Texas Tech-Accelerated BSN Spring 2020

jillhill81 · Nov 14, 2019

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1584297605040684/

if you have trouble let me know! I can message the group that you need in! Are you in Fort Worth omgnursing or elizabeth11???

Omgnursing, BSN · Nov 14, 2019

I requested to join. I live in frisco

elizabeth11 · Nov 14, 2019

I am in Dallas @jillhill81

Ag2017, BSN, RN · Nov 16, 2019

Hi Everyone!

I'm currently a student in the Dallas Cohort for the 2019 program year. I read some of the old posts and wanted to answer some questions and provide other info!

I didn't read too far in, so if you have questions you want answered, specifically about the Dallas Cohort, or questions in general, I'm happy to answer anything.

One thing about costs/financial aid, every semester there is a scholarship that you can apply for and every student gets it IF they apply. You can also reuse the paragraph you have to write for it. For the first two semesters it was $1000, and for the last semester it was $1500. You do have to submit a FAFSA application in order to apply. As far as other financial aid through FAFSA, as a second degree student, you will not qualify for any scholarships, only loans, so keep that in mind. Specifically for Dallas, there is a program called SkillQUEST, that also would be a good idea to look into. It's a state program that provides scholarships each semester. It is a very rigorous application process and they are looking for very specific qualifications, but you get $5000 per semester so it was well worth it. Just a thought!

Specific to Dallas, the hospitals we rotate at currently are Methodist Dallas, Methodist Charlton, Methodist Mansfield, UTSW, and Baylor. However these are not guaranteed that these are the sites they'll have available next year. Also, you will be assigned to one of these hospitals and stay there for your clinicals the whole year. This year, they chose who went where based on where we lived. This year, we had 26 students.

This program is intense, and you will be busy. They are going to highly push that you do not work. I did not, but there were a few people in the class that did and managed it. With that being said, it was mostly PRN jobs with flexible managers. You do make your own schedule after bootcamp, but that's based on your coach's schedule and you have to also factor in tests, class, etc. The do have some night shift coaches as well, whether that's helpful for some people. For Dallas, once we were assigned our hospitals, we had a meet and greet with all of the coaches and it was just a group open table and then we ranked who we wanted. Most of us got who we wanted, some didn't, but it all ends up working out, so don't worry too much about it.

There is no way to give you exact class dates that you'll have to go in, because they changed based on what's going on, and when they get your speciality clinicals scheduled. In the first semester, you'll be going a lot, but it really starts to decrease a lot during the summer and spring.

If anyone has any worries about getting a job, don't be. The majority of us already have jobs and have for over a month, and they are for great hospitals on great floors! Most of us got what we wanted. I got offered 2 jobs, both ICU at top hospitals in Dallas.

I am sure there are other things I missed because I couldn't read everything, but like I said, I'm happy to answer more questions if you have any!

Congratulations to everyone that was accepted and for the students in Dallas, I'll see you at the orientation in December!

Ag2017, BSN, RN · Nov 16, 2019

On 10/21/2019 at 1:11 PM, amr151030 said:
Does anyone know exactly how much the program will cost for just the tuition? With the aid award it calculated 8k but that is low compared to what I have previously calculated.

Hi, I'm currently in the Dallas Cohort and can give you the exact cost for the program this year. It does seem like it's going up, because our last semester was so expensive in comparison to the last two. This way you have an idea. This does not include the scholarship you can apply for, and it does not include books. Also, you will have to pay about $300 for BON fees and NCLEX fees to take your test at the end.

Spring-$7955, Summer- $7783, Fall- $10139

bjensen4 · Nov 16, 2019

Is there anyone who knows typically how many days a week we will be in class/clinicals/labs/testing,etc of the 7 days a week and the earliest or latest we will be there? I am just trying to plan for childcare especially since I won't be working and wont have much in regards to funds for childcare.

Ag2017, BSN, RN · Nov 16, 2019

11 hours ago, bjensen4 said:
Is there anyone who knows typically how many days a week we will be in class/clinicals/labs/testing,etc of the 7 days a week and the earliest or latest we will be there? I am just trying to plan for childcare especially since I won't be working and wont have much in regards to funds for childcare.

