Ginger Vitus

I always chuckle when I hear students at schools say they wouldn't go to Ivy Tech, IU, IUPUI, or any of the other public schools because of all those gosh-darned pre-reqs you have to do before you can even get in the program. I have never, never talked to any one who has had a positive experience at a for-profit nursing school. At private schools-it's all about the money. There was a private school in Chicago that shut down a few weeks ago in the middle the semester. No notice, no refunds, no nothing. The people who owned it were actually the parents of the actor Billly Zane. Just goes to show what can happen with these places.

Ivy Tech is now requiring a Masters, or at least working on one.

If you live in or near Indy, go to the State Goverment Center, to the State Police Headquarters. They charge $10, no inking (they have a digital machine) and I got my results back in three days. The process took less than 20 minutes, which costs a quarter at the parking meter.

I didn't mean to be so harsh in my tone-I meant to say that Ivy Tech, just like every school trying to woo prospective students, makes promises or dangles possibilities that never come to fruition once you have actually committed. Don't expect the faculty to have any sympathy for your situation. Have you checked some of the for-profit schools around; medcheck, Indiana Weslyan, ect. The cost may be prohibitive, but they tend to me flexible.

Get every possible pre-req AND co-req done ahead of time. You certainly won't have time to do them concurrently with the rest of your nursing core. I would consider internet courses for some of the co-reqs-most of them are just busy work and your time is wasted in class. And if you aren't an organized person, you need to figure out how to be. It is hard enough to this without a child and working.

Student insurance is rarely a good idea-the protection it supplies is limited and the cost is often as much as a legitimate policy. It is usually for sucker parents who are paying for some peace of mind. I used to sell insurance, BTW. I would suggest you look at other other options besides Ivy Tech. Perhaps ones that will allow you to go to school in the evenings or on the weekends. Ivy Tech is not a flexible program. A lot of students just don't get that.

That is because Ivy Tech just gives you the amount of financial aid you want up to your maximum without making serious inquiries into how much you expenses are. Schools that do the proper audits verify this, and if you want over a certain percentage of the costs of your tuition and books, you need a reason. Add the cost into your loan amount and hopefully you won't go over your max. "Anyhow, on the subject of the original thread.............I spoke with the IT people at Ivy Tech and they said they have no idea about any extra FA for a laptop. They said you can go ahead and buy one and then when and if you get enough money from your FA, then pay the laptop off.But they stated they have no plan in place for extra FA. The only deal they have is with Dell, which is on their main webpage ( Ivy Techs) in which Dell offers a 12% discount."

It is my understanding that they will allow you to obtain extra money for a laptop. Did you tell the advisor you were planning on buying one? This is based on the assumption that you would actually want extra money. This is also based on the assumption that the now very crazy student loan market is properly functioning.

You are right, Trauma. No use crying or whining. Already know all about that. They should put that on a T-shirt. That would be an interesting class.

Thanks guys! You are exactly right-this is all going to be worth it if I survive. TraumaQueen, I know exactly what you are talking about! I too have been cued erronously. After being given some "space" this has stopped though. It is amazing how just one sheet of paper can change the whole playing field. Still a 3.9 GPA after this must be great. I bet your husband or boyfriend (if you have one) is proud of you! Monica, way to be the optimist! I wish I had your outlook. My goals at this point are to survive. That is enough.

I would love to approach things with an open mind, but I have experienced them myself. I also thought I was going to a state school, but I have to listen to a religious lecture everyday. Regardless of my personal beliefs on the subject, I don't want to hear a lecture in the middle of class about what a horrible person I am if I have an abortion or be told that the best birth control is "a nickel between the knees." This of course, is punctuated by repeated admonitions to not "judge the patient." Geesh.

I am taking it in the fall. Not looking forward to it either! I have heard some horror stories. I wish there were some choice in the faculty so I could avoid the problems, but we only have one choice here. Our program does it in half a semester. One half of the students take it the first eight weeks, the other half the last eight weeks. Here, a third of the students in the first half flunked out. I understand things are a little better now now that people have been given "space," but I am sure people will return to their usual behavior soon enough. I really wish people would act professional and not vindictive, but I have learned that no matter where you go and no matter how well educated people are, someone has to act like we are in elementary school. It's a really a shame, because I am really interested in the subject matter.

How in the world did all this time go by and I didn't know about is website?! I am a first semester student here at Ivy Tech-Indy in the RN program. It is very overwhelming, but except for a few issues, I like it. The program is challenging, and a few of the professors really care about the students. What do you guys think? What are your goals for next semester? What have been the biggest suprises? The biggest disappointments?