jessi78

Does anyone have a concise reference/lecture on this they'd be willing to share for me to review? (pdf or ppt). PM me - much appreciated!!

i agree with my friend AC you should definitely apply. you have nothing to lose.

a graduate anesthesia program is total culture shock - and yes - you really will work harder than you ever have before in your life. make sure it is something that you want and be prepared for temporary but major, sacrifices.

hey - i totally feel your pain. and believe me, it will get worse before it gets better. HOWEVER, look to your classmates for support. i guarantee that most of them, if not all, are feeling the same exact way. the students in my class are so close and we push each other along. if i didn't have their support, i don't know where i'd be. reach out - you're all in it together. study groups are helpful as well as a few venting phone calls. no one understands better than someone going through the same exact thing. it feels like it's never-ending. but when we started this we knew it was about sacrifice and that this program would be one of the biggest challenges, if not the biggest, that we'd ever have to overcome. i KNOW that it will be all worth it in the end. keep on keeping on!

I think that a 3.0-3.3 might be acceptable as long as you had other things to boost up your resume. I think there is a bit of forgiveness on early grades when you were younger (in college)- especially the non-nursing classes. When you make attempts to show how motivated you are at becoming a CRNA: get your CCRN, work in the ICU, shadow CRNAs, obtain strong rec letters - your overall GPA may not hold as much weight. That said, if your science grades are the grades that are pulling down the average, it may help your chances to retake some of them - further expressing your motivation for this endeavor.

call the schools that you plan on applying to and ask them. that is the best way to know that you are taking the correct course. i ended up photocopying the class description to the school just to make sure. for my school, they required a basic phys class - no lab. i ended up taking the 4 credit/lab class because that was all they offered.

not sure if you'd relocate... columbia has an accelerated program for individuals who already have a bachelor's degree who would like to return to school to receive a bachelor's in nursing. last year, 5 of these "ETP" students were accepted into the anesthesia program. They will graduate in May with their BSN, will work for one year in an ICU, then will return to their guaranteed 'seat' in the class for the following year. if you are interested: Columbia University in the City of New York. i think with your credentials you'd be a perfect fit for this kind of program. additionally, it is by far, the fastest route. you may even be able to do your ICU work back home in ohio. they have the security of knowing that they are already been accepted into the CRNA program

as far as i know, she just has nicu experience as an RN. I really like how Columbia's the program is front-loaded. We get most of the didactic portion out of the way at the beginning. I'm a commuter, as most of us are, and it is great that we come in only on Mondays, and Tuesdays. The classes are clustered so we have the rest of week to study. I haven't started clinicals yet but I hear the experiences are amazing and the students feel very prepared when they enter the "real world". As far as salaries - i'd google it and check around. I don't know off the top of my head. I can't even think about it - I just want to get through this program and then I'll worry about that later. as far as i know, the job market is very good. there will always be a huge need for anesthesia providers. I don't think there is any salary during residency -one of my classmates mentioned that he heard a rumor but i think it was a joke. We'll have plenty of time to make money later. for now, Sally mae is supporting us. I don't know anything about Suny. but each school has open houses that you could attend to ask questions. if you haven't worked on the unit yet, and you know that you want to become a CRNA (i'm assuming you have shadowed - if you haven't, i highly recommend that you do - make sure you know what you are getting yourself into!) - anyway, if you know that this is that path that you are leading to, I would prob go for a unit where you will learn as much as you can and get some really intense experiences. If I only had one year.. and I knew that this was what i wanted to do, I'd try to get some open heart ICU experience. it is NOT necessary for all schools, obviously, but it may help give you an edge; also, you don't want to put all of your eggs in one basket. other schools you apply to may not take nicu. (for example, suny may not -i have no idea, but you never know). okay, i have procrastinated way too much - got to get back to studying!

One of my classmates has only 1-2 years in NICU. She is doing VERY well so far - I think she is actually towards the top of the class. Personally, I had 4 yrs NICU and 1 yr PICU - no adult experience - and doing fine. As far as GRE's, I think > 1000 is the norm, however I'm fairly confident that if you have other positive things to strengthen your application, it MAY help decrease it's overall weight. i would still study and prepare for it as if it were the deciding factor - for many programs, depending on the competition for that year, it could be a source of weeding. If you have a powerful statement, and strong letters of rec, a good GPA, etc; that will def help. I think, don't know for sure, but CCRN, RNC doesn't hurt. Good luck!

there are 29 of us at columbia. i have no clue how many actually applied. but i think there are 31 or 32 clinical positions available for us. i'm going to guess that it is always subject to change year to year. don't be scared to apply. i almost didn't. if you really want it, just apply everywhere that is feasible to you. see what happens.

I am very curious/concerned about this too. We learned in Anest Principles that specifically, nitrous oxide is teratogenic in the first trimester - and at the beginning of the first trimester, you probably don't even know you are pregnant! Has anyone dealt with this situation at work? did you just take OB cases for the first trimester/or the whole 9 months? For many/most/all of us, life is on hold until we graduate - but then we start working... how do you handle this situation?

hi - i am in the early stages of my front-loaded program - so i know i have a lot of time to worry about this. But i was wondering how everyone felt right before starting their residencies - and how they were at the beginning - as far as clinical skills. Did you all feel confident about intubating, placing blocks, starting central lines/ a-lines - and if not at first - how long did it take before you felt better and were more accurate? As a nurse, my scope of practice has always limited me to peripheral IV lines. Of course, I realize the time will come in the clinical lab when we are taught all of these things and will have more than just ACLS to practice intubation - before ever entering the hospital. But I was just curious how you felt after your clinical lab time, before entering the hospital and after you were into the residency itself. Thanks!

woopsie - i think it was 8 weeks - but regardless, still a long time

Clinical at UMDNJ starts very early in the program - I believe in the first semester; That said, the process of getting a nursing license in NJ via reciprocity - can take an excruciating amount of time. My anesthesia director, who's original license was from NY, stated that it took 8 months to get a license in NJ! Imagine starting the program at UMDNJ and not being able to begin clinicals with the rest of your class because you didn't have a nursing license...

excellent recommendation letters help too. if you have a good repoir with one of your attendings or another CRNA, i'd speak with them about writing a letter on your behalf. A powerful statement of purpose is also beneficial. if you haven't already, shadow a CRNA, and describe your experiences - how it affected you, and further influenced your desire to pursue this field. Look at schools that have a lot of positions available. The schools that can accept a lot of SRNAs have multiple clinical sites where they can send their students for clinical hours - Many schools are especially competitive because they just don't have the affiliations with enough hospitals to provide the necessary clinical experience that are necessary to sit for the boards. Some CRNA programs are competing with medical programs (anesthesia residents) for learning experiences for their students.