Spring Start at Boyce 2014

Please no negative comments regarding the school, we made the choice, so theres no sense in complaining. Best wishes to everyone.

I'm not at Boyce; I'm in my first semester at Allegheny campus, but I thought I'd bump this up to the top for you! Best of luck!

Thank you, and good luck to you as well.

In general, if you don't mind sharing? how is your first semester going so far?, is there anything I should get familiar with now?, or any observations you can pass along? I would really appreciate it.

I like it, but it's a little chaotic (it seems like there are some communication/organization issues), at least so far. If you want to start reading/researching, I would suggest getting familiar with vital signs (practicing blood pressures if you have a cuff), looking at how to do bedbaths, make a bed, transfer patients. There are tons of skills videos on YouTube, some better than others. Look up a few drugs common for older patients (digoxin, furosemide, etc.) since your first clinicals will likely be in a LTC home. This is, of course, only if you have the time. You'll be spending tons of time studying later; enjoy your free time while you can!

Also -- start putting a little money aside. Books are expensive, and there are a LOT of other costs (immunizations, background checks, scrubs, shoes, a decent stethoscope) that really add up.

Thank you for the advice It is very helpful. I'm so anxious! best wishes to you, please keep in touch as I will.

I started the Boyce fast track this fall. I had a lot of trouble at the beginning, but over time it's gotten much better. Nursing school requires a whole new mindset, and you seem like you are very eager and ready to learn, and that's really all you need. I just wanted to give you a few tips that I wish someone had given me before starting the program to help you get acclimated to the program.

1. Make friends. As someone that typically doesn't socialize that much, I was very surprised by how awesome the people in the program were. They are all incredibly nice and down-to-earth, and they will always do their best to help with any questions or problems I have had. And trust me, I have had a lot of questions. They've saved my skin on more than one occasion.

2. Prep-U! They don't really explain what prep-u is very well going into the program, but it's an awesome resource, especially for someone like me who has a terrible attention span. You go on and take practice tests, and it will keep track of what subjects you need more practice on and give you questions accordingly. The instructors have even used prep-u questions word-for-word on a few of their tests, so be diligent with it.

3. Get on the instructors' good sides. It can make or break your experience. You may have heard that nursing teachers eat their young and this is definitely true. Avoid asking them questions about rules and assignments (they're pretty good with questions about material, though). Ask other students, go through the syllabus, and go on blackboard. Speaking of . . .

4. Check blackboard frequently!!! The instructors will post instructions and assignments on blackboard that they do not mention at all in class. You can find all the documents that you need there.

5. MAKE SURE YOU HAVE EVERYTHING FOR CLINICAL. This one is very important (hence the caps). The things that need done weekly are the clinical prep tool and dosage calc. If you have an instructor like mine, you will be sent home for not having even one question answered on the clinical prep tool, and you are only allowed to miss 2 clinicals before you fail the course. All the information needed for the prep tool you can only find at the clinical site, so finish it the week prior at clinical. You will need to do a clinical journal bi-weekly. If you read the instructions thoroughly, it's very easy. They're not looking for fantastic writing or anything like that, they just want to see that you mentioned the qsen topics and tied them in with the CCAC concepts. You'll see what I mean. Make sure you boldface the topics when you write about them, because they will give you a zero for that.

6. Schedule lab times and testable skills ASAP. The time slots fill up quickly, and if you don't get a slot before the deadline, I believe you fail the class.

Everything else is a given - study for tests (they make up the majority of your grade), be respectful to the teachers, and attend class. Attending lecture for 120 is supposedly "optional", but someone in my class got a remediation for showing up late consistently.

If you have any more questions, don't be afraid to ask. I'll try to help in any way that I can.

Thank you so much for taking the time to give me such good advice, I really do appreciate it! especially with class starting in less than two week! I'm kinda shy so making friends may be a little challenging, Im going to try. I know I will have lots of questions thank for being so kind I look forward to hearing from you in the near future!

What do you mean schedule lab times and testable skills...