mpittsrn

Honestly I wouldn't buy EVERY book they suggest. Some of them you only need for a passage or maybe a chapter and that's why they have a library. You would go broke buying all of those books. I graduated from LSUHSC SON with the CARE V group and did just fine not owning all of the books. As far as APA is concerned, I used the OWL at Purdue website. It gives you examples and you can just google it and don't have to waste your money on some book that says the exact same thing. Good luck. Don't stress! Fundamentals is exactly what it sounds like. It is a broad scope. You don't need to be a genius to get it. You just have to pay attention and use your common sense! The whole time I was in nursing school I stressed over it and now looking back it was honestly a breeze. I don't know you at all, but I'm sure you can do it!

We actually took it at the end of our nursing school career (last May) and it wasn't hard. I heard they were going to make it mandatory to pass, but I'm not sure if that's the case now. It is general, kinda like NCLEX. If you study your NCLEX books, you will do fine. Just use your "nursing judgment". It isn't bad and definitely nothing to stress about!

Congrats to all of you guys who got in! :yeah:The program is challenging but it is manageable. I did not go through the traditional program, I did CARE, but it was still manageable! Don't stress is my first piece of advice. My second is go with your gut and don't change your answers. If you pay attention in class and study the lectures and use common sense you'll do ok! Someone once told me that C=RN and the fact of the matter is that nobody ever looks at your grades unless you want to apply to a master's program. I'm not saying slack, but don't over stress. Enjoy your time in school because the real world of nursing is a different animal from school! As far as the classes go, don't skip class. You will miss lots of important information if you miss. And as far as phys is concerned, go to class and keep up with the notes and readings. The teachers we had gave bonus points for just answering questions on index cards in class and if you got it right you'd get more points, so go!!! And anatomy, go to lab and pay attention. I slacked on my first practical and did horribly, like 33! Well on my second one I went to the review session and the professor walked around the cadavers with me and pointed out EVERYTHING and i got a 100, so go to the reviews, ask questions, and don't be scared to get dirty! Good luck to you all and you will do great. Keep your heads up and take it one day at a time!

I actually applied for UAB FNP and didn't get in and the ANP people called me and I got in for this fall online. I was so excited to get in and signed up for the roles classes (there are 2) because I wanted to be part time and work part time and still have time for my son. I thought for sure it would be smooth sailing since I have done well in both of my other college experiences (BSN and BS in Biology). So I looked up whether or not I needed books and to my surprise I didn't YAY! Well that was wrong. As soon as my blackboard popped up I needed 3 books and ASAP of course! Then I get to reading and there are group projects...more than one. I didn't expect to have to do group projects. I live in Louisiana and the majority of the students live in the Birmingham area so I was the odd man out. They wanted to meet up and do the project...I can't do that!!!! Anyway, the more I looked at it, the more I thought that it wasn't at all what I had signed up for. There are certain times that you have to log on to the internet and have group chat. I thought that I would have deadlines and just be able to meet them at my own pace, not the pace and schedule of others. Online to me meant that I was in charge of my own studying and grades, not group projects! So the moral of the story is that I quit before it started. I knew it was going to be too much BS to want to deal with and work and raise my 5 month old. People do it, and more power to them, but I'm not doing it. I actually delayed my application until another semester but I don't believe that I will be going back. Good luck if you choose to go there and I hope it is better for you than it was for me!

I had a lot of issues finding my first job last year. I live in Slidell and for some reason couldn't get anyone to call me back over here so I wound up at EJ. I had heard mixed things and took them all into consideration but I didn't let them keep me from trying it out. I did a "buddy shift" and it was great. Everyone was on their best behavior that day I guess because after I started some of them did attempt to eat me alive. Unfortunately, I think it is a fact of life in nursing. You are the new one and they have to feel you out. It took about 6 months of hating it before I went one day and loved it. I think you start to like it more once you get your feet wet and get into a routine. I would suggest a buddy shift and maybe talk to some other nurses on the floor. Try EJ. It's a really good hospital and you can learn a lot. They have a great orientation and offer lots of classes. I worked tele and loved it. Now I'm at a hospital close to home and actually miss going over there to work. The point is, it's your first job and you may hate it for a bit but it'll get better. There will always be people who you hate working with and who don't enjoy working with you but don't let them get to you, it's just who they are! Good luck with your job hunting and if you feel that uncomfortable there, don't take it. Just don't miss out on an opportunity based on what someone else feels!

