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That is a great question...I actually just got a job interview for the observation unit about 10 minutes ago so I could use some information about this, too. My understanding is that it is kind of like a short-term medical-surgical unit/an extension off of the Emergency Room. That is about as much as I know. Sorry I'm not much help.

Thank you guys for the replies. I will apply after I am off my medications for a year and see where that takes me! In the meantime, I will finish school and gain some experience as an RN. I figured I was at a huge disadvantage, but maybe in a year or year and a half I will try.

Hi everyone- I haven't been on this website since before I went to LPN school, but am a semester away from receiving my BSN now. I have always had the idea of joining the military in the back of my mind, but am only now seriously wanting to pursue it. I want to serve my country, and I have always looked up to military personnel. I've weighed the pros and cons of each branch, and since I am young and single (plus other reasons), the Navy makes more sense at this time. I have NUMEROUS cards stacked against me, though, specifically in the medical/physical area. I am young (22), active, and perceive myself as a healthy person. My major issues are mental--I have never been institutionalized and function fine as a human being, but I do take anti-depressants. I have multiple medical disqualifying factors: I have been treated for an eating disorder (bulimia), have been diagnosed with anxiety/depression (hence the anti-depressants), and have been treated for ADHD with Ritalin. When I list all of the mental issues I've had to deal with, it's almost embarrassing and hard to believe because I am a good student and I function as well as anyone else in society. Are these absolute disqualifications that I cannot waiver? I understand that mental health is a serious issue and how stressful any branch of military is, but I am absolutely positive it is something I want to do. I'm pretty crushed after researching these issues and realizing that it has jeopardized my future in the military, but I need to get some insight from you guys who are in the military and have more knowledge in this area. Do I need to be off of anti-depressants and Ritalin for a year? And if I was to be off of them for an entire year, should I ever even bother consider joining the military in the future with this medical history? Thanks, and sorry for rambling!

Okay, so I haven't started my nursing classes yet, but here's what I would like to say to my pre-requisite class instructors: To my statistics teacher: Thank you for BARELY speaking English, and for passing me with a B solely because I went to lab, where the TA was a better teacher than you and spoke clear English. To my Comp 1 teacher: Thanks for warning us the day after it was too late to drop semester classes that you have only given a total of 6 students throughout the years an A. THANKS. To my Microbiology teacher: Thanks for favoring certain students over others. Even if I was one of the favored ones. Thanks for reading notes word for word and not teaching us a single thing. Thanks for your tests where I had no idea what was going on, yet still passed with an A. You are a pervert and need to quit looking down girls' shirts. Also, thank you thank you thank you for having an affair with a student (while you have a wife and just had your first child) and only getting probation for it.

Don't be nervous about it! I was the first time I took my skills test and I failed. The second time around, I made sure I knew how to do it and didn't stress out about it and I passed with flying colors. You can do it :). Practice, practice, practice!

I agree with all of the above. Being a CNA gives you the experience you need and should want in order to go further into nursing. I just started 2 jobs as a CNA and I am more excited than ever to start my program because I'm finally getting the insider's view. I was talking to a couple of co-workers during orientation and they were talking about our RN's. They said that the one RN that hasn't had previous work as a CNA is nice, but she just does NOT understand what we go through every day. When they ask her to do things, or if something that we see as serious is happening, she just shrugs her shoulders and expects the CNAs working for her to pick up all of the pieces. I really think that the experience will help you to respect the CNAs working under you when you become an RN one day :).

Oh wow, I never knew people had a pet peeve about saying "I'm going to school to get my RN." I say that because I am going to school to eventually GET MY RN! Uh...sorry?!

Thanks guys :) I am new to the board, but love it because this is exactly what I need.

I usually have a diet Coke on hand (along with every other hour of my day so I'm not sure if that counts) but I don't completely rely on caffeine. I can usually tell off the bat if I'm going to be tired or not for my shift. I just recently started nights, so I went to a co-worker from another job whose roommate had worked nights for 6 years. She said what worked for her was sleeping a few hours after her shift and a few hours before her shift, to keep her energized and to still have time during the day to do things. I hope that helps a little bit, as I'm new to nights, too. :)

I applied to a nursing program this past December (before the deadline) to start in the Fall of '08. They sent me a letter that I was missing things and needed to contact them. I received this letter during winter break so everyone was out of the office and I couldn't get a hold of anyone for the life of me. I got a letter a couple of weeks later saying I didn't get in. Finally, I got a hold of them and decided I would just forget about starting in the fall and start in the spring of '09. I figured out what I was missing from my application and sent my other transcripts in that they apparently didn't have and applied again for the spring WELL before the priority deadline. I get a letter a couple months after that saying I didn't get accepted AGAIN. I have a 3.8 GPA and all of my pre-requisites done so I didn't understand why I didn't get accepted. I contacted the school and they said I was missing the same transcripts I had been missing before. I knew for a fact that I sent them in and got a copy from my other school stating when they sent my transcripts to this school. They told me okay that it was their mistake, and said they would put me on the WAITING LIST for my nursing program. I am appalled because me not getting in the spring '09 program had nothing to do with me, it was the school's mistake. I have a GPA well above the required GPA to get in and I have every single pre-req done and even some of the classes required to take druing the nursing program done. How should I go about this? My nursing director said she put me "at the top of the waiting list", but I don't want to worry about not getting in. Do at least a few people generally drop the program? I am really worried I won't get accepted now and it's the only school I applied to because I knew I could get in. Any advice would be appreciated.