casperostrich

What a joke it is to say that there is a nursing shortage! Oh PLEASE! I am so bitter and angry that these schools keep churning them out and here I am 6 months plus post graduation and cannot get a job! What are they thinking?!!! None of these managers want to hire us new grads unless you are connected. I have twenty years of previous health care experience but am a new grad RN. I graduated in May, passed the NCLEX in July, and have had 3 interviews that were all from connections that I had but guess what?!! No job offer! As a matter of fact, my last interview I had 2 instructors backing but low and behold, after 3 weeks of waiting and calling and e-mailing, "Sorry, while you interviewed well the managers decided to go with someone with a bit more experience." Now I am back to job hunting and trying to work any connections I can. Of course it may not get me anything more than an interview as it has before. Why did I change careers to be a nurse if these organizations and managers won't even give us the chance to prove ourselves?! What was the point in me adding more tuition repayment to my growing pile if no one will even hire me no matter what level of education I have!! ADN or BSN it makes no difference unless these stuffy nurse managers actually decide we are hireable!! Nurses eat their young is absolutely true!! These managers just want to stick it to us because they had it stuck to them. Just remember dear managers, one day a nurse may be taking care of you and keep in mind it may be one that you refused to hire because they were a new grad with NO EXPERIENCE!

Future, Only 25! Sweet! That means that they are worth 2 points a piece and you really have to pay attention since missing anything minor would count an answer wrong. Wow! What pressure! So that would mean you couldn't miss more than 5. I think we will be ok. I think it will be easier than we think. Never hurt to put all that time in on the work though! :) As for the supplemental info. I think it is just for your own benefit in helping to study. I enrolled in the evolve for med term but haven't looked at it since. I used the CD that came with the book. As I said before, memorizing by flash cards is not my thing. I did better with the games and working thru the book if that makes sense. I did look at the flash cards and tried to link definitions to the words I was having problems with, like gen, genesis, genic. originating, producing, causing (genic) they all end in ing and genic has an i. That is how I finally learned it. genesis I learned as if it was a bible thing, the "origin" of life. Then I re-enforced it with the games on the CD. Hey, whatever works for you, right?! I put all this on here just so that if it helps someone else to learn the stuff, I am happy to have done it. If anyone else throughout the term finds new and unusual ways of learning that would help me out too, I would sure be grateful and give it a try since flashcard learning has never been a way for me to learn. See you all tomorrow and we got this!! If we made it through College Algebra and some of us stat, we can do this! Also, A and P 1 and 2, yea, no stress!! Good Luck new student nurses!! CW

OK so here is what I found out. I was tired of trying to figure out when to use the rounding rules and when not. So I sent Miss E an e-mail to get clarification. The short of the long is this. When moving the decimal as in from L to mL and so forth, don't round, just move the decimal and add your 0 in the beginning as needed and remove trailing 0 if required. All other problems, such as fractions to decimals, add, sub, mult, and div decimals, then round by the rules. I did find in Topic 1's practice test a problem that gives the answer to two places even though it should be one. I am counting that as an error. Hope that helps those of you that have had the same problem when dealing with the answers to the practice tests. On a good note, I timed myself when working the practice test, including writing out the problems from the test sheet to my notebook paper so I could re-test without re-printing the sheet each time, and completed the entire 37 problems in 18 minutes with none wrong! I feel good about this test and will not be too over-confident when I get in there, just in case they throw some curves. :) But I feel like I can complete the 50 in under an hour since time is usually my biggest problem with math. I take my time with math problems and generally run out of time if I am not paying attention to the clock. So with that, good luck to us all with the first two tests tomorrow and with beginning classes this week! :) We are on our way!! CW

LOL Future, that is exactly what happened to me! Started with a new cartridge and began printing the other three classes. Then I knew I wouldn't make it thru pharm so I picked up another just in case. Sure enough, ran out in the middle of pharm!! Have you been looking at the pp as they print off? I think that is the only class that scares me b/c there is so much on those pp's. CW

Moe, I wrote down C-212 on my paper for the degree audit. Future, Yea, I think the fact that I had been printing syllabi, class schedules, and pp, got me a LOT overwhelmed. :) LOL I had to text my first term friend, she had to call me and talk me down!! I said I wouldn't do this bit but here I go already with the getting overwhelmed and freaking out. I know this, I got this, what IS my problem!!! LOL So the short of the long is that she told me the same thing. So I am relaxed again. Whew!! No sense getting started even before the first test or class. Thanks for the info though and yes, I am a weirdo because I love algebra. I, too, am used to stats and algebra. So seems like I am trying to make this more than what I should be. So I will just keep doing the practice sheets for the next three days and review my rules. I most definitely like to make my stupid little mistakes that I kick myself for after. TTYL, CW

