RNfromscratch

I am still in the program, for a variety of reasons most of which have to do with where I am in life and the number of years I can continue being a student. These things factor heavily in my decision. I will say: it hasn't gotten much better but it is what it is.

Hi mayjulie: I'm a current ELMSN program (started fall 2014). We're 4 weeks into the program. I will give you MY opinion of the ELMSN program: 1. HIGHLY disorganized and dysfunctional at the faculty and administrative level - it is borederline infuriating for me. In talking with previous cohorts (that are still here) apparently we have it better than they. I can't imagine what it was like earlier. There are avenues where you can address your concerns, but having sat in on these meetings student concerns and issues are placated and brushed-off at best, and ignored at worst. There seems to be zero desire to actually FIX some real problems and dysfunctions here that, it seems, have plagued the nursing school since its inception. 2. VERY self directed - I consider myself a fairly intelligent person, and I have no doubt I can be successful in this program because I know how to self-study and critically think. BUT! I don't believe in a self-directed nursing program. Nursing is a practical, skills-heavy profession and at the Fundamentals level (which we are in now) this program fails entirely. My impression is that they have yet to find strong Fundamentals educators for this course. And they have yet to get it right. Though our cohort does have a new lead FUND instructor (who is well-respected and very intelligent) the lectures are simply power point slides that regurgetate the material in the book. There has been an attempt to ask clinical style questions in the lecture, but the slides are so numerous that there is little time for any kind of higher-level thinking or working through. My hope was that I would be intellectually challenged by the program, and that our lectures would teach us things beyond what we can read ourselves. So far, I'm really disappointed. My experience in skills lab has been underwhelming as well, and I would say I have a fairly strong skills group. Skills labs are on different days (all weekdays) depending on your group. FYI logistically: we are split up into 3 groups: 2 day groups (8am-4pm), and 1 evening (4:30-9pm). It hasn't happened in my skills lab but there is another group in our cohort that has already complained that they have yet to move beyond taking vital signs (and it's week 4) and that half their skills day is taken up by lecture (which is not shared in other groups). There are members of previous cohorts who say that they do not feel prepared for their critical care clinicals (which is year 2), in terms of skills readiness - and these are strong, mature, academically-motivated students. We have a member of our cohort who has told us that Charles Drew students have a reputation in the community for being weak on skills. To me this is the most painful thing to swallow. Theory and information I can digest and critically-think through on my own if I need to - skills is something else, I feel. The skills instructors in Fundamentals have good clinical skills but the disorganization and faculty/administration dysfunction gets in the way of strong skills lab education. 3. The nursing school is nice and new - the sim labs are state-of-the art. There is opportunity to schedule extra time in the sim labs with the clinical coordinator. If you get in the program I would recommend using this, especially as skills get harder. 4. Previous cohorts are very inclusive of incoming cohorts - and they got out of their way to mentor and guide incoming students. There is an unofficial mentor-mentee program you can sign up for, which I would recommend - if not for sanity alone. 5. The program is entirely HESI driven and uses Elsevier Evolve resources for almost all courses. We are the first cohort to have the HESI for our exams, and I'm hoping this will improve our NCLEX pass rate as a program. The cut off for HESI is pretty strict but I think that's a good thing. 6. This is my personal, biased opinion on the level of academic diversity in the cohort: It is very VERY spread out. I had hoped that at the EL-MSN (graduate) level that academically we would range on the higher end of the spectrum. This is not so. There are, flat out, people in our program who absolutely should not be in a nursing program, anywhere - let alone at an MSN level. That's not true of everyone of course - there are some really smart people here but it's not the entire cohort as it should be. Maybe the program will get more competitive as the years go by, but right now I'd say we're on par with a West Coast University which anyone can buy there way into. (I say this as someone who was NOT strong academically in my undergraduate but who was strong in my pre-reqs and is, well, smart ;-) ) 7. When making your choice about coming to Charles Drew I would recommend asking yourself the type of nurse you want to be, and why you want to come here over other places. For me I chose this school because: a. It's mission - despite its dysfunction, it's mission is to serve the underserved and that's why I want to be a nurse. I want to go to school in the community I want to be involved in and that's CDU, b. It's the least expensive ELMSN (aside from state schools which are, frankly, too competitive for my undergrad grades) out there, c. It is 2 years and d. I already have a bachelor's - I really don't want to go backward in my education. That ALL said, I am - at this moment - reconsidering being in the program. I haven't made a terminal decision yet, but I am even willing to go the A-BSN route and I'm actively considering it prior to the withdrawal deadline here. These are just my personal opinions and observations about the program. There are wonderful people here who have chosen this school (including folks who got into Western's ELMSN program) for reasons beyond academics - so things that are important to me may not be important to you. My advise is VISIT the school, ask hard questions of the administration and faculty, know yourself and what you want and go with your gut.

Sorry if this is a duplicate post, but I tried posting something earlier and it didn't work! Lishi, I received my acceptance letter about 6 weeks after I applied, like Vanessa. So as @white2020 and Vanessa said don't get down! And an interview, if it goes that route, means you're still in the running which is a GREAT thing. Plus, you said yourself you have great interview skills - so this might really work in your favour. Keep your eye on the prize! :) If you feel that an interview is immenent, I would start mock-interviewing with friends. I found this page on allnurses and it has some great advise and practice questions for nursing school interviews: https://allnurses.com/general-nursing-student/interview-questions-88629.html (I tried posting the actual post, and got the dreaded rainbow wheel of computer death - lol!) Keep us posted! We're rooting for you.

