aeron

It is entirely up to you, of course, but I'd think a BSN would be much for your career in the long term, and I AM WILLING TO BET that you would have more credibility by graduating from the nursing program at EKU than you would at any community college. I realize you're a single mother and you want to get done with school ASAP. I'm just not minding my own business, and looking out for ya. Hugs, Aeron

It *could* be better at the Leestown campus, but not likely. I've seen enough in my one semester at the Leestown campus (in another program) to know that the school is not organized, and the teachers are not that good (with their teaching methods or in terms of their own actual experience in the respective field). I have talked to professors in at least three different programs across the Cooper and Leestown campuses, and know enough to look elsewhere. Good luck, though. You don't have much further to go, right? If you are considering transferring, I bet you wouldn't have any problems, though you might have to take additional courses just to get the degree from a different institution. Hugs, Aeron

Michigan, you say you love your job, yet you seem so bitter. So intent on painting such a gloomy picture of the nursing field. What does that accomplish? One thing that I know that it would accomplish is scaring off potential workers. That IS job security! Yes, patients today do demand more for their money. There are a number of reasons for this. It costs so much more today to "see a doctor" than it used to. Please feel free to correct me if I am wrong, but in the olden days you didn't pay anything to see a doctor. And, back then being attended to by a nurse was often a much more serious matter. Colds could easily kill you. A small cut could cause you to lose your leg. One of the things that I have observed when meeting nurses today is that nurses so often do not COMMUNICATE. They don't explain to me what they are doing, and when they do see me (sorry for the generalizations) they treat me like I'm a number or an object. Yeah, back then we were just "patients", but back then people in general were more polite, caring, compassionate. Not so today. BTW, I don't think there is a nursing shortage at all. I maintain that at least *some* of it is hype generated by nursing programs. Hugs, Aeron

Sarah, the best way to find out just how good a program is to call around to places that hire nurses. Give them a fake name and tell them you are thinking of entering a nursing program and you'd like to know which school they would go to if they were just starting out in nursing (or continuing beyond their RN). You may be surprised what they have to say! Many will be hesitant to give opinions because they hire from the schools, or because they don't want to say anything that could come back to bite them. If you remove them from their current scenario and put them in a scenario where they can say how they feel, you will get results. Hugs, Aeron

Is it really any worse than it was generations ago, though? There is more technology today, for sure, more documentation that must be completed, but that just creates a situation in which more must be done with less. I don't know that I agree that it's crap that must be dealt with, though (unless it's a dirty diaper). That seems to be the mantra of those looking to protect their own interests.

All I've got to say is that those who toot their horns are trying to drown out the sounds they make with their other horn. :chuckle

That *would* be a problem for me. I have never been one to be able to 'study' when everyone else in the group is chatting up what they're doing on the weekend or some other nonsense. Maybe it's different in nursing-oriented workstudy groups, but I have a hard imagining it to be. Hugs, Aeron

Okay.........I made it 3 pages into the thread before I formed the assumption that no one else is seeing that maybe the "nursing shortage" is a doing of schools and not hospitals. The only rationale I have for that theory is WHY NOT? Schools are there to make money, and if they can foster the idea that there is a great demand for nurses, why would they NOT take advantage of it? It reminds me a lot of IT programs. I only have a 2 year degree, but I know that it's not far removed from a 4 year degree as far as job opportunities go. Or near zilch. When I started taking classes for an IT degree in '98 there were GOZILLIONS of schools out there pushing their IT programs. The sales pitches ranged from "You will be prepared for Y2K" (by the way, what a joke) to "The internet is going to explode". The only thing that exploded was the theory that all these computer graduates would have jobs when they got out of school. The schools got rich, and the employers got poorer. No, that's not just a poor play of words. Ever heard the term 'vapor ware'? It was one of the primary reasons for the destruction of the 'IT job market' as we all knew it.

