RBlucky

Same situation here. I emailed and was told that it would be "several more weeks" as the committee didn't start reviewing applications until the 2/15 deadline had passed. I'm not so sure I believe that, but can't really do anything more than wait.

Me too! Orientation June 28th, I heard.

I think they do. In my area, there is a 4 year university and a junior college that tend to get hired first, because the programs turn out solid new grads. The ones who come from the career colleges, at least in this area, tend to be weaker. I don't think I work with any nurses who came from any of them. That being said, if you wow your preceptor during clinicals and hustle, you could probably turn that into a job, no matter where you came from.

I'm in Florida, and the PRN medics get between $20 - $25 an hr, where as I make $24.81!

While I enjoy working with Paramedics in the ER, and I've worked in several ERs that employ them, my only "beef" is that they get paid the same as the nurses and do far less work. In our system, they can't take pts, can't give meds, have no responsibility for patient care, no pt assignment, etc. They're just regular ER techs who can start IVs, and if they work in a PRN status, they get paid the same as an RN. How is that fair? I have to run the pt assignment, give all the meds, but more importantly the responsibility of the pt care falls on me, and I make the same as the tech?? If our system utilized them effectively, and gave them the same amount of work and responsibility then I wouldn't mind them getting paid, rightly so, for the work they do. But I'm sorry, I don't see how just being able to start IVs gets you $10 more than the other ER techs. Now, hopefully this is just our system, and the rest of your hospitals are better about distributing pay and work!

Of course you can pass without Kaplan, but the question is, why not be as prepared as possible? If you can afford the $300, which many hospitals will reimburse you for, then why not get it? I found the questions on Kaplan much more similar to the NCLEX, more so than any of the other resources. That's just my opinion, but I'm also a bit of a patty panic and I over prepare. I'd rather over-prepare for the NCLEX than worry about having to take it again

Absolutely 1200% yes. I took the NCLEX on Tues, 75 Questions, and I'm already licensed in my state. To study, I did all of the Kaplan Question Trainers, reviewed the Kaplan Book, then did many Q Bank questions. I found that all of the other review materials, (Saunders, Mosby, etc) have questions that are much simpler than what you'll actually find on the NCLEX. Many of my questions covered a lot of ground, ie you had to think 2 steps beyond each answer choice to figure things out, and Kaplan teaches you how to do that. Think about it this way: is $500 worth passing the NCLEX? Yeah, it sure is. YOu don't want to wonder what could have happened if only you'd studied harder or done more questions, so bite the bullet and put the money down. FYI, many hospitals will reimburse you for the cost anyway.

Good idea. I'm thinking that if they didn't mention it, then there isn't a particular dress code. So jeans and a nice top is a safe bet.

oh my gosh, you sound just like I do. I really want to register so I can't start planning (I'm such a nerd, man!) I haven't received my packet yet, so I had to call the CON and get all my info together for orientation, so let me ask you: did they say what to wear to orientation? Business casual or just regular clothes? It's such a little detail but I hate showing up over or under dressed, you know? -Renee

I'm starting USF's Accelerated BSN in May. Just about a month to go. I can't wait!