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Hi everyone, I am a nursing student from NJ, and I am currently reading "The Good Nurse," about Charles Cullen, the NJ nurse that admitted to poisoning approximately 40 patients, although it is believed he poisoned well over 400. I've been pretty taken aback by how lax hospitals were, the fact that this man was repeatedly hired at other hospitals, and the fact that despite major evidence, hospitals decided to keep things under wraps to avoid sullying their reputations. This may be a dumb question, but as someone with zero experience working in a hospital (yet), is this actually a common thing? Perhaps things were changed after/because of the negligence of those involved in this case? I figured I would just ask on this forum because as I read on, I find myself continuously saying "this can't possibly still be an issue or how things get done - is it?!" For anyone not in the know, the process of Cullen getting officially "caught" began in 2003, so it was not that far off.

Don't be discouraged! A year ago, I was put on academic probation because I failed a remedial non credit class that is required for my current school and I was devastated. I have a 4.0 GPA now. There will be set backs, even in nursing school, but don't let anything deter you. Just retake the class and don't let it get you down. Best of luck! :)

Thank you sooo much for your help!

Hi everyone, I'm taking a CIS class for my tech. elective. This class goes over how to use Microsoft word, Microsoft access, excel, PowerPoint, and outlook. We will be doing things like making spreadsheets, resumes, etc. I'm just a little concerned that I'll be able to pull this off since the class isn't being offered on campus. I have a MacBook Pro, and I have office 2011 for home and student, this class is specifically for Office professional 2013. As a way to get around this, I am borrowing my sister's Dell computer and downloading Office 365 which will cost me $70.00 as opposed to the $300+ it would cost to buy office professional. Office 365 has all of the things I will need (access, word, excel, PowerPoint, and outlook). So, just throwing it out there. Do you think I can pull off simple tasks using this program? Or am I out of luck? Thanks in advance.

Hi, For the Trinitas program you need to major in nursing for that program at Union County College. When you register/declare your major, you have to specify that you want to go with Trinitas over their other nursing program, which is Muhlenberg. After that, you'll start your general education requirements and you'll receive an invitation to attend the school of nursing when you meet the requirements. There is no test to get in, but the program is strict and rigorous. Best of luck to you! :)

I have to agree with NJ2013's post in response to yours. If I were you, I wouldn't let the things people post/say about Trinitas bother me. They consistently have a NCLEX pass rate of 100% or very close to it. The people who are negative about the school are usually the same students who don't expect nursing school to be as hard as it is. All nursing schools are extremely hard, and in most programs, if not all, if you get grades that are lower than they require, you will be dismissed from the school. This is why many people say the school only cares about money. The people I have met who made it through the Trinitas program have become very successful and say that the program really prepared them for nursing in real life. Best of luck to you! Regardless of the haters, Trinitas is a good program, just be prepared to work hard.

Well it's not that I think I'm old, I just didn't want to be the oldest. One of the girls I spoke to, I'm not sure if she was trying to be cool, but she was telling me about how they party all the time. I don't know how they find the time for that, lol. Just the way she spoke, her mannerisms, it threw me off a bit. I know that sounds judgmental, but I don't mean it that way. Thanks for your encouragement and best of luck to you as well! :)

Thank you so much! And congrats! :)

Thanks for your words of encouragement! I just wanted to clarify, for everyone who is reading this: I didn't mean to say that I feel like I'm old, just that I wouldn't feel particularly comfortable being the oldest of my class. Of course, if I had to be I wouldn't care or be deterred from my goal, but it wouldn't be something I was particularly enthused about.

Thank you so much for your tips! I'm glad I posted on here, the responses have all been very helpful and reassuring! :)

It's actually funny because it is the exact opposite for me. I'm currently at a community college and the people who are planning on attending the nursing program at that school are all my age or older, but the university I'm transferring to is where all the younger people are. Your post is very reassuring though, the age issue really hadn't even dawned on me until my tour of the school and then I wasn't sure how I felt, lol.

Thanks for your response! it's not that I would be deterred by being surrounded by people who are so much younger than me, it just wouldn't be anything I was particularly thrilled about. Best of luck to you in your program! :)

This was very thoughtful! Thanks for the links :)

Hi everyone, I just recently posted a thread in the forum for my state about the demographics of the nursing school I will be attending. I recently attended a tour of the school, and every student I was introduced to was 21 years old, the oldest being 23. I didn't meet everyone, but considering that I will be 29 years old when I attend the program, I'm a bit concerned about feeling like the "odd woman out." I may be wrong in my assumption, but I've always heard that one of the great things about nursing is that people begin their careers at all ages. It is one of those fields where no one can say, "you're too old to pursue that," if that makes sense (not that I personally feel that there is any field one would be too old to pursue). I assumed that I would come across people in nursing school who were around my age group and even older, but this tour is making me think I may be wrong about that. Is this a stupid concern? I won't be deterred by it, but I'm not loving the idea. For students who are "older" like myself, how was/is your experience? Thanks in advance!

Does this mean that a student can only take Lower level nursing classes after they've applied school to school? As in the twenty four credits would need to be completed already?