claire43

I interviewed for this program last week!! I brought copies on my letter of recs and resume, but they said my application packet was all they needed. But i would still bring them if i were you. It was a panel interview with 4 nurse managers. Similar to any job interview, they had about 10 set questions they took turns asking and they wrote down my response. The questions seemed to focus on leadership experience, prior job experience and why I chose the VA. overall, definitely not a hard interview, but I know each VA runs their VALOR program differently. Just smile and be yourself!! Goodluck!

Thank you so much for that wonderful advice!!

Has anyone participated or interviewed for the VA's VALOR Nurse Externship program? I have an interview coming up for this program, but I haven't heard much about the program itself, except that it's competitive to get into. Any interview tips or insights to share?? Thanks !!

Hello! Just curious about how other nursing students prepare for the beginning of a new semester. Do you review content? Organize? Read ahead in textbooks? Although this will be my fourth semester in nursing school, i've found the most stressful part of the semester for me, is the beginning. So any advice regarding starting off the semester smoothly would be appreciated : )

I tried doing the shoulder bag thing at first but found it to be impractical and painful due to how heavy nursing textbooks are. Currently I use a book bag and it's perfect for me. In the main pouch I'd have a binder with ppt printouts, a notebook and whatever textbook I was studying that day. In the side pocket I'd keep an umbrella and waterbottle. And in the front pouch I'd have pencils, pens, highlighters, sticky tabs for highlighting important things in the ppts/reading, quarters if I needed a caffeine fix and hand sanitizer. :)

I know this isn't book related but HelpHippo on Youtube is an awesome resource for pathophysiology mnemonics and abnormal heart auscultations. I found it extremely helpful when I took patho. Goodluck to you!

I took Peds/OB/community nursing/patho last spring semester and it was definitely doable. Peds is mostly patho based so if you feel comfortable with pathophysiology you should be fine. I used the saunders NCLEX comprehensive book to study for OB and peds and I found it to be VERY helpful. I also found that reading the textbook and doing a 100 or so NCLEX questions a week helped.

I took it in Morehead and the examiner was really awesome. She disagreed on my diastolic BP reading and let me re-take it instead of failing me right then and there. The hardest part was remembering the small steps in the skills because I was concentrating so hard on remembering the critical steps. But as long as you know the critical steps and remember to give the call light, you should be fine. The multiple choice section was easy. Goodluck to you as well! :)

It's been two weeks since I took my exam and I still haven't heard anything back from them. My instructor told our class the earliest she's seen is 2 weeks but on average it takes a whole month. The two guarenteed skills are handwashing and vitals. I also had height/weight, ROM and nail care.

Heres some things that I've found come in handy for clinical/careplans: -a clip board with storage space for clinical paperwork -a drug guide -RN notes (a pocket guidebook) -a good watch with a second hand (for counting HR, RR ect.) -a small pocket sized notebook (for getting report) -a penlight As far as lecture/studying goes make sure you have TONS of flashcards and highlighters, a decent planner, and printer ink! Hope this gives you some ideas, goodluck this fall!