Regis College Information

juliewoo · Feb 23, 2009

Calalilly,

Are you able to attend one of their admitted student afternoons? I'm going to one tomorrow - if I pick up any useful info I'll be sure to pass it along. Also, not sure if you're on facebook, but I found a Regis grad who's also an alumna from my current undgrad school and she was more than willing to set up a date and meet me for coffee to talk about the program. Sometimes a little searching can find you some great connections :)

calalilly · Feb 24, 2009

I already attended an admitted student afternoon. It actually made me like the school even more. I was just wondering if anyone had any additional information about the program, or personal experiences there. Thanks for the info though. If you find out anything interesting please let me know!

LittleToe · Feb 25, 2009

Are you asking about the Regis FNP program in Denver, CO? I have applied and am hoping for approval. I understand that this is a 22 month program that meets every-other weekend (clinicals additional to this). There are some really fantastic NP's that work at Denver Health that completed the program. Good luck!

calalilly · Feb 25, 2009

This thread is for Regis College in Weston Mass. Good luck at Regis in Colorado though!

applying2nursing-de · May 17, 2009

I am waiting to hear back from Regis direct entry NP program ...interviewed late April so should hear any date now. Anyone have any idea when I might hear? I'm quite anxious..

melmarie23, MSN, RN · May 18, 2009

Try posting this on the Massachusetts board. You will get more helpful answers there.

Good luck!

applying2nursing-de · Jun 22, 2009

Wow I am sorry to hear all of this negative feedback about Regis College. I was just recently accepted to MGH Institute of Health Professions and will be attending their direct-entry NP program this fall.

I was a little shocked at the requirements for Regis College. For example, I took a semester of chemistry that included general, biochem, and org. Regis would only count it for one semester of chem. MGH accepted it for the chem requirement. I also was a psych minor and Regis would not accept any or the combo of my psych courses to meet their psych requirment. There is no psych requirement at many other competitive programs I looked into and for those that had one, I am pretty sure they would accept my minor to fullfill it. Regis also said they would take my business ethics course to meet their ethics requirement--in my eyes, the 2 courses are not related at all. My point is their system just doesn´t make much sense to me and the person who interviewed me did not really even seem to recognize my questions as important or of concern. These schools cost a lot of money and in the end, if you want to become a NP, you need to get through a lot of nonsense to get there. But I am happy to be going to a school that actually listened to me during the application process and promptly answered my questions, with clarity and reasoning.

I think all of you who are attending Regis will be great nurses, as you have clearly worked very hard to get to this point and it shows you have the work ethic needed. Just don´t let those teachers on their high horse get you, and just plow through the work. A friend of mine told me to just take the bull by the horns and GO FOR IT when I got accepted to the MGH program! I was going to defer for a year and possibly move to Cali (still in my future plans to live there). I decided to just take on this challenge now and I am happy with the decision.

I´m not sure about any of you but I have literally worked so hard the last year to perfect my application as best I could. I volunteered at a hospital, studied hard for GRE, took all of my sciences minus the 2 I´m about to take on this summer, and worked full time in healthcare as well. I think if you are like me, you will work hard in this program and you will see results. There are going to be many obstacles, as that is how life goes. A doctor at my work has already warned me of the days you feel on top of the world that can then turn into the next day of feeling that you are worthless and cannot help anyone at all that day. pERHAPS REGIS IS ACTUALLY PREPARING YOU FOR WHAT THE REAL WORLD OF WORKING AS A NURSE IS LIKE! IT ISN´T GOING TO BE A PIECE OF CAKE WHERE EVERYONE IS NICE AND AGREES WITH YOU, AND IS ALWAYS WILLING TO HELP YOU!

I´ll leave you with a piece of advice he gave me. Nursing is like being caught in a storm with tidal waves. So what are you going to do when the waves take you in and you can´t get out? Are you going to fight those waves? (He asked me). I replied ¨Nah, I´m going to ride them and let them pass, then I´ll swim back, stronger than before, and find my way to a better place.¨

CMarieCRN · Jun 25, 2009

Calalilly and others interested in the Regis College, Weston, MA programs, I have nothing to gain from writing this, but after my experiences with the program, there are things that I would like to share that I would have liked to hear from someone who had already done it.

I am currently a graduate student at Regis College in the Accelerated Nurse Practitioner program granting a B.S./M.S. in Nursing for non-nurses with a Bachelor's Degree. I am about to start my third year in the program, beginning a pediatric preceptor experience.

Some students in this program entered right after graduating college. Others have already gotten married, started families, or worked for years in a previous field. Everyone comes to the program with a different outlook and way of viewing the curriculum. One student lamented that Regis requires an 80 average in all classes in order to progress. I believe this high standard prepares us to transition smoothly into the NCLEX preparation. In fact, this past spring all 45 graduates of the Bachelor's portion of the accelerated program passed the NCLEX on the first try for a 100% pass rate, which is not something that all schools can report.

