NerdyNurse2012

I do go there. I got in with a 4.7 from high school, 4.0 from credits that transferred from my previous degree, and 1460 (out of 1600) on the SAT. I also took A&P 1/2 there along with some humanities the semester before I got in (4.0 in those).

They generally take about 45-50 students into the nursing program each semester. It really is extremely competitive.

Waitlisted *sigh*

Piggybacking on what Ladyashleyd said. Locing hair is a natural way to maintain hair. Just having locs is not deemed as inappropriate or unprofessional. Not keeping them groomed could be, but that applies to any hairstyle. A person with locs cannot take them off or comb them out and put the locs back in after work. They will always be there. But they can be kept neat. And none of this is to say that guages, piercings, or tattoos are wrong. There is a place for them. A professional environment is not the place. I have several tattoos and piercings. I have 8 peircings in my ears alone. But I do not wear studs in all of them while at work, because that's not the place for them. And all of my tattoos are covered while working. It is, to some degree, rude to imply that how a person chooses to naturally grow their hair is the same as somebody choosing to manipulate their body. So to the OP... really it is fine for your son to get his ears guaged, as long as he is able to adhere to professional standards when the time comes.

I would just like to point out that a person having their hair locked and a person deciding to have their ears guaged are two very different things.

This is no longer true. From what I've researched and been told in the past month, private loan companies like Sallie Mae and banks have taken away loan programs that allow students to borrow more than the TCA.

Sallie Mae as well as most other private loan companies have also stopped doing loans that go above the cost of attendance. I've been researching this too because I will be a second degree student and I'll be leaving a full time job to go back to school.

I am in the same boat. I can just barely make ends meet now paying for my house, car, and only the necessities. If I go to school, I will definitely not be able to work as much as I do now. I will be a second degree student, so not much in the way of federal aid. Bad college student credit and as of now, no willing co-signer

Good luck to you. I submitted my application a couple of weeks ago. They have everything now except my high school transcript. I think I'm going to have to call the high school because I requested it 3 weeks ago. The deadline is Oct 1. The admissions counselor said acceptance letters go out between mid October and early November.

Do you have an area in your home that you can use exclusively for studying? I find it difficult to study in areas I use for something else; like couch, kitchen table, bedroom. At this point in life I have an office that is strictly work and study. But back when I had roommates, I'd set up a corner of the apartment just for studying.

Thanks to all for the encouragement. And good luck to everyone that is also applying!! I went to speak with an admissions counselor today. Overall I have a strong package, but my low gpa could hurt me. Luckily I had the forethought to explain my grades in the application because alot of students have extreme circumstances and think maybe they'll be able to explain with an additional letter or interview. But the admissions comittee only looks at the application, transcripts, test scores, and references. Any additional info sent in is disregarded. Worst case scenario-- I don't get into the nursing program, but can still be admitted for the associates in science: pre-nursing track. Because I've already taken all pre-reqs and most of the co- reqs, I could take an additional psych course and a healthcare leadership course. Then I can apply for a change of major for Fall 2010. Still she told me it's not impossible for me to be admitted for the spring.

Thanks! I have alot more volunteer experience than I listed. I had never really considered that those experiences would eventually help me. I was just really loving the things I was doing. It was an escape from the coldness of being in the lab all day. I could get out and be a part of the world, lol. I really hope this school is able to look past that bad couple of years. I don't remember what my GPA was before my grandaddy died, but I know that even with 4 semesters of F's (a total of 16)... I still graduated with a 2.4 GPA. In all of my pre-requisites I have A's. and my major GPA is a 3.6 (Biology). So I'm not a bad student. I also have great references. So I think that may help too.

Congrats! :anpom:

Good luck to you also!

I posted this in the general nursing student section before... got passed over a bit. So I figured I try my luck over here. I turned in my application for spring 2010. Applications aren't due until Oct 1st, I have a long wait ahead of me. I'm new on here, so here's my story. I graduated a few years ago with a BS in Biology (barely). But I ended up with a great job as a molecular biology tech just after graduation. I loved the science, but I didn't love my job. I didn't feel like I was serving any real purpose. So I quite and worked in a gym helping members develop fitness plans. That job was great, but the pay sucked. So I started looking for any job that I could get with my degree. I ended up getting hired as a clinical research assistant. It turns out they hired me more for my volunteer experience. I've done all sorts of things... mentoring, tutoring, rape crisis hotline, AIDS/HIV awareness and counseling, food drives, and all of that. My supervisor told me that they way I talked about my volunteer experiences in my interviews showed that I was a genuinely compassionate person and that's what they were looking for. Once the study gets going, I start meeting with and watching the nurses and thinking to myself... I would love to do something like this. But I figured since I went through hell and high water to get my first degree, I should just stick with it. A few months go by and my supervisor breaks the bad news that we may have a gap between studies, meaning I would be out of a job for a few months. I immediately go into panic (because that's what I do sometimes). Then one of the nurses that I've gotten to know pretty well suggests I look into nursing. I had never even considered it. But the more I thought about it, the more sense it made. I looked into ABSN, and BSN programs... but right now, none of those would work for me, so I looked as ADN programs. I found one associated with one of the local hospitals that seems to be a good fit for me and I applied (I also applied to the local community college, but I'm not a fan of the waitlist). I'm a bit worried because my previous GPA, is terribly low. In high school I graduated at the top of my class and did very well my first 3 years of undergrad. But during my senior year I found out my grandfather had lung cancer, he went through surgery, and ended up passing... all within 3 weeks . He was my #1 supporter for everything, so afterwards and I suffered alot of emotional, family, and financial problems. Alot of it being my remaining family members telling me to "suck it up" whenever I had a problem or needed to talk. It took a few years, but I've worked these things out as much as I could on my end and I've become a much stonger person. I've realized my limits, that I can't be a superwoman, and that at times I need to take a time out. Just sucking it up doesn't always work. And over the years I've also been blessed with a much better support system :) Anywho, sorry for the mini book and thanks for listening/reading! :heartbeat