PhillippaX50

I saw the Bodies exhibit many years ago in Las Vegas - when it first came out. I wasn't into nursing at that time, but I found it fascinating. I noticed at the time that a lot of the bodies looked Asian (you could tell by the faces and body type) - but I had no idea that they *may or may not be* Chinese prisoners...I assumed that they were people who donated their body to science. Even in Vegas, the crowds seemed very respectful of the exhibit. It does bother me to know that those people may have not given permission. The other thing that distressed me a little was the positions that some of the people were in (playing basketball, etc.)

I was able to go back when I took the test. For each section (e.g., math, science), you'll have a few "pages" of questions - however, if you submit the last page then you can't go back. Keep in mind the # of questions for each section, that way you can click back through the pages. This is assuming that you have extra time on the clock. When you say questions about fencing, I am assuming you mean math questions? Know your geometry formulas - area, perimeter, angles, circles etc.. I'm not sure if you could score in the 80's if you "bomb" the science section. Maybe you can figure out the averages to see what score you should aim for in each section. For example, if you score 80 in the math, english and reading sections and a 50 in the science section, your score would be around 72.

Can you retake any of your other pre-req's at a different school? Some schools allow you to retake more than 1 class and will just deduct a few points for attempts (if they use a point system). You will need to bring up your gpa, but don't get too discouraged just yet. If you can bring it up to a 3.0 you might have a chance at some of the schools that are a bit less competitive - plus, if you can do really well on the teas exam and/or admission essay it will boost your chances quite a bit! Don't be picky - look into lots of different schools and be sure to check out their requirements before you apply. Some schools will only take your first attempt at pre-req's and some will only take your first teas score. There are plenty of places out there that are more lenient. If this is what you want than you're not wasting your time!

You can trade in your books, but you'll probably get more money if you sell them. I have some of my books up for sale on Amazon; however, I will NEVER buy from a "student" seller on Amazon (like myself) - that's just me. The first time I purchased from a student (someone who had never sold anything before), they never sent the book. The second time, the person told me that they no longer had the book - over a week after I ordered it. They had sold one or two books before (a student). I had to scramble in order to get my book before my class started, and ended up paying 3x as much. Nowadays, I only buy from reliable sellers whose books are fulfilled by Amazon - and it helps that I have a prime membership (2 day shipping!). Basically, anyone can set up a seller account on Amazon - it's pretty easy. The person will pay through Amazon and the money will be routed to your bank account. They take a small fee out of the purchase price and will add $3.99 so you can pay for shipping. You can set your own price, but you want it to be lower than or similar to the other prices you see or you won't sell it. Be sure to describe the condition of your book ACCURATELY (good, very good, etc.) and SHIP IT AS SOON AS YOU SELL IT. No one, including yourself, wants to receive a late textbook! You'll be notified by email when it's sold. One more thing - It's always best to sell your books as soon as your done with them because the value goes down when a new edition comes out. I like to keep certain books (anatomy, etc) but I definitely have a bunch that I'll never look at again! Good luck!

I think that most people, including myself, would agree that non-accredited schools are a complete waste of time and money. If I were you I'd just finish the pre-req's and start applying to BSN programs. If you can't attend school full time then I think an LVN program would be more time consuming than the pre-req's. When I first started this journey, I was given really bad advice and kept looking for shortcuts, but quickly learned that there aren't any if you want to do things the RIGHT way. It took me a year and half to get through my pre-req's, and now I'm awaiting news on the programs I applied to. You'll find a school that is right for you - just don't jump into anything without doing your research. Best of luck! :)

Thank you for the reply...I had a pretty good feeling that a lot of the people with perfect A's were not getting 96 or 97 and above. At my school, it is generally 95-96 for the A and it depends on the teacher. Lately I have had a lot of teachers who want a 97. Not all of the classes have a point total of 100. A&P and Micro didn't. I don't remember the exact number, but I think A&P was around 500 points with an A being a max of 20-22 missed points. It was rough, but I pulled through (after several near-panic attacks!). I have definitely noticed that my school grades very strictly, but it's not the only one. Sometimes it feels unfair, especially when I see friends who have earned higher letter grades but lower scores than me. But...who said life was fair? Lol. It is what it is!

