Stony Brook Accelerated Nursing Class of 2016

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Can we make this the official thread for The Stony Brook Accelerated Nursing Class of 2016. Let's start posting questions and suggestions here.

For those who received an interview, would you mind sharing your stats (GPA, who your letters of recommendation were from, if you had any healthcare experience, etc). Thanks so much in advance!

Trust me, knowing this will not help you crack Stony Brook's code! They really look at the whole package of a person and I think they put a good amount of emphasis on the personal statement and what your references said about you (not just who they were from). Also, they may consider different GPAs (science GPA, prereq GPA, cumulative). Lastly, I think they like to put together a diverse class. Our class had people from all walks of life with all different stats (GPAs ranged from 2's to 4.0s; experience ranged from being 20 years old fresh out of college to being middle aged engineers and lawyers or foreign doctors). There really is no "typical" Stony Brook admit or a bar that they try to meet in the categories. Really, trying to compare yourself to others here based on a few numbers will not help you at all because that is not how Stony Brook looks at you.

But the GREAT thing about Stony Brook is that if they see something in you they will accept you even if you don't have the highest GPA or any healthcare experience. Just keep your hopes up!! I'm sure they'll be sending out more interviews :)

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Trust me, knowing this will not help you crack Stony Brook's code! They really look at the whole package of a person and I think they put a good amount of emphasis on the personal statement and what your references said about you (not just who they were from). Also, they may consider different GPAs (science GPA, prereq GPA, cumulative). Lastly, I think they like to put together a diverse class. Our class had people from all walks of life with all different stats (GPAs ranged from 2's to 4.0s; experience ranged from being 20 years old fresh out of college to being middle aged engineers and lawyers or foreign doctors). There really is no "typical" Stony Brook admit or a bar that they try to meet in the categories. Really, trying to compare yourself to others here based on a few numbers will not help you at all because that is not how Stony Brook looks at you.

But the GREAT thing about Stony Brook is that if they see something in you they will accept you even if you don't have the highest GPA or any healthcare experience. Just keep your hopes up!! I'm sure they'll be sending out more interviews :)

I appreciate what you are saying and this is going to come off as really ****** but, do you mean to tell me that it is complete BS that they tell people at the info sessions? The woman listed in order of importance the things they look at: 1) cumulative GPA, 2) science pre req GPA, 3) personal statement, 4) references. Also the average GPAs for both are about 3.5.

I get that they look at the "whole person" and what not but there has to be some method. Otherwise this is all complete bunk?

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I appreciate what you are saying and this is going to come off as really ****** but, do you mean to tell me that it is complete BS that they tell people at the info sessions? The woman listed in order of importance the things they look at: 1) cumulative GPA, 2) science pre req GPA, 3) personal statement, 4) references. Also the average GPAs for both are about 3.5.

I get that they look at the "whole person" and what not but there has to be some method. Otherwise this is all complete bunk?

I'm absolutely not saying what they said in their info session is BS. I think what I said matches with what they told you. They look at several things and two of those (personal statement and references) are subjective, not objective numbers. Asking people stats will not help you. I think a lot of emphasis is put on personal statement and references. For example, I was one of the first people in my cohort to find out I was accepted and I had a 2.49 undergrad GPA (but a 4.0 prereq GPA). I had 1 letter of rec from an old manager, 1 from a colleague, and one from an old professor. I know many people who entered the program with low GPAs and many people who were rejected with high GPAs and years of volunteer experience. Asking people stats completely ignores two EXTREMELY important parts of the app: what the references say and the personal statement.

Also, if you're really after stats, look at past year's forums. There are lots in there and they are so all over the board. You'll also see people with 4.0's wondering why they didn't get interviews. I promise you, you won't crack their code on how they admit students but every year tries to right around this time! The best thing you can do for yourself is stop trying to guess and just try to relax as the waiting game continues. Future applicants should not worry about how their GPA compares (because they can't change them) and should try to write an awesome personal statement and get great references. Those two things will make or break your application. GPA will not

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I'm absolutely not saying what they said in their info session is BS. I think what I said matches with what they told you. They look at several things and two of those (personal statement and references) are subjective, not objective numbers. Asking people stats will not help you. I think a lot of emphasis is put on personal statement and references. For example, I was one of the first people in my cohort to find out I was accepted and I had a 2.49 undergrad GPA (but a 4.0 prereq GPA). I had 1 letter of rec from an old manager, 1 from a colleague, and one from an old professor. I know many people who entered the program with low GPAs and many people who were rejected with high GPAs and years of volunteer experience. Asking people stats completely ignores two EXTREMELY important parts of the app: what the references say and the personal statement.

