Emily103

Hi Harcher! If you go ahead and message me your facebook link, I can forward it to the moderator of the your cohort. :)

Hi Rizz!! So glad to hear form you again! :) Aren't you excited? I am at Kaiser in Baldwin Park currently, but you're definitely going to be in different clinical sites considering you're in IE. I'm not really sure how your scheduling works, but I had Fridays off (sim labs on certain Fridays) and my clinicals were on Wednesdays. It was nice having Fridays as an empty day to study. I believe you guys may have a different schedule for skills labs and simulations though so I think you'll find out more at orientation. Tina, they name cohort numbers 3 at a time from the 3 campuses if I'm correct. I am in Azusa which is cohort 47, SD is 48, and IE is 49. I might have the numbers mixed up as I don't have anything to look on. I am aware that Summer 2014 cohorts for Azusa is 44 and SD is 45, and I assume IE is 46. That would bring the next cohort (mine) Fall 2014, up to cohort 47 for Azusa, so on and so forth. So no, I don't believe the cohort took 5 years to graduate. The program takes 15 months to complete, 18 months including your residency. I'm not really sure what you are asking regarding the LoA. I don't think students are supposed to take any unless there are serious circumstances. If you mean after the completion of the 18 months, there is a break where you will graduate and proceed to sit for your NCLEX. During that time, APU encourages students to find a part or full time RN job and return to complete the Masters portion of the ELM program. You have the option of being a part or full time student while working. The idea is to have RN experience so when you graduate with an MSN, you'll be able to find a job as an NP because you've already had a year experience as an RN. Most jobs will not consider you without the RN experience if you've jumped straight into NP and graduate without any kind of experience. In that sense, you will graduate the BSN portion with your cohort. The masters portion is harder because everyone will then be on their own pacing depending on whether or not they are taking time off to work, or if they will return as part/full time students while working.

Hi slasher! I can't tell you if I'm selling them yet or not as we're not entirely sure if we're gonna be using the same books in the second semester yet. No ones told us anything yet, but it would look like we're reusing some of them. I could be able to sell you a few though! Tina, I wish I could offer more information on financial aid. I am aware that during orientation, the person in charge of student loans will come in and speak to you all for more information. That's all the information I know of regarding that subject. It would seem that most of my cohort used student loans that were given through school. One person was trying to get a loan through a different institution (so I am sure that's permitted granted you've done your research.) I'm very fortunate to have my parents helping me for my education so I didn't look deeply into that. I am sure you will be able to ask about scholarships and grants during orientation as well. I know a few people have managed to maintain their jobs in my cohort. The scheduling is very lax of course, and they have very understanding bosses who allow them to work once or twice a month/or once a week. That's been helpful to them in terms of spending money for food/gas. Wish I could be of more help!

@Jazzie, the interviews can be at different locations, whatever is more convenient distance wise, or can be done through Skype. You won't need to decide on specialties even when you get in. You'll spend the first 18 months of the program getting your BSN/RN so the discussion of your future specialty rarely comes up. I'm almost through my first semester and we haven't touched on specialties at all.

You'll be fine, the 12 hours fly by because you're so busy! I always feel tired, but very fulfilled. It feels like a very productive day, and because your passion is nursing, it's a great feeling to be in the hospital. The program usually splits your cohort in half and you're all placed in 1 of 2 hospitals. There isn't a choice in your placement, but each hospital has their own policies regarding the student nurses. You'll find out at whichever site you're placed at. It's not always Kaiser. You don't need to be physically strong enough to lift up patients. If that were the case, no one small and skinny would ever be a nurse! I'm about 5'1" and not very strong either. You'll never be picking up a patient entirely, only supporting them. Should the need to move the patient up if they've slid downwards in bed, arises, you are able to call a colleague to help. The hospitals usually employ lift teams as well to help with obese patients. Lastly, they teach you methods in moving the patient such as lifting with your thighs and the correct posture/stance to prevent injury to yourself. The patients usually have sheets under them that you slide upwards to move their bodies in directions. I wouldn't stress too much about that part. Happy to help answer your questions! I'm in cohort 47 if you ever need to find me! :)

