San Francisco State University (SFSU) Entry Level Master of Science in Nursing (ELM) - Fall 2024

Thao Vo · Jan 1

I'm applying to the program but I'm super anxious about it. I don't have much clinical skills because I was injured at my job and have been dealing with WC for 5 years now. I'm finally better and am a career changer so I was recommended this program by my local CC since I already have a bachelors degree. Can anyone give advice?

sarahk09 · Jan 1

Thao Vo said:

I'm applying to the program but I'm super anxious about it. I don't have much clinical skills because I was injured at my job and have been dealing with WC for 5 years now. I'm finally better and am a career changer so I was recommended this program by my local CC since I already have a bachelors degree. Can anyone give advice?

Hi Thao, I'm not sure what advice you're looking for. Can you be more specific?

Thao Vo · Jan 1

Hi Sarahk09, I guess I want to try to gauge my chances of getting into the ELM program and get advice on how I should tackle the application and PIQ portions. I really want to start school now because of a lot of life circumstances that are pushing me to do this type of program.

I have over 10 years of experience in community health research, health education, advocacy, and outreach in underserved communities, which is why I applied for the community health/public health nurse major. I worry about the little clinical experience I have because of the worker's comp injury that I sustained when I was in my undergraduate (I also went to school during COVID, so that damped a lot of things). I've heard from my advisors that direct-entry master's programs are good for career changers like me because they understand that we may not have a lot of clinical experience to begin with. But I guess I'm just really anxious since the applications are due this Feb..

sarahk09 · Jan 1

Thao Vo said:

Hi Sarahk09, I guess I want to try to gauge my chances of getting into the ELM program and get advice on how I should tackle the application and PIQ portions. I really want to start school now because of a lot of life circumstances that are pushing me to do this type of program.

I have over 10 years of experience in community health research, health education, advocacy, and outreach in underserved communities, which is why I applied for the community health/public health nurse major. I worry about the little clinical experience I have because of the worker's comp injury that I sustained when I was in my undergraduate (I also went to school during COVID, so that damped a lot of things). I've heard from my advisors that direct-entry master's programs are good for career changers like me because they understand that we may not have a lot of clinical experience to begin with. But I guess I'm just really anxious since the applications are due this Feb..

Admission to the program, like most in California, is extremely competitive. The chances of anyone getting in are slim due to the sheer number of applicants versus spots (the year I applied there were rumored to be about 400 applicants for 20 spots). If you look back at my comments I provided details about my background and I also did not have much (any, really) clinical experience. At the end of the day it's pretty much a crap shoot regardless of how qualified you are, in my opinion. I'd say do your best and apply regardless of your doubts.

Thao Vo · Jan 1

sarahk09 said:

Admission to the program, like most in California, is extremely competitive. The chances of anyone getting in are slim due to the sheer number of applicants versus spots (the year I applied there were rumored to be about 400 applicants for 20 spots). If you look back at my comments I provided details about my background and I also did not have much (any, really) clinical experience. At the end of the day it's pretty much a crap shoot regardless of how qualified you are, in my opinion. I'd say do your best and apply regardless of your doubts.

Sarah, thank you so much for the response! In your application, what do you think made you stand out the most for you to earn a spot? Were you also a career changer or were you always deadset on nursing? Sorry, I'm on my phone and for some reason, its not properly pulling up the other posts/comments. 😞

sarahk09 · Jan 2

Thao Vo said:

Sarah, thank you so much for the response! In your application, what do you think made you stand out the most for you to earn a spot? Were you also a career changer or were you always deadset on nursing? Sorry, I'm on my phone and for some reason, its not properly pulling up the other posts/comments. 😞

Copied from a previous comment I made: So I'll start off by saying my cohort is a very diverse group of people ranging from early 20s all the way to 50s with a myriad of life and/or health care experiences. A pattern I've noticed is that a lot of us have international experiences, whether it be living, working, studying, or volunteering abroad. But there are also students with pretty basic backgrounds who have worked as CNAs and taken a simple, direct path to nursing. I'm not one of those students.

My personal background is as follows: Born and raised in the Bay Area. I graduated with a BA in Sociology and Feminist Studies from UCSB in 2012. My GPA was 3.3. Moved to NYC and worked in the service industry as a server for years. Got certified to teach English as a foreign language and began doing that. Moved to Miami. Continued serving and teaching. Then I moved to Baghdad, Iraq to teach English there. I think that was probably my biggest selling point as it's a very uncommon and bold experience to have. I also had very stellar letters of recommendations from higher ups in academia (a vice chancellor for one, and a prominent law professor for another). I decided to pursue nursing once Covid started because it became really obvious how much inequality there is in health care and I realized I could fulfill my passion for social justice and have a stable well-paying career at the same time. I had no health care experience beyond doing some volunteer work at a local nonprofit that helped the unhoused population, and calling that health care experience is definitely a stretch LOL. My prereq GPA was 4.0.