NJRNtobe

Thanks...I applied mid June, was invited for an interview coming up on the 26th...any advice? I'm pretty nervous - got my CCRN books out and I'm reviewing already!

Hi all, Has anyone applied or heard from Jefferson for the program starting January 2015? Their application process was cumbersome to say the least, but I'm wondering how long until they invite prospective students for interviews?

Thanks everyone for your responses. I know this story is all too common, but I can't help shake the feeling that I'm being genuinely mistreated. It clearly does nothing for my personal confidence, but aside from that - I'm missing the education I will require 3 weeks from now when I'm thrown out on my own. And while I'd love to switch floors because of the atmosphere, I genuinely like the patients and take a real interest in cardiac anything. As far as switching preceptors, I'd love to do that as well but to be completely honest...I can't think of anyone on this floor that I'd rather work with. As much as I can't stand the way she's treating me, she really does know her stuff. And while it's great that SHE knows it, she needs to TEACH it to me. Which brings me to my next question...at my hospital you don't just get picked to be a preceptor. There's a special class you have to take and essentially YOU choose to be someone who teaches. If you're not interested in teaching me anything, is the extra $1/hour really worth it??? Why are you a ******* preceptor???

I have had 2 C-sections that were both problem free and I would say it took anywhere from 45 min - 1 hour. There's some prep that happens before you head into the OR but that's just basic things - assessment of mother and baby, starting a line, fluids, consents, etc. Obviously these weren't emergency C-sections so I'm not sure how the time line goes in that situation.

I'm a recent new grad who accepted a position on a very busy tele/med surg floor. I am happy to have a job given the current job market in NJ, and am pleased that I'm getting that initial year in med surg as a foundation to my nursing career, but I'm struggling in a way I couldn't foresee. I am by no means stupid, having a previous bachelor's degree in biochemistry before pursuing my BSN through an accelerated program. And I'll be the first to say my clinical time could have been more educational but the nature of an accelerated program doesn't leave much time for clinicals. Even still, I attained perfect grades in my program and feel very comfortable in the knowledge I bring to the job. BUT...and that's a big but...I am completely stressed out and frustrated about work. My preceptor is an excellent nurse, but she expects me to know things only a seasoned nurse would know. She consistently talks to me like I'm a child, and the tone she uses with me is inappropriate. So much so that patients ask me if I'm a nurse at all. When I tell them I am, they've responded "ok...but who's the RN?" I again tell them that's me, but at that point they have lost all confidence in me because of her attitude and request to see HER for even the most basic of things. In addition, she's constantly barking orders at me, enough that I can't complete a thought of my own. If I'm in the process of giving a patient meds, she'll tell me to stop what I'm doing because that's "not a priority". I would see no problem with that if there was something urgent that needed attention, but most of the time it's because I'm not doing things in the order she would like. Example: one of my patients was due for meds. Lasix was on his MAR. I gave the med. I later learned from the cardiologist (the hard way) that I should have held the med because his BUN and creatinine were elevated. It wasn't a huge deal, but it taught me a lesson. Check ALL labs before giving meds. So that is my plan for the day - get report, check patients, check labs, start meds. Yesterday, while I was checking labs after report, she asked me why I hadn't started my meds. I explained that I wanted to check labs before administering meds, and I received a thorough reaming about how I wasn't prioritizing my day correctly. I feel like I'm in a no win situation with her. I had a BP med to give, and the PCA had just taken the patient's vitals and left the room. I asked her what they were. Since they were within the parameters to give the med, I gave it. I later got a "talking to" about how I was cutting corners and being lazy and I should have taken the pressure myself again. Am I wrong in thinking that's extreme? Especially when I see her use the vitals record to give out meds, even when they were taken an hour ago? When I brought this up to her, she told me I wasn't an experienced enough nurse to make those decisions. Even though she's right, I explained to her that no amount of experience would justify "cutting corners". You can imagine how much she liked that and what the rest of the day was like for me. I'm just so frustrated with her and the way she's making the job for me. I know things will be different once I'm off orientation, but it's so bad most days I'm on the verge of tears - and I have a pretty thick skin so this is different for me. Does anyone have advice?????

Thanks for the response. Would you consider that $35-40/hour in a teaching hospital in central NJ is reasonable or do you think it could be much lower/higher than that?

As one of many on what seems to be an exhausting job hunt, I've heard more and more stories of new grads getting their first jobs as per diem nurses, even interviewing for one myself. As a nursing student, we were always told per diem jobs were an impossibility without experience. Since they seem to be within reach, how would one negotiate a per diem rate as a new grad? Is there any room for negotiation in this? I assumed per diem rates were very individual depending on the type of floor and experience that particular nurse had, so how does a new grad fit in? Anyone know what would be considered a high/low range?