Hi Tina! I miscommunicated, they will be reused as in you'll refer back to the books in future semesters. The bundle is actually only for the first semester! For clinicals, it is generally a 12 hour shift starting at 6:30-7:30PM. Sometimes we get out early, sometimes late. You're allowed two 10 minutes breaks, and a 30 minute lunch break. You're able to take them as you please. You can space them out if you want to make sure you have enough time to drink water and eat. For me, I noticed that when it becomes too busy, I have a hard time eating lunch on time and sometimes end up eating at 2-3PM. We've also taken breaks 15 minutes before our shift ends, so we have time to rest, before we come back at the last 5 minutes to say goodbye to our patients and nurses. It's up to you, but I think it highly depends on the hospital and whatever policy they have. You're always free to go use the restroom and get water if need be during your shift, maybe you can use the few minutes to eat a cracker or piece of fruit! I believe there is about 2 months of actual break in the entire program. You get ~3 weeks off in December for Christmas break, and you have a week off for spring break, and ~3 more weeks for your summer break. Otherwise, you're in school the rest of the time! We also get Thanksgiving day off. No problem! I'm sorry I haven't been on the ball with answering your questions, but I love to help. :) I know how lost I felt in the beginning and it helped calm my nerves to get more information.

Super sorry about the late reply! I bought the book bundle from the store for ease. There are so many books that you are required to purchase for the first semester and it totals about $1000. If you buy used, it's about $800, and rentals cost about $400. A lot of the books are meant to be reused and you wouldn't be able to with a rental book. I do feel that if you have more time to play around with costs, I would buy your books used. You can feel free to message upperclassmen and ask for their old books that they're willing to resell at a lower cost. There are books I wouldn't recommend buying, for example, the APA manual. It is highly recommended and something that will be reused according to the professors, but I was a liberal arts major in undergrad and all I did was write papers in APA. I'm very familiar with it and have done well without it for the last 2-3 papers we've written this semester so far. Lastly, online sources such as OWL purdue work well enough for APA formatting so I don't feel that one was necessary. Some people swear by it though! I think it would be mostly a preference thing.

@By1stgrace, congratulations! where will you be starting? How long ago did you take your pre-requisite coursework? I think there really isn't much you can do to prepare, because the pre-requisites should be enough. If you took them very long ago, perhaps you can familiarize yourself with some anatomy vocab. Other than that, I took my pre-reqs about 4-5 years prior to the start of the program and I think I'm doing well so far. The first week for pathophysiology, you'll spend some time reviewing cell biology so it's pretty straightforward. My courses are not science heavy like the prereq coursework, but more application. For ex: explain what causes left and right sided heart failure. You will be able to understand the symptoms of each type of heart failure based on what you know about the anatomy of the heart (which they review with you too.)

@Tina I'm not going to lie, clinicals feel like you're thrown into the ocean and expected to start swimming. (Plenty of my classmates have come up to me saying that, and I feel the same.) We start 3 weeks into the semester, so during the first 2 weeks, you'll have lecture all day on Wednesdays to learn vital signs, hygiene, and mobility skills. When you start clinicals at the hospital 3 weeks in, you'll be able to use those skills. (During clinicals, you'll be expected to do weekly writeups and care plans on your assigned patient too.) You'll only be able to do what you've been checked off and have learned, so anything outside of that realm, you won't be allowed to do, but you can observe your nurses performing. I've only had 3 days at the hospital so far, and coming home after 12 hours is mentally/physically draining, but rewarding. Make sure you get really good shoes, I can't stress that! We're currently learning catheter insertions, passing medications/injections, and wound care, and our midterms are coming up this Mondays. That's when we get checked off, and then we'll be able to start with these skills at the hospital after. It is very intense though because performing something in lab is totally different in a hospital on real people. Also, it's extremely awkward when you first start out talking to patients and taking vitals on your own. You'll get through it though and it'll be easier! Regarding your question on registration, your whole cohort is going to be taking the same classes as you know. Regardless, you still need to individually register/enroll for the courses. They'll let you know more about it through emails, but your spot is held for you so there's really no stress in the entire process. Lastly, I do spend a lot of time studying after classes with my cohort, or on weekends. When you have 2-3 exams happening on Mondays, it kind of puts a damper on your weekend. We try to get as much done as possible, but time management is key. You CAN have time to your family/SO/friends if you make the time. If I know I need to eat dinner with someone, and I have exams and a paper to do, I'll make sure I start the paper early on in the week to get that out of the way. The hardest thing is that if you're very stressed out, it makes not studying and having fun with your family/friends a guilt inducing event haha. I can't tell you how many conversations I've had with my cohort where it went along the lines of: "I watched the baseball game this weekend, I felt so guilty that I wasn't studying." I suggest a great planner/organizer where you can keep your assignments in order. It'll really help you with scheduling. That said, I really don't think there is time for new relationships, getting married, having kids, and getting new pets. I definitely think those will be entirely difficult to manage, but maintaining your social life won't be as bad, you'll just have to see less of them sometimes. I found that my cohort has sort of become my social life as we spend so much time together. Make sure you guys do happy hours after class, or take some time to eat somewhere together. They're the only ones who truly understand what you're going through and they all have the same schedule. It is still very important to get away from school sometimes because there are some days when you just can't be productive anymore. Use that time to take a break and do something enjoyable. That way you can renew your motivation and get back to studying when you need it. :)

