Rio Salado or Gateway Part time?

salimom · Jan 8, 2009

I start Gateway's part time program next Wednesday so I will let you know. I did a lot of online pre-reqs and I know for me, that I prefer in person classes and that is why I didn't choose Rio Salado. But Gateway only admits to their part time program once a year and I think Rio Salado is every semester.

AZGirl27 · Jan 9, 2009

Rio Salado is not a part time program. It will take as much of your time if not more than the full time programs. I am not in the program but I did take their online course pre-reqs which require a lot of reading. I did talk to the program director and she told me this program is not easy just because it is online. You will have to give it more of your time because of all the reading you have. I don't think I would go through Rio if I worked full time. That would be very stressful. :banghead:

AZMOMO2 · Jan 10, 2009

GATEWAY!!! There is soooo much to learn and so much more than a book can tell you. The interaction with the instructors is inportant! We are in day two of Block 1 and I can tell you its been a whirlwind already (I am currently in the Fast Track PN program but the Blocks pretty much the same)

sassiebaz · Jan 10, 2009

GATEWAY!!! There is soooo much to learn and so much more than a book can tell you. The interaction with the instructors is inportant! We are in day two of Block 1 and I can tell you its been a whirlwind already (I am currently in the Fast Track PN program but the Blocks pretty much the same)

Please feel free to share more about the PN program there. Im really interested in hearing about it. You can PM me as well....congrats for gettin' in starting!

boru · Jan 13, 2009

NUR151,

In the Maricopa system as long as you make the minimum grade required, your grades will not get you in any faster. You only have to do what is on the checklist and then apply. Once you are in the system and you receive a "timestamp", and then the real fun begins... the waitlist.

If you narrow your choice of schools to one or two (like Rio and Gateway part-time), you will be on the waitlist for 2.5 to 3 yrs, easy. Factor in the 18-24 months it takes to finish the programs, and we're talking about a 4 to 5yr experience for you.

If I were you, I would figure out a way to expand my choices to get this over with faster. Gateway has an excellent reputation and so does Phoenix College. Glendale has a weekend program also, so that may be another option for you.

I beleive Rio is a fine choice if you have a decent amount of medical experience (MA, PCT, EMT, Medic, etc) or if you are working in the field, with RN's on a regular basis. You could at least talk with them about what you are learning and "compare notes" on school vs reality. Like the poster before me said, the books are just a small part of the learning experience. Not to mention, in a lot of RN programs, a lot of the learning is acquired thru your classmates.

But in your situation, I have to agree with the prior posters. Of those two choices, Gateway would be the best for you. Just understand, if you you choose only one program out of the 13-14 choices you will have, you could have an extremely long wait before you even begin your program. If you want more info on the process/waitlist, this board is a great resource for that.

Also, one of the posters mentioned the PN program at Gateway (there are also 3 others). They have an evening program for that also and it begins twice a year. It is a separate application than the RN program and if you were got into that program, you could substantially shorten your wait time. You could then work your way into an RN program that way so please consider that route as an option also.