I took my exam yesterday. I tried to do the trick, but I'm not sure if I'm doing it correctly. When I put in my information to register again, it takes me to a page that says my user name/account already exists. Has anyone recieved that message? It never actually asks me to put in school codes or anything like that....just basic personal info....

Hi Mary Jane, Yes...you're right. The classes they want you to have do have prerequisites. The general sequence for the life sciences is Bio I, Bio II, A&P I, then A&P II. For the chemistry, I don't think they require organic chemistry, and so it would be Chem I & Chem II - not sure if they require Chem II as well. So yeah, if you started now, it would probably take you at least a year and a half. And trust me, you will want to have taken at least one chemistry before you take microbiology. But that's why they can make the program as short as it is (12 months). You need a solid foundation of life science before you can understand disease and how it works in the body. I know it probably feels a little discouraging, but just about ALL schools will require these classes for a BSN in nursing. I'm not sure about online schools, so you might want to check there, but trust me, you will NEED a majority of these classes to grasp more advanced concepts down the road. It really is to your benefit. And since the program is accelerated, there's no time to slow down and go back and relearn basic concepts. If you can't understand how the sodium/potassium pump creates an action potential that stimulates the SA node resulting in a heartbeat, you won't be able to understand numerous diseases. And to them, that's considered basic physiology and chemistry, and they will expect you to know it. Trust me, my first degree was Biology and even I had to go back and review some things. So it really is to your benefit even if it seems like a hassle. Sorry if that wasn't what you wanted to hear, but if you're serious about nursing, accelerated programs are a great thing. You can still have another Bachelor's degree in 2.5 years. Think about it. I'm in the program now so you can PM me if you have any other questions. Good Luck!

AH-HA! Now I get it...okay guys...my 15th post...here goes...

Love, I can't do PM's either...I've been trying to send to Sweetlife... Sweetlife, Congratulations! I'm so happy for you! If I ever get this PM thing figured out, we'll talk.

Hi Adp (and others), I just saw your post asking questions about the program and I apologize for the delay....I haven't been on here in a while. So to answer some questions... First things first...while the RN to BSN program is accredited, the accelerated program at NJCU is NOT accredited...BUT...and it's a big but...don't let it deter you, and I'll explain why. In order for any school to even apply for accreditation, the program has to have enough students enrolled, and they have to graduate a full class first to even be considered. Given that the first class is just graduating, the school is now in the process of accreditation, which they will most likely get, given the curriculum is built around what accreditation committee looks for. That also being said, accreditation is not as big a deal as some people make it. I'm not trying to downplay it - but here's the deal: if you graduate from a program that's been around for 10 or 20 years and they still don't have accreditation or somehow lost it along the way, you can assume the program is pretty worthless or had to make some major changes to get it up to snuff. When a program is 2 years old and in the process of accreditation, it's considered normal. Chances are...the program will be accredited by the time you graduate. This was also a concern for me since I have intentions of going on to graduate studies here in NJ. So I called a few different schools and even though they say the program you graduated from "needs" to be accredited, it's simply not the case. They all understand the process of accreditation, and they know you can't even apply for it until you graduate a class, regardless if you're a community college or Harvard. So don't sweat that too much. Currently, I'm in the Wall Cohort. We started our first semester this past May and we're done the end of July.... 22 credits almost done! It's been a long semester already! But let me start by saying this...the program is the shortest and cheapest in the entire state. That was a big deciding factor for me. Given my financial situation and the fact that we started in a summer, I'll be able to finance the entire program through Stafford Loans. Big plus. If your situation is different and this isn't an issue, so be it. Also, I live in Monmouth County. The only other program relatively close to me is Seton Hall's program through Georgian Court University, and they want 60k! That's criminal if you ask me. And since I mentioned Seton Hall...at least 60% of the faculty at NJCU has transferred from Seton Hall (including both Program Directors and the Program Assistant) because they didn't like the way the program was being run and wanted to start a new one where they could fix the problems that were occurring. In my opinion, I think the faculty are AMAZING. They bend over backwards to help you. They want you to succeed. And they're flexible. That's really important to me. I have no complaints on that end. Another thing I love is that they start prepping you for NCLEX on day 1. Most of your tests are NCLEX format so you get used to that line of questioning, and you go over each test question and rationale so you can really understand why something's wrong or right. That's a big plus. I have a friend who did a traditional 4 year program with great grades and failed her NCLEX the first time around because she had never seen that type of questioning before. It requires lots of critical thinking and you have to practice, practice, practice. So I love that about it. As far as clinical and theory goes, you have to understand that ALL accelerated programs are giving up clinical time to teach you theory. There's just too much material to go through to get it all done. And you also have to understand, learning the skills is just repetition: foley catheters, meds, IV's, injections, etc... the most important thing you learn in the program is theory. You can always teach someone the "how", that's the easy part. But teaching them the "why" is more important. And once you learn the why, the how becomes 2nd nature. Now don't get me wrong, we have clinical. One full day a week. But that's really just the tip of the iceberg. A lot of the skill learning is something that's gonna be mastered on the job. And I'm fine with that. I've yet to meet any nurse, whether from a CC program, a trad 4 year, or an accelerated program that said they felt comfortable in their first year of nursing. I believe it's very scary and uncomfortable because you're so preoccupied with the idea of not wanting to make a mistake. But everyone does it....and they all get through it. So yes, there's clinical. Is it a ton? Probably not. Can I compare it to other programs?...no. You have to decide for yourself how important that is to you. The schedule is pretty much M-F, 8am-5pm, so it's intense. The tougher classes (Pathophysiology, Fundamentals, Health Assessment), they're usually straight lecture. There's some class discussion and things like that, but for the most part you're doing a lot of sitting and a lot of listening. I don't necessarily mind that. But sometimes it's hard to sit through 2 four hour lectures back to back. There's breaks and lunch and all that good stuff, but those are the longest days. The other classes (IT, Contemporary Nursing, Cultural Nursing), those are more discussion based. And there's usually projects and lots of debates, so it's a nice balance. (FYI - I'm sure it comes out of our tuition, but everyone get's an awesome PDA. And then you have an IT class to learn how to use it. It's a beautiful thing). I'm sorry this is so wordy...I've had tests all week so this is the most recreational thing I've done since Monday! I apologize. If anyone has any specific questions, feel free to PM me. School takes up most of my time, but I'll try to answer any questions I can. Hope this helps!