I did contact the BCTCS Disabilities office, and basically the only assistance they can provide is note taking and letting me use an "fm system", which I do not need (because my hearing aides work well). They were really of no help, otherwise. I tend to side with my mother's belief that the Disabilities office is there by law, and works with the focus of protecting the school rather than the student (as evident in the times I have spend talking to them). I do think I will check out EKU. Other than probably needing to purchase my own amplified stethoscope from Heartrate, would you mind outlining the steps you took to get admitted into EKU (outside of having the grades)? I realize that pretty much all nursing programs require the same things in terms of immunizations, titers, physicals, that sort of thing. I'm just wondering what to look out for should I decide to apply with EKU. Also, I would LOVE to read some opinions with comparisons between schools like EKU and UK. I know that one's basketball program would smoke the other one, and the former's football program could return the favor, still .........:chuckle Hugs, Aeron

Kina, what college do you attend? And is it the nursing program that requires such a high GPA to get in, or just the college in general? Is is Centre, by the way? Hugs, Aeron

My wife works at a facility in northern Kentucky, and some of her co-workers attend Gateway KCTCS. I was thinking of checking out the program. How does it compare to the program that EKU has? Hugs, Aeron

I'm a student at BCTCS, just aren't taking any classes this Fall 2008 semester. I took an HVAC and Circuits I/II classes last Spring 2008 semester, and decided electricity wasn't for me (especially after a capacitor zapped me). I already have an IT degree (2 year) and it's a worthless piece of paper. Basically, I keep coming back to the idea of being a nurse, and though I'm scared to death that I wouldn't be able to absorb all that information, I've made the decision to move forward. I'll never know if I don't try, and I'm not getting any younger! (36, and an unemployed husband and father) Hugs, Aeron

I never thought an Internet thread forum could be so beautiful. I am not even in the nursing program at BCTCS, yet, nor have I even applied for it. At this point, I don't even have my CNA license, yet. Still.............this is great information to me to know. It is great to hear other Kentuckians on here, and to know other BCTCS'ians. Basically, all the healthcare experience I have is 5 months working as a CNA back in 1997. Over the years I have entertained the thought of going to school to be a nurse (went and got a 2 year IT degree, instead, that didn't do anything for me on any level), but always backed away from those plans because I was hearing impaired and some people told me that I was *too caring* to work in the healthcare field, that my emotions would get in the way. I'm planning on getting my CNA license and working (not sure if I want to work in a nursing home again) to save up for school and applying to take classes next fall semester. Maybe I'll take classes this upcoming spring semester. Hugs, Aeron

If you are planning on working in long-term care, being a CNA *would* be a wise decision! My wife is an LPN with 20-something years of experience in long term care, and she will tell you that the worst nurses she's worked with are the ones that were never CNA's. You can not appreciate what those below you have to do, unless you've been there. Additionally, there *IS NO* greater exposure to patient care in a long term setting, than being a CNA. This is all relevant, of course, if you are thinking of working in long term care. By the way, I am trying to figure out where I'm going to take my CNA class, and being hearing impaired I never felt comfortable with BCTCS because they said they only had one hearing impaired student and had no idea if she ever got a job or not after graduation. Not every encouraging, to say the least. Hugs, Aeron

I hope no one minds a rookie reviving a six month old thread. At the moment I am investigating WHERE to get my CNA license (I live just north of Georgetown, KY). It is so expensive. Yes, BCTCS requires the CNA license before they will accept you into their nursing program. As does UK. There is a place in Georgetown that charges about $500 for the CNA program, but I too would love to find a place that would pay for it in exchange for me working for them. Right now I am in the process of applying to the nursing programs at Northern Kentucky University (though I read yesterday that their program has been placed under the "conditional" status by the state board of nursing), Gateway Community College and Eastern Kentucky University. EKU is really too far a drive for me. I would be driving almost 1.5 hours just to get to class. UK, from what I've heard, does not run that great a nursing program and their students tend to not be able to hit the ground running. You didn't hear it from me :chuckle I had contacted BCTCS about my hearing impairment and they acted like they'd never heard of a hearing impaired nursing student. They said they had ONE hearing impaired student (a female, I'm male but am transitioning to female) but didn't know how she made out after graduation. How's THAT for concern of students? They don't even know if she found a job. :imbar So............sorry for the long winded post, but I would love to hear the latest opinions on nursing schools in Kentucky. Am I better off just going to the community college and working as a CNA for a number of years while I go to school, or should I just head toward university? I have a 2 year degree already, and am not too concerned about whether I would be admitted to a nursing program or not. Hugs, Aeron