OMG!!! I just finished putting together my last binder. Of course I waited to do Pharm last and a good thing too. I had already done two of my classes at the beginning of the week, Concepts and Health, and those two burned thru half a brand new cartridge. I just got another one yesterday and had to change it in the middle of pharm. That class looks scary!!! I want to be ready for class as well. I think once we get going we will forget to print something and that could be disastrous!! Plus less time printing and more time studying. :) I have gone thru a pack and a half of paper. Poor trees. Anyway, Future did you see what I had asked you about the math? I could use some encouragement, I think, about studying the right stuff in the book. I can do the work sheet without mistakes. I think I am more afraid I will not study something like the teaspoon/Tablespoon bit and be caught flat-footed in the test. Thoughts? CW

Future, I have sent you an e-mail on this site. It is helpful info and let me know what you think. CW

I think my printer is overheating with all these syllabi and class schedules!! LOL

Future, I was working on Chapter 3 today as well and it makes my head hurt. I don't know about you all but this stuff is something else! Anyway, When I did the practice sheet from Nursing Tutor, most of what is on there is from what she covered in the power point. There is only the 2 questions that I was a little taken-aback with. The teaspoon to mL and the cm to mm. Also, the new e-mail has only the stuff from pp highlighted. What are your thoughts on this? I also wish they were more specific with the parts of the chapters to work on instead of being so vague. What pages in 2 and 3 did you work with? CW

Future, The med term test is a 50 question multiple choice test not 75, thank the good Lord!! I took out the flash cards today for Chapters 2 and 3 and there are only 68 total to learn. A lot of those terms are from A and P so it is really less than that if you remember your A and P. I was also wondering about the class times for Techniques but have seen the answer on the previous postings. 8AM for me on Wednesdays until clinical starts. Can someone look at the Independent Study Guide for the Dosage calc and explain something to me? Maybe I am being dense but I am a little confused. In Topic 1 number 12, the answer they give is 33.6 and I can accept that since it is greater than 1. In number 14, I did the one place thing but they give the answer to be 3.13. Since it is greater than 1 wouldn't you think it would just be 3.1? I thought so. Am I missing something? Any shedding of the light on this would be grateful. Thanks, CW

Future, Don't worry, when you see it you won't want to see it! LOL Just a LOT of reading and links, this and that's.... Just have a stress free Christmas and pinch the little one for me! :) LOL Enjoy Christmas with her because before you know it she will be like my 7 year old asking every 5 minutes is it time yet?!!! Ahhhhh. Merry Christmas! CW

thecamster21, Thanks for trying to give me some info on the 4th semester. I guess I am just missing the skiing. We didn't get to go at the start of this year for money reasons. So I was hoping that 4th term would be flexible enough I could squeak it in next year, my 4th. I have a friend who is a semester ahead of me that would be able to let me know what it will be like. The package has set dates and usually has to be paid for by Jan. 1 for the Feb. trip. So with her ahead of me I will know if I could do it or not. Sigh..... just have to wait and see. My family has missed it two years in a row now and I was hoping next year that my two step-sons and their wives would go with us for a big family trip like when they were teens. So with that it is time to finish Christmas and then focus, focus, focus. Merry Christmas to all and a Happy and Successful New Year! CW

Future and first termers, I noticed the other day that 2 of my 4 classes are already up on BB. It is my health assessment and concepts classes. Yikes, it is a lot of info to read! I think that it will have to wait until after I return from my trip to Virginia. :) Oh, I still haven't gotten my skills kit yet either! One thing at a time!! :) The fun begins ladies and gents!! Bring it on!! CW

thecamster21, I have a question about 4th term. I am wondering how your schedule is during that semester. My family usually goes skiing in Feb. every year for a week and of course, I am missing it this year. So I am wondering if the schedule would be flexible enough next year, our 4th semester, for me to get away for a week in Feb. The package we get always starts on a Sunday and I won't return home until the following Saturday or Sunday. I had heard that they let you plan out your own clinicals, is that so? Would I be able to miss one test and take it at another time? CW

Future, Yea, that was me. I was sitting on the end with a guy I knew from my Chem class last Fall. I think you were the one on your phone texting most of the time, right? lol I couldn't get any signal on my phone until I went out. Then I had 3 waiting. :) I got the section I wanted. :) I picked number 25 so I was stoked. I got section 9 which is Orange Park, so did my friend. I got my books too. I had the NCLEX review book already so I am taking it back tomorrow to hopefully get a refund and pick up everything else not in the box. All I got yesterday that wasn't in the box was the Dosage book and I didn't get the ebook, which I wanted. There goes anothr $200 + !! Oh well, what can you do. I think you can only register as she gets them in, so I guess you will have to try periodically throughout the day. Talk to you all later, CW