I am curious...what is an A at the school you go to? Most of my classes require a 97/100 to get an A (it used to be 96 and even that was rough). I have mostly A's, some A-'s, and a couple B+'s. For example, I had 100% in one of my current classes, but I missed 1 question on the first test and 3 on the midterm (60 q's). Those 4 questions dropped me to 96.7, so now I have an A-. What sucks is - there is no way to raise that to an A because there are only 100 possible points and no extra credit. There is so little room for error that sometimes I think I'm going to lose my mind! Luckily, I haven't has any points deducted on my essays or weekly assignments. My cousin attends community college, and all he needs for a full A is 90% (no plus-minus system). So - are you guys getting every single question/assignment/essay nearly100% correct, or is your grading system just different? Thanks!

That's awesome! I hope you'll be able to figure something out. If I find anything, I'll let you know!

Forgive my ignorance...but isn't Sallie Mae a private loan? I was under the impression that I couldn't go through them because of my credit not being so good.

Is that your tuition? Wow, you're lucky. My program is around $25-30k at a private 4-year. At least you won't be in debt for the rest of your life, lol! There's some good news in all of this after all. :)

I think she was referring to all of the fees that go along with orientation. Tuition might go up, but that is usually covered by loans. For example, the cpr class, background checks, shots/titers, plus books and materials. I am not sure about her school but mine also charges 2500 before the first day of class, which covers uniforms and materials. We also have to get and pay for health insurance. That amount is not covered by financial aid, and they suggest that students get a personal loan - however, not all of us can do that. OP: The best situation is to probably try and get a personal loan with the cosigner . . . maybe he/she can make the payments until you can pay back with your SL. Also, by the time you're in school, maybe you can get a part time job to pay back the loan. I know it is a difficult situation - my school tells us not to work! A lot of people do though, and they do just fine.

It is so depressing! We work so hard, and then stupid stuff like this gets in the way. I'm not giving up - there's got to be way. I'm still waiting for my acceptance/denial letter for Spring and should find out in Jan or Feb. Part of me is hoping I don't get in simply because I'm afraid I'll have to turn down my seat The other part of me is hoping for a miracle. I also have a stafford/perkins and get a grant. It covers my tuition but I get some of the grant money back, which I spend on books & supplies. I am hoping that enough of my grant money will have accumulated in my student account by the time I have to come up with the entrance fees. Does your tuition take up all of your grant money? You could use part of that to help pay for the fees. If your co-signer is willing to help, there are places out there will give you a quick loan but you might have to start paying payments right away (sometimes you can get loans with a low payment). Hopefully someone out there has some better ideas - I am totally stumped! I am sure you'll figure something out . . . just don't give up!

Thank you for asking this question. I am in almost the exact same situation as you, except my start up fees will be over 3000 plus the health insurance. I have no idea what I'm going to do, and I can't get a private loan or cosigner.

I took a general biology before A&P, but a lot of my classmates didn't. I think it helped me a little because a lot of stuff was repeated in A&P (cell structure & function, DNA, Mitosis/Meiosis etc.) - but I think you would probably do fine if you skip it. A&P covers everything you need to know pretty thoroughly.

I had the loose leaf for A&P and I would definitely do it again. The quality of my pages was the same as the bound text. A few pages got tears in the holes, but they are easy to fix with tape and a hole puncher (It wasn't a huge problem, though). I saved about $150 buying the loose leaf.

Some posters have said that the scores you get on practice tests are predictors of your actual test score. I disagree. I scored very high on my practice tests, but only 70% on the actual exam. I have a 3.8 gpa and A's in all of my pre-req's. If I have to take the test again, I will definitely study for at least a few weeks. I thought I had it in the bag on those practice tests, so I only studied for a week. I think it would also be wise to purchase some chemistry and physics books because the ATI manual doesn't go into much depth on these subjects - yet, the test did. In fact, I would go through that manual again and pull out all of my old textbooks as well. I did best in the reading and english sections, but it is true that the reading passages are extremely long in the exam. I thought I did fine in the math section because I understood every question - however, I think anxiety got the best of me and I worked too quickly. It is easy to make simple mistakes this way. One more thing - do get a full nights sleep. I had zero sleep for 2 days straight because I was so restless. I literally laid in bed staring at the ceiling, only to get up and pace around the room 20 or 30 times throughout the night. So not worth it! By the time I was halfway through the test, I could barely think straight.

I post on Rate my Professor when I have strong feelings about a particular professor....good OR bad. I only post when I really love a teacher or when a teacher really sucked. I do not think that people only post bad things about a professor when they do poorly. In fact, I have posted a bad rating for a professor who's class I got an A in....I did it because she was absolutely horrible in her lectures and gave everyone an A no matter what (i.e., lazy people and hard workers got the same grades). If I were you I would not ignore a string of bad reviews - drop the class. I used to think that people only posted on there for revenge or because they got a bad grade, so I completely ignored the 8 posts that gave my developmental psych teacher a poor rating. Live and Learn! Her class was pure misery. She would give assignments and then change the rules after you turned it in, and then refuse to explain anything (she did this to everybody). It still makes me mad just thinking about it! Not all teachers are good at what they do - plain and simple.