Hi guys...I finally cleaned up my inbox so if you have any questions, feel free to message me. Just to let you all know, physics was not on our exam but that does NOT mean it won't be on this one. Different schools test on different subjects. I heard directly from the program director's mouth that they wanted to "throw the book at us" and test on EVERYTHING. To me, that means if the physics part is new and they can test you on it, they will. The best thing to do is to call the nursing department and ask. And don't talk to the secretary, talk to a faculty member. They'll know for sure. IF it is, then definitely study right from the guide. If not, at least skim it over. The information in there will help you conceptualize different diseases and the equipment in the hospital used to treat them....trust me. Good luck to everyone!

Hey Sweet Life...I think you may have tried to message me but my inbox was full...sorry about that. Anyway, to answer your question...the program is awesome. I really can't say enough good things about it. The days are long, there's a lot of work, but it's very manageable, and I have a baby at home. I'm actually surprised that it's going as well as it is. I really set myself up for thinking it was going to be impossible, but it's not. Like I said, the classes are hard, and there's no room for slacking, but the faculty is great. They want to help you and they want you to learn. They really bend over backwards for us in that sense. Since it's a new program, there has been some disorganization. And I know what you mean about everything happening at the last minute. That's how it was with us too. But you have to understand, this is only the 2nd year, and they're still trying to iron out the kinks. But it's not a deal breaker by any means. And like I said, sometimes it's works to your advantage because they realize it's not perfect and they're very flexible. My advice on the Hesi would be to buy the study guide, and read that thing front to back. There was nothing on the exam that wasn't in the book. The program director is a firm beliver in the Hesi exam and thinks there's a direct correllation between your grade and how well you'll be able to keep up with the material. Even though you need good grades to get in, that's not enough for them. They need to know that you've retained that information. So try to do your best and don't sweat it, it's really not that hard. And just to remind you, this program is the cheapest in the state! Since we started in the summer, I was able to get 2 full years of Stafford loans to cover ALL my tuition. Of course I'll have to pay it back, but it's nice to not have to worry about it now. And I know the money will come eventually anyway. So don't give up on it just yet. And again, I'm at the Communiversity so I'm not sure how much the faculty differs from one campus to the next, but ours is awesome. I'm gonna try and clean up my inbox so PM me if you have any more questions!

Hi NJ...I was accepted for the May cohort. I think we're starting May 12th. My first degree was in Biology from Rowan and I had a decent GPA (3.0) ...nothing unbelievable. But my pre-req grades were very good. I didn't have to take them over because they were all part of my major. The HESI exam is an admission test that's supposed to test your aptitude in different areas of basic skills (reading, writing, math). In addition, NJCU has elected that you take the sections on A&P I and II, Bio I & II, and Chem I & II. The test isn't really hard, but it does require you brush up on your basic skills. Even though I've taken up to Calc II in college, if I hadn't looked over how to multiply and divide fractions again, I would have been lost. There's a study guide (Hesi Admission Assessment) you can buy for $25 at any major book retailer, and I can tell you the questions come right out of the guide, so it's in your best interest to get it. Read it cover to cover and you'll be fine. Also, be careful because there are several different types of HESI. One is for admission, and one is for the NCLEX. The test is supposed to be an accurate description of your aptitude and the school puts a lot of stock into it, so it's in your best interest to do well. And you're right, I've researched all the schools in the area and this one is by far the most cost effective. Good luck!