The Nursing Program that Lied

[**new!!]

I will make this as easy as possible to understand. When I first started school..I knew that I wanted to go into medicine and become a doctor...but I was told by every single white man, and white woman... that "becoming a medical doctor would be to difficult for your background (race, economic standing, gender)...maybe you should become a nurse".

I decided to become a Nurse, as I was told...and the same opposition I recieved in wanting to become a doctor...I recieved when going into Nursing.."Maybe you should be a teacher, because Nursing is so competitive".

I think that if I went to become a teacher...there would be that same woman who discouraged my mother 20 years ago..instructing me to become a ganitor...(because of the benefits of course):icon_roll

My mother who is an immigrant said there was white woman who had to advise her when she was in the nursing program. This same woman told her, there would be no way she could complete the program with 2 kids and a job. She did, and the same woman is advising people today in Queens, New York..I won't reveal her name but she is great at turning people away from the nursing program...especially if they don't look like her. She works at Queensborough Community College.

1. I took all of my pre-courses for the nursing program in 2006-2007.

2. I wrote essays, went to countless open houses, and gave up about 7 times because I was always told that there were "400 applicants and 60 seats".

3. I spent more than $500 (U.S) sending out applications and buying transcripts to send to these schools.

4 I found NO LUCK in New York and decided to try and pursue a nursing program out of state.

5. The County College of Morris, recieved my application and CALLED me, to come in and fill out a 'Letter of Intent Form"...all the way in Dover, New Jersey.

6. I was born in New York and (this is no excuse), I can't drive...I took 1 bus and 4 trains to get to Dover, New Jersey. I got to Dover and took a cab to the school, after I got lost twice. Paid some more money and filled out my Letter of Intent.

7. About a month later...the school sent me an acceptance letter, saying that I was a candidate for the nursing program...because my grades were waaay higher than what they wanted, which was a 2.5 GPA...I also had all of my courses and was ready for clinicals.

8. I was SOOOOOOOOOOO HAPPY!!! I slept with that letter under my pillow and vowed to God that I would work hard and become a nurse.

9. I recieved a school i.d. number and went online (as I was directed)...to register.

10. I was blocked from registration..I called the school and spoke to the Chairperson...he was not in and I left a message. He called me back and told me:

"I'm sorry you recieved that letter....but you didn't get into the program, It was a mistake with the Admissions department. I am so sorry".

11. I hung up the phone and I cried for a good hour.

12. I called him back and asked him...why would they send that letter to me...and I told him that my mother was so happy for me, and my family as well...He said sorry and that he had to go.

After all of this, and the 4 hour commute that I was willing to make everyday to get to New Jersey...another school called me. The College of New Rochelle accepted me into their Nursing BSN Program.

I am stuck because I don't know who to believe. After the County College of Morris did that to me...I just gave up. I have a B.A. and I was willing to get an Associates Degree, which is a step lower because I wanted this dream soooo bad.

The College of New Rochelle, sent me a letter saying that I am in for Spring 2009..

But because of my experience, I don't even believe the letter.

The County College of Morris is a 2 year college (Associates Degree)

The College of New Rochelle is a BSN Degree, and 18 months Accelerated..

Can you give up your spot to the Nursing Program to someone more deserving?

This whole experience has taught me, in amerika...its not what you know, but who you know...the color of your skin, and who you are willing to sleep with...to get what you want. A Great Lesson.

I'm leaving for Havana, Cuba in January 2009.

Peace

[**new!!]

Please guys...no comments regarding staying positive, and the classic: "Its not about the Color of your Skin"...The nurses that I know aren't even happy.

Good luck to you all tho.

[dreamon]

It must be frustrating to have been told you were accepted and then told you weren't.

Hopefully that won't happen to you twice! What are the odds anyway?

Despite what you have been told, when you do make it- that will make your success even sweeter. Perhaps you and your mom can drop in to visit the QCC admissions counselor and encourage her to try a new way of thinking since it appears she has been taking the wrong factors into account?

[sandrago]

hey

i got you message-yes i got the same letter from cnr and

i put the 300$ deposit and i am cleared from health services

,but just in response to you message and to this post

i have my own story to share,,......

it is pretty long,i will try to make it short

i am from croatia,have been living in us for 6 years now,

married w/4 year old.

i went to nursing school in my country-but becasue it was combined with high school(something like lpn here-at that time the highest degree was 2 year college)it is not accepted in us

so when i came here started taking liberal arts courses(my eng.was not that great and it has been long time since i was in school...)

one and half year later i ended up wih aa in liberal arts with 4.00 gpa

everybody that i knew in school were in nursing and i was :"ok maybe i should go to,i do have some knowledge and i worked as midwife in my country(like i said this might sound strange but that is how you would become a nurse in my country,after 8th grade you would start highschool with extra classes in anatomy and physiology ,latin,pathology ...etc.... ,and fundementals..later on in 3 and 4th year pediatric care,maternal care ,psychiatric care,community nursing...etc...long story...you can just imagine what kind of highschool was that.

