1lollipop

My CNA nursing certificate is going to expire at the end of this month. I know I have to retake the written exam if I don't find a job, but will I also have to re-take the skills part as well (performing a skill on a volunteer in front of a proctor)? Also, if I find a job at, say, an assisted living home in NY before the expiration date, would that person be able to help me renew the certificate????

I failed nursing school (got 2 C-'s in OB and pharm) from a BSN program. I hate the idea of having to give up. If I could start over, I would take fewer classes at a time...Is there any other school(s) in NYC or LI or anywhere that would consider my transfer application or is this the end of the road? Any advice would be appreciated.

What is the salary for a full-time public school nurse by the NYC Board of Ed and/or a school nurse working in a college in NYC? I hear the colleges pay their school nurses more, but I'm curious. I couldn't find the salary info anywhere, not even on the Board of Ed website. I'm thinking about it for the future.

I'm an Adelphi nursing student now. To answer your questions since I came in as a transfer myself, if you don't have a prior associates degree in nursing, they will not accept more than 2 nursing classes taken elsewhere. Not sure about pharmacology & nutrition (sorry can't help with that one). They will accept the non-nursing classes up to a certain number of credits. This is what they had told me when I came in. If you didn't finish general chemistry 1 & 2 elsewhere, then you have to complete Chemistry 109 at Adelphi (just one class & you're done with chem). It's a very tough course to pass, however. It consists of general, organic, and biochemistry in one. Rules are constantly changing, however. The best thing to do is to make an appointment with Adelphi's admissions counselor at the school & bring a copy of your BMCC transcript with you. They will tell you exactly what is accepted & not. Ask to get this in writing with their signature just in case. In all fairness to Adelphi, the other colleges I had researched prior to attending all said basically the same thing: they do not accept most nursing classes taken elsewhere unless you graduated with an ASN already. It's getting harder and harder to get accepted into the nursing programs. I heard from professors that Adelphi has been overwhelmed by nursing applicants in recent years. Other than the high expenses & the occasional hoops to jump through, I like Adelphi. All the nursing schools have tough programs, and Adelphi is no exception. Definately not an easy program. Prepare to study your tail off. They are "kinder" than some of the community colleges from what I heard, but that's it. To answer your question about working f/t & going to school p/t: It would take a very long time to graduate, but it would make the studying somewhat more manageable since you're taking fewer classes at a time. To work and study f/t is extremely tough. I know a few people who have attempted that & flunked out of the program. Now they have a pile of college debt to worry about & nothing to show for it. If you can afford it, it's best to try out a semester before increasing your work hours (it's prob. best to decrease the work hours if possible). You need a flexible employer because for clinicals, you'll be working 16 hours/wk (w/o pay of course) and going to classes and studying. The clinicals help you apply what you're learning as you go along. You begin clinicals after you finish all your pre-req's first (I'd guess after about a year or so in your case if yours are mostly done). I quit my last job because I decided the tuition is much too expensive for me to risk messing up. I'm lucky that I can afford to do that. If that wasn't the case, I'd prob. go as a p/t student and work f/t. I'm a f/t student now. It's still not easy. I hope I helped. Good luck!

Here's the school's web site: http://www.adelphi.edu

There are no pre-req's required in order to get accepted into Adelphi's nursing program. If you choose to take them early, you can't go wrong by taking Anatomy & Physiology 1 & 2, microbiology, nutrition, and general chemistry 1 & 2. Just note: If you don't complete general chemistry 1 & 2 by the time you are accepted, Adelphi requires that you take Chemistry 109 (general, organic, and biochemistry), which is a much tougher course than the general one (even if you completed just one general chemistry sequence). It's one of their most recent policies. Apply in multiple places just in case; I know some people with high gpa's who got rejected. You can complete the pre-req's once you're accepted in. However, all applicants need to take a N.E.T. exam (nursing entrance exam) offered by Adelphi; you then need a passing score on this as well as a good GPA from h.s. or your previous college. Then submit all your transcripts, type a personal essay, and maybe have a recommendation or 2. Check their web site for more info. and look under "Admissions." You should also go to "Academics" and click on "nursing." It'll give you a lot more detailed information. Speaking from experience, it's one of the toughest programs on campus, and everyone on campus respects the nursing students (b/c we study so darn much). It's also very hard to hold any outside jobs. I would try out a few classes first before committing to any jobs if you're able to. Also, it's getting harder to get accepted into any nursing program nowadays b/c enrollment has dramatically increased in recent years.

If you can afford to just concentrate on passing your NCLEX, that would be best. Otherwise, I don't see why it'd be tougher to find a job as a nurse tech. You could always say that u plan to work f/t as a nurse at the place once you get licensed. It's up to the employer to decide if they'd let u work temporarily as a nurse or nurse tech. Also, it's easier to find per diem jobs when you're new. It would be in their best interest to hire you b/c they can "mold u" into being the kind of nurse they want/need. Advertise your value to the employer and act confident (w/o sounding arrogant). Apply to many places in several diff. areas to increase your chances. A few good references wouldn't hurt either.

