Koala33

What you have said is not entirely accurate, unless I'm misinterpreting what you are saying. My sister is a nursing student at Penn State. They have updated their facilities to include a state of the art simulator lab. This semester, she is taking Microbiology (a pre-requisite) with two nursing classes, in addition to a few other courses. She will be getting her BSN in 4 years - this includes nursing classes+pre-requisites. She starts her clinical experiences in the spring. Something that you need to consider at Penn State is that you need to spend some clinical time (either a semester or a year, I can't exactly recall but I'm sure it's on the website) in Hershey, PA at Hershey Medical Center. To my knowledge, this is required of a nursing students. Penn State has a great nursing program, though - I know several of my high school classmates who have graduated and are very happy with the education that they received.

I don't know that I was clear in my original post... so I'm going to go through this and clarify some things. No, these weren't the requirements at all. I'm not sure what you mean by 200 level and 300 level (my school didn't have them). Organic Chemistry wasn't a requirement for the 3+2 program, Calculus was not a requirement (although it was recommended), and no physics was required. Introductory Biology was required, as was Microbiology. General Chemistry was also required, as were some random general requirements from the school. I admire you for taking on nursing and Chem - good luck! I understand that having a science major is more difficult than a nursing major. You said it well - the difference between both majors is how each is difficult. But to completely discount nursing and to speak about it like it is so inconsequential in the medical school admissions process is a disservice, in my opinion. Some posters here were making nursing science pre-requisites seem like a walk in the park. The point of my original post was to show that some of us don't have the luxury of taking science classes that are separated from non-sciences majors, and that we share classes with people applying to medical school and people applying for doctorates in Biology. Case-in-point: I didn't have the option of an "allied health" Microbiology class to fulfill my pre-requisite. And boy, was it challenging and it caused me so much stress. I didn't do as well as I would've liked (though I am an overachiever), but I was in a class taught by a microbiologist that was mixed with graduate students and people who were going on straight from undergrad to programs to get their doctorates. But I did it (and I'm not doing this to toot my own horn), and I know that if I could do it that there are so many other smart people on this board that could do the same thing I did.

I was a pre-med who switched to nursing, not because the pre-med course curriculum was too much for me, but because I realized that the work and lifestyle of nursing suited me more than medicine. After 3 years at my first undergraduate institution, my school wound send its "nursing students" to another school with a BSN program to complete 2 years of nursing studies to get a nursing degree. These students had to take the same science classes as those students majoring in the "hard sciences" at my school. We didn't have a special Microbiology, General Chemistry, Introductory Biology, etc. I was not in this program - I graduated with a different degree, and am entering an ABSN program in the fall. However, I also took these science classes. Countless students did this year after year, and we all succeeded. It happened all the time at my school. Furthermore, my school was not the only school in the region that fed into this nursing school. That being said, I think that it is preposterous that you would presume that many nurses and/or nursing students not taking pre-med classes means that many nurses and/or nursing students would not doing well enough in said classes for medical school admission. In addition, not all medical schools require Biochemistry as a pre-requisite. The same goes for Microbiology. And who says that nurses can't do community service work in addition to working? I volunteered in a clinic while I was pre-med (and continued doing so when I switched to pre-nursing/nursing), and I worked with several nurses who volunteered there for whole days during the week when they were not working at their jobs. The exposure to healthcare and medicine that one would get as a nurse would be invaluable in applying to medical school. You cannot possibly say that the 150 volunteer hours of changing sheets and giving out juice in an ER as a college undergraduate are more valuable than time working as a nurse on a floor. Obviously, a BSN by itself will not get anybody into medical school, but neither will a B.S. in Biology or Chemistry. Don't completely undermine the value of having a BSN because having the BSN is a part of the whole experience.

I applied to schools with ABSN programs that had high NCLEX pass rates in cities where I thought it'd be nice to live. I had about 5 schools on my list throughout the East Coast (mostly in the northeast) because I was paranoid that I'd be rejected, though I got into my 2nd choice early on so I only applied to my first choice after that to save money. I chose to stay on the East Coast because my family lives here. I have no desire to move to the West Coast and isolate myself. I'm already nervous about moving several hours away from my entire family, boyfriend, and friends to a city where I'm only acquainted with my roommate.

I'm moving over 150 miles away from all of my family, my boyfriend, and my boyfriend's family, at some point in August, and I don't have a car. And I don't really know anybody in the city that I'm moving to yet (although eventually I will be joined by a couple of friends). My roommate and I put a deposit down on a place, and we just signed a lease, but I'm so nervous knowing that I will be so isolated from family for what seems like an eternity. I just got approved for a private loan to cover the difference that my federal financial aid and scholarships don't cover. I just need to square away the final details with that. But I still feel so overwhelmed!

Bring colored pencils or markers with you, too! If you don't get Powerpoint slides and your teacher draws out a lot of diagrams, colorcoding will become a fast friend of yours. I was gently teased for the first few weeks of my A&P 1 class for bringing 10-15 markers with me to class and using them to color code until my classmates began to catch on that my notes were a lot easier to understand than theirs and that it was making my studying go a lot easier (and consequently making my test scores go up). The next day, they all came to class armed with boxes of markers and colored pencils (I'm not joking).

I took A&P in high school, and now I'm taking it four years later in college. A&P in high school is definitely a lot more basic, with less emphasis on the chemical aspects. My class in high school gave me a great foundation in anatomical direction, major bones in the body, and where major organs are. I found that I was able to recall this basic information easily when we went over it in my college A&P, but that it was a lot more detailed and I'm spending a lot more time on it. I recommend what the other poster said, and get a coloring book! Good luck :).

