SDSU Fall 2011 Admission Hopefuls

aeyak · May 16, 2011

yup! just made my appointment for thursday, august 11th :)

Coriander, BSN, RN · May 24, 2011

Same here. It is one of my back up schools but I am definitely considering it.
Does anyone on here know how long it takes to complete the program at SDSU? 2, 3, 4 years?
Also, can anyone provide me with a link to the schedule of classes that will be taken each semester starting fall 2011?
Thanks in advance!

First, congratulations to everyone who was admitted! I'm so excited for you all to join us in the Fall.

LoveLikeWoe, paste this address: https://sunspot.sdsu.edu/schedule/, then click on "Select Term" (Fall 2011) at the top. After that, "Search by Department", and select "Nursing". The SON usually has the schedule up on their website at nursing.sdsu.edu, but it's not up yet.

Your first semester courses will include Informatics 200, Pathophysiology 208, Fundamentals of Nursing 206, and Assessment 202. I am not sure if they are still allowing first semester students to choose their own courses, or if they'll be choosing for you. The SON is going through a lot of changes at the moment, so I'm unsure of that.

Anyways, I'm going into my 4th semester, so please feel free to ask questions either here or by private message. I will be at your New Student Orientation, and look forward to meeting you! Again, congratulations!

Coriander, BSN, RN · May 24, 2011

*snip*
1) In the next few weeks, I will currently be overseas in a rural region and will not have access to a computer for the entire month. To my understanding, we are required to check on the nursing webpage for the upcoming dates for the mandatory two workshops, white coat ceremony, orientation, submit urinalysis/background screening etc.
Will these mandatory meetings and all take place really soon or during August (as suggested in the e-mail)? I know this sounds like a very ignorant question. But, I'd rather be safe than sorry. I attempted to call the SON office but nobody was available?
From what we've discussed in our meetings, New Student orientation will be on August 23, with other mandatory workshops on the 24th and 25th.
White Coat Ceremony is scheduled for October 2nd.
As far as your drug screen, that needs to be done as soon as possible. You will be informed when you need to pick up the paperwork. While your clinicals in the hospitals don't start until your 9th (?) week, it does take time to process everything, and our lovely admissions counselor would appreciate it being done when she's ready. :)
2) Is the program 3 years? From what I've heard, it's 6 semesters and if they don't include summer semester..
The nursing program is 5 semesters, which includes the upper division general education and writing classes.
3) Do you guys know about the required international experience that nursing students have to undergo by going to another country and learning? Sounds pretty interesting.

I believe they just initiated this with the Spring class. Please check with the SON staff to see if this applies to your situation.

Does anyone have any idea how much it costs to start up? I heard buying books/uniform/other stuff at orientation can be pretty costly, anyone know a link or anything to the actual numbers?

It's a bit of a shock, I'll be honest. I believe I spent about $1,200 on books, uniforms, and supplies. You can always order your books through Amazon or another outside source. Uniforms ran approximately $200-250, but that can be done with a credit card during the uniform part of NSO. Your supplies at New Student Orientation will be another hundred or more, and that is with cash or check only.

JRJR · May 25, 2011

I believe they just initiated this with the Spring class. Please check with the SON staff to see if this applies to your situation.
It's a bit of a shock, I'll be honest. I believe I spent about $1,200 on books, uniforms, and supplies. You can always order your books through Amazon or another outside source. Uniforms ran approximately $200-250, but that can be done with a credit card during the uniform part of NSO. Your supplies at New Student Orientation will be another hundred or more, and that is with cash or check only.

Hi Coriander :)

What will be accomplished at the new student orientation?

Coriander, BSN, RN · May 26, 2011

Hi, JRJR.

A whole lot is going to be done at NSO. LOTS! It's SUCH an exciting day.

Your cohort (group of students) will be broken down into smaller groups. Then, we'll escort you through different stations. These usually include:

Introductions by the CNSA Board of Directors and Staff

Uniforms (trying on and ordering)

Mentor Program

Membership in CNSA (California Nursing Students' Association)

Supplies (stethoscopes, clipboards, blood pressure cuffs, etc.)

The admissions advisor and Student Health will also speak with you and collect paperwork.

Introduction of your instructors, which will include a little bit about your classes and what expectations are.

We are thinking of adding a few fun things to the mix so it's not so overwhelming. Trust me, we understand the "deer in the headlights" feeling and want to make your NSO a great experience. :)

wannabeee · May 29, 2011

hi, coriander.

i've got a few questions. after getting an acceptance letter, i got a little concern about budget cut. you know budget cut issue has gotten worse than last year. and the letter says that placement in clinical courses is a complex endeavor that requires negotiation with area agencies and the san diego consortium, adequate budget for faculty hires, and successful background checks yearly by students. there are unknowns that can affect these placements in the future. acceptance of this position in the cohort class of fall 2011 does not guarantee that a placement will be available in every clinical course needed for graduation during the projected five term program. student choices will be limited and placements may require travel to agencies throughout san diego county. changes in courses and course scheduling may be required, including summer course work, in order to accommodate all students. despite the best efforts of the school of nursing, lack of clinical placements may cause delays in student progression to occur.

i really want to finish the nursing program in 5 semesters and worried if i might not get a placement in the clinical course. i am having a second thought going to other nursing school cause they are only taking 90 students in the program and it seems like they won't be having this kind of situation. has something like this (students couldn't take clinical course due to budget issue and got delayed in progression) happened last or previous year?

do you think this budget cut and the limited space in the clinical course will be issued this year? i am really concerned....

thank you!

Coriander, BSN, RN · May 29, 2011

Hi Wannabeee!

I can tell you that I have not heard of any students missing out on clinicals because there wasn't room. I think they just put that in there as a disclaimer, or something happened years ago to contribute to that being said.

There was an enormous class of at least 150 people this past year, and everyone had a spot in clinical.

ETA: This was an unusual situation, but a position was found for all, and there weren't any issues.

wannabeee · May 30, 2011

Hi Wannabeee!
I can tell you that I have not heard of any students missing out on clinicals because there wasn't room. I think they just put that in there as a disclaimer, or something happened years ago to contribute to that being said.
There was an enormous class of at least 150 people this past year, and everyone had a spot in clinical.
ETA: This was an unusual situation, but a position was found for all, and there weren't any issues.

thank you! I am relieved now:)

Coriander, BSN, RN · May 30, 2011

thank you! I am relieved now:)

You're very welcome. I was a little freaked out, too, when I read that for the first time. :)

mrgaylordfocker · Jun 6, 2011

Hi, JRJR.
A whole lot is going to be done at NSO. LOTS! It's SUCH an exciting day.
Your cohort (group of students) will be broken down into smaller groups. Then, we'll escort you through different stations. These usually include:
Introductions by the CNSA Board of Directors and Staff
Uniforms (trying on and ordering)
Mentor Program
Membership in CNSA (California Nursing Students' Association)
Supplies (stethoscopes, clipboards, blood pressure cuffs, etc.)
The admissions advisor and Student Health will also speak with you and collect paperwork.
Introduction of your instructors, which will include a little bit about your classes and what expectations are.
We are thinking of adding a few fun things to the mix so it's not so overwhelming. Trust me, we understand the "deer in the headlights" feeling and want to make your NSO a great experience. :)

Is this referring to the nursing program orientation or transfer student orientation? I schedule my transfer orientation on the earliest date possible (August 9 I believe) so I can register the next day, but on August 11th the orientation schedule said it will only be nursing/some other public health program so I think it might be more detailed/helpful for nursing students and not as general as the August 9th date. Should I change it?

Coriander, BSN, RN · Jun 6, 2011

NSO refers to the nursing program orientation only.

I would suggest switching to the nursing/public health orientation. There are less people there, and it's a lot of fun. (I thought :) )

quob · Jun 6, 2011

Is this referring to the nursing program orientation or transfer student orientation? I schedule my transfer orientation on the earliest date possible (August 9 I believe) so I can register the next day, but on August 11th the orientation schedule said it will only be nursing/some other public health program so I think it might be more detailed/helpful for nursing students and not as general as the August 9th date. Should I change it?

I believe that was referring to the nursing program orientation, which should be held sometimes towards the end of August.