jbazoola

Hi LilyRose! I'm just graduating from Columbia and I'm thinking about applying to the NYU Residency program. Do you know if they have a september group every year? That's when I think I'll be available to start working. Do you know what the hours are in the beginning? Is it like 9-5 in classroom mostly for the 1st few months or do they get you out on the floor right away? Also do you know if they have residency placements in the ED? Thanks

Hey All, So I took the test this morning. I was so nervous/excited the night before that I barely slept at all. I left my house without my keys or cell phone and only realized after I was sitting there answering questions that I had forgotten to eat any breakfast! Still when the screen turned off after 75 questions I felt AWESOME! I know other people say that if you only got 75 then you probably didn't pass but I don't agree at all. I felt great at the end of the test Now maybe I'm totally misguided and perhaps on Friday I'll find out that I need to sign up to take it again but IMHO having it shut off at 75 means you either were very obviously passing or failing. And I can't imagine feeling so confident through so many of the questions (or at the very least being able to eliminate 50% of the possible answers) and still being able to fail so soundly in only 60 questions (not counting the 15 experimentals) Anyway, keep the faith everyone. Hopefully I'll be posting in a few days with rocking good news

YAY!! Me too Stef. Sorry we got a little off topic here. But on the positive tip, I am SOOO excited to get started. and I can't wait to meet everyone face to face. My last day at work is this Friday and I am so thrilled!! to leave this job behind. See you in 8 days!!

I really do not want to participate in this discussion. Long ago I realized the best way to stop a bully is to ignore them. But I have to respond to this, briefly. of course I know their is a variable rate on my loan AND how that works. Of course I understand that interest accrues and is added to the principal of my loan. Of course I have done the math and realized what the future holds for me regarding paying off the loan. I'm not an idiot. I'm also not 22 (not that this would make a difference). I also did not get my loan from Sallie Mae (notoriuos for less than stellar loan rates and practices). If your goal is to help us because you want us to avoid the problems that you have had, then I appreciate your concern. It is kind and brave of you to attempt to get to us information that you feel we may not have. Thank you. But we get it now. And all the continued obstinance on your part is only detracting from your original well meaning intentions. enough. please.

Hi Beacon Street (im from boston too!) Do you recommend danskos? i've read some people suggest them because of ease of cleaning but they look so uncomfortable. I've looked at merrils which look more comfortable but also more like sneakers which may mean less easy to clean. what do you think? thanks

Suddenly I feel very very old. I think it is awesome how many people we have in our class coming right out of undergrad. It's been so long since I've been in school I feel like it's going to take me awhile just to get into the swing of things again. I'm turning 35 this April. It's funny because many people had said to me that I would probably have slimmer chances at columbia due to my age but at the open house I remember them saying that their class from the previous year ran from 22 to 60! I really am looking forward to working with a diverse group from all kinds of ages, backgrounds, professions and genders (yay! 10% male population). I think it can only help our growth as nurse leaders and add to our understanding of the populations that we will serve. woohoo!! can't wait to meet you guys on the 7th.

Hey guys, Sorry i've been out of the loop. Actually been on vacation in san fran and utah. likely to be my last vacation now that school is so close to starting. I haven't gotten my package yet since i'm out of town but i do remember reading on 2 of the old threads related to ETP about the stethoscopes. The advise there was basically to go for the cheaper route since a super pricey stethoscope is likely to get lost at this point and also doesn't make that much of a difference for what we are doing right now. Also regarding the uniforms EVERYONE made clear that you DO NOT want to go with the skirts (unless you have to for religious or other reasons) because they are absolutely hideous. those old threads are definitely worth looking through. I think one is called meet and greet. another poster listed the names for them or you could just search for columbia ETP. In fact some of those soon to be etp'ers from those old threads have been kind enough to drop in on our conversation and add advice. SO! excited. although I still don't know how I'll be paying for this. But still, can't wait!!