I worked at EJ and live in Pearl River. After I had a baby 4 months ago i decided that i just couldn't drive anymore even though I made more over there than over here so I applied to SMH. I got a PRN position on rehab, not my first choice but they called and I make 6 dollars more an hour than I did at EJ. I work nights and love it! I am pretty sure that there are some positions open. Maybe you should call HR and ask them about it. I have only been a nurse for a year and I found it difficult to find a job even with a year of experience. As far as charting is concerned, we have paper charting--flow sheet with narrative, but we're going to computer charting either in september or october. I went to a class for it and it seems easy. I'm melissa by the way, it seems so weird talking to someone and not knowing their name!

My cousin's girlfriend is a dietician there. She has been there a little while and seems to like it. I also know a few girls that work there and they seem to like it too. I think when it first opened everyone wanted to work there, but the newness has worn off. I work at SMH and we get patients from there sometimes and they haven't always said good things. I applied at SS and never heard back but another girl I worked with got a PRN position there. Maybe you should consider SMH.

I'm not sure exactly what the CARE gpa is, but I had a 3.3 or something and got in.

I graduated from the CARE program in May of 2008 from LSU SON. To get into CARE you must have a degree and many people had taken A&P I and II through other schools and were given credit for anatomy but not physiology. I think the reasoning is that A&P is super in-depth. The tests are hard but you learn so much and the teachers are great. Also, go to the classes, you get points in the end for going to class and answering questions...I don't remember how many points they gave, but I do know that I missed out because I was bored in class...Moral of the story, go to class! The anatomy part is excellent though so if you could take it, I would. You actually get to cut on a cadaver (spelled wrong?) and it's so interesting. The class itself is fairly easy but rather boring but I learned a lot from the lab. Good luck!

Hey I graduated from CARE May 2008 and it is very do-able. While I did not have children, I was married and lived on the Northshore so had to drive daily which really stunk! For the first semester you do traditional classes (anatomy and physiology and labs) along with foundations i believe. The beauty of the program is that you do only one class at a time after the first semester so you can concentrate on just one thing rather than having to learn OB and Peds at once. It makes it much easier. Don't let them scare you. I hardly studied (that's just my nature) and I graduated with roughly a 3.5 gpa. Just study what they give you in class and go with your gut! The biggest lesson I learned was never change your gut answer! Good luck and I hope you got in!!!

I would not be concerned about age. I attended LSU SON in the CARE program and had classes with the BSN students and many of them were very young when we started. When I interviewed they asked me what made me want to be a nurse and what would make me a good nurse! Be prepared for a dumb question like that. All I can say is be honest and be yourself. If your GPA is good and your test score is good (I didn't have to take that so sorry I don't know what is good) you'll have a great chance at getting in! GOOD LUCK!!!

1. University of Alabama Birmingham 2. MSN- ANP 3. I'm PRN but I will probably work 2 nights a week---bills to pay and a baby to feed 4. I'll be attending online classes part time 5. And I'm super excited but nervous!

I would like to thank you guys for your replies. The Academic Common Market does not include ANP online unfortunately. So I sent them an email to see if they could add it or if they had any suggestions because the site said to email them if you have requests. Well in the mean time I called UAB and asked them about in state versus out of state and the lady said that as of right now UAB online courses are considered in-state no matter what! So now I can go. Paying $620 per semester hour is just a bit much when you have to add $200 for each course on top of that! So I'll get in-state tuition! YAY! Now the question is, is this plan of study something that I'm going to be able to manage? And how do I obtain a preceptor? Also, where do you take tests, online??? Thanks again for your input guys!

did you go to UAB?

i am about to attend UAB I think, but I'm wondering about the tuition. I'm out of state so I think it's like 620 an hour. is it 200 on top of that for online? also how do you like it? I'm nervous because it's so expensive and I want some opinions before I send my acceptance letter. melissa