Hi,I've considered going to nursing school in the past but I don't know if it's officially for me (I also think a lot about med school but haven't taken any of the prerequisites). I took the NLN-PAX on a whim...basically I was standing helping my mom register for something at the community college and it said the deadline to register was that day so I impulsively paid cash and showed up at the exam a couple weeks later....I have a NREMT-B certification and have worked as an ER tech in both trauma and FastTrack. I have a BA in English and currently work as a science/medical/technical writer--but my desk can be dull and I secretly miss the hubbub of the ER and hospital life.I'm in the midwest (Iowa/Illinois area....yes that sounds crazy but I currently live in two places) and wanted to know about programs that would accept my scores for admission. I have heard nursing school admissions are very competitive from friends who have attended nursing programs. I graduated cum laude from a Big Ten school with about a 3.6 gpa for undergrad but I hardly took any science classes. Would I still have to take things like Anatomy and Physiology? Can I test out of any of the prerequisites? I have done some research in medical history and had to learn a lot of the science stuff from that. I took AP bio in high school and got a 4 or 5 on the exam. I took nursing bio in college but that was it for science. My scores are as follows: Composite: 155. What is this out of? I have googled but I don't know. 175? 200? Do they use this score or the percentiles? Composite percentile: 99 for allVerbal: DI-99, AD-99, ALL-99Math: DI-98, AD-97, ALL-97Science: DI-99, AD-99, ALL-99Any information about how to begin would be great. Thanks.
seaspray700777 97 Posts Specializes in acute. Has 15 years experience. Jul 19, 2010 chanHi There; I have the test results paper you need but for the life of me I cannot scan and send them via this website. I purchased the NLN book and in this book it explains the numbers. If you have access to a fax, I can fax the paper to you. It explains everything about the test. I am not all that savvy with the scan and send stuff. I tried to copy and paste it from my copier but would not work. Sorry, I am older, 50 and from the caveman days. LOL. And of course it does not help that I am from Maine. We kinda take life a little behind the times. If you can get access to a fax, I would be happy to fax the info.:) Or tell me how to send this to you via e-mail or through this website.
chicagoing, ADN, RN 489 Posts Has 10 years experience. Jul 19, 2010 Hi,I've considered going to nursing school in the past but I don't know if it's officially for me (I also think a lot about med school but haven't taken any of the prerequisites). I took the NLN-PAX on a whim...basically I was standing helping my mom register for something at the community college and it said the deadline to register was that day so I impulsively paid cash and showed up at the exam a couple weeks later....I have a NREMT-B certification and have worked as an ER tech in both trauma and FastTrack. I have a BA in English and currently work as a science/medical/technical writer--but my desk can be dull and I secretly miss the hubbub of the ER and hospital life.I'm in the midwest (Iowa/Illinois area....yes that sounds crazy but I currently live in two places) and wanted to know about programs that would accept my scores for admission. I have heard nursing school admissions are very competitive from friends who have attended nursing programs. I graduated cum laude from a Big Ten school with about a 3.6 gpa for undergrad but I hardly took any science classes. Would I still have to take things like Anatomy and Physiology? Can I test out of any of the prerequisites? I have done some research in medical history and had to learn a lot of the science stuff from that. I took AP bio in high school and got a 4 or 5 on the exam. I took nursing bio in college but that was it for science. My scores are as follows: Composite: 155. What is this out of? I have googled but I don't know. 175? 200? Do they use this score or the percentiles? Composite percentile: 99 for allVerbal: DI-99, AD-99, ALL-99Math: DI-98, AD-97, ALL-97Science: DI-99, AD-99, ALL-99Any information about how to begin would be great. Thanks.Hello! I can't really help you too much with the PAX scores (although I will be taking that exam at a later date). However, most, if not all programs will require two semesters of anatomy & physiology with lab. I don't believe AP bio will matter will in the big scheme of things, since you already possess a BA degree. Nursing bio may or may not be a pre-requisite for the science classes you will need to take: anatomy & physiology, chemistry, and microbiology.On a more positive note, the science classes mentioned above will be for non-majors (i.e. health science majors) and are usually less demanding.
njmomstudent 135 Posts Jul 19, 2010 Its a very good score. Your 155 is out of 200. However, there are experimental questions that don't count towards your percentile score. There's another list that says science 57 out of 60, etc. Thats how many nonexperimental questions you got right. You got the highest percentile score available. It means that out of 100 people taking the test, you did better than 99 of them. HOWEVER-they throw out questions everyone got wrong for the percentile. So, the questions you did get wrong, everyone got wrong. The DI stands for diploma programs, the AD stands for degree programs, and ALL incorporates ALL kinds of nursing programs. My composite was 153 and 99% across the board. As far as the classes you will need... you definitely need A&P, chemistry, etc. A&P and micro can usually be taken at the same time you are taking your nursing classes/clinicals along with any sociology/psych classes if you are accepted into a nursing program. If you already have a BS you can look at accelerated BSN programs which are usually 1 year full time, but they are much harder to get into and you should have all your prereqs done before applying. I already have a BS and am enrolled in an ADN RN program at my community college. Since I already have all my prereqs I only need the nursing classes and fits my schedule better time and moneywise. After that I will be going right for my MSN instead of BSN. Usually MSN programs have a quick BS to BSN bridge (1-3 classes depending) that you do before you start the MSN program, and alot of MSN's can be done part time as well (which is what I will need so I can work as well).You can test out of classes but it depends on the college. The college can tell you which program they use to test you. Usually it is an outside testing agency and can cost up to $250 per subject you want to test out of. HTH Good luck!