This will all depend on the week and what your clinical shifts are. The first two weeks, you will for sure be in class 8-5. Then after that, sometimes it's once a week, sometimes 2, sometimes 3. But that does not include your clinical shifts. You are required to do 1 clinical shift a week, however, to meet the requirement of 225 Clinical hours per semester with your coach, you will almost always have to do 2, except for in the 3rd semester. Sometimes I even did 3, if it was not so busy of a school week and I could get ahead so I could study more the next week. There is no way to tell you for sure what your schedule will be, even up until the month before because schedules for your coaches at their respective hospitals are only given out a month at a time.

I hope this helps.

bjensen4 · Nov 16, 2019

1 minute ago, Ag2017 said:
This will all depend on the week and what your clinical shifts are. The first two weeks, you will for sure be in class 8-5. Then after that, sometimes it's once a week, sometimes 2, sometimes 3. But that does not include your clinical shifts. You are required to do 1 clinical shift a week, however, to meet the requirement of 225 Clinical hours per semester with your coach, you will almost always have to do 2, except for in the 3rd semester. Sometimes I even did 3, if it was not so busy of a school week and I could get ahead so I could study more the next week. There is no way to tell you for sure what your schedule will be, even up until the month before because schedules for your coaches at their respective hospitals are only given out a month at a time.
I hope this helps.

That's what I was gathering from what everyone was saying. My husband keeps asking and I keep explaining that theres no information to give him and we will have to just roll with the punches for the year. Thanks for the reply. Lol I guess I'll just keep praying about it?‍♀️

Ag2017, BSN, RN · Nov 16, 2019

Just now, bjensen4 said:
That's what I was gathering from what everyone was saying. My husband keeps asking and I keep explaining that theres no information to give him and we will have to just roll with the punches for the year. Thanks for the reply. Lol I guess I'll just keep praying about it?‍♀️

If I can give you an estimate (will obviously depend on your coach), after the first busy couple of months, I worked most Tues & Wed., but sometimes I also worked Sundays (my coach has been there for a long time and always works Sun, Tues, Wed, so that was nice for me because I could pretty much always plan my schedule ahead of time). This might be something you bring up during the meet and greet and ask the nurses about because if you have set days that you know you're guaranteed, it makes planning ahead a little easier. However, schedules change all the time, and sometimes she did have different days and I had to make it work. Typically for class, it's one day a week, or none, except the weeks you have sim each semester or multiple tests in a week. Fridays and Mondays are typically the test days, and you'll have post-conference twice a semester, that will always happen following a test (usually on Friday).

jillhill81 · Nov 16, 2019

18 hours ago, Ag2017 said:
Hi Everyone!
I'm currently a student in the Dallas Cohort for the 2019 program year. I read some of the old posts and wanted to answer some questions and provide other info!
I didn't read too far in, so if you have questions you want answered, specifically about the Dallas Cohort, or questions in general, I'm happy to answer anything.
One thing about costs/financial aid, every semester there is a scholarship that you can apply for and every student gets it IF they apply. You can also reuse the paragraph you have to write for it. For the first two semesters it was $1000, and for the last semester it was $1500. You do have to submit a FAFSA application in order to apply. As far as other financial aid through FAFSA, as a second degree student, you will not qualify for any scholarships, only loans, so keep that in mind. Specifically for Dallas, there is a program called SkillQUEST, that also would be a good idea to look into. It's a state program that provides scholarships each semester. It is a very rigorous application process and they are looking for very specific qualifications, but you get $5000 per semester so it was well worth it. Just a thought!
Specific to Dallas, the hospitals we rotate at currently are Methodist Dallas, Methodist Charlton, Methodist Mansfield, UTSW, and Baylor. However these are not guaranteed that these are the sites they'll have available next year. Also, you will be assigned to one of these hospitals and stay there for your clinicals the whole year. This year, they chose who went where based on where we lived. This year, we had 26 students.
This program is intense, and you will be busy. They are going to highly push that you do not work. I did not, but there were a few people in the class that did and managed it. With that being said, it was mostly PRN jobs with flexible managers. You do make your own schedule after bootcamp, but that's based on your coach's schedule and you have to also factor in tests, class, etc. The do have some night shift coaches as well, whether that's helpful for some people. For Dallas, once we were assigned our hospitals, we had a meet and greet with all of the coaches and it was just a group open table and then we ranked who we wanted. Most of us got who we wanted, some didn't, but it all ends up working out, so don't worry too much about it.
There is no way to give you exact class dates that you'll have to go in, because they changed based on what's going on, and when they get your speciality clinicals scheduled. In the first semester, you'll be going a lot, but it really starts to decrease a lot during the summer and spring.
If anyone has any worries about getting a job, don't be. The majority of us already have jobs and have for over a month, and they are for great hospitals on great floors! Most of us got what we wanted. I got offered 2 jobs, both ICU at top hospitals in Dallas.
I am sure there are other things I missed because I couldn't read everything, but like I said, I'm happy to answer more questions if you have any!
Congratulations to everyone that was accepted and for the students in Dallas, I'll see you at the orientation in December!

