mchsstudent

As my name implies, I'm currently pursuing my ASN/BSN through Mercy. Mercy's most recent Board rates were much better than they had been in the past, which is obviously a big deal. A lot of Mercy students are Mercy students because they don't want to wait on the DMACC waiting list, which is why I am. I also liked that because I already have a BA degree, my BSN is only 1 semester more. What I will say: the school struggles with organization. Mainly this is because of the high volume of students (my class has 2 sections of 40+ each) and they run on 15 week semesters 3 semesters a year, so the instructors only have a week to organize that many people and all of the clinical sites and groups - which is a hefty task, and I feel bad for them. That said, it is incredibly annoying especially for the first two semesters when it seems like the right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing. It gets (slightly) better. My advice: Avoid Moravec. He was my advisor prior to entering the nursing program when I was completing all the liberal arts requirements and working full-time. He frequently told me that when I wanted to "take my education seriously" I would quit my job. He's a religious man, so I held my tongue when replying to him. Ask for help. While the program is disorganized, it is also difficult. The reason many don't complete it is because of that. From the beginning (of the nursing program) your grades will be based on 90% NCLEX style questions which are not just regurgitating information, but about looking at the entire clinical picture and choosing the best course of action. This can be really hard for some people. There are some books that will be recommended for you to get which helps with this i.e. Med-Surg Success, Pediatric Success. I also recommend getting NCLEX review books (the kind with tons of questions) to help me study material rather than just looking over notes, since then I have no idea whether I can apply it appropriately. They offer tutors which some really like. I've never used them, because I have had a lot of success studying my way. As much as you will hate it, the more you can pay attention and understand the material in your physiology and pathophysiology classes, the more success you will have later on. If you understand how the system works normally, and how it works when it's broken, you'll understand why you would see certain manifestations and take certain actions as a nurse. I would also recommend taking Pharmacology earlier than they have in the curriculum. You start giving meds basically right away, you want to understand what meds you're giving without necessarily having to look in your med book for every last bit of information - it will make all of your scenario testing much less painful. Most of my friends got flubbed up by the medications. They emphasize "therapeutic communication" you will hate this. It will suck. Grin and bear it - there's a test over it in 4th semester where you have to write your own IPR without any help of a text book or anything. All in all, while you're in the program, you will probably curse it...most all of us do. However, their pass rates have gone up, and I'll be finishing my BSN before a friend of mine who put her name on the wait list at DMACC even starts her program. By the time she's done, I'll have the potential to have my Masters. That's hard to argue with. Good luck!