I'm not a parent, but I am a f/t nursing student. I had a previous BA in English when I applied to nursing school and had to quit my job as a substitute teacher b/c I was so overwhelmed by all the reading (esp. chemistry) after I was accepted into nursing school. I took out loans to cover about $30,000/yr in tuition costs, so I did not want to risk failing for a $8-10/hr job. That's my view. There's going to be a major time & financial investment for at least 3 yrs full-time if you're applying for a BSN program. An associate program isn't that much shorter (but def. more than 2 years depending on if you have some pre-reqs done already). U would have to arrange for family or friends to agree to babysit (perhaps at a negotiated price if necessary to convince them). My academic advisor told me that 1/3 of students either drop out or flunk out of the nursing program. Ur basically forced to cram a year's worth of material into a few month's time (textbooks are typically 1,000 pgs long and the entire books are covered in 1 semester). It's not for the faint of heart, but it's doable if you're willing to give it your all. I'm single & live @ home, so I can handle it w/o too much trouble. Since you have a family, you'll need to talk this thru with your family & make sure that they understand that your time would be severely limited as well as finances. Also, you might ask your husband to clean/cook most days of the week b/c you'd be busy studying. Take your time in deciding; only you can make the choice what's best for you & your situation. If you decide to go to a cheaper city (CUNY) nursing program, it's a lot tougher both to get into and to finish since everyone wants in & to save money. Perhaps you may want to consider a LPN program? It may take you 1.5 years, and many employers offer you some money towards getting your RN later down the road (that's what I'd do if I was in your situation). Good luck!

Thanks to all for your replies! I'm in an RN program, but I often wish I applied to a LPN program instead! It's going to take me 3 yrs to complete my BSN (even though I have a BA already in English!) It's ridiculous how long it takes to complete the science pre-reqs alone, but I digress...I ultimately plan to work in a hospital.

I'm attending Adelphi & taking CHE 109. It's a very tough class, tougher than general chemistry. Unless you're strong in math and/or chemistry, it won't be easy at all. I study more for that than my other classes, incl. nursing classes (which is a ton of reading on its own). CHE 109 is a combo of general, organic, & biochemistry. It's a requirement for those who have not already taken general chemistry 1 & 2 before they applied to Adelphi. Even if you took just general chemistry 1 (without the 2nd), you would be forced to complete CHE 109. My recommendation: If you're not applying to Adelphi right away, take general chemistry 1 & 2 @ a cheaper community college instead, then transfer the credits in (I think Adelphi requires a B or better to transfer the classes over; they made their policy stricter recently; call to confirm). Verify that the classes would be accepted @ Adelphi before you take them & from what school, so there are no unwelcome surprises later. Unless you're great @ chemistry (which is a lot tougher than bio), I would try to avoid taking CHE 109 if U can help it by completing both general chemistry courses. I know it'd take a year, but it's less of a headache and u may even save some money while you're at it. I hate CHE 109 with a passion. Once you're accepted into Adelphi & U don't have the general chemistry classes, you'll be forced to take CHE 109 and pass it (2 chances to pass or you're out). I'd rather save the extra chance for a nursing course. Good luck w/ whatever u decide.

I'm curious about this because my friend told me (her mother is a nurse). She said that NY will soon require LPN's to get their RN licenses, and do away with LPN programs altogether. Could this be true? I was going to do the LPN program, but I didn't after she told me that.

Thanks for your reply. What school would that be?

Is there any school (preferably in NY) that accepts prior nursing credits (some or all of them) even if the candidate does not hold any type of nursing license already? I know LPNs have no trouble transferring nursing credits, but many schools for some reason do not allow nursing credits to transfer over and therefore make you start almost at the beginning if you leave one nursing school for another. Has anyone gone through this and found another BSN or ASN school that accepted any of the prior nursing credits (besides chemistry, etc)? Just wondering. I asked this before but I still couldn't find the answer...

I don't know anything about St. Vincent's, but what I do know is that it's very hard (if not impossible) to transfer nursing credits later on unless they are non-nursing pre-req's such as chemistry, statistics, etc. It's not just that school, it's all of them. I had asked St. Vincent's and other college admissions counselors, and they all said the same thing...The only exception is if you already have a LPN or some other type of nursing degree and are going further in your studies. I know because I wanted to transfer to a different nursing school, but it's not worth it after all the time & mony spent would essentially be wasted and I'd have to start almost at the beginning. For some reason, many schools in NY make all these complications about transferring nursing credits. Keep that in mind.

I'm at Adelphi now (class of 2012), and I was in a similar situation as you. There are so many added fees and other loops I have to jump through at this school. There are several pre-reqs also before reaching clinicals. The school has a decent reputation (at least acc. to the employers I spoke to at a job fair recently). Every person was impressed when I told them I was attending Adelphi for nursing. A BSN might be best if you're 100% sure you want to become a nurse b/c it gets very expensive. If you want to play it safe, you can pursue the ASN route & later go for a BSN. If you're still unemployed at that time, then just directly jump into another BSN (if you can afford it, that is). If you go that route (ASN to BSN), you shave off about 1 semester in the BSN program, so it doesn't save much time nor money down the road, but if you land a hospital job full-time, your employer will cover about $5k-$10k per year depending on the hospital. It's a decent amount, but certainly not half the tuition at a private college. Adelphi definately has a LOT of clinical requirements, so I'm not afraid of lacking experience. Perhaps you can apply to both 2 yr and 4 yr colleges and decide then? I chose Adelphi b/c I was 100% certain of my career choice and wanted to have the most employment options for my time & money spent. Hope I helped. Good luck on your choice; I know it's not easy. Be prepared to study volumes of notes and texts. It's not easy no matter where you go.