Hi Rizzo! I'm about 5 weeks into the first semester now and they're really not lying when they say it's hard. There are a LOT of feelings and I'm entirely overwhelmed half the time. I would definitely enjoy your time off and have FUN and get it out of your system, just be ready to buckle down in the spring. The material itself is not too difficult as of now, we're learning tons of foundations and skills, but it's the sheer amount of work to be juggled. Sometimes 8-10 hours of lecture days can take so much out of your system, and you realize you still need to go home and study for an exam the next day. For the last 3 weeks, we've had up to 3 exams and multiple quizzes (for the SAME class) in one day. It takes a ton out of you to have to sit there for lecture the rest of the day and go home and still study and do assignments, when you're mentally exhausted and just have no more mood. I feel like my brain is mushy during those days and no more information will go in. NIGHTMARE ASIDE, I want to say that your cohort will be amazing. They are wonderful people who you will get to know well enough by the 2nd-3rd week. They will be your support and hold you accountable for the days when you feel like your brain is mush. They're the ones that make me study more than I want to when I can't anymore. They pull you through, and you will do the same for them. I've spent so much time with them that the ladies' time of months have all synced! HAH!! It sounds torturous but you're all working for the same goal and you're all in it together. They'll pull you out when you're overwhelmed and celebrate with you when you're happy. Everyone says it'll be worth it in the end, just hang in there and you'll be fine! Feel free to message me if you have any other questions! @shonda, I know you were talking to chi, but I hope I can help. I'm in my first semester and so far, we have classes Monday through Thursday. Monday: 830-6PM Tuesday: 8-4PM Wednesday: 630-630PM (this is your clinical day and times range from 630-7AM and end around 630-730PM.) Thursday: 1230-330PM (optional skills lab in the mornings: definitely should utilize) Fridays: Simulations with assigned times (not every Friday) I want to tell you that working during the semester will be incredibly difficult. Many of my cohort attempted to and everyone has quit at this point (5 weeks in). A couple still hold their jobs, but they work maybe once a month for a couple hours. Looking at my schedule and assignments, I don't believe I could work and still do well in my classes. Other cohorts have told me rare exceptions do work, but for the most part, no one really works beyond the first semester. I hope this information helps you!

chi.. Have I been messaging you on reddit? :) spaghetti here.

Ohh That sounds like a great idea. I wanted to relabel mine too, but didn't know which way was best. I like that you have it separated by school/home/misc!!

I am about to purchase an Erin Condren life planner and I'm so excited! I'm wondering if anyone else uses it and how do you use it? More specifically, do you actually use the morning/afternoon/night sections or do you relabel them? How often do you write in them? What do you like or dislike about them? Also in terms of the customized stickers, do you know how many stickers they give you per column? and is it enough if I only do one column for "Clinicals" "Exams" "Assignments" etc.? Thanks!!

The writing sample is very easy and it serves the purpose of making sure you were the one that wrote your letter to the dean (not just paid someone to write it for you,) and that you are able to communicate well in the written English language. They ask you a simple conversational type question and you have 20 minutes to respond to it. I wrote it in short answer format, without an intro or conclusion, but I got full points on it and it was graded before my interview.

Rizzo, yea, main campus! I'm so excited!!