Yes. Go to "How I studied/passed the TEAS" on this message board - the topics are at the bottom of this section and are highlighted in green. The posters give a pretty accurate description of what is in the TEAS manual - which I'm studying right now. If you've already taken the test than you should have a pretty good idea of whats covered. Khan academy is good for math review. Is there someone who can loan you the money for the ATI manual? Or perhaps you can at least get the Mcgraw Hill manual? It's called "5 practice teas tests" and is under $20 on Amazon (used is even cheaper). The study guides really make a difference. Best of luck!

Try National University in California - i think there is one in Fresno. It's fully accredited (wasc) and no wait list.

Honestly, I know you mentioned that you're tired of making flashcards, but that is how I learned my cat - and I got A's on my practicals. Our teacher gave us color photos of a dissected cat (15+ pages) so I'd have one page that was labeled and one blank - like a full page flashcard. Our online mastering program (PAL 3.0) had some great photos as well. Try looking online for some labeled pics. I tried taking pictures of my actual cat but they came out looking like gray blobs and I couldn't differentiate between each muscle! I learned by repetition - just going through each flashcard over and over and over til it stuck. After I learned them, I went over my cat in lab. Get a partner to quiz you as he/she points at each muscle. Also, I found some great "walk-through" videos on youtube. I know it seems impossible right now, but you can do it! Just keep studying - it's all repetition repetition repetition! Good luck :)

I have been using the ATI manual and Mcgraw Hill - from what I can see, the most difficult math is just very basic algebra. Know the FOIL method and order of operations (remember PEDMAS: Parentheses, Exponents, Division, Multiplication, Addition, Subtraction). Khan Academy has a great section on this. Also, I found the basic math and pre-algebra workbook for Dummies useful. Once you get into practicing the math, you'll see that it's not as difficult as it might seem right now!

Not all schools take your first score - mine takes your best. You should find out what the other three schools look for. Since you've already applied, you could try looking through your application/paperwork, call or go to the school, or check out their websites.

Ok, now this bothers me a lot more! If I had the book in front of me right now, I'd probably write a letter to the publisher. I'm not saying it needs to be blown out of proportion, but it is a TEXTBOOK written 3 years ago. Uggh.

It's funny you mentioned this because my sociology book had something similar - but more along the lines of "nursing is predominantly female and females earn less than their male counterparts' - which is probably true in the grand scheme of things. I definitely wouldn't categorize nursing as "low-pay, low-prestige, with few benefits and opportunities for advancement". I think it's quite the opposite. I don't know how "prestigious" it is, but then again, nursing is generally considered to be a "noble" profession (saving lives). I wouldn't say I'm offended, but I don't think you're being overly sensitive. Ignorance is annoying! The quote has me wondering if the book is an older edition? The older folks in my family are still totally befuddled that there is a bachelor's degree in nursing. When I said I was going back to school to be a nurse, they thought I would spend 6 months at a trade school. There are a LOT of people out there that have no idea what an RN actually knows, does, or earns.

Thanks for the link - I watched the whole thing! A good friend of mine attends university of phoenix and just informed me that she's graduating this year with her BA (in business) and going straight into their MBA program. The thing is, she has only been going there for 2 1/2 years. Every time I ask her how classes are, she tells me that she "tests out" of them (clep?) so she can graduate faster. She's literally tested out of half her classes. When I asked her how that works, she said that she just takes a test and doesn't have to take the classes - classes like english, math, sociology etc. - all of the foundation classes required for any regular degree. As long as she makes a passing score, she skips the class. This just doesn't make sense to me. She just got her GED a few years ago, and now she's able to get her MBA without any work experience, entrance exams, or core classes under her belt? In the article included with your link, one of the teacher's that was interviewed said that she has students who cannot write at the college level, and they don't even know APA. My friend doesn't even know how to do an APA paper, or proper research - I know this because I once asked her for help and she didn't know what I was talking about. I love my friend, but she's convinced that all she needs is the degree and that will be enough. What about actual skills and knowledge? She said she'll gain that when she's working in the business world, and she'll get a job because she has connections through her teachers. Uhhhgg. I hate to be negative, I just don't see how she's actually learning anything. OP: I know how you feel. Sometimes we just have to sit back and let our friends/family learn life's lessons on their own. Maybe your friend will do well, who knows? :)