iLOVEbees

I agree with the OP. My BSN was all fluff. I am not a better nurse because of it. It was needed, however, to get into the master's program I wanted.

Never been kicked in the groin, but I did have my scrub top ripped off once. It was a V-neck and the lady grabbed it right at the V and riiiiiiiiiiiiip. Dementia patients can be pretty strong.

I had to do the normal enrollment on applytexas, even though I graduated from UTA with my BSN. Obviously, I didn't have to send any transcripts but that's the only thing I can think of that was quicker. I think UTA BSN graduates are given preference for admission into the FNP program, but who knows if that's true.

Hi, I got my BSN for UTA and am in UTA's AP FNP program now. 1. Yes, you can. Be warned that to get financial aid, you have to have 6 credit hours a semester. If you take a 10 week course and a 5 week course sequentially, you can get 6 credit hours. You cannot fit two 10 week courses in one semester going 1 class at a time. This means you will need to pay out of pocket or make other arrangements for classes, and the classes aren't cheap. I started in 2014 and I'll graduate in 2018, taking one class at a time. 2. UTA strongly recommends going part time, but this is not feasible for a lot of people. I must work full time. It is not a requirement, but it is time consuming. I have a full time job, a family, and school and I have to make sacrifices to at least one of those every week. Free time? What's that? (I'm writing this from work during a slow time, BTW) You do not get to pick and choose your courses like you did with your BSN at UTA. They give youy a course map and that's what you're going to do. Now, you CAN email your advisor and ask for this or that, or even take a semester off if you need to, but it's not a "do your own thing" program like the BSN was. I really dislike that aspect of it, but it is what it is. I'm on my 6th class right now, and I have 3 more academic classes and then it's all clinicals. You have to give a lot more for the FNP program. It's not all writing papers. I never thought I'd say that I missed writing papers, but I miss just writing papers. The tests are proctored via webcam, and not the webcam in your laptop. You have to buy an external webcam and a tripod, show your ID to the camera, etc. Pretty involved. In Assessment, you have to find an adult and pedi patient to videotape assessments on. I think we have to make a total of 14 videos, and two of them are interactive i.e. the lab faculty is skyping you instead of you just doing it on your own time and submitting it. It's not easy, and they throw these requirements at you at the last minute like it's no big deal. If I sound like I'm complaining, well I am. It can be a mess. But, I am learning a lot and I do feel I am becoming more and more prepared to be an FNP. Hopefully, the program will mature and they'll get rid of some of the more ridiculous things. I know there's a significant dropout rate, with students bailing for other programs. I plan to stay to the end. Good luck with whatever you end up doing.

American Literature was a lot of reading and some papers. Pretty much what you probably expect. The hardest part is staying awake while reading some of the stuff.

There are a few other, small requirements as well. For one class, I had to interview a home health nurse. For another, I had to very thoroughly assess a person. For another, I had to find an elderly person who was willing to do a "life review" with me. Not trying to scare you. These requirements were not hard to meet for me. There are no clinicals. Even the shadowing thing was just hanging out with my boss for 4 hours and then writing about it. We went to meetings, ate lunch, etc.

I took 5311. I got an A, but I took it alone and I wouldn't classify it as easy. I went for 5311 because it was 5 weeks and fit into an otherwise-empty spot in my schedule. Grading is as follows: [TABLE] [TR] [TD]Journal Critique[/TD] [TD]20%[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]Theory Analysis & Presentation[/TD] [TD]25%[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]Analysis Paper[/TD] [TD]35%[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]Class Attendance & Participation (Discussion Boards)[/TD] [TD]20%[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]TOTAL[/TD] [TD]100%[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] Since I haven't taken pharm yet, I don't know how practical it is to take both. Hope this helps some. I will say that, although the class counts for the FNP elective, it has nothing to do with FNPs and is just fluff and busywork. Don't expect to learn anything valuable.

They only included my UTA credits when I graduated summa cum laude. I know this because my pre-UTA GPA was filled with low due to not taking school seriously when I was young.

It's not pass/fail; you get a grade. Compared to some of the classes, I thought it was a walk in the park. Grading was quite loose and it seemed like just going through the motions.

Next is the second research class, 5328. To be honest, I'm dreading it.

Buy an APA book or an APA add-on for Word (such as PERRLA, which I recommend). Your APA is very important and will be scrutinized. You want to get where writing in APA is second nature.

You get your course map (eAdvisor plan) from your academic adviser after you're accepted. I can't think of anything I could have done before being accepted. Waiting is hard, I know. Well, working extra to pay for school is something I could have done lol

Two nurses I work with and I have taken 1311 at UTA. I passed but thought it was the worst course by far of any of them. One of my coworkers dropped it and took it at a community college because it was so bad. The other coworker dropped it, then tried it again the next semester and dropped it a 2nd time. She's taking it at a community college now. The course is passable, but it is poorly designed and is enough to make a history buff hate history.

I felt the test came out of left field, asking questions in a way unlike the rest of the course. I thought it was weird going in that we had zero practice questions and zero weekly quizzes to at least give a glimpse of what the test would be like. Thought it was going to be a gotcha test and it was. I did not do well either. Trinity, are you taking anything for the next 5 week period? I'm going to get my elective in. Then after that, it's the other research class, the 10 week one.

Capstone is pretty easy, especially compared to some of the other courses. My advice is to relish the idea of finishing in 5 weeks!