Congrats @white2020! I saw Vanessa gave you the URL to the Facebook group. Maybe you've already joined? Anyway, so glad you posted on this thread. I hope others will join us! See you on the FB page, and congrats again!! :-)

Good questions, lishi. I imagine there will be breaks, just not long ones. The first 15 months will be fairly intensive since that's the accl-RN portion of our program (preparation for taking the NCLEX and getting licensure). I don't know about class/rotation times though. I wonder if that isn't information we'll be getting in our orientation? I don't know.

Hey Vanessa! Figured. :) I found you though, and requested to join the CDU EL-MSN 2014 group! Exciting! :)

You can try: Sharon Hardwick. And let's just get this taken care of :) my email: [email protected] --> I may not be searchable via Facebook so let me know.

I "Facebook"ed "Vanessa Flores" - holy moly, there are a lot of Vanessa Flores's out there. Ha!

You mean you started a facebook group "CDU EL-MSN FALL 2014" - I looked, couldn't find it!

Vanessa! CONGRATS GIRL! That's great news! I'm so happy for you. It's a relief, isn't it? Yeah, I got my admissions packet for spring semester, but haven't received anything for the fall and I would think I would. If I don't get anything by the end of June, I'll give the admissions department a call. :) Ok, so now that I know there's 1 person that'll join the FB page (lol) I'll create it. I tried to PM on this forum, but because I don't have enough posts in my history I don't have that ability. How do you think we should do this? I'm a little leery giving out my email address in a public forum. Hmm. I'll create the page and see if I can post the link here, so that you can go to it and I can add you. That way other accepted students can be added as the summer progresses, if that want. Ok, I'll see if I can make this work! So happy to know someone starting in the fall - I remember in my pre-nursing program we were like family (for better and worse, LOL!) I can only imagine what this program will be like. So excited! Sharon :)

Hi lishi! Oooh, the waiting game. I'll keep my fingers crossed for you! I think Vanessa answered your questions, but here's my response: I also didn't have an interview or take the TEAS. (I'm not sure where the idea of taking the TEAS has come from. I feel like this is a rumour that was started on a thread a year or two ago. Hmmm. Anyway, our program is a graduate-level program and the TEAS is generally for undergraduate programs (I did take the TEAS but it was for an accl-BSN program, elsewhere)). And I was notified of my acceptance toward the end of November of last year, and had an orientation date of the first week of January of this year (I deferred to this fall) - so the time between acceptance and orientation is only a few weeks. Regarding academic stats, I'll say this about me: I wasn't an academic superstar in my earlier years BUT I did make HUGE improvements in my academic record between my undergraduate grades and all my nursing pre-reqs. So I was able to submit an application that proved I was capable of handling a rigorous, graduate-level nursing program NOW even though, just 5 years ago, I probably wouldn't have been able to. Life, right? I also went down to CDU with my fiance for an "information session" (wasn't so much a traditional info. session but more like a series of informal chats with professors and advisors, as well as a typical tour of the campus) so I had a good feel for the kind of school CDU is, what their mission is, and whether or not me and my professional goals would be a good fit. But the truth is, it could have gone the other way, you know? I mean who ever really knows what the admissions committee is looking for. I found it helpful, given my academic history, that I was able to submit letters of recommendation, take the GRE and write an essay - I have no doubt all those things helped me. (Although I will say this, I did horribly in the math portion of the GRE.) I don't know if I would have been as successful in a points-only admission system. Keep this thread posted with any news, ok? I'll be putting a private FB page together for those of us entering the fall class, and I really hope to see you on there! Sharon :)

Hey vaesanch! Good to meet you, and good luck! It's a nerve-wrecking experience for sure. I received my acceptance while in jury duty, so you never know when you'll hear. I'm glad you're thinking positively. :) I'm going to create a FB page and would love to add you - I'll figure out how to PM on this forum so I can get your FB details. I hope to see you in the fall! Be sure to let this thread know when you hear. :)

Hi there! I'm Sharon, and I'll be starting CDU's EL-MSN program this fall (2014). Anyone else starting the EL-MSN program at CDU this fall? Oh, and I don't want to freak anyone out if you are waiting for your letters - I have no idea when they go out. Sorry! I was scheduled to enter with the spring 2014 cohort but deferred one semester in order to get married (at 36 years old, who wants to wait 3 years! ) So, if you're still waiting for your letter - good luck! I'm rooting for you! Anyway, I'm starting this page because I'd love to meet everyone whose heading to CDU's EL-MSN program this fall & share information. And if there's enough interest we can start a Facebook page where we can all chat over the summer! (My friend is going to PA school at UW this summer and her cohort has a Facebook page and it's amazing, and I'm jealous. The PA's shouldn't have all the fun! ) Also, if there are any current Spring '14 students who want to chime in - I'd love to hear: how do you like the program? Is there anything you wish you'd known before Day 1? I can't wait to meet everyone!