Timboner

That's awesome! Congratulations!! We have a Facebook group set up for our class. Private message me your name and I'll add you if you want!

I plan on doing the same thing. Was quoted at more than $2,000 a week take home with traveling and I'm going for it. Pay off some credit card bills and student loans I have before I start. Take off the month of July too before my August start date!

That's great. I would suggest working at AMC in the SICU or CTICU for the best experience in the area when you start your nursing career. AMC will take new grad RN's in the ICU too so that may speed things up a bit for you.

Yea I'll be headed there for the start in August. Born and raised there but living in CT the past year and a half. Where abouts are ya? I lived in Delmar

If it was easy, everybody would do it. Spend some time on Med/surg and the ICU to make sure you get not only critical care experience but the critical thinking aspect of the job.

Ok great. I can't start it without adding another member to it, so pm your email address or your name if you can and we'll get it started.

I feel like literally a dozen people I have worked with in the last few years have all told me how much they regret not going to school to be a CRNA and how life happened and they had kids or decided to not go for whatever reason. Of all the CRNAs I have talked to, the ones that opened up about the job have said it was the best choice they ever made in their lives. They also said you sacrifice a lot for school, but in the end it is all worth it. Definitely make sure it is something that interests you. Money can be made back after school by employers who pay for your tuition and loans, and there are even travel CRNA positions after you get some experience. I can't even fathom what they make compared to traveling nurses. If money is a concern, it can definitely be paid back if you are willing to put the time in. The more anxious I get about school the more excited I am at the same time.

Yep. I'm anxious too, looking at things that others do before starting school, but from the students I have talked to they all say relax as you'll learn everything you need to in school. But all will be fine. Loans can always be paid off, opportunities to make significantly more money and be happy working a great schedule are not always there.

That's great! Think we should make a facebook group to make getting to know everyone easier before we start? From what I have heard there is an event prior to us starting on campus too.

Best weakness answer is taking too much on without asking for help. Say it's something you're working really hard at correcting and you are getting there. It lets them know you are a hard worker and take on a bit of work. Delegation is also a good weakness that can be used when talking about being new to a certain area.

I feel like I am in a similar boat as you, or I was. I talked to several Albany students, and I'm not sure how your interview went there but the faculty was very honest and sincere in their answers. The one note that stuck for me was when one of the interviewers described how they wanted you to succeed in the program, and if something happened in your personal life they were accommodating in letting you have time off. I have heard that other programs don't let you take much time off unless you are dying, and they monitor every day that you are out. The students themselves gave excellent insight into the program, and said how the faculty is great to work with and the relationships between everyone is friendly. Also the textbooks being free to download through the library so you can take them home certainly helps ease the costs, as well as the cost of living in Albany compared to NYC. I went to my Columbia interview already accepted to Albany, and I feel that I only went because of how prestigious Columbia is. But at the end of the day you pass the same certification exam and do the same job. Save the money where you can especially if that is a big concern for you. .

So how did the interview go?

I would spend 4-5 hours doing each module which was about 4-5 hours a week. It wasn't bad. It's a lot of reading the textbook and the accompanying work manual thing to figure out the answers to the teachers assignments.

UC Berkeley Extension has an online organic chemistry course. No lab. It satisfied the requirements for the programs I applied to and I finished the course in less than 90 days. Give it a look!

Regardless of what happens in your interview/acceptance process, don't give up if you don't get in this time around. If you do get accepted and the program starts in the summer-time, that leaves you enough time to study up on CCRN materials and to ask for complex patients in your unit to try and help you increase your skills and knowledge. Best of luck!