claritasd

In case anybody else searches and finds this thread: 1. For new grads, you have to have begun the job by the end of the application date. A start date after the application period (even the next day) disqualifies you until the next year. 2. If you have a spouse, their income is included in your debt-to-income ratio if you reported it on FAFSA. 3. If your loan has a co-signer, it is ineligible, period. So if you had to have a co-signer for your loans because you didn't have an income because you were a student, your loans are ineligible for Nurse Corps Loan Repayment. Fun times.

This is really old but I figured I'd revive it since I have a question and didn't see a more recent version for the loan repayment program... I will call them on Tuesday but I have an interview tomorrow so if anybody knows, I'd love to know going into the interview. 1. For new grads, if we may not have started working by the application deadline but will definitely have started before repayment starts (as in, very end of February or beginning of March start date), are we eligible or do we have to wait for the next year's cycle? 2. For the debt-to-income ratio, is it our personal income or our household/family income? I'm assuming my spouse's income will be factored in but wanted to be sure. If anybody knows, I'd appreciate it! If not, I'll call them Tuesday and try to post the answers so other applicants will know.

No need to feel guilty. You are NOT the only one. I never wanted to be a nurse, but here I am, halfway through an accelerated BSN. All the other students are saying "we're halfway nurses!" I think of it as, I'm a quarter way a midwife. I happen to be enjoying my nursing experiences in school, but I still don't consider myself a future nurse. I'm a future midwife who is using nursing as a stepping stone to get where I'm going. You're not stealing a spot from someone - you need the nursing program to become a CNM, so you're no more or less deserving of that spot than someone else, career-wise. You're there because it will help you reach your goals, same as the other students (just slightly different end-goals!).

Yeah, I saw that in the FAQs but had also seen a note somewhere about Maryland - since I can't find it anymore, maybe it's been removed. It had to do with out-of-state schools having clinicals in Maryland. Glad you'll be good-to-go with your license regardless, though!

Fitzfam2009 - I'm a BSN student and hopefully future Frontier student, but I'm in Maryland right now. I can't find where I saw it, but somewhere on the FNU page I saw that they don't accept RN licenses from Maryland right now (something about distance programs and clinicals). Just putting that out there since it sounds like you might move before you get your license. If I can find where I saw it, I will let you know. I'm guessing I'll have to apply for a DC license.

I can't tell you first-hand, but a student told me that working part-time and school full-time, or vice versa, is doable.

Thank you so much, queenanneslace! I look forward to hearing from you guys how the program goes!

Thanks for all the info, everyone! Just so I can clarify, does the didactic portion of Frontier take a year? I see that it's 2-3 semesters for the clinical portion, but I'm wondering if the didactic part is just that first year or stretches a semester (or two) into the second year. One more question - has anyone gotten in with less than a year of experience? The website says it's required but also says "other significant experience" will be considered. I'm a BSN student at the moment, and when I graduate in December I'll have 9 months' experience as a doula, plus I'm going to try to do my practicum on an L&D floor. But I know L&D jobs can be hard to get as a new grad, so I'm concerned about having to wait forever, while working elsewhere, until I can get one to get that year's experience and apply. I do plan to work at least part time while studying (I recognize the importance of nursing experience when going into a MSN program!), but I'm just hoping to start as soon as I can. Looking at the options. Thanks!

Once you've made sure the program accepts online, you can look into Rio Salado, like the previous poster said - I took a couple classes from there (Microbiology and Statistics); another option is West Hills Community College. You'll get in-state tuition that way. They're based in Coalinga. I don't know that their science classes are available fully online, but I did take nutrition and philosophy through them.

I did all my prereqs online, minus Anatomy and Physiology. I started in Spring of 2013, and am finishing up this summer (though I took a few classes I didn't need after all for the schools I chose to apply for, so if you can narrow it down you can definitely cut that time down). During all of last year, I was working a little less than full time (Peace Corps); this spring and summer, I wasn't working. So, it's doable. Actually, I think my school would've accepted online A&P, but I chose to do it in-person to get back into the swing of things. And a lot of schools DO require in-person labs, so that could be a factor in which schools you apply for. It's definitely doable if you're dedicated and can force yourself to study for a class you never physically attend. Of course, you'll also have to have reasonably functional internet, so if you can't get online pretty regularly you could have a problem. But if you are prepared and do your online stuff as early as possible, you'll have time to figure out options when the internet goes down. Also, this was already said, but your background will absolutely be a plus.

Probably, but ask the school to be sure: Nursing | Felician College The website says "Students needing prerequisite courses must satisfy those requirements prior to enrolling in the nursing sequence." I take that to mean you have to have finished the prereqs by the time you start, not necessarily before you apply. Just like in high school, you can get accepted for college even though you haven't graduated yet. Most, though not all, schools seem to operate this way. There's little info on the school website, so I would suggest going to the link I posted, reading it, and clicking the request info link at the bottom to ask.

I'm sure there are plenty of schools without a wait list. I would start by searching the area that you're interested in; find schools that might work for you, and then go from there. The US being so big, it's kind of hard to give you suggestions; maybe if you give us a particular region you're thinking of? California schools, for example, are pretty impacted, so it might be harder there. As for housing for married couples, you're specifically looking for on-campus or campus-affiliated housing? I think you're just going to have to look on a case-by-case basis for that by looking at the housing websites for the schools you consider.

^^ Seconded. It sounds like A&P probably requires a higher math level than you've completed so far, in which case they would probably only let you register for it if you passed a placement test for college level math.