we had to stay in a dorm above the school bc/the classes and clinical practice were the same day-can't go home-only weekends...insanity for 14 year old)

school was a part of the hospital complex-a city within a city-you would breathe,eat,drink and poop nursing......

anyway leave the story .......happened 10 years ago..

here is some info on my former school

http://www.skolazaprimalje.hr/skola/

and education reform in croatia

http://www.javno.com/en/croatia/clanak.php?id=187880

anyway....

so i got my aa at bmcc and i started thinking about nursing as my career

1.it is something that i know and i am very patient with people

2.it is flexible job while raising my 4 year old

3.it is well paid

so i started taking pre-clinical classes

i took chemistry,micro and anatomy in one semester and got all a-s and

that inspired me

let me do this nursing..let me rediscover my hidden passion.that was lost when i was so young and rebellious

now the school part........

that really made me...:angryfire ****** off ,mad,sad,i cried and all the emotions possible,not to mention my daughter and my husband were affected by this-i was jut so moody:bowingpur:lol2:

so here i am :

4.00 gpa ,a in all sciences, phi theta kappa member, mother,mentor at community college and volunteer at nyp

i got the letter from fdu in november 2007("fairleigh ridiculous university":nono:-hate that school btw.)in teaneck,nj

stating that there is 16,000 $ scholarship available for me because of ptk memberships

i applied in person for nursing program

had all the letters of recommendation and my statement of purpose(not to mention,it is a freaking mess to get to that school from manhattan)

the guy-

told me:

"we can not guarantee you a spot but we will try with your grades there is huge chance that you will get in " he was nice enough to mention that the nursing program is in disarray and he suggested that i might apply to some other school(he is not supposed to do that,but>>>)

i spent so much money on the wes-i had some college in my country(not nursing related) and on transcripts.but i applied in january 2008(rolling admissions)

i wanted to see my family this summer in croatia ,bc/i haven't seen them in 4 years and they seen my daughter when she was jut a baby,so i though i can go to my country,it would be the same- waiting here in us or there -i will be still antsy pants:uhoh21:

before i went to my country -i had all my vaccinations done ,ppd-s ,titers ,and physical(that i paid $$$$$$ out of pocket, insurance wont cover,bc/it is not annual..etc..)just in case

i was ready to go.....

at the end of july(while still in cro)

i got the letter (or should i say "the package "that i am accepted-the uniform,all the info about Liability Insurance..etc...) and the information about the "mandatory orientation":uhoh3:

the orientation was on aug 13th

i was coming back on aug 15th from my country

i called nursing school millions times from my country(spending **** loads of money on phone bills) to explain my situation and asking them if my hubby can go and take notes,since i do have everything set to go and i am in foreign country with my daughter...bla bla....

they said..."no no..... no way

you have to be here

you just have to....

......this is something very important...bla bla bla.no orientation-no registration-ooo and btw.we can hear you soo well,you are calling from croatia?")

can't believe the things they told me

i could not get a ticket in 10 days - it would cost so much for me and my daughter there is no way i could afford that )

so my hubby took a day from work to drag his cute butt to that god forsaken place and he sat there for 4 hours to listen to ******** talking,all the stuff was in the "package"they just mentioned some student support and tutoring and many stupid things they do at orientations just like at any other school

but when he came to register

the lady asked him if we paid the 400 $ deposit

he said:"we never ever got a letter that we have to pay a deposit"

the lady said it is for holding a spot

holding a ******* spot????????

are you kidding me?

my letters ,grades and essay is not getting me into school

it is the deposit?

jeezzz.

so the lady was nice (she was the assistant of the director of admissions)

so the lady said she will try to help us out ,but she can not find out ,bc/she might loose her job

and we have to wait next week to see if there are anymore places in the program-after all the people register

anyway..

she did not know that my hubby was on the orientation instead of me

but i guess she played my 100 messages on the answering machine and figured that i was not there(there were maybe 40 students)

on tuesday my husband received an email saying that she was very upset about the whole situation and that there are still couple of spaces in nursing program ,but i can not get in-bc/she is upset with me?

what kind of nursing program is this

one woman's show??????

my hubby said to ditch the whole thing,bc/ this lady would be behind my ass all the time.

so i did

and i moved on

and here i am taking my last pre-req.nutrition

and ready to start in spring 2009 at new rochelle

never give up!!!!

if you want to be a nurse

go get it!!!

be a fighter

becasue that's what nurses are:nurse:

don't move to foreign country....

become a nurse....do it for the good of your community ....do it...for your future

feel free to pm me for my email

maybe we can start classes together in the spring

would love to meet you:nuke:

the truth is that all private schools send letters to 95% students that apply and wait what happens.....

they need the money-bloodsuckers

even at the open house at cnr they would not say how many students they are taking into program(i guess whatever they can get-considering the state rules on nursing schools and all the other crap-in their words"let's put it this way-if you apply day before classes start you will most likely not get in")

[Rockhopper]

That really sucks about College of Morris...however, I don't think you should give up on the College of New Rochelle. Out here in San Francisco, the community colleges are harder to get into than some of the BSN/MSN programs - only because the community colleges accept students based on a lottery system. I was accepted into a MSN program, waitlisted for a ABSN program (but was later accepted), and did not even hear anything from the community colleges. I don't know how they do it in New Jersey though - it won't hurt to call New Rochelle to confirm the acceptance letter. The worst news will be that an error was made again...but, you never know, maybe it wasn't an error & you really have been accepted.

