policy. it really freaks me out to think i may not be able to even start the program b/c i don't have $30-40k just hanging out in my bank account. read through all the postings (which were extremely helpful) but still haven't quite figured the answer to this out...

i just got accepted to a program in tennesse and am incredibly freaked out about all this loan crap. after looking up the max amount allowed to be borrowed by the school, it works out to only being left with less than 700 bucks a month to live on. how-in-the-world do you make that work?! am terrified that even though i got accepted there's no way i'm gonna be able to go because i don't--and won't--have enough cash in the bank to cover living expenses for the 28 months i'm in school. crap crap crap! i do have credit card debt and was planning on getting it paid off before starting school, but am now wondering if i need to just keep the cash in the bank and pay the minimum (*cringe*) amount just so i have enough to hopefully buy ramen noodles and keep the electricity on in whatever shack i can afford (a tent down on the riverbank, perhaps...) how do y'all do it? really. any suggestions before i sign up to be a proud member of the armed forces, because that seems like the only verifiable option at this point...