Your counselor is right that many schools in California are severely impacted. That's why I didn't bother - I only applied to schools in other states. However, 4.0 GPA is pretty darn good. If this is really what you want to do, it doesn't seem worth giving up. If you've got a strong application, you've got an edge up on getting accepted. Plus, you could look at programs in other schools. Yes, it can be more expensive because you'll either go to a private school or pay out-of-state tuition, but the option still exists. "The schools are impacted" just doesn't seem like a good reason to give up.

I'd check with each school you're considering. Of the two I applied to, one said I must have in-person lab, and the other said online lab was fine.

^Seconded. The CC might not require your transcripts, but if you apply to a BSN program later they will - and you could get in big trouble if caught lying about that. I'm guessing some schools might revoke acceptance on the grounds of omission, and others might revoke it on the grounds that with the new info your GPA doesn't meet their standards. Some schools might not do anything, but I wouldn't bank on that. If you retake your prereqs and do better, that will improve your GPA, of course - but it will not get rid of the one you have right now. I believe some schools will calculate GPA based on the highest grades in courses, and some will calculate your new grade as well as your old. If you want to get your GPA up, your best bet is to retake any classes you could do better in (keeping in mind some schools require Bs for prereq classes, others Cs), and maybe even take a few other classes that you know you can do well in. Having other classes will help improve your overall GPA, though of course not your prereq GPA.

I want to second the suggestion of YouTube, radio, and similar stuff in Spanish. I speak 6 languages other than my native (English), and while I've been lucky enough to work on 4 of those 6 in countries where they're spoken, the other two I haven't. Watching videos has been my main way of learning them; and while I don't have anyone to practice with to make sure I'm learning properly, it's certainly better than nothing. You probably won't understand everything in the video even if you've been learning for a while, but that exposure is still really helpful. Another thing is a program called MemRise. It's available online, and for iPhones (I don't know about other smartphones, never checked). There are TONS of Spanish programs, and MemRise will remind you when it's time to study the material you've covered. It uses repetition (and memory images as needed) to help you remember what you've learned, and you repeat it regularly before and while learning new info. I use it for keeping up on my Portuguese and Russian, since I'm really forgetting them (lack of practice!), and it's been a good program for me.

Just seconding (seventhing?) everyone else - you probably can, but check on the website. I applied to a school in January (for the following September) with 4 prereqs not even started yet! It's a little different - it's an accelerated 2nd bachelors, and only had - but I had only completed 2 out of 6 prereqs! And I still got in on the condition I get Bs in all four before classes start. So just check with the school! I think most people apply before they finish; schools expect that unless they specifically say not to do it.

Ok, so CSUS' program is a traditional BSN, which means it's meant for people who don't have a Bachelor's. So you wouldn't need to complete your BA/BS and THEN go to CSUS, because it's another 4-year program. If you finish your BA/BS somewhere else and then go to nursing school for a BSN, you'd apply to an accelerated BSN program, which are usually 1.5-2 years for a 2nd Bachelor's. So no, you don't have to go somewhere for four years before doing a traditional BSN program; does that make sense? The traditional BSN program IS your four years. As to whether you should go to a CC first or apply directly to CSUS, that depends on you, costs, if you get accepted, etc.

I'm taking Microbiology and Stats at the same time right now - semester courses in an 8-week format. I'm just gonna say BAD LIFE CHOICE. I literally do nothing but study and I'm only taking two classes! But they're only 8 weeks long, so that kind of explains it. This summer I'm taking A&P I and II one after the other, 5 weeks each... Everybody else please be smarter than I am. Pretty please. But hey, I'm accepted for Fall on the condition I do this so whatever. But seriously, please be smarter. Just plan better. (I didn't have much of a choice, I was living abroad).

So far it's ok. I'm at the end of week three right now. It's a lot of work to keep up on - two units per week (with long chapters and lots of notes), with at least one assignment per unit (either a lab, quiz, essay, or two of those). But if you read the material really well it's not incredibly hard. You just have to keep up well. I'm behind on my notes and that's really slowing me down, trying to finish notes for the previous chapter and do the current ones plus assignments in just a couple days.

It sucks that they weigh it so heavily! But they have their reasons. Have you tried TEAS study tools? I'm sure they stress reading and basic math for a reason - nursing school is very reading-heavy (science reading, but still), and I'm sure nurses use basic math for all kinds of things, especially medications. It's too bad they weighed that so heavily on your application, but try other schools, retake the TEAS. You've got options.

I don't think the original poster of these notes is still around, but I'm so glad that person posted them! It is so incredibly helpful - not just to have the notes but to see what kinds of information other people find necessary to write down (we're all guilty of thinking we'll remember something without writing it down), and how people organize their notes. I'm taking A&P this summer, so I'm really thankful to have these notes to go over in advance and during the course!

Just got an email - didn't get in. Oh well, Baltimore for me! Good luck, you guys!

If you need the BSN for Army nursing, definitely go for it, then. As for whether to finish your Biology degree, obviously that's personal and it sounds like you're set on that. There are good arguments either way on that one, but if you want Biology to fall back on if nursing doesn't work, then fine. Of course, is that because of nursing school being hard or because you're not 100% sure on nursing? Regardless, I don't know much about the schools you're interested in, BUT your best bet is to work really hard to get your GPA up as much as you can. Some schools will definitely take into account that your pre-req class grades are better. I think the CNA experience will definitely be a plus!