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Carla: I have some tips that really helped me get A's in A&P. It will depend what kind of learner you are, but they might help: 1. If you belong to a gym or have access to a treadmill, put your A&P vocabulary on flash cards, put some monotonous dance music on your iPod (nothing with lyrics, just repetitive rhythm), and repeat the words OVER AND OVER while you walk at a steady pace. Not run -- too distracting. And say the words out loud, who cares if you look crazy? For me, this method made the words so familiar-sounding that remembering them at test time was a breeze -- plus I got the workout in! (PS, you can download this kind of music for free from PODRUNNER) 2. If you have iTunes, you can download A&P lectures for free from some really great teachers and listen to these while you drive or exercise or do housework. Go to the iTunes University section and you will see there are many to choose from. I really liked the ones from East Tennessee University. They are short and you can just select the ones that are relevant to the unit you are working on. 3. Draw pictures: this was a tip from my Anatomy professor. Once you draw a picture of something and label all the parts, you tend to remember it with more clarity (like the muscles of the thigh - this was the only way I could remember them!) 4. Teach someone else: if you can explain something to someone else (my spouse got stuck with the role...) you will remember it better. Good luck!

Oops! On my post above I said "123" when I meant "121" (Assessment) Sorry for the confusion!

Tina -- I'm not exactly sure if this is what you are asking, but these are the Nursing courses you will have to take in your first semester at MC: 3 courses total -- NU 110 (Fundamentals, 8 credits) NU 123 (Assessment, 3 credits) and NU 105 (Theory, 1 credit). NU 110 requires 4 hours of lecture each week. If its like previous semesters, this lecture will be held on Monday morning 8-12 or Monday afternoon/evening 4-8. NU 110 also requires one full day (10 hours, 7am to 5 pm) of clinical or two half days (5 hours 2 days a week mornings or evening) of clinical per week. Your day(s) and location for clinical are done by a lottery system -- pick a low number and you'll get the site/date/time you want... pick a high number and you get what's left. In addition to your clinical hours, you will have mandatory practice time for nursing skills (like wound care and urinary catheterization) averaging about 1 hour a week. This lab time has to be done on campus in the Nursing Lab. So the total hours devoted to NU 110 is at least 15 a week, plus commuting, plus reading, studying, online skills tutorials/tests and assignments related to your clinical patients (which you can do at home.) NU 123 is a 3 hour class that also has mandatory lab time so plan another a hour a week on campus for this. NU 105 is only 1 hour of class and is held either before or after 110. Hope this helps and congrats on your acceptance!

Hi Foxx -- congrats! No, there is absolutely no way to accelerate the program. Whether you start in spring or fall, you have to do the 4 consecutive semesters in the exact order because the skills build on the previous semesters. The required courses are not offered in the summer. The only Nursing courses offered in the summer are 1 - Pharmacology (3 credits: NOT a required course) 2 - A 2 credit supplemental clinical class. This is a 3-week, 3-days a week clinical-only course for those who want more hospital exposure. This course cannot substitute for a required course nor can it be used to make up for a failure in clinical during the school year. 3 - Basic Health Assessment (NU 121: one credit) I'm guessing that the only purpose for taking the 1 credit Basic Health Assessment in the summer would be 1) if you are starting in the fall it could make your 1st semester easier to have this out of the way or 2) if you failed it in the Spring (you have to get a C or better to pass). You have to pass this course before you can register for the second semester classes.

Love the program! It's very well organized and the faculty and lab staff are there to help every step of the way. You will always know just what is expected of you and as long as you do your share you'll do fine. My best advice is to read the text before every lecture -- I know this sounds so basic but you would be surprised how many people think they can just skim the text & study the power point slides and then are shocked when they do poorly on the exams. I'm not going to mention the hospital I was at because I don't want to bias anyone. It was a great experience for me but I haven't heard any complaints about other placements either so you will be in good hands at any of the locations. Also, the hospital sites might change from semester to semester and sometimes can change even after registration, so stay flexible!

Congrats to everyone and welcome to MC Nursing! I just finished my first semester there and can tell you what to expect for your schedule. You will take 3 courses total. The big course is NU 110 (Fundamentals). It is 8 credits and requires 4 hours of lecture, either Monday morning 8-12 or Monday afternoon/evening 4-8. NU 110 also requires one full day of clinical or two half days of clinical per week. Half days might be mornings or evenings. Your day(s) and location for clinical are done by a lottery system -- pick a low number and you'll get the site/date/time you want... pick a high number and you get what's left. Your hospital orientation will probably be in the third week. The first couple of weeks you will report to the the campus instead of your hospital during your clinical hours to do skills practice in the campus lab. Throughout the semester you will occasionally report to the campus lab for skills training (e.g. wound care, medications) during some of your clinical hours. Also on Monday will be a one hour, one credit class called Nursing and Health Care (NU 105) so if you take the morning 110 lecture you'll get a hour for lunch then come back for one more hour of lecture and get out by 2 pm. If you take the afternoon/evening 110 lecture, you will have to show up at 2 to take the later section of NU 105. Then you have a hour off before your 110 lecture starts. In addition to the Monday classes and your clinical assignment, you will also take a one credit Assessment class (NU 121) that meets for 3 hours -- there are many sections of this throughout the week so you just find one that meets your schedule. Also, for both 110 and 121 there are some mandatory lab hours which means you will need to come to the school to practice different skills in the lab on your own or with a partner throughout the semester. You can schedule these whenever is convenient for you as long as the lab is open. Thats about it for the first semester classes. These 10 credits will keep you plenty busy -- be glad you have all your pre-reqs done!