RUSH Gem Spring 2017 Cohort

FionaL · Aug 13, 2016

I did okay in my graduate courses but well on the prerequisites but my courses from different schools so I'm not so sure how they calculated my GPA (it said cum GPA to be 3.6ish in the NurseCAS website). I had work and volunteer experiences in various clinical settings. I got an interview with them. I live in Seattle, but I'm flying there for the interview. Anyone else will fly there for the interview? If yes, do you start booking your flight now or do you wait? I'm kind of anxious about getting everything set up because the interview is almost a month away now for out of state applicants. Thanks.

BrendanO, MSN, RN · Aug 15, 2016

I'm applying, too. Just got emailed about the on-campus info session and interview. My GPA is 3.2 something, according to NursingCAS, but that's mostly due to being a slacker in undergrad 20 years ago. I did well in all the prerequisite courses, which I just finished taking. Did very well on the GRE. I have about half a year of full-time clinical experience working as an EMT abroad (in Haiti). I live in Chicago, so no travel required to get to campus for me. FionaL, I'd recommend booking your flight now; looks like there are some pretty cheap fares available. Let me know if you need any information on the city or getting around once you're here!

FionaL · Aug 15, 2016

I'm applying, too. Just got emailed about the on-campus info session and interview. My GPA is 3.2 something, according to NursingCAS, but that's mostly due to being a slacker in undergrad 20 years ago. I did well in all the prerequisite courses, which I just finished taking. Did very well on the GRE. I have about half a year of full-time clinical experience working as an EMT abroad (in Haiti). I live in Chicago, so no travel required to get to campus for me. FionaL, I'd recommend booking your flight now; looks like there are some pretty cheap fares available. Let me know if you need any information on the city or getting around once you're here!

Thank you so much! This is awesome, I've been worrying about not knowing anyone in Chicago. Can I message you to ask more about transportation, boarding, etc.? Much appreciated!!

Silverdragon102, BSN · Aug 16, 2016

Moved to the Schools/Colleges Programs discussion forum

BrendanO, MSN, RN · Aug 16, 2016

Sure but I haven't been on here long enough to get PMs on this site. I can email you

FionaL · Aug 23, 2016

I just book my flight today. Hope to see you at the GEM first look. How do i send you my email? My PM doesn't work on this site either.

BrendanO, MSN, RN · Aug 23, 2016

Actually, why don't you just post your questions here? The answers might be useful to other folks in the same boat.

FionaL · Aug 23, 2016

I'm gonna take a short tour of the city since I'll be in Chicago that weekend, are there any good spots to visit? What the traffic is like? Any bad neighborhoods to avoid? It's my first time in Chicago and I don't really know anyone there. Thanks.

BrendanO, MSN, RN · Aug 24, 2016

All depends on what you like to do. The weather should still be nice, so indoor and outdoor activities are all options. There are some great parks (Millennium Park, Lincoln Park), museums (Art Institute, Field Museum, Adler Planetarium, Shedd Aquarium), beaches (!) along the lake, high-end shopping (Michigan Avenue), restaurants (everything from cheap hot dogs to world-renowned molecular gastronomy), theater, sports, tall buildings (observation decks at the Willis and Hancock towers) etc. The Chicago Architecture Foundation runs a cool boat tour on the river, if you're interested in the history and architecture of the city. Check out TimeOut Chicago, the Chicago Reader, and Chicagoist websites to get some sense of things to do. Unless you want to be in a crowd of tourists, I'd persavoid Navy Pier, though the Chicago Shakespeare Theater and a cool stained glass museum are there, too.

Traffic is generally not too bad here, except on the highways at rush hour (which you rarely need to be on unless you're headed to/from an airport or the suburbs). There's pretty good public transportation here, too. Rush itself is right next to an "L" stop on the Pink Line, and also has several bus lines that run by/near it. I sold my car 8 years ago and haven't regretted it, though I also have friends with cars who don't have any problems with having one--certainly not like New York. Driving is pretty easy since almost the entire city is on a consistent grid of streets. No ocean or mountains to drive around here!

The "bad" neighborhoods (with high poverty rates and high crime) tend to be on the south and far west sides of the city, but it's unlikely you would accidentally find yourself there. The majority of the city is quite safe (by big US city standards). The north and near west sides of the city is where you find most of the more affluent neighborhoods (like Gold Coast, Lincoln Park, Lakeview, River North), and the gentrifying areas (Logan Square, Ukrainian Village, Wicker Park). The south side has some fantastic (and safe) neighborhoods, too (Hyde Park, Pilsen, Pullman, South Shore). Rush itself is kinda bordered by some transitional neighborhoods, though University Village (where University of Illinois at Chicago is) is just to the east and pretty swanky West Town and Greek Town are just northeast of it.

Let me know if you have any more specific/other questions!

FionaL · Sep 3, 2016

How's everyone preparing for your interview? Any tips from people who got in would also be awesome. I'm making a compiled list of tips from older blogs of people who had interviews from before. I will share it here when I'm done. Thanks.

FionaL · Sep 8, 2016

As I promised, below is the list of Rush interview expectation and compiled list of potential questions. I do not take credits for any of the questions or information as I collected those going through old Allnurses posts from previous years and from several websites. I just use this as a general guideline to prepare myself for the interview next week, so feel free to add or correct me. Anyway, good luck on your interview!

Rush interview:

A clear understanding of the degree, program, and role to which they are applying
Leadership potential through academic co-curricular activities, community service, unit-based or hospital committee participation, precepting, charge nurse responsibilities, etc.
The ability to clearly articulate career/professional goals.

These elements can be addressed in your CV, essay, interview, and recommendation letters. Be prepared to be asked about your experiences and how that applies to be a nurse, school/work ethic, whether you prefer to work alone vs on a team, and how do you handle stressful situations.

Ask them (the interviewer) about their career background, acedemic record, your understanding of the role of the nurse and how you and then your personality would fit that,

Questions:

1. Tell us why you'd like to become a nurse.

2. What are some of your hobbies or passions?

3. If you see a classmate stealing, what would you do?

4. A nurse at a clinical practicum site is acting unethically. What would you do?

5. Why do you want to be admitted into our nursing program?

6. What would you do if you find yourself struggling in a nursing course?

7. How will you cope with nursing school?

8. What would you do if you have a conflict with a professor?

9. Tell us why you'd be the best candidate for our nursing program.

10. What qualities do you have that will make you an effective and successful nurse?

11. What was the most difficult situation you had in the past? How did you overcome it?

12. Do you have any questions for us?

13. What is your proudest achievement to date?

14. What qualities do you think a good nurse should possess?

15. What would you do if a patient or family member threatened you?

16. What are your strengths and weaknesses and how will they impact on being a student of nursing and professional nurse in the future?

17. What are usual sources of stress for you? How do you deal with them?

18. Who is your role model as a person? As nurse? Why?