Dubcee

I am not currently a nurse, and yes most schools need that as a requirement, but that's what makes schools like Penn, Columbia, Yale and UCSF special is that they have accelarated programs for people who have bachelor's degree in a non nursing major and want to pursue a career as a nurse practitioner. The programs last about 3 years depending on what you want to specialize in and some award both the BSN and MSN. The first year is the BSN portion and the last 2 years is clinical experience. I considered PA school but I have heard that there really isn't much room for growth.

well i've definitely looked at many schools to apply to and plan on applying to many schools given my situation, however columbia and penn are my top choices because they offer the neonatal nurse practioner specialty without prior rn experience and without specifically stating anywhere on their websites that a 3.0 gpa is required to apply to their program. some programs also offer the bs/msn option but the training is not specifically on being a nurse practitioner, more so as a clinical nurse leader (i.e rush university). i will contact them and contact other schools that also offer the nnp specialty about my situation. i prefer the accelerated program because i'm not getting any younger and would really like to start a career and family. as for the cost, i am so blessed that my parents are willing to pay for a big portion of my school (almost all of it) and columbia stated on their website that they give scholarships to 99% of their entering class up to $20k. i know it's hard to find a job as a nurse these days, but i'm not so much in it for the money. i'll pretty much take a job anywhere.

I graduated from UCLA almost 3 years ago with a Bachelor's degree in Neuroscience. I did really well my last years at UCLA and my upper division courses but didn't do so great the first few years. I was dealing with depression. I am now a Research Associate at Johnson and Johnson (the pharmaceutical entity of JNJ companies, and I'm doing very well there), but have decided to apply to accelerated Nurse Practitioner programs, particularly Columbia, Penn, and Yale. With all that said, my undergraduate GPA falls below a 3.0 but I have passed my prerequisite courses with a B or higher, and I took Anatomy, Physiology and Microbiolgy after college at junior colleges and received A+ in all those classes. I did really well on my GREs (1450), and have a very impressive resume with lots of employment and extracurricular activities both during and after college. Do you think I still have a chance getting into these programs? I am really scared that my GPA will prevent me from getting in anywhere. I've seen so many programs that require a 3.0 GPA just to apply. Please help? I will not start applying until summer 2011 for entry in summer 2012. Also i'm reading that in 2015 new nurse practitioners will need a DNP? How will that affect me? Am I coming in early enough so that I won't need a DNP to be a nurse practitioner? Well first I have to get in...soo scared!