TashaLPN2006RN2012

I graduated from Simmons and they found all my clinical sites for me!

I'm an 2012 ASN grad, 2014 BSN grad and now I'm currently in FNP school through Simmons College. I was previously an LPN from 2006 to 2012. Have worked in home health, podiatry, derm, family care, adult /gero, LTC, acute rehab and case management for both adult and peds. Totally well prepared by EC curriculum and standards!

You should try to have a boss (MSN or higher degree), a FNP or other nurse practitioner, and an MD. At my job I was able to get the medical director so I actually submitted 4 letters. Good luck to you all! I started in cohort 3 March 2014 for BSN-MSN/FNP. Super tough program but worth every penny! Tasha

I began the full time program March 2014, after I completed term one, I chose to drop to PT in term 2. I work full time from home as a telephonic pediatric care coordinator. Even though I work from home I am still required to do my 40 hours of work (M-F), so I do have a bit of flexibility throughout the week. I will not be able to continue my full time employment in July when clinical starts in though. I will be completing 2- 8hr rotations per week (16 hours per week) that must be done during M-F business hours. So I will need to look at other employment options. I do not want to go back on 12 hr shifts nor hospital work so I'm not sure what I'll do. I am in the process of becoming a health coach and want to start my own health and weightloss coaching business but we will see! =)

It has been a crazy ride for sure. Very intense and at times frustratingly busy...but that's grad school! I have learned so much so far though! I wish you all the best. You won't regret it!

Yes they did end up accepting Saylor, but found that the Klimes one they offer is EASIER and much better!

Just wanted to pop in and tell everyone good luck! I'm starting term 4 this week! =) It's been a crazy year for me for sure! Tasha

What request deepblue? I may have missed something? Thanks, Tasha

My friend had to take it as she was in the same predicament as you. She really enjoyed the class and said it helped her tremendously with advanced patho during term one. I wish I would have had to take it as I struggled in patho event though I had taken bio 2.5yrs prior. She is now in pharm 1 and understanding the application of medication in ways I struggled with was well. (I'm one term ahead of her). She pulled A's in those classes while I pulled B's. And she would tell you it was because of that bio bridge class.

One other thing, The classes are already pre-assigned what term you take them in, there is little lee-way in that! Term one you take 2 classes, term 2 you take 3 classes, term 3 you take 3 classes, term 4- two classes, term 5- 3 classes, term 6 & 7- 2 classes. if you go to the Nursing@Simmons website and click on academic calendar it will show you what classes you take each term =)