I'm extremely disappointed to hear that people have discouraged you from pursuing certain professions due to your background. As a minority & having parents who were also immigrants, I have heard ignorant comments from others but not to that extent. I have never let it influence my decisions nor have I accepted it. That being said, I hope that you don't think that all White people are the same - each individual is unique, just like every non-white person.

[justme1972]

I'll be honest..I don't think the color of your skin has anything to do with whether or not you become a doctor or a nurse.

Where I live, we have a huge number of foreign doctors...so much so, that American doctors have a hard time because the perception here is that the foreign doctors are better.

It doesn't matter what anyone says...if YOU BELIEVE your skin color is a barrier, then it will be. If you look at ANY minority professional, regardless of what race they were, they were able to accomplish anything that they set their mind to.

If anything, when applying to nursing school or medical school, being a minority is an ADVANTAGE b/c the profession is trying to create a more culturally diverse workforce.

I do think that part of the prejudice that you are concerned about has to do with the fact that you live in the NY/NJ area. I am also going to assume you are of Cuban descent based on your upcoming vacation.

Every geographical area in the USA has the "group" that feels that they are the victims of racism. In NY, it's Jewish people, in the South, it's blacks, in the midwest, it's Native Americans, in the Southwest, it's Mexicans.

You see what I mean? You believe what is common for your area. I live in the South...yes, there is a lot of racial tension regarding blacks/whites here ..and unfortunately, it's worse in some areas than others...but you won't find it with Jewish people or Hispanics.

I even remember just last year learning a word that is insulting to Jewish people (which out of respect to our Jewish members, I obviously won't type here).. when I first heard the word, I actually burst out laughing...you know why? Because the word sounded not only stupid...I didn't have a clue as to what it meant...and I even had to ask...I was told, "Don't ever say that to a Jewish person b/c they find it really insulting"...I laughed even harder, I said, "Why would I? First, I don't even really know any Jewish people...I have no clue as to why some New Yorkers have such an issue with them...and even if I did...that word would be really hard to work into a conversation."

It's all about where you live, what you were taught, and what you believe in.

The PEOPLE THAT ARE TELLING YOU that you can't make it...are just jealous because they know YOU CAN.

[**new!!]

After George Bush Jr. was selected for the second term, I decided it was time for me to leave the country. Because of the Unites States embargo against Cuba is still in existence...I had to become a citizen of my mother's country...through of course, maternal affliation. Cuba and my mother's country always had great relations...so when I entered Cuba...I used my new passport and not my amerikan passport. I was more welcolmed with a non-US passport...than with a amerikan one.This embargo has more to do with amerika's hatred for Castro, than for the "communism/socialism" the United States government feels is in place there. Ironically, the US is open with their relations with China. These, among other things are the reasons that I left the US. Today's United States "terrorist movement", is similar to the past and amerika's obsession with...whatever.

I am not Cuban, I just lived there for a few years. In Cuba, I wasn't "the person of color with no money", I was a human first and when I was sick there...the doctor came to my house and took care of me, AND couldn't accept the money that I offered her...for the meds she brought me.

That is why I choose Cuba. Say what you want about Castro...but the people there are taken care of when they are not well...and they are not rich either.

I called CNR this morning and they said that the letter was legit. She even took my social security number and asked me...why did I think the letter was fake. She said what the County College of Morris did was wrong...and that I should come to the school because it is a great opportunity..

Whatever...

I am so over this Rat Race.

[**new!!]

My mother informed me also that the biggest mistake she made while in the nursing program...was talking to other students about her struggles and what she was going through as a single parent.

"Women are catty...but they are REALLY BAD to other women" is what my mother says to me on a daily basis. My only outlet to express myself regarding my "old" nursing dreams were these forums. I don't think I can meet up with another woman in the program and tell her what I went through.

And, besides..I am leaving anyway.

[SuesquatchRN, BSN, RN]

Well. Don't let the door hit you in the butt when you leave.

[Faeriewand, ASN, RN]

After reading your first post I was thinking you could become a nurse in 18 months and take that degree with you back to Cuba and help the beautiful people there.

But really, if you have a dream to do something, whatever it may be, why allow others to dissuade you? I don't understand that part.

[**new!!]

The door won't hit me on the way out Sue, I have more than one passport and I use them frequently...

Have a happy life in your "greatest country in the world"...where your status is based on what you have and not who you are...

[SuesquatchRN, BSN, RN]

Gee. We must live in different dimensions. Or else you buy into things that I certainly don't.

Good luck on your journey. May you get out of your own way someday.