Hi WantAccel believe me i know how you feel. 2 years ago i decided i wanted to change careers and become a nurse. But there was no way I could leave my lucrative job in order to fit in the scheduling of all the pre-reqs (my first degree was in arts so I needed a LOT of prereqs). I decided to go with the online thing. Not all the schools I was interested in would accept them, and some schools gave me a bit of the run around with one person in their office saying they would accept them and another saying they wouldn't. But at 3 schools they would and boy was that worth it for me. I was able to take the classes online in rapid succession and not have to leave my job. I even went away on vacation and was able to bring along my laptop so i could keep on top of the classes. The one issue is that the online often costs much more, but for me i realized that it was worth it for the convenience and because i didn't have to leave my job it worked out that I could afford the more expensive option. and. . . it worked! cuz i just got into the program of my choice less than 11 months after starting my first pre-req online. i start school in May

hi everyone, speaking of housing. I guess i'll put the word out there that i will be looking for a roomate for when school starts. I figured that in many ways it would be better to have a roomate with a common schedule and overall goal at any rate I live in a very nice and quiet neighborhood with backyards and easy access to the train. it's a straight shot on the 7 into the center of manhattan. However, it's like about an hour away from columbia door to door on the subway. Driving it's probably half an hour with mild traffic (but good luck parking up there). the room is big, the house is nice, and I can't overstate how cute the neighborhood is. safety is also very important to me and i can tell you that i have never once felt truly unsafe walking home from the train. They actually train beat cops in our neighborhood so you sometimes see them walking in pairs late at night. thought i'd put my feelers out there for anyone who may be interested. I'm definitely going to need a roommate to bring down the rent here while i'm on this fixed income with the financial aid package they sent me today. :specs:Side note: for anyone who hasn't gotten theirs yet, I emailed him today and just asked, very nicely, if there was anything else i needed to do in order to receive the package and got it like 20 minutes later I will be at the March 7th event at the school. If those of you who are from out of town are interested in seeing the place, send me a message.

yup me too. filled out the fafsa no problem. I think it will probably be staggered as far as when we get this stuff. i'm going to go ahead and not worry about it for now.

" Any ETP applicants also considering Molloy college??" I was planning on applying to molloy and pace. Originally stonybrook was the most attractive to me because of the quick progression to RN and then the option to continue for a masters in a specialty. plus it was so much cheaper there. But they wouldn't accept my pre-reqs through distance learning credits. I had a very hard time trying to work my work schedule around the limited classes with seat openings at local community colleges. I like molloy. they work with mercy hospital I think. out on long island. and they made the process for applying relatively easy to understand. they have a combined degree bachelors and masters program. And pace also has one. they say they encourage students to take time off between the bsn and masters to work at a hospital and hopefully arrange tuition reimbursement. your considered accepted to the masters whenever you take it (i don't know if their is an outer limit on that). I'm not sure the same is true on molloy. I have tons of stuff on the other schools from doing research. I know that pace and molloy have June application deadlines. if anybody needs more info or even catalogs or other documents from the school pm me.

Hi Scott, I'm sorry you didn't get this one but it sounds like you've got the right attitude. Just keep working as hard as you've been working and you'll get in to a program. I was just at a party last night speaking with a woman who has been a nurse educator and leader for more than 40 years. She was saying that it is literally thousands of qualified people each year that are being turned away from programs just because there simply is not enough space. Of course we've likely heard this all before but it was pretty amazing to hear it from someone who has been in the trenches all this time. I guess the lesson was, even really good candidates can be turned away from programs due to lack of availability. Scott, I'm sure you are a great candidate, I'm sorry Columbia lost out on the opportunity to work with you but I'm sure another school will be thrilled to get you. Good Luck!

I'm actually just getting ready to start a nursing school program but in our handbook it actually lists the rules of hair styles while we are in clinicals. Hair has to be pulled back off the face and off the shoulders. We also are not allowed to wear any type of earrings but studs and no rings but a "simple wedding band". It sounds like while in school these rules are pretty strict , when you get out into the professional field, things may be a bit more relaxed depending on where your working. have you found this to be true?

hey there everyone, to answer lovetotravel - no financial aid package yet. I didn't fill out my fafsa until January 12th or 13th. I wonder if that will delay things a bit. and fnp4me - I'm from boston originally, now live in the most beautiful neighborhood in sunnyside queens. originally went to emerson college for fine arts bachelors. took my pre-reqs through u of phoenix online which was super expensive and sort of a weird distance learning experience but was the only way to manage it with my full time day job. and btw, I still have all my fingers and toes crossed for those of you who haven't gotten letters yet. I know you guys are going crazy. May you have super fast letter carriers who bring you good news!

Hi Anniepants, Yes I will definitely be at the visiting day. Do you know if we get to meet students on that day? Are you currently in the BSN section or already on to your master's work? I am really looking forward to hearing from students who are in the midst, what their experience has been and what tips they may have for us newbies.

[quote=kevkev1986; Just curious, are you guys expecting letters from other schools? What is your preference, and where do you really want to end up at? I'm waiting for decisions from Yale and UCSF :icon_roll I was looking only here in New York since I am absolutely in love with my neighborhood and not wiling to move. The 2 others that I was considering were Pace and Molloy but was holding off to apply until I found out about Columbia. This is really my first choice since it has the 3 year intensive and the acute care option. It also has that ivy league smell which I really think can make a difference when it comes to $ later on and would be a great place to return to in order to teach. good luck with Yale and UCSF (although here's hoping we see you at Columbia)

:balloons: congratulations shortcake!!! that's 3 of us for Acute Care so far. I've been watching Trauma Life in the ER on the discovery channel all week and dreaming of getting the training that allows me to work in that wonderfully crazy environment

Hey Everybody. I also got the email and called. I'm in for acute care NP!!!!:cheers: I'm so excited I don't know what to do!! I also came home to find the acceptance letter for a different candidate but with my address and info. Funny. My heart was POUNDING when I was on the phone with Judy. Congratulations to FNP and KevKev :balloons: and keep hope alive the rest of you guys. You'll get those letters soon and I really believe we will all be meeting each other at an orientation session in June!! (I can't stop smiling :w00t:)

blah! no and i am going absolutely CRAZY. even though I am confident that we ALL got in!! :balloons:. . . ok, i am an insane person apparently.

I've decided (since i've been driving myself and everyone I know crazy) that I will believe that I have gotten in to Columbia, rather than worrying that I didn't. Since we haven't gotten the letters, technically, we may have all gotten in, we just don't know it yet. So congratulations FNP4Me end to everyone else on this thread!! I think we all got in, and I can't wait for us all to meet and start this crazy adventure together!! (ps. . . i know this makes me sound like a crazy person, but thinking I haven't gotten in and/or checking the mail morning/noon/night makes me just as much of a crazy person)

I'm here in queens new york so i've been hoping to hear by monday or tuesday. I have been strung VERY tight this week as I became more and more anxious. good luck to everybody!

Hi everyone, I'm 34 with a bachelors of fine arts. "worked" in theater for about ten years. never was paid for it but managed, founded and ran 3 different companies in Los Angeles and New York. Been working days as an executive assistant for more than 10 years. SO ready to be making the change to nursing. Although all the work in other fields I think will serve me as a nurse, i can't wait to make actually get into a program and get started. At first I thought that being a bit older would be a disadvantage but I have a friend who is 19 and spent the past year trying to get into 2nd degree nursing programs (she's a bit of a brainiac and got an early bachelors by 18) still she was unable to get into a program. Off the record she was told by several people that she was simply too young and thus not considered a good risk for their programs. So maybe we wiser older students are considered to be more of a safe bet since we've had the chance to try out a career or two and discover what we really want. here's hopin' !

I'm waiting to hear from Columbia's ETP program. It's been 2 years in the making to get to this point and next Friday they mail out their decisions. I'm kinda losing my mind. Still trying to keep my mantra as, it's ok if you don't get in. Applying to 2 other programs but they don't start 'till september and I'm ready allready. All i wanna do is get started now. I suppose i shouldn't complain. The programs i'm applying to don't do this wait listing thing I keep hearing about. I think it would be much worse to get an acceptance and then be told, ok, now it will be 2 or 3 years before you can start. oh my oh me. i am REALLY wanting this next week to fly.

I've also already taken A & P 1 and 2 but had the coloring books (and had started to work on them) for awhile. I'm now going NUTS waiting for acceptance to my preferred program and just started filling the books in again recently. I've found it incredibly helpful. It's reminding me of things i may have forgotten and refamiliarizing me with language that I'll soon (hopefully!) be using on a regular basis. Of course I also love to color and doodle which makes it both fun and educational. I think if you don't enjoy that kind of activity then it probably won't be helpful to you. I also love puzzles. i've been searching for a periodic table puzzle forever. does anyone know of good anatomy or chemistry puzzles? I may post seperately to ask about that. have a good day everybody!

Thanks so much dg and anniepants. I feel pretty confident about my essay so I guess i'll keep my fingers crossed!!