Divest

What about talking to the students who were successful and asking them about their strategies? It sucks that you've got a bumbling instructor, I'm dealing with one of those myself and it's a pain to deal with.

Hey, thanks for the reply! How many hours did you work per week? Did you work full-time? Just wondering.

TONS of flashcards. I don't care what type of learner you are, where you come from, what you're studying, what you look like, what kind of music you listen to, or what color your face turns when you hold your breath; flash cards will help you every step of the way in nursing school. They're invaluable to me. Oh, and make it fun. Quiz yourself in a way that makes it reasonably enjoyable. Boring studying = remembering nothing.

75% isn't that bad. Study, study, study. You didn't really mention how much you studied before so I'm going to assume it wasn't as much as you should have. Going to class is only 20% of the battle. The other 80% is studying.

Just giving a quick bump.

Before I entered this program there was little to no information on this site for the Citrus College (Glendora, CA) LVN program so I will take it upon myself to give as much information as possible now that I'm enrolled. Hopefully someone in my shoes about six months ago will be able to use this thread as a reference. First off, this program is highly competitive. The first step to get accepted into the LVN program at Citrus College is to take NRS 100, also known as Intro to Health Occupations for one semester. This is a two-part class which runs two days a week (for example, I go on Thursdays and Fridays), and is usually about 3 hours long per class. The first day usually consists of Pharmacology and the second is Anatomy and Physiology (so on Thursday I get lectured on Pharmacology and Friday I get lectured on A&P). You get quizzed twice a week, every week, at the beginning of each class. At the end of the semester you take your finals which you must pass with an 85% or better. Out of the 250 students that take this class each semester only the top 40 are accepted into the actual LVN program. For the past couple of years the cut off for the top 40 has been a 95% overall score, meaning you need to maintain an A throughout the entire semester in this particular class to get into the LVN program. If you don't make it in your first try, you get one more try before you are barred from the program. As I said, it's highly competitive. This is an extremely difficult class as well just because of the sheer amount of information you need to retain weekly. Remember, you're not taking one class, but two classes - Pharmacology and A&P. Unfortunately they don't tell you where you stand as the class is going on, only your grade, so that leads to quite a bit of mental torment during this three to four month period. As it stands, I'm currently enrolled in NRS 100 and have been maintaining a decent grade (92%). We're only in the first couple weeks so lower scores are expected as the students adjust to the class. An 80% is roughly average for this adjustment period. Unfortunately this is where my knowledge on the program pretty much ends but I will be updating this thread as my journey through this program continues. If anyone wants, feel free to ask any questions and I will do my best to answer your questions and update the first post as much as possible. My goal is to provide information since I couldn't find any information on this particular program and that alone is intimidating. I'm studying roughly 3 hours a day, sometimes more just to feel "comfortable" with the concepts, hopefully this leads to me getting accepted into the program. Only time will tell. I am confident, however, that even if I don't make it this semester, I will be armed with the knowledge and have an advantage next semester. Wish me luck.

Nope. He's in exactly the same area as I. He's just uninformed, that's all.

The Inland Empire is in Southern California, more specifically Riverside and San Bernardino County. Typically, Inland Empire means Riverside, Temecula, Moreno Valley, Perris, Murrieta, etc. etc. I live very close to the Inland Empire (I live in Los Angeles) and used to live in Perris, which is in the Inland Empire. Unfortunately he just knows a whole bunch of lucky people because I know plenty of new grads who can't find a job who live in the Inland Empire. I understand that everyone is having a difficult time finding a job, but that isn't what this thread is about. I would appreciate it if we could keep this thread on topic, please. :)

Easy for RN's to get a job? What alternate universe are you living in? Maybe you just haven't spent enough time reading the threads on this site, but what you said just simply isn't true. Times are difficult for everyone right now, including experienced RN's. Your friend may have gotten lucky, but there are way too many new grads that aren't getting as lucky.

Has anyone done this? Is it possible? I'm currently not working but I fear that my finances may run out sometime in the middle of my nursing program and I'm wondering how difficult it is to at least hold a part time job during LPN school? I'm reasonably intelligent and I can prioritize decently, if that helps any.

I know it's nearly impossible to give an accurate answer, but I would like to know everyone's opinions on how long they think this is going to go on for, or if this hiring freeze is permanent and that nursing is going to forever be a difficult field to get a job in from now on. Do you think that the nursing field has stablized itself to the point where nurses are never going to have the freedom, siging bonuses, or ease of finding jobs again? Do you think that it will ever return to what it was just a couple of years ago? I'm just curious as to what everyone thinks because I'm personally worried that nursing is going to be forever changed to the point where nurses are never going to have that freedom that used to come with getting a nursing license and working as a nurse. I'm going to be done with nursing school in about a year from now and I'm wondering if everything will clear up and there will be openings, or if I'm just wasting my time in school for a field that I'm going to have an extremely difficult time finding a job in.

Most credits earned through online schools are non-transferable to any other school. So if you're looking to transfer those UOP credits to any other school to get in... good luck.

Yeah I've read through your posts and I'm still not entirely convinced. Going for my LVN first gives me a few options: 1) Working through nursing school -- I can't afford not to work. Being an LVN offers a very good paying part time wage, all the while I'm gaining very valuable nursing experience. LVN and RN duties may differ, but there's a lot of overlap, and not to mention just being in the right environment is experience enough. People say it's better to become a CNA first and they're not even nurses! 2) No wait list on the programs -- It is quicker and I do have to take prerequisites, but there's definitely less "fluff" schooling. 3) Someone said that it's hard enough to get a job with a ADN as it is, so getting a certificate would make me even less likely. What they're not considering is that I'll HAVE a job while I'm waiting to get hired as an RN, not to mention I'll already have a foot in the door with my LVN experience (which also looks nice on a resume, mind you). I also don't believe that this hiring freeze is going to continue on for years and years to come, which is how long it will take me to finish all of my education anyways. 4) I can't afford to not work through school. Can't stress that enough. 5) That entire chunk of text about LVN to RN being a waste of time just seems like a load of crap to me. All of it is very subjective things like "Not trained to be leaders" Come on dude, really? 80% of that post depends on where you went to school to become an LVN and another 10% is based on where you get a job when you graduate. It lists out the worst possible scenarios. 6) I'm not worried about relocating to another state. This goes hand-in-hand with the hiring freeze, which I anticipate will be over by the time I complete my education and if it's not, I'll just continue going to school while working as an LVN until it IS. Going for LVN first gives me that option.

Just wondering. At least here in California, there's lengthy waitlists or lotteries which don't guarantee admission into a direct RN program. Plus, let's assume that someone doesn't have their general education finished. LVN to RN bridge programs allow nurses to bypass that particular requirement and obtain a certificate instead of a degree and you're still eligible for the boards and would receive the same education that a ADN nurse would have received, minus the general education that isn't applicable to nursing whatsoever. So what's the deal? I've seen people say it's better to go straight for RN, but why?

Here what I turned up from a google search, but I'm not entirely sure if this is what she's talking about.