TWU Spring 2011 Program

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I think it is time we get our own thread for those of us who have been accepted to TWU's Houston program :yeah:

TXcatcher: THanks for sharing your schedule with us!! Cool! I was reading some of the 2010 thread and many ppl were saying how they were so tired at the beginning of the semester and how they were gonna be at school at like 7a and be there for the entire day. I was getting worried. The program I'm in now is really similar to TWU's schdl.

How is pharm? Is it a beast, or do MOST ppl you know think it's smooth? I will have to take it with Patho (which I;m kinda intimidated by), so I wanna be prepared.

Thanks!

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Oh yeah, TXcatcher, why wouldn't I take books to class??

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You don't get to pick your schedule for J1. I believe we got our schedule at orientation. It told you what sections you were in for labs and clinical.

So it's only J1 where they assign classes, all following semesters you register for sections that fit to your schedule?

What if you get a J1 section that is impossible for you to attend? Can you switch with others? I'm really worried about being assigned a time I won't have daycare or babysitter available.

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Specializes in Transplant, LVAD, cardiac.

J2 and up they do a "lottery." I'm not exactly sure how it works just yet. Everyone has a different story.

So far, I think it is: they draw your name and then you pick what hospital/day you want to do clinical based on what's available.

I don't think they let you switch, but they may for some situations.

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Specializes in Transplant, LVAD, cardiac.
TXcatcher: THanks for sharing your schedule with us!! Cool! I was reading some of the 2010 thread and many ppl were saying how they were so tired at the beginning of the semester and how they were gonna be at school at like 7a and be there for the entire day. I was getting worried. The program I'm in now is really similar to TWU's schdl.

How is pharm? Is it a beast, or do MOST ppl you know think it's smooth? I will have to take it with Patho (which I;m kinda intimidated by), so I wanna be prepared.

Thanks!

I actually get to school around 6:30 because I like to beat the traffic and then leave after 6:30 to miss it again. It just depends on where you live and what your views on sitting in traffic are. I can leave later and sit in traffic, and still not be late for class...but I'd rather just cruise control all the way. The past week, I've been lazy and have been waiting a little later...leaving around 7:45 for a 9:00 class. I haven't been late, but the traffic was still pretty yucky.

Pharm is pretty straightforward to me. I study the notes only and the drug classes only (no book). For example, I don't learn every single antiseizure drug and their characteristics, but rather, learn the basic characteristics of antiseizure drugs and then know what drugs are in that category. Some people spend a lot of time on individual drugs and knowing the difference between Lamictil and Topomax, when you really just need to know that both are antiseizure drugs and antiseizure drugs generally have side effects X,Y,&Z. So far I've made a 94 and an 80 on the tests we've had without stressing out while studying, but I generally don't get test anxiety until the exam is over and we have to wait for the results. The 80 was pure laziness on my behalf. I didn't study two classes of drugs at all...but we also had an assessment test the day before so time was limited.

And for taking books to class...there's not enough room on the desk for a book and notes (or laptop), and you probably won't refer to it in class. Every now and then there may be a post from a course manager saying to bring the book, but I really don't remember any occasion where I brought a book and used it.

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Hey TXcatcher, you said you park in the garage...How do they charge you by the month?

  • Ex: What about when you start the semester half way through January, or when the semester ends half way through the month? Do you get charged by the month regardless, do they prorate it, or charge you for 30 days or something? Just wondering.
  • Also, what about a BP cuff? Did you have to buy one of those? AND is a certain type of wrist watch required?

Thanks for all your help :)

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Specializes in Transplant, LVAD, cardiac.
Hey TXcatcher, you said you park in the garage...How do they charge you by the month?

  • Ex: What about when you start the semester half way through January, or when the semester ends half way through the month? Do you get charged by the month regardless, do they prorate it, or charge you for 30 days or something? Just wondering.
  • Also, what about a BP cuff? Did you have to buy one of those? AND is a certain type of wrist watch required?

Thanks for all your help :)

You can pick a semester plan or do month to month, but, yes, they do prorate for half-months. Keep an eye out at the beginning of each month. I didn't get my bill, and therefore didn't have my account number to go online to pay. Then they deactivated my card to get in... If you don't get your bill, you can pay in the parking office at TWU. We didn't realize this at first since we had to go to Scurlock to get the card and set up the account information.

You do not need to buy a BP cuff, unless you just really want one. The lab has some that you can check out for a week at a time. I checked one out for two weeks and maybe practiced with it twice. I do recommend practicing taking blood pressures after the first checkoff, which I did not do. We're about to have another check off, and I'm feeling a bit nervous about being out of practice.

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Specializes in Transplant, LVAD, cardiac.

Oh, and any watch with seconds on it will do, so either a second hand or digital will work. I do not like ticking sounds, so I bought a digital watch with seconds. For the future, a watch with military time would be nice because most hospitals document in military time. I have a BabyG, and it has a button that just switches to military time. The first semester clinical, you're only on the unit until about 12:00ish, so you don't have to worry about time too much.

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If any of you guys think that there might be a day where classes would interfere with your "normal life", you might want to talk to someone in the nursing department before they hand out schedules. For the people that I know that had some babysitting issues...well, they had to figure it out on their own. You will hear at Orientation that "we do not trade schedules amoung students" and they are very strict with that. The ONLY occurrence that I have heard them switch a schedule was because of distance. By that I mean, they decide where your clinical is based on your address. They try to put you in a hospital that is nearest to your home, but for some people that was just not possible. For one student who lived in Sugarland but was scheduled for a hospital in Kingwood, they changed her hospital. Nobody else that I know of has gotten a schedule change.

Many many many people have had to change their work schedule and babysitting while in their first semester. There are quite a few that left their job and a few have even left the program because of how the schedule affected their "normal life". If I could describe nursing school life in one word it would be SACRIFICE!! It is rewarding but it will completely change your life as you know it.

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:pntrghi::redlight: cheap books :redlight::pntlft:

i have a pretty long list of j1s that are wanting to sell their book at a good price!!!

if you are interested, and you will be attending the houston campus...just email me asap.

"you snooze, you lose!!!"

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Word to the wise, future J1s should definitely check out the website chegg.com to rent your books. I priced all the books we need at the UT bookstore and compared it and saved around $1000 by renting the ones I would need for the semester. There are only a few that I am going to buy outright and keep as reference books, Mosby's Drug Guide for Nurses is one. But Chegg also has a buy now option at the end of the semester that lets you pay off your book and keep it. BTW I'm still looking for someone willing to carpool from the Katy area to downtown, splitting gas and parking fees + getting to ride in the HOV, makes good sense to me. Be in touch either on the thread or contact me by searching [email protected] on facebook. Can't wait to meet you guys and make some friends and study buddies! :)

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