1. Is this a feasable schedule to work full time doing the program part time? Yes the first 4 terms you can easily maintain full time employment while completing the program part time. I currently work from home as a pediatric case manager M-F 8-430pm. I take all my live classes during the week after 5pm...so farm i'm finishing my 3rd term and have been able to get classes anywhere from 630pm-11pm at night. I reserve my weekends for family and studying so your schedule really shouldn't be a problem. Once clinical starts those hours can be assigned M-F during normal business/clinic hours therefore i will be leaving my job. if you work weekends only you may be able to continue on, however, note that you will still have live classes AND clinical hours to complete during that time. 2. How much study time does this program truly require? I am just curious, not that I am looking for an easy program, I just like to have a heads up! I graduated under grad with a 3.8gpa. I am not naturally smart, I study for my grades. It really depends on the class. Patho and Pharm 1 & 2 I spent lots of time on per week. Research, Scholarly Inq 1 and Scholarly Inq 2 spent loads of time on and they were only 2-3 cr hour courses. I probably spend 10-20 hrs per week studying, this doesn't include my time in live classes (2 hr each class each week...so 3 classes = 6 hours of "class time"). 3. What does the program mainly consist of? Reading, studying, papers? Discussion board, etc. Are there a lot of papers? Project, what kind? What can I expect from the courses? As I said I'm finishing Term 3 Part Time now. For Pharm and Patho classes I've had case studies, asynchronous pre-recorded lectures, quizzes. For the Research classes (there are 3 of them) I've had large final papers (but mostly we worked on those a little at a time each week through the term), verbal Power point presentations I gave, group work, some short discussion boards and the pre-recorded lectures. Family Theory and Global Health were pretty fun classes to me,short discussions, pre-recorded lectures and final presentations and final papers. It's a good mix of work and just depends on the class. EVERY class has pre-recorded lectures to watch prior to your LIVE class each week. Some classes have quizzes, some have exams, some have papers. Pharm has proctored exams given during your live class. 4. How are the research classes, they are what I fear. I struggled in undergrad with research but I had a horrible teacher which put a bad taste in my mouth. We all failed and she rounded all F's to C's for the curve. Since then, i've just been scared of research. There are 3 research classes. NSG Research gives you a GREAT review of stats, theories and nursing research needs in general. They take you step by step how to critique studies, how to determine if they are worthwhile etc....Scholarly Inquiry you learn how to do a full Literature Review from top to bottom and you choice your Topic that you want to do a study on (this is a group work class), Scholarly Inquiry 2 is a continuation of SI1 (you will have the same instructor, same group, and same topic) this is where you will actually put a study together or do an integrated literature review (holy cow this is what our group did and now i wished we could have done a regular research study because it was REALLY HARD!) it's also group work plus a verbal presentation. We actually got an A on both!!! I learned a lot and was really scared of research however now i feel very comfortable with it. 5. Anything you feel will be helpful for me to no in regards to the program would be greatly appreciated. You need to be very organized, keep track of when assignments/postings/quizzes/tests are due. Some items are do anywhere from 24 to 72 hours PRIOR to your live class. You will always be working a week ahead as your live classes are done AFTER everything is completed that week (it's my only gripe as i wish the live class was first to answer questions prior to submission of assignments) that being said ALL my instructors have responded within 1hr to 24hr of email, some allowed us to call their personal cell phones/personal emails and have been super supportive. Have a quiet area where you can log into your computer & use a headset/phone with MUTE function during the live classes. So far I love the program. I feel like i've learned alot and i will be starting clinicals this summer!!! =) contact the admissions reps they are great and will also invite you to a live webinar to talk with current students! Super fun and can get a real feel for how the live classes and course work is set up! Tasha

The Pharm book you can access online for FREE through the library but if you prefer a hard copy for yourself I'd buy from Amazon. It's by Katsung and called Clinical Pharmacology. I think they were still using the 12th edition even though the 13th edition was out.

Would be glad to. Send me a private message or connect with me on Facebook or Email =) Just click on my profile =) Also you can do a search on Allnurses for Simmons posts.

When you register for your classes a link will pop up telling you what books you will need. I'm finishing my 3rd term this week, so I'm not sure if they have changed books yet or not. I want to say Clinical Pathophysiology by Porth is what we used, and for research you WILL want to buy the research text as you will use it for Research, Scholarly Inquiry and Scholarly Inquiry-2....yes three research classes...ick, but learned a lot! I just finished SI2 this week =).

Are you dead set on a DNP program? If not Simmons is a great school online for military family members (I am an Army Veterans wife myself), I have several friends who are military spouses in the program, one being my best friend who started the cohort behind me =) There is a facebook page you can ask questions to as well.

I'm finishing my third term at Simmons this week! Incredible program! I originally applied to GU but the applicant pool had such high GPA;s that My 3.8 wasn't high enough, they referred me to Simmons. I called Simmons, they pulled my app & references, I had to email unofficial transcripts so they could make a determination while waiting on my certified transcripts to arrive...I am in the 3rd cohort and attending part-time. It took less than 30 days from applying to get an acceptance letter. =) Good luck to you all! =)

Sorry to hear that Adventure. good luck with your other applications, I'm sure something will work out for you! =)