Apply for outside scholarships. Trying looking at www.fastweb.com and http://www.aacn.nche.edu/Education/financialaid.htm. FastWeb has nursing scholarships, but you can look based on other criteria (such as race, ethnicity, gender, etc.) as well. Have you contacted their financial aid office directly? I know some ACErs contacted the office and were able to get some assistance, though I don't know what that help exactly entailed... Private loans might be an option for you as well. Ask Drexel about deferring for a year. I'm not sure if they will honor your request, but I don't think it would hurt to try. Drexel is a GREAT school. It is well-known, especially regionally, and ESPECIALLY in Philadelphia. If you do well in school, you will have no problem securing a great co-op and no problem finding a great job upon graduation. It seems overwhelming (trust me, I'm applying for loans for a program right now, too), but you are not alone. Fortunately, nursing is a profession that has the potential to pay well.

There's nothing wrong with being an A student. Or a B student. C's across the board is a little questionable, especially if there's no effort involved. I wouldn't want somebody to be my nurse if they're not trying their best. Would you want an average Joe-schmo taking care of your sick or dying relative? The beauty of nursing as a profession is that there's so much flexibility within it. It's not a one track job. You're not confined to a hospital for your entire career. Some nurses might be better at holding the hand of a dying patient, instead of taking tests in a classroom. But we also need nurses who can do research, and nurses who can fulfill the role of a practitioner, and nurses who can deliver bedside care, and nurses who can teach, and I could go on and on all day. While good grades are important, it's not the be all and end all. Attitude is a large part. Social skills are important. Technical skills are significant. This profession isn't just about regurgitating facts.

Being an A student doesn't mean that one has a type A personality and/or health problems. One can have a type A personality and be a B/C student in nursing school. I don't really think that you can equate personality type with grades and mastery of material. Also, this thread was started by someone who was once an A student and is now a self-proclaimed B/C student.

I did not call you ignorant, I said that "this" ("this" being the statement, not you) seemed ignorant. There is a difference. The only reason I said that was because you said that you "don't have to worry about that with a woman", that = being flirted with, which really may not always be the case.

Were you trying to be ironic here? You just stereotyped all of the A students by saying that all of them stereotype in a blanket statement. That's pretty ridiculous.

I was an RA for 1.5 years when I was doing all of my pre-requisites for nursing school with the intention to enter an accelerated 2nd degree BSN program after graduating, so my experiences aren't exactly like what yours will be, but I'm sure we can relate to each other since I was cramming all of my pre-requisite classes into 3 or 4 semesters with a minor in a language. I did get through it, though, and I graduated with great grades. If you are a procrastinator, try your best to break the habit. Get as much done early as you can. Make a list of what you need to do and get it done if that's what you need to do to stay on top of your work. That way, if anything unexpected comes up (such as a problem with a resident), you don't fall too far behind. I found that most of my residents stopped by during the evenings, so I tried my hardest to get my most difficult work done during the day so that I could leave my door open for a few evenings during the week so that they knew I was around. It is hard, and there will probably be nights when you will want to quit. Do not (I repeat, do NOT) count on duty nights as free nights for homework. I did this one night during the week, and I wound up dealing with a hospitalization, a fire, and an alcohol incident with extremely uncooperative residents that ended with an intervention from a supervisor and Security. Since I was on top of my work already, I didn't fall too far behind, but it was a pain anyway. Most of all, keep your sanity first. It's okay not to answer your door if you're having a bad day. You can't take care of anybody else if you can't take care of yourself. If it's that bad, your residents will knock again, get another RA, or they'll call your room phone. You'll learn pretty quickly when something's urgent and when it can wait judging by the type of knock on the door. I hope I didn't overwhelm you (or scare you, ha). I hope it helped. If you have any more questions or anything, I'd be glad to help :).

I find this a little ignorant. You are essentially ignoring the fact that a homosexual population exists in the health care profession by saying that you don't have to worry about a provider of the same sex flirting with you.

I don't care about the sex of the individual, as long as the care delivered is professional, competent, and sympathetic to my needs. I can name health care professionals of both sexes that have delivered great quality care to me when I have needed it, and I can name health care professionals of both sexes that have delivered awful care to me.

Do you need to work? Do you have children? Are you taking any vacations or do you have any big commitments that will interfere with your ability to devote attention to Microbiology? I took A&P2 over the summer. If you're worried about committing enough time to the class, make notecards and carry them with you wherever you go. Look at them when you have a few minutes here and there. The time adds up. I wish I could have taken Microbiology over the summer. I took it during the regular school year with four other classes, in addition to what essentially worked out to 25 hours-per-week of work outside of classes and homework. It was difficult. On the other hand, I took A&P2 last summer by itself while working 20 hours per week at the absolute maximum, and it worked out great. Good luck to you.

Know all of it. Or as much as you can. Would you want to be in a situation where your nurse didn't pay much attention in her A&P class and just hoped that the concepts came to her in nursing school?

For what it's worth, I spoke to a few ABSN students at my visit and interview, and they said they loved the program (even when the administrators left the room). They said that they were always able to get help from teachers when they needed it, and that the people in their cohorts were really close. They told us that tutoring and study sessions were available, and that many people utilized these services when they had their weed-out class in the first semester.

I've got four pre-requisites to finish. I'm in three of them now. I'm really nervous about doing well in them, especially because I have a couple of science classes thrown into the bunch.

Still waiting....has anyone heard anything? This is torture!

I've still got nothing...

This is killing me. Do you think we'll definitely hear today? I can't take much more of this.

This is agony. I just received that e-mail as well. It was such a tease.

Yeah, same exact thing last week. It feels like last year, though. Hopefully, we'll get "yes"es again. Good luck!

Has anybody heard anything about the scholarship yet? So far, I've got nothing. We are supposed to hear today, right?