I came into this accelerated program thinking I'd be able to work full time and shrugged off advice from administration that I would not. But this is a quality program, and I learned quickly and dropped my hours to 10 per week to make it more manageable. I honestly have no idea how those who are parents and spouses do it. The reality is that this is an accelerated program, where one earns a Bachelor's and a Master's degree in only 3 years. Many of us were burnt out by the time August came around at the end of our first year, but we chose this program in order to gain knowledge and skills as soon as possible in order to begin practicing.

Someone asked about clinicals. Clinical experiences are generally 6-12 hours per day. Clinicals have to accommodate all students in the program, not just individuals. For this reason, students were assigned to various hospitals as fairly as possible regarding their commutes. Students who lived close to Emerson Hospital in Concord, for example, drove an hour south to Norwood because there were other students whose closest option, driving an hour or more, was Emerson. It wouldn't make sense to have the North Shore students drive 2 hours south while those in Concord head down the street.

Regis does have a preceptor placement coordinator who, we're told, will provide us with two options for our third year clinical experience. But it would be impossible for the preceptor coordinator to place all 100 students for 600 hours each per year. With the current state of the industry and the economy, students need to collaborate with their schools in order to accommodate their precepting needs, too. With guidance, however, students can participate in the process of making their own contacts and finding placements that are the best fit for them based on preferences and geography.

So it is true that in a given student group one will hear complaints about the placements offered and about students having to find their own placements, but you'll also hear success stories and elation over "the placement I found and how well it is working out for me." Regis isn't the first and will certainly not be the last school to have students finding their own preceptors. A friend of mine in a similar program for Physician's Assistants had to pound the pavement pretty hard to find her placements, and the process sent her from Danvers to Worcester and West Roxbury.

Clinicals are actually hard to come by, even in the health care industry mecca that Boston is; there aren't very many options out there. With all the schools vying for preceptors, there are less and less MDs and NPs available, and those that are available may have limited time to take on a student. Students have a better chance at selling themselves by being proactive and contacting possible preceptors themselves rather than the coordinator making more or less abstract calls regarding a faceless or voiceless student. One student's aunt had a friend who had a friend at Children's Hospital, and now the student will be working with a preceptor in their operating room. A recommendation from a former healthcare provider or other contact is more likely to get one in the door. Bottom line: These experiences also help students when they graduate in trying to find their own employment and negotiate their way in the profession.

I truly believe the faculty and administration at Regis take constructive feedback into consideration, as I have seen many things change for the better from my class to the one following. Naturally, some people like to lament. And simply complaining or, worse, attacking, will, as in any setting, be met with resistance. Perhaps fostering a good rapport with faculty will benefit the student as at any learning institution, but I highly doubt that gross discrimination toward any student would go unnoticed by the administration here. Regis actually has a policy in which, if a student receives less than an 80 on a paper, he or she may receive an anonymous reread from another faculty member. The faculty is also quick to act at any report of unfair treatment of students in the classroom or clinical setting.

I hope this helps any prospective nursing students in their quest for the best school for them. Bottom line is that the Regis College program is an excellent one, and I'm pleased to be part of it. Should anyone like to contact me, I'd be happy to discuss the program further.

Jennifer0512 · Jun 25, 2009

Wow! Thank you so much CMarieCRN! I will be starting at Regis in September also doing the accelerated BSN/MSN direct entry program (and hope to go into pediatrics as well). I was so tired at hearing all the negative feedback about Regis. I do appreciate people wanting to give us incoming students feedback, but I did not feel that others explained their reasoning. And you are the first person to do that! And it's constructive!

Funny you mention Emerson Hospital in Concord because I live right near there. Yes, I could see myself being annoyed if I wasn't placed there and instead was placed an hour away, but at least now I would understand the reasoning and accept it!

I wish that others would remember how excited they were to start school at Regis their first year and realize how disheartening for us newcomers it must be to hear only negatives. I know I am not going to love every single aspect about anything, and as I said, I do appreciate the feedback from students who are already there, but if people want to share negative experiences for us to watch out for then they also should tell us the things they love!

Thank you again...this was really refreshing! I will direct other people from my incoming class to this post. I may contact you in the future!

MissPamela19 · Jun 25, 2009

I am not going to reiterate what Jennifer just said, but THANK YOU CMarieRN!! This is EXACTLY what we needed to hear. I was beginning to feel very disheartened reading all these complaints and bad-mouthing of Regis, a school that up until recently, I heard nothing but good about and was SO excited about attending. I feel that people who complain like they do, especially on here, like you said, do NOT approach the faculty about their problems and take it out on forums such as this, as if it's going to change things. In my opinion, if you don't like the school, quit. Otherwise, keep your mouth shut - there's 100 other people in the same boat as you.

Regardless, your post was truly a breath of fresh air, and I appreciate the time you took to explain all of these matters. I feel a little bit better now knowing that some people hold Regis to the acclaim in which me, and Jennifer do. :yeah:

KDrummond · Oct 11, 2009

cmariecrn,

that was excellent information for those of us considering this program. regis is my top choice school, but i do have some concerns.

i am a married mother of 3 and would like to know what a typical week is like beginning with the first semester. i am considering attending at night and on the weekend (even though i work overnights on the weekends). were you a day or night student?

also, how much did books cost in addition to the large tuition cost?

any info/advice is much appreciated. thank you!