THANK YOU SO MUCH! Seeing this post made my day! I live in Fort Worth, and I think I may be getting the longest drive out of this group! Maybe I'll get lucky and my coach will be closer this way! When you have class, sim, or test days after boot camp how long are those days? Are all clinical shifts you work 12 hours? I am assuming that they are because that seems to be the normal shift. Are any of the students you know of interested in the nursing administrative side? That is my long term goal so I am curious how they advance. Thanks again!

Ag2017, BSN, RN · Nov 16, 2019

1 hour ago, jillhill81 said:
THANK YOU SO MUCH! Seeing this post made my day! I live in Fort Worth, and I think I may be getting the longest drive out of this group! Maybe I'll get lucky and my coach will be closer this way! When you have class, sim, or test days after boot camp how long are those days? Are all clinical shifts you work 12 hours? I am assuming that they are because that seems to be the normal shift. Are any of the students you know of interested in the nursing administrative side? That is my long term goal so I am curious how they advance. Thanks again!

We have a couple of people that live in Fort Worth right now and have gotten jobs in that area. They are either at Methodist Dallas, UTSW, or Baylor for clinical which are all fairly close to each other. There are some people that live past Frisco now too, so they also have a long drive as well! Class days- it just depends, if it's a class day and it's just a test, we start all of our tests at 10 AM, and once you're done you can leave. We really only had one actual class day the whole year (besides boot camp) and it was at the beginning of the Fall semester for an intro into Acute Care. Boot Camp, you will be there 8-5, but all of our teachers want to leave just as much as we do to avoid traffic, so they try to have you leave by 4. As soon as you get home, you will have to pretty much work until you go to sleep and then do it again the next day. It is pretty intense, especially if you're type A like me, and want to make sure you get everything done. You will have quizzes every day of boot camp, which I recommend you take the tests in all of the skills modules on ATI (you'll know what I mean when you see it).

Sim Days plan to be there all day, usually they'll move the tests up to 9 AM for specialty sim days and you'll be there until 4/5 PM. The sim days for our core classes (fundamentals, chronic care, and acute care), you'll be there 8-4 at least, sometimes later. We are a talkative group so sometimes we just get pushed back because of that. Like I said, on post-conference days, tests are typically at 9 or 10, and then you'll be there until 4-5 but that's only twice each semester. As for clinical shifts, you will be there the full 12 hours, or in my case, I was there 13.5 hours most of the time because my coach liked me there early and we leave late. (They allowed us to finish our clinicals for the year by yesterday so I'm already done for the semester!) You will not be able to ever do half a shift, that's the benefit of this program. I know it sounds bad, but truthfully you will see how worthwhile it is, especially in comparison to students from other schools.

As far as the nurse admin side, I'm not sure of anyone currently that's interested in it, however, during the Fall semester, in Leadership and Management, you get to choose a "nurse leader" to do an observation shift with, so you can plan ahead and make sure you follow someone that can give you more info/see if you like it. I'm pretty sure Texas Tech has a program for nursing administration of some sort, so maybe look into that once you've completed this program!

jillhill81 · Nov 17, 2019

That was extremely helpful! One other question. What shoes have you and others been wearing? I do not know what to buy. Some are so expensive but I’m willing if they are worth it. Ok I do have one more question lol. What laptop do you use for the program?