No this program will NOT work for you if you can not either have specific days of work assigned or a flexible schedule. It just is not possible. There are MANY other NP programs around. Do some research and see what they offer, board pass rates, tuition costs, preceptor placements etc. Make a list of your requirements and how you can fit school into your life. Right now I work M-F 830am-5pm from home as a Nurse Case Manager...I can use my 1hr lunch break to watch the pre-recorded videos and/or write papers/do assignments etc. I take my live classes in the evenings...I'm in term 3 and so far have been able to keep my classes on M, Tue and Thurs late evenings 9pm-11pm or 8p-10p and one I had to take 630p-830p because it wasn't offered any later. There are some Sat/Sun classes but those dont work for me because of my 3 kids and husband and work schedule. Once I start clinicals this summer I will no longer be able to work M-F and will need a set schedule of 3 12's per week. I am already talking to the local hospice about a PRN or FT position where I can work those types of hours. For me these sacrifices are worth it due to my pay increasing significantly after graduation. Each person must decide on their own what will or will not work for them. Good luck! Tasha

Sorry just seeing this post. I've been super busy with work/school/family so I rarely get a chance to get on allnurses anymore. Yes I am still happy. and it is expensive, however, I feel like the money put into it is giving me an excellent education and the fact I do not have to hunt my own preceptors down (as I've seen sooooo many MSN/NP students doing on FB even) is well worth the money to me. My pay here in FL will almost double upon graduation...if it was only going to go up 10-20K it might not be worth it but for me it is. I work M-F FT too, I've been taking all evening and/or weekend classes thus far has worked. When clinicals start there is no way I can work FT M-F, I will have to find a 3X12hr job or work part time to get my clinical hours in. I am PT at school now so I don't have to worry about that until July of next year. I'm 1/2 way through term 3 and still doing good with work school. I do not have a lot of extra time for anything else but i'm okay with that. Papers have been anywhere from 3-10 pages but not due every week. There are a few classes that have discussion postings but they are fairly short and to the point (these started mostly in term 3 for me), then their are pre-recorded videos to review weekly for each class (it's like a Youtube video with power points attached is the best way i can describe it), and some of them are interactive where you will have to type an answer in during the video and submit your response. There are quizzes and tests in some classes and not in others. (Patho, Pharm and Research have had quizzes/tests) while others you work the entire term to turn in a final paper as your "final". There are three research classes (research, scholarly inquiry 1 and scholarly inquiry 2) with group work but I haven't had any problems with my group as we got to "pick" each other so I work with two girls I've had continuous classes with thus far. Hope that helps

Did you get hired? It's a pretty great company. Lots of work and can get hairy with all the training/meetings but I love the home based feel to it. It's worked out great for me while I continue my education

Congrats and good luck to those waiting. I'm halfway through my third term. The work is no-joke! It's challenging but really interesting and I love the format of the classes and so far all my instructors have been awesome!

Chaotic- I did my ASN,BSN and now MSN online and loved it. I am currently at Simmons College. If you google Nursing@Simmons it will bring up their ASN to MSN/FNP program. Unlike some online programs they DO find you clinical placement, as well as weekly "live" online classes (where you use your webcam and in a chat room classroom on a teleconference call line for whats call a live session) It really blends the in-person feeling of a brick and mortar school with the online conveince. Do some searches, really look into the programs. You will get mixed reviews on here of online versus a "regular" college. Good luck!

Wow I'm really sorry you had all that difficulty with your program! I think I would have been devastated if that happened to me. I prefer DSL/Cable internet over ATT anyday. I also dropped ATT cell service years ago due to their business practices and poor customer service.

I just started my third term this week! So far I love the program. It's challenging and I feel like I've really learned a lot thus far. The live classes are great, and it's nice to actually "see" people and the instructor to have discussions and clarify information. Student support is amazing when you have issues and quick to reply. The registration process for classes has some limitations but it improves each term so they are working on it! The grading is fair but tough. 83% is the lowest grade you can get and still pass. Pharm 1 and Pharm 2 are VERY challenging and a lot of reading/studying. I enjoyed giving presentations in class as well =)