UMass Medical School GEP DNP 2022

Nursing Students School Programs

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Hello all,

I was wondering if anyone else applied to the UMass Worcester GEP DNP program? Let’s discuss! Thanks ?

Waitlisted, too ?. Congrats to those who got in!

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It’s says 10 days, I was accepted as well. Don’t give up! You might make it off the waitlist in 2 weeks time

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For all the waitlisted students… don’t sweat it. I didn’t make it out of the waitlist status for 2021. Next application cycle, I was admitted to Yale, Columbia and UPenn programs. One school acceptance/rejection doesn’t dictate your future. You’ll get to your goal because of YOU and your determination to become a nurse no matter what?⭐

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Hi everyone! Did anyone get accepted into the Adult Primary Care program?

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Specializes in Health Education.

Hi Everyone,

I'm not sure if anyone can answer these questions I have but I figured I'd give it a shot.  I'm hoping to apply for next year's cycle.

Is the GRE required for the GEP program?  It looks like it isn't on the webpage but some of the forums I've read through on here I saw people mention them.

Can the prerequisites be online? I've already taken A&P, Micro etc. but they are past the 10 year mark.  It is easier for me to take them online but I understand if they don't want science courses online.  I would assume that nutrition and human growth/development could be online though even if the science courses can not be.

I'm going to be going to an info session in May but was hoping to get these questions answered before taking courses this Summer.

Thanks!

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Hey Yall, so I got off the waitlist today ???. I already pay a deposit to MGH but I will take the loss. Keep hope alive!

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On 3/11/2022 at 1:30 PM, Sagajoe said:

Hey Yall, so I got off the waitlist today ???. I already pay a deposit to MGH but I will take the loss. Keep hope alive!

Congrats!!

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Thanks

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Hello everyone. I’m truly happy to see how enthusiastic you are about starting a career in nursing. Congrats to you for all the hard work you’ve done to get to this point. Regardless of any rejections, you should be proud of yourselves because it does not define you. Nursing truly is a profession to be proud of even if many still do not appreciate our efforts. I admit that it is probably too late to inform you of this since it’s mid-April but I truly hope that you all did as much research as possible regarding the type of school culture you are committing to as well as the lack of degrees awarded to you. There isn’t any student reviews to be found online so let this be the first published by a current student. I hope you are all aware that this program does not grant any nursing degrees until graduation, such as a BSN or MSN. Instead, you will be given a certificate of completion after the GEP year and a Masters of science after completing DNP year 2. In other words, good luck finding entry level RN jobs without a BSN or ASN, specifically inpatient med-surg positions. Especially in Massachusetts where many hospitals have crossed over to only hiring those with BSNs as of 2021. You will find a job eventually but it will be much more difficult. If you live near NH, apply for a license in that state because you will have better chances of landing those positions there without a BSN. With respect to the MS, it does not specify MS of nursing therefore technically it isn’t a nursing degree either. The only nursing related degree you will be given is the DNP. Perhaps you may not think much of these details now but trust me when I say that it will hinder you in transferring to another program. We current students call this “the trap”. Those of you who have chosen to enroll in this program will soon see the true colors of the faculty. To keep this story short, quite a few of us have learned throughout the years how unsupportive this school environment is. I hope that you never have to overcome any academic or personal obstacles in your lives while you’re students in this program but chances are that you will and it is then that you will understand perfectly what I’m referring to. In terms of education, I agree that we are trained very well but that is the only good thing I have to say unfortunately. You will find out that the faculty will not grant you much flexibility if you ever shall need it but they will expect you to meet all of their expectations irrespective of your circumstances. It is amazing that during a pandemic, when the entire world suffered, we were still expected to meet course expectations which were determined pre-pandemic despite many of us experiencing covid related personal situations and employment hardships at that time. To be honest, it’s likely that many school cultures fit this profile, but with certainty I assure you this is what you will encounter throughout your studies at UMass GSN. Many of us, who will soon be graduating, wish there were online student reviews about this program when we applied 4 years ago because we surely would’ve enrolled elsewhere. Some of us have explored the option of transferring but like I stated before, it was quite difficult to do so given our lack of nursing degrees despite all of the coursework completed. I truly do wish you all the best of luck in your futures and in your studies but keep in mind that you should only count on yourself, have a good support system, be proactive and resourceful because all of these things will maximize your chances of being successful. 

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Anony17 please advise how we then can make the best of the situation. Especially receiving a job after the GEP year? 

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Anony17 I am saddened about your comments above and felt a need to respond when a good friend and incoming students brought this to my attention.  I am happy to say I did not share the same experience that you describe above.  Actually just the opposite in fact.  I will be graduating this year and I can say for sure that what was described above was not the feelings of this entire class.  We all went into the program with the understanding that this was an accelerated program and there would be high expectations placed on us.  We were also aware of the degrees awarded and that the final degree of the program was a DNP when we signed up.  I myself did not have a problem getting a job on a med/surg floor, actual where I did my clinical rotation  (tip: make the best of your clinical experience be noticed) after the first year of the program and currently still working there.   As for the faculty, they were supportive, kind and went out of their way to help students.  We did not know that we would all be facing a world wide pandemic before accepting a nursing program.  You cannot blame the school for the pandemic or the restrictions that were in place.  They had to make major adjustments very quickly to the classes, clinicals and assist students by helping them deal with the situation we all had to deal with, remember they felt the burden of the pandemic as well.  I am sure they had situations come up in their lives but they were there for us.  I feel saddened that you felt the need to express YOUR feelings in such a negative way to the incoming students and about UMass GSN.  I just want the incoming class to know that your feelings are not shared by all. This is a great school with great faculty.  Work hard, stay focused and you will be successful and become a GREAT RN & NP!  

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2 hours ago, DNP22grad said:

Anony17 I am saddened about your comments above and felt a need to respond when a good friend and incoming students brought this to my attention.  I am happy to say I did not share the same experience that you describe above.  Actually just the opposite in fact.  I will be graduating this year and I can say for sure that what was described above was not the feelings of this entire class.  We all went into the program with the understanding that this was an accelerated program and there would be high expectations placed on us.  We were also aware of the degrees awarded and that the final degree of the program was a DNP when we signed up.  I myself did not have a problem getting a job on a med/surg floor, actual where I did my clinical rotation  (tip: make the best of your clinical experience be noticed) after the first year of the program and currently still working there.   As for the faculty, they were supportive, kind and went out of their way to help students.  We did not know that we would all be facing a world wide pandemic before accepting a nursing program.  You cannot blame the school for the pandemic or the restrictions that were