Luularoo

Thank you for the suggestion

THAT makes A LOT more sense to me, thank you!

I heard that "as long as you have a pulse" you will get hired, and I was wondering if that was true. Does a school's reputation have a big affect on your chances to get a job in nursing, as they do for instance, in business positions? (because I was wondering if it is better to go to a vocational/technical or private school, or to get certification or degrees from community colleges, state schools or universities.) With other professions, they would probably hire someone from a Top ranked highly known college vs. a person with an online degree from a small lesser known college. And do hospitals have a preference for the type of degree? For example, will they only hire qualified BSN's or higher? or do they hire at all levels CNA, LVN, RN's with ADN, etc.

Thank you everyone for your replies!

Hello All, I am looking to one day become a nurse for children... pediatric/neonatal, I'm not sure which yet. I was looking for advice for what I need to do to get on that path. Do I just get to RN first and then try to find positions in pediatrics to get experience? or do I need special training? Any comments, suggestions, advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks.

So I went to a seminar a couple of weeks ago about nursing, and I didn't really understand some of the things they said. So first of all, they kept mentioning that there is a shortage of nurses. Other facts that were stated: - recent graduates are not all getting hired because nurses who are suppose to be retiring are not. They are waiting for the economy to pick back up before they retire. - LVNs are being phased out of hospitals - CNA's are doing LVN jobs, basically that they are hiring the lower paid nurses to do the higher level of work? - Colleges are closing admissions into nursing programs, there are long wait-lists to get in. I feel like some of these facts contradicts the "shortage of nurses." Can someone explain why there is a shortage or if there even is one? edited: Sorry, I forgot to mention, I'm in California ^__^

As a new user I cannot send private messages. You did not answer any of the questions I was inquiring about, it just seems like you are advertising for Gurnick. I understand you have attended there and have a lot of information about Gurnick, however, I am not located near any of its campuses, which was why I was looking at Unitek. I am not looking at Unitek to be my only choice, it is just my easiest option at the moment, which is why I wanted to hear from Unitek graduates. If your classmates who have attended Unitek would like to type a response, I would love to hear from them. Like I stated above in my initial post, I have read alot of bad posts about Unitek, but I also wanted to look for the good. Since you were telling me to reconsider attending Unitek, I wanted to check all the facts and compare both the schools. So if you could please answer the questions I posted to your reply, that would be greatly appreciated. I am mainly interested in where to find Gurnick's NCLEX scores, since it is not listed on their website. And I thought of a new question from your recent post about Gurnick. You stated there is 10 weeks of pre-requisites and 6 weeks for HESI review, so is there enough time in between to learn about LVN? Also, do those months allot time for experience from clinical sites? Unitek only has 3 weeks of pre-requisites and the rest of the time is allotted for 2 days of Lecture, and 3 days of Lab/Clinicals. I'm actually worried about getting passed the 3 weeks, it is very rushed and there are tests every day. If I do not pass it, I do not get into the core program.

Thank you for the pm you sent. First, I wanted to know how you compared Unitek and Gurnick NCLEX scores? I looked at the CA board of Nursing website, although Unitek does have a low score, I couldn't find Gurnick listed on there : http://www.rn.ca.gov/schools/passrates.shtml I know Unitek compares their NCLEX scores to Gurnik on their website, but I do not trust that information since they are probably just finding ways to advertise their school: http://www.unitekcollege.edu/docs/NCLEX-Top-Schools-2010.pdf Also, Unitek is an 11month program (40 hour weeks- 8 hours a day) and Gurnik is a 14month program (25 hour weeks- 5 hours a day). You mentioned that the course was crammed and it would be difficult to learn in that amount of time span, so I calculated the total hours of the programs. Unitek would come out to be 1911 hours while Gurnik is only 1520 hours. Maybe your classmates just were not used to being in an accelerated program, and it was not just based on Unitek school? or did they also attend Gurnik and decided they liked it there better over Unitek? And Unitek also offer financial aid at the Fremont campus, the Sacramento campus only has Sallie Mae at the moment. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I'm sorry, I hope you do not feel I am personally attacking your comments. I just really like to get all the facts before choosing which school to go to, especially if these private schools will be costing me a lot of money.

Can someone tell me the differences between CNA, LVN, RN, ADN, BSN? I mean, I know what they stand for and that they are different certifications/degrees. However, job-related, what does each level qualify that nurse to do? or what are their job descriptions? Which level of nursing is mostly being hired in hospitals, etc? Thanks.

Hi everyone, I am new to this site and new to nursing. I was considering Unitek College in Sacramento for the LVN program and would like to receive some input. I've already read all the threads about Unitek on this website, and many people had bad things to say, so I wanted to hear about the good. Basically, I learned that the teachers are not good at teaching, but are great nurses (that's fine for me because I probably learn best through self study anyway.) People have had problems with Sallie Mae (but I will not be taking a loan, so it's not going to be a problem for me)....what I wanted to know is: 1. How is the 3 week course? It's been over 5 years for me since I took any biology, physio/anatomy, chemistry, math courses... and I do not have prior experience in nursing (I have a Bachelor's degree in Human Development and work as a Child Development teacher, so I'm actually looking to switch careers). If I study really hard, do you think I will pass it, or would you recommend that I take some pre-req courses before applying to the school? 2. How is job placement? The admissions rep has already informed me that we will not be working in major hospitals...she mentioned a lot of students were taking jobs at the local prison? I am kind of worried about that. 3. Did the program prepare you well for the NCLEX? I've looked into other schools, JC's, States, etc. They all require pre-req's and then a long waiting list...some, I would need a 3.0 in science courses and my last 60 semester units (which I don't have)...others no longer offer a 2nd bachelor's degree program. I am really motivated right now and willing to work and study hard to achieve my goal (I want to be a pediatric nurse or neonatal). If I go through with this LVN program, I would also be taking the LVN to RN program after...because I heard that LVNs are being phased out everywhere. Any advice or information is greatly appreciated but please do not make this a bashing-Unitek thread.

Hi Elorraine11, I'm new to this site, so I can't send messages yet. But I want to know how it went, since you probably have graduated by now right? I'm really interested in the program, I'm just scared because I do not have any previous knowledge or experience with nursing. I'm good with math, took up to calculus in High school, last time I took chemistry was in high school and I took general biology and physio/anatomy in my first year at college..so it's been 5+ years now since I've taken those courses. I wanted to know what type of information is in the first 3 weeks, or if I'd be able to pass it just by studying my butt off even without prior knowledge of it all. I don't mind putting in hard work and time in self-study, because that's how I seem to learn best. I never liked sitting through lectures, it always made me fall asleep anyway...Anyway, I just wanted to know if you think it would be difficult for me to get by, or should I take some pre-req's elsewhere first? Advice greatly appreciated :)