jesset2

The only certification you need to maintain as a CRNA is your CRNA.

You must have critical care experience to be a CRNA, not or experience. Don't wast your time in the OR because you will work there eventually as a CRNA. Go straight to the ICU upon graduation; you will not be using you nursing or critical thinking skills in the OR. I've had 4 years OR experience and 2.5 years ICU experience.

If you decided to become a CRNA, you should have already researched the field including having already shadowed CRNA's. This shadowing should be for more than a couple of hours or days. Just think of the number of students pursuing medicine who have spent summers doing internships, working in doctor's offices, etc. Doing this will allow you to foster relationships so that you can ask for letters of recommendation. If this is truly your chosen career, you have to put yourself out of the way to stand out.

Just take a few grad school courses to show you can handle the work, take your GRE's and do well in your interveiw. Get CCRN certification and learn as much as you can in the ICU and obtain strong letters of recommendation. It makes no sense to wast time, energy and money obtaing a Masters degree in a specialty you don't want. Don't stress yourself out! Everything is taken into account.

It's not true. If you have researched the profession on nurse anesthesia, shadowed CRNA's and found that this is the career you want, then apply! A lot of times, people will tell you things to discourage you, for whatever reason. I've never heard of the top 4% business, and I know that I was not in the top 4% of my class and I was still accepted into a good program, first shot, having applied after 15 months in the ICU, including orientation.

Well said!

OK, if a CRNA works the same number of hours (60) as a traveler (locum tenens), what would the salary be then????

You must have ICU experience (minimum 1 year) to get into Columbia U. (check the website). Students who got into the Anesthesia program as part of the ETP (they receive a bachelors in 1 year and then move on to a Masters specialty) must have 1 year of ICU experience but can have it completed prior to clinicals. They have to be interviewed, etc., and I guess they prove that they are able to handle the coursework based on the fact they were successful in the bachelors portion of the program. I'm not sure how successful they are in completing the Anesthesia portion, but everyone must have 1 year ICU experience, and it must be documented and recorded because the AANA has to review this info.

I ask this because my school offers an MS in nurse anesthesia and my friend's school offesr an MSN and the faculty at my friend's school are saying that those with an MS in nurse anesthesia cannot be considered advanced practice nurses unless they take certain courses (one of which is informatics) that those with an MSN take. She's in school in Philadelphia, I'm in New York.

What is the difference between getting an MS vs a MSN in Nurse Anesthesia. Are you considered an Advanced Pracitce Nurse with either one? How does this affect employment and salary status?

Getting your NP does not give you an advantage to getting into CRNA school. The only thing it might do is show that you can handle grad school work, but remember that CRNA coursework is much tougher than NP coursework and if you want to prove you can handle grad school work, just take a class or 2.

The CRNA profession is very flexible. There are plenty of jobs that a vareity of shifts, how you can work those shifts (i.e. 8,12, 16 hours) and you can choose to take on a job that does not require you to take call. You don't have to start off working the worst shift.

Spent too much on the house or school? If it's school, how much is his debt? The house depends on how large it is, the area, etc.

Also, they don't have to do a fellowship...We do 6-7 years and they do 8-9.

Don't forget that in order to be a CRNA, you must be an RN first, so you have to include nursing school education (2 or 4 years), and either way you must have a baccalaureate degree. Remember that you're including med school which allows them to become docs, not anesthesiologists. They still need to do 4 years of training for that. We do 2-3 years training in grad school.

Does anyone know how I can go about finding out the pass rate for the exam for a particular school other than just asking the school itself. Thanks!

Columbia University Summer 2007!!!

Don't worry. You might not have a 3.5, but your science background is strong in that you have taken a great abundance of science courses, probably more than most of us RN's. Trust me when I say if you listen to every last thing that is said on this board, it might actually deter you from applying to CRNA school. Unfortunately, there are some dream stealers out there and they want nothing more than to see you fail or at least not achieve what they have. You can get into school with less than a 3.5, strong letters of rec., a competitive GRE and an interview that shows the committee that your becoming a CRNA is not a dream or even just a goal--it's inevitable! If it's in your gut, they'll see it and you will get in.

Frogive my ignorance, but what does it mean to 'opt out'?

Thanks Vin. It's OK because I was accepted into Columbia's program, but I was just curious as to what UMDNJ's story is.

Understood...Congrats!

Hi e14lopez! I just wanted to confirm that you said that Columbia University called you and the date of your post was early January. They told us during the interview that we wouldn't receive any notification unitl 1/17/07 (you posted 1/5/07) and the notification was via postal mail, not by phone. So, I'm just curious as to why they called you and why 2 weeks prior to the date they told us. Thanks!

Hi guys! I applied to UMDNJ, but have not received anything regarding an interview. Does that mean that I'm not invited for one, or that I just haven't heard yet? I know they received my application because I received a letter regarding that.