A. Boogie

Just wanted to leave my thoughts about Chamberlain. I graduated from the Houston campus. I think it is a great school even though it is pricey. The last time I checked the price is actually about the same as attending HBU or St. Thomas but I know many students who used their military benefits to attend and it worked out fine. As far as preparation for working in nursing and NCLEX, Chamberlain is very dedicated to their students and have many resources to help aid them in their journeys. The Houston and Pearland campuses are always looking for new ways to help the students succeed, whether it's having alumni mentor students, giving students free access to NCLEX 10,000, NCLEX materials, or just being an ear when things get tough. The program at Chamberlain is very rigorous and nothing is handed to you. You will earn your degree. Chamberlain also has great clinical relationships with every major hospital system in the Greater Houston area with most students gaining post-nursing school employment as well as student externships while in school.

Our school has graduating students take the CAT exam offered by Elsevier as well as the exit HESI. I've taken (and passed) the beast that is the exit HESI but can anyone tell me what the CAT exam is like... I know it's supposed to mimic the NCLEX.. Any comments from anyone who has taken it?

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Sorry I haven't been back to respond. I've been focused on graduation and my exit HESI (which I passed on the first try with a 1087:singing:)... But to the OP, where do you see that I am sponsored by Chamberlain? Please let me know so that I can collect my check. lol... But seriously, I know several graduates of Chamberlain working in TMC hospitals in their GN residencies. As prettyplay24 and others stated, no one cares where you got your BSN from as long as you have one and you have passed the NCLEX. I didn't sell myself short by attending this school. I work in the TMC now as a PCA and on a scholarship from them. If Chamberlain was such a joke, I doubt that a Magnet hospital would invest the money and resources that they have into my education. Also I have offers from three major TMC hospitals as a GN of this "horrible, joke" for-profit school. So as I stated months ago, please keep your opinions to yourself.

To add to that.. Chamberlain is not an online program. Their BSN program is conducted in a building with all the bells and whistles (if not more) that "traditional" programs have.

Thanks PrismRN.. I just made this exact same argument to another narrow-minded individual who did not do their research. Just spouted off their unfounded opinion.

Not to go tit-for-tat but Chamberlain is not the only program that accepts GPAs lower than a 3.0. I know a RN that was accepted to UTMB with a less than stellar GPA as well and she is an exceptional nurse. Nursing programs look at more than just GPA. They factor in entrance exam scores and the interview among other things. Being "book smart" is not synonymous with being a good nurse. Nursing is about more than being able to recite information in a book. It's about putting it all together and having common sense. To be honest, all colleges and universities, just like hospitals, are for profit. Secondary education is a business. Chamberlain just happens to be upfront about it. Yes there are some for-profit schools out there that aren't worth spit but I can honestly say that Chamberlain is not one of them. I, too, was a bit skeptical prior to enrolling; however, after doing my RESEARCH, I learned that the program is stellar. Chamberlain has only had a campus in Houston for 3 years so, of course people are skeptical and haven't really "heard of" the program. But honestly, as long as the hospitals are praising the program and hiring our graduates it doesn't matter what another program thinks. As far as your friend not qualifying for scholarships because of her GPA, if she went to another school the issue would still be there. I have attended Chamberlain for almost 2 years and due to my financial aid and scholarships, I have only paid about $3000 out of pocket (which could be equated to the cost of books you mentioned). At the end of the day, everyone has a right to an opinion but making uninformed statements and crushing someone's dreams/happiness (whether intentional or not) is irresponsible. IMHO...

As a graduating student of Chamberlain, I have to say that your information is inaccurate. Chamberlain is not an online program. Secondly, every school has a minimum GPA requirement of 2.5 or 2.75 and that's just it, a minimum requirement. Chamberlain rejects students just like every other nursing program. Also, Chamberlain currently has one of the highest, if not the highest, NCLEX passing rate in the city. Yes Chamberlain is owned by Devry, however we work our butts off just like every other nursing student. We take the exact same HESI and NCLEX as everyone else. Furthermore, hospitals recognize us as one of the top-notch programs in the city. We are not selling ourselves short by choosing to attend Chamberlain. The resources that are provided to us are priceless and to be honest, Chamberlain's tuition is about neck and neck with HBU. Please do your research before giving "advice". Just my 2 cents. Signed~ Winner of the Houston Methodist Outstanding Student Nurse Award;)

Chamberlain has full accreditation from the CCNE and is approved by the Texas BON. The NCLEX pass rate is one of the best in the state and I haven't heard of anyone having problems getting a job. Many of us are working at major hospitals as techs or student nurses as well. I feel that we are very prepared to face the NCLEX as well as the nursing world. The staff is very supportive and the resources available to you are priceless ans numerous. I am a current student who will graduate in t-minus 15 weeks:yes:.

Also, the course shell will not open until the week before the class starts. So May 5th start dates won't open until next Sunday. As far as the e-book goes, it is in the course shell and you won't be able to access it until the shell opens next week. Once it opens, you can order a black and white copy of the e-book for like $20 if you don't feel like a real student without a physical copy (like me )

I have worked the entire program and so have other classmates of mine. It really just depends on your company and if they are willing to work with your schedule.

Eh I disagree. I think it depends on the campus. At the Houston campus, the first semester of upper level courses (Patho, Health Assessment, Fundamentals) you are on campus/clnical 4-5 days a week. The first half of the semester: M/W-Fundamentals lecture, T-health assessment lecture, W-Patho,T or W- fundamentals lab, Th-health assessment lab. The second half fundamentals lab is replaced with a clinical day on Friday or Saturday since they're the only days you don't have class scheduled. As you progress in the program the amount of time spent on campus does decrease drastically though. I'm finishing up community health next week and we only have class on Monday plus clinical (which was all over the place due to the different settings we got to rotate through)

I've heard that NCLEX 3500 is free to download. Google it. It's one edition older than NCLEX 4000 and should have the same content.

Also you may not be able to legally work as a tech once you get your GN permit.

Just my two cents.. We were told that the exam didn't necessarily get harder.. The passing standard was raised meaning that the grade needed to pass is higher essentially. For example, if your nursing school changed from 76% considered passing to now 80% considered passing. The school didn't get harder, the passing standard was raised. Feel free to correct me guys if I'm wrong.

Type of program: BSN State: Texas How many months or years are you in nursing classes? : 2 years How is the program structured? : 6 semesters (broken into 2 8 week sessions per semester) List what classes are included, in order: Semester 1: Fundamentals + lab (session 1)/clinical (session 2), Health Assessment + lab, Pathophysiology Semester 2: Adult Health + clinical, Pharmacology Semester 3: Maternity + clinical, Peds + clinical Semester 4: Mental Health + clinical, Critical Care + clinical Semester 5: Community Health + clinical, Collaberative Health (i.e. Leadership) + clinical Semester 6: Capstone (session 1), Graduation (session 2) Once you have successfully passed semester 2, you can take classes from semester 3 and 4 in any order. Do you feel like your program could do something better? No. I love my program. They are all very supportive and want us all to succeed. Do some people fail, yes, but as with anything in life, you have to work hard. Nothing is given to you. The best thing is that semesters are broken into 2 8 week sessions so if you do fail a class you only have to wait 8 weeks to retake the class instead of a whole semester like at other schools. We are also on a school wide testing schedule. Exams are weeks 3, 5, 7, and 8 (HESI specialty)which make things hectic because tests are almost every other week. But on the flip side of that as soon as you get into the groove of class, POOF the session has ended and on to the next....

Are you sure? I just met a couple students last semester from the TWU-Houston campus and they were studying non-stop for the HESI because they wanted to graduate. Most, if not all, schools here in the Houston area require you to pass the Exit HESI in order to graduate, even community colleges. Plus hospitals are even requiring a minimum Exit HESI score of 900 on the 1st attempt along with a minimum 3.2 GPA in order to apply for their GN residency.

Lippincott and Saunders both have books dedicated to alternate format items. Saunders is very expensive though..

I'm with you Everline. I'm 5 months out from graduation and I just want it all to go away... Everytime I open a book or look at an assignment I want to ... I'm sooooo tired.. But we have to keep pushing.. There is an end to the madness....

Yes, the evolve website is a good place to start since Elsevier is the parent company of the HESI. Does your school give you access to the HESI case studies and practice exams? Also, just practicing questions from sources like NCLEX 4000 or Saunder's Comprehensive NCLEX review is always a good thing. I've always had the philosophy that there really is no sure fire way to study for these types of tests. Either you know the information or you don't. Practice questions for understanding of rationales and why one answer is better than the other but don't over think it. I've taken a HESI specialty exam for every nursing course except Community (which I'm currently enrolled) and Leadership (which I will take this summer) {graduating in August. WHOOP WHOOP}.. Anywho, my lowest score on any HESI was a 920 (mental health) which was taken after falling deathly ill the last week of class and taking it a month after the class ended. So that's just my opinion on the matter.. Hope this helps.

I'm graduating in August so NCLEX and HESI exit exam information is being pounded into our heads at the moment. Our teacher told us that the Pearson Vue trick does indeed work. She along with one of our advisors also said that when you see a lot of alternative style questions you are doing really well on the exam and are thinking on the analysis level. Hope this helps...

Thanks guys.. I'm just soooo tired. I feel like the light at the end of the tunnel is really a big train coming to plow me over at times...

This informatics paper is giving me chest pain... I know this will all be over in a few short months but.....sometimes I feel like I won't make it...

Also, your way of thinking drastically changes once you are in a program. When taking pre-reqs you can memorize and reguritate information to make As. However, once you begin nursing school you need to be able to memorize, understand, and critically think about the concepts being presented to you. Many times the test will give you 4 right answers and you need to be able to determine which answer is the BEST answer.

I would suggest practicing questions and make sure you actually read the question.The book will usually take you step-by-step through the problem if you get lost. You are allowed to use a basic calculator (i.e. add, substract, multiply, and divide). If you have a basic knowledge of algebra or remember how to solve the equations from chemistry you should be fine.