Future, If you end with OP and I end with Memorial, I'll switch you! I want OP first and then Memorial. So if you are game, I am!!! I tried Chantix, twice, I felt like I was detached from my brain looking out of my eyes as if I was someone else. I had not a care in the world and no energy. I was like play-doe. I also had a wicked headache start about mid-day. I have tried almost everything except Zyban. Crossing my fingers it will not give me side effects like everything else I try to take. Just have to put my mind to it this time!! See you all in the morning. CW

cdettelbach, I live in OP also. I live in Argyle off Cheswick. You? I will be wearing a pair of jeans and a white hoodie with St. Leo across the front. I am in need of a 40 pound weight loss but have started working on that! :) Being almost at the turn of my 4th decade it is harder to get off, especially after 4 babies! :0 The lap band helped some but not what I thought it would, only about 20 pounds. Anyway, I will look for you all there. Oh, I am a smoker so don't think too bad of me. I am picking up my Zyban on Tuesday so I will hopefully be smoke free when classes start. :) Wish me luck and if I am grouchy even then, don't think bad of me. I need all the support I can get!!!! CW

Oh, do you think they might possibly have some kind of book at the store tomorrow or are they going to make us squirm?! As of what I read Friday, still nothing at the bookstore. When I talked to the lady there at the end of November she said they will usually have them by orientation. Can you imagine the madness there tomorrow if that happens!! Yikes! CW

Just looked at the itinerary and wanted to let everyone know that the Welcome starts at 8:30 not 8. I will be there by no later than 7:45 anyway. But in case someone gets stuck in traffic, etc. See you there! :) CW

Steph4584, First, no one ever knows what the cut off is each semester. It changes with the number of applicants. So unless someone that didn't get in gets on here and posts what the cut off was, those that got in don't know. I think we are just glad we got in! :) As far as the NAT score, I think my overall score for the last time I took it was 104. I am sure that someone else may be a bigger brain than me and got a better score. I know my friend in the Fall class is a brain so I am sure she got a better score. I always had a few points less than her on tests. The first part of the NAT kicks my butt every time or I would have a better score than that I think! I always run out of time because it is the math, shape recognition, and which word doesn't fit mess. I am very slow on math because I always want to make sure I have the right answer with no mistakes. There are 90 questions, so 30 of each, and I always end up with about 5 left of the other two and about 8 to 10 of the math. I always whine that 10 more minutes would get me finished. Oh well, what can you do!! The next thing is what county you live in. If you live in Duval or Nassau, you won't need as high a score overall as the out of county applicants like myself. If you live in one of the two priority counties and have a total score of at least 195 then you are pretty much in. If you live in the other counties, you want to try and have a total score of 216 or better. As far as re-taking classes, I re-took English Comp and Psych but they were over 10 years old. I think that is the requirement to be allowed to re-take them. I had to have a counselor sign me up and she went and asked someone what the ruling was on the re-taking. She said over 10 years. So I was able to re-take them, all though now that I am in I didn't really need to take them over. I wanted to make sure though if I didn't get in this time that I would have maximum points for the Fall. The Fall semester is when they see the most applications and don't be surprised if the cut off is higher than what ours was this time. I think ours was around 193, I would have to go back to the middle of our threads to see. As far as classes on your transcript, they only look to see that you have had the pre-reqs and the grades. There really is no good or bad per se. Hope this all helps you, I would have loved a lot more info when I applied for this past Fall. I had to learn as I went so to speak. So if I can help someone else out with a little information then I will. Good Luck, CW

Timble, Is there a specific color of polo? I didn't see it on the paper. Is it that there is only one color for us? CW

Thanks everyone for the info I asked about. Future, sorry to hear about your accident. Wow! Talk about not needing another thing to deal with right now. I stress every time I drive around here. I hate how people drive in this city. Coming from Virginia in May of 08, I found the lack of common sense and simple driving rules crazy. I just paid off my Jeep in Feb. and we don't have money for a car payment right now. So I worry that someone will run into me and ruin my only transportation that is critical for nursing school! My worry for you is your little daughter. She is ok, right? Hopefully she is just fine, kids are extremely resilient. :) I also hope your car will be back in operation for orientation and the start of school. Good Luck to you with that. Hopefully your insurance and hers will have it started and done in no time! :) CW

Can anyone tell me what the cost of the polo shirt is? Also, has anyone gone to get their skills kit? I want to be sure when I go over to that side of the water that I can get my polo and then head up to get a skills kit without wasting time or gas. Is there plenty of them is what I am asking I guess? CW

Just an FYI. I called the bookstore today and got the same answer about our box of books that I got for the med term book. The books will be in sometime in December but they don't know when or what books. Also, talking to my friend that is in the Fall term, the med term book is in the box of books. The total cost of the box of books was around $650 and has almost everything textbook wise that we need. There are a few other books not in it like the medical dictionary and 1 or 2 others. So keep this in mind when thinking of cost of books. Tuition is around $1200 for the 4 classes. CW

Thanks Future, That would be a big help to get the pocket protector with the scissors at the same time as the BP cuff. Less running around like a chicken with my head cut off! LOL I have been waiting to buy my uniform shirts, etc. because payday for my husband was today. :) All I am going to get is the shirts, polo shirts, lab coat, and name tags. Pants I can get at anytime and will be able to try them on, etc. Thanks to all for the very helpful information. CW