adraorien

I got very few SATA but the majority of my test (easily 60-70%) was prioritization. I tested on the 17th so I'm still waiting for my quick results, but I got the good pop up after 88 questions.

Disorganized is a great word for it. Truth be told, I think the office staff are a bunch of morons. If you need anything from them, you need to make sure you are on top of them and make sure you have copies of everything you turn in to them. I also don't have the highest regard for the director. The first year instructors that I encountered were great overall. Second year, not so much. There are some gems, but for the most part, be prepared to do a lot of self learning and be incredibly aggravated. The best advice I can give is once you complete your first semester, take the CNA exam and find a job as a CNA somewhere. Even if you have to work 1 night a week, it's a foot in the door. You already have a strike against you when you graduate because your an ADN, but if they know you, and know your work ethic, you're more likely to get hired. That's what I did and I have a job waiting for me in a hospital on a sought after unit. Also, be prepared to complete your BSN. You're going to have to do it and it doesn't matter if you already have a BA/BS in something else. It's irrelevant in the hiring process. Oh, and one other thing - pray that the NCLEX pass rates don't continue to fall. Over the last 3 years, they've progressively dropped. If the 2013 and 2014 classes have lower rates, those of you graduating in 2015 will have a negative reputation to fight against as well. Good luck and hang in there!

I just took NCLEX. Pretty much as soon as I got to my car (no more than 10 min after leaving) and got the good pop up - is it too soon to check? Or did I really get the good pop up?

For the most part. You only need the Fundamentals books first year. Second year you will need to get an OB book, Psych book, Gero book, and Peds book. For Med-surg second year, you just use Lewis.

Malcolm X is not listed on the NLN or CCNE websites - the two major nursing accreditation organizations. Of the few hospitals in the Chicago area that still hire ADNs, they require one of those accreditations (NLN usually since CCNE is more for BSN programs). I would not pick Malcolm X if I had a choice. Whatever accreditation they currently have, it's not worth much. Those accepted to Malcolm X's program should know that going in.

Nope - just graduated :)

Double post.

Graduated 5/3 and school submitted paperwork on 5/28. I'm paid, fingerprinted, and ready to go. The lady at Continental Testing said it would be 7-10 business days for the roster to get processed so ATT should go out early next week. I'm chomping at the bit to get my test date. I'm willing to go anywhere within reason to take it. I'm dying to know what the test date availability looks like.

I would take Daley over Malcom X. As far as I know, only Truman and Daley are accredited.

You can purchase e-book versions independant of the paper textbook. They bundle the books together in the bookstore so it's kind of hard to figure out what the ISBN numbers are. My advice, start with just the bare minimum. I can't express how much I regret the $1200 I spent on books and only used maybe 3 of them.

Good luck with that. You can email them til you're blue in the face and they will not change anything. You will just be told that you need to be flexible. Get used to it - it's what you'll be dealing with for the next two years. Registration is the week before class starts. Classes are Mondays and Wednesdays - no clue how your clinicals will be since they've had difficulty getting clinical sites for about a year and a half now.

License in hand takes 12-16 weeks. I have a friend who works in the IDFPR office and that's what he does. You should pop up on the website pretty quickly though. My co-workers have said they popped up on the website within a few days.

I have a question. According to PearsonVue, it's irrelevant when your school turns in the EdNur, the ATT comes 4 weeks after you pay them. So essentially, if Jane and Susie go to the same school, even if the school submits the EdNur on 5/1, because Jane paid Pearson 5/1, and Susie paid Pearson on 5/8, Jane will get her ATT a week before Susie. Is that accurate? What date did you pay Pearson and what date did you get your ATT?

So I promise that I'm not starting this post for pats on the back or anything. I'm starting it because I'm genuinely doubting the "awesomeness" of my nursing program. I am a month away from completing my ADN program. Everyone always talks about how hard nursing school is, but I feel like I've yet to encounter the "hard" part. Yes, there's a lot of information, but I haven't found any of it to be overly difficult. I spent over $1000 on books and I've opened maybe 3 of them. I came into my program with a 4.0 and so far, I still have it, and not by the skin of my teeth. I've gotten level 3s on every ATI test thrown at me so far. I have not given up any of my social life for school, in fact, I have skipped class to attend one of my children's school functions. I work part time too. My program has a very good reputation, but what terrifies me is that I feel like there is something wrong with it - that something is lacking, and I'm going to graduate, and (hopefully) find a job, and reality will hit and I will fail miserably. I'm really not trying to rub anything in. I'm not looking for anyone to say; "Oh, you're so lucky," or "You're so smart!" blah, blah, blah. I'm looking for someone else out there to say they feel the same way too...

It depends on the hospital. This is what I've found: Some are BSN only. Some prefer BSN, but will hire ADN. Some require that an ADN begin a completion within X years of hire and complete within X years. And then there's the "who you know" factor. Across the board for ADNs, I have found that if you already have a hospital job as a CNA/PCT or whatever, you are likely to get hired on as a nurse (possibly with the BSN completion stipulation).