RedRaiderBSN13

$30-40 sounds about right especially if you work around The Medical Center but decreases the further you are from TMC. I have friends who work at TMC that make at least $30/hr with at least 1 year experience. I also have another friend who works in the woodlands and they make around $27-28 with 1-2 years of experience

Hey Magreen01, I couldn't send you a message cuz it seems your inbox is full so here it is! Even though I'm not a parent, I can definitely give you some insight of whats to come. The first semester is very manageable in my opinion. The really challenge comes during second semester in where you almost have to dedicate about 30 clinical hours, lecture, and studying. Personally, it was very difficult for me to get adjusted to. But I know about 3-4 people who have kids that are doing just fine. I believe having a support system like family or friends (especially having a young one) can definitely make school manageable. I know a friend who has 3 kids and she has a hectic life style but is able to make really good grades. That's my two cent! Redraider2325

I agree wit this as well. Earlier this semester I had a thing for this one girl in my class. This was a terrible idea cuz it went the wrong direction. Since then, I been playing catch up cuz my test grades were terrible earlier this semester. There is nothing wrong dating someone in nursing school (cuz i know 2 couples who I'm friends with and they been going strong) but it really sucks when it goes bad like my situation.

Wow, thats really surprising to see. I guess our professor told us the wrong thing but this isnt the first time they gave the wrong info thats for sure lol

The test average steadily increase but its really tough to make up for a lot of people. It's a matter on people "thinking" like a nurse that able you to do well on tests. Tbh, you dont need to know everything about patho just the basic which you will need to apply later on. I have a list of books that are really beneficial especially on tests (Kinda frustrating cuz a lot of the books they assigned weren't really helpful to handful of us) Having a job is very manageable for the first semester but second semester is going to be really really tough. I know a few that have a job and they had a very difficult time especially having 30 hrs of clinical week along with lecture and test. Tech is a very good program. I remember hearing from our professors that last years graduating class they had very high graduating numbers and a lot of them pass the NCLEX as well. I forgot the statistics but they said it was above 95% for both graduating and passing the NCLEX

The program has been pretty good so far. First semester was a breeze but second semester is THE hardest semester out of all semester. The seniors also agree with this as well. Most professors are pretty helpful except for tests lol. I remember our first test in Chronic Care (Med Surg 1), the 1st test average was a 54 and the study guided/blueprint didnt help us at all. Btw REMEMBER YOUR PATHO cuz it's going to kick your butt in second semester. But ill save the details later on and explain first semester. First semester is pretty easy when I look back. I think the challenging part for most people is having the mentality that your a NURSING STUDENT not just a student anymore. This is where experience as a CNA or other health setting profession comes into play (but not always for some). From what I remember, here is the schedule is like Mon and Wednesday - Lecture from 8 to 3 pm Tuesday - Health Assessment and Communication Clinical from 8 to 3pm Thursday and Fridays are kinda different cuz it switches off every week One week your thurs/friday would look like this Thurs - Clinical at the Nursing Home from 7am to 4pm Friday - Clinical Lab for only 2 hrs depending on what time slot they assign you Another week it would look like this Thursday - you have Clinical Lab from 8 to 5pm Friday - you have the day off I say i gain the most clinical experience during my second semester. You don't get into the hospitals til the last 2 weeks. For the first semester, the 1st month was pretty easy. But once you have the first test, it is nonstop studying cuz you will have a test every week along with other assignments. Hopefully that gives you an insight of whats to come

I'm currently a junior right now

If ya'll have any question about the program or anything , feel free to ask me or send me a message. My schedule is pretty slow now that I have clinical out of the way :w00t:

Wow yall's acceptance letter came in really early this year. Congrats to all those who got accepted to the program! And for those waiting, be patient its coming lol.

Aliakey pretty much nailed it. As a nursing student at Texas Tech, I only been at Covenant hospital and I enjoyed every single time I clinical at that hospital. Most of the people are great to work with. I'm not really familiar with temporary housing. I HIGHLY recommend not living in or near a college apartment environment. I must say its very hectic with typical college scene with the loud noises and partying. From my personal opinion, stay away from the west say(depo district) and the north side part of town. I don't know whats the correct term for the location but I feel unsafe living in those areas. West side of town is pretty nice but still developing in the places I been. South side has a more upbeat feeling which kinda reminds me of suburbs in houston or dallas. What's great is that the commute to Covenant is effortless and traffic isn't bad at all. I live more north of town and I can get to Covenant in like 5-10 mins.

I highly recommend getting your CNA license which will help you be more exposed to patient care. I don't have a CNA but it would have been very beneficial in the beginning. For my program, the first couple of weeks were CNA stuff so it was easy for most students cuz they had their training unlike me. Plus, i had a difficult time with my patient care cuz I wasn't use to the setting at the beginning. If you want to get a job right after you graduate, go and work as a CNA in unit and hospital you would like to work in. The more exposure you have with the staff, then the higher the chances of getting an interview than a new grad who doesn't know anyone. Sometimes it comes down to networking. Especially in the high saturated/metro areas. By the way, try to review some of your A&P, Micro, Chem, and Human development materials. There's my 2 cent good luck this fall! -RR2325

Now I have the time to think for myself after a crazy first semester of nursing school. Pay of my loans while helping my brother who's going to college once I graduate. Start saving up money to buy a house or a car and begin my retirement plan (no harm in starting really early right?). Career wise, I would like to work either in the ER, ICU, or Pediatrics. Try to soak as much experience as I can and see if I want to further my education like grad school cuz who knows? my goals today can be the same or totally different in the next 5 to 10 years. -RR2325

Texas Tech and Texas Tech Health Science Center are two different schools. The nursing school is under the TTUHSC. So you need to only worry about TTUHSC. You need to apply through (https://portal.nursingcas.org/) and the TTUHSC Merlin website (this website allows you to see your admission status). For the Fall 2011 program, I can only say that about 140 people got in.

yes, there will be a section where you are allowed to put your work experience/volunteer hours and certifications. don't worry about the two classes because you will be allowed to take it during the summer only if you are accepted. (https://portal.nursingcas.org) this website is what tech uses for applications. http://www.ttuhsc.edu/son/bsn/application.aspx here is the link for prospective students

I believe you have the GPA to get into the program but don't forget extracurricular activities like community services, work experience, leadership position, any non-medical or medical certificates(CNA, pharm tech, computer tech, etc..). Pretty much anything that would make you stand out from the crowd. Nope they dont require any entrance exam (HESI, TEAS, NET, etc) Even though I not blair or chimpmunk, I gladly help you To be honest, I never had any work experience in the medical field but i tremendous amount of volunteer hours ( I believe 200-300 during high school and college). I am CPR and EKG certificated It varies from people to people. Like I said, i had alot of volunteer hours and was certified in CPR and EKG. I was part of couple of organization in college. My pre-nursing gpa is a 3.5-3.6 and my science gpa is 3.5. I had two recommendation letters from 2 RN's. I don't know how much my gender (I'm a guy) and ethnicity (Filipino) play a factor for my selection but in my opinion i don't really put that as an advantage. In regards out of town prospects, i have heard that there was a good amount of people who were out of town students during orientation. I originally went to University of Houston my freshman year but transferred to Tech my sophomore year due to the fact that Tech students have first priority for admission. For me, I wasn't really worried during the whole process. The only thing i was worried is what i was gonna do if i was rejected..The last month was really nerve racking because i started to doubt myself if i was had the shot to get in. But everything worked out at the end