Also, if you're really after stats, look at past year's forums. There are lots in there and they are so all over the board. You'll also see people with 4.0's wondering why they didn't get interviews. I promise you, you won't crack their code on how they admit students but every year tries to right around this time! The best thing you can do for yourself is stop trying to guess and just try to relax as the waiting game continues. Future applicants should not worry about how their GPA compares (because they can't change them) and should try to write an awesome personal statement and get great references. Those two things will make or break your application. GPA will not

I think people are just interested in seeing the type of candidates they are calling for interviews.

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I got the email this morning.

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Hello everyone! I am new to this site. I received an email this morning from SB saying that I was selected for an interview. I was also recently accepted into NYU's program for the spring semester. The interview for SB is the same week that I have to notify NYU on my decision and I don't know what to do! I am also still waiting to hear back from Molloy. I sent in my application a few weeks ago for Molloy and still didn't hear anything back and now I am getting nervous because I don't want to miss NYU's deadline if I don't get into SB or Molloy. Good luck to everyone!!

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I am in the same predicament. The issue is it is a $500 fee to hold your spot at NYU. The cost is weighing on me. Let me know when you decide.

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thank you so much, good luck as well

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The NYU program starts at the end of January I believe. It is extremely tight but I will check with the admissions department about an extension. As for being penalized, paying $500 for of a possibility seems like being penalized. The program costs over $80,000 and like I said before my first choice is Stony Brook.

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I found out by email. For those interested in statistics I can tell you all a little about myself. I am currently in my senior year of undergrad at Brandeis University, so I'm completing my Microbiology and Developmental Psychology requirements this semester. Prior Prereq GPA is 4.0 and my overall GPA is a 3.7. People have to take everyone's statistics with a grain of salt because obviously a 4.0 at Harvard may mean more than the same at another institution. This is not said to put down other schools but they may take this into account in determining the level and competition at which these same classes were taken. All schools are overly focused on diversity so this may play into their decisions as well, whether that means cultural diversity or accepting students from a diverse group of universities.

To further elaborate on what may have peaked their interest in my application, I can say that I have an extremely strong science background. I will graduate with a Bachelors or Science in Biology and minor in Chemistry, so I've taken 2 Gen Bio, 2 Gen Bio lab, 2 Gen Chem, 2 Gen Chem lab, 2 Orgo, 2 Orgo lab, Biochem, 1 Physics, 2 Physics lab, among the other prerequisites that are required for the ABSN. As far as experience goes, I volunteered this semester at a hospital near me but that is the extent of my medical experience.

My references included my boss of 3 years, a professor in the sciences, and a professor outside of the sciences who inspired me to think more critically about world issues. My goal was that my boss would depict my strong work ethic, my science professor would enhance everything my transcript already says about my full science background, and my other professor would highlight my interest in changing ideas and show that I am a well-rounded candidate.

As far as my personal statement was concerned, I wrote about a tough experience I went through, how I overcame it, and how it has led me to pursue a career in nursing. It is a really difficult thing to merge an emotional passionate essay whilst maintaining intellectual integrity.

So that is a bit about myself. I'm not sure what aspects of my application led them to give me an interview but I'm hoping to be a competitive candidate throughout the interview process. Waiting was especially nerve-wracking for me since I have to travel from Boston to New York for the interview while preparing for this semester's finals! Good luck everyone! It seems that they are scheduling interviews each week until the end of November so don't fret!

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I am in the same predicament. The issue is it is a $500 fee to hold your spot at NYU. The cost is weighing on me. Let me know when you decide.

Ugh I know the cost is weighing on me too. I might just send in the deposit to hold my place at NYU. I don't know what else to do.

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500 is not bad compared if you want to secure a spot. If you get accepted at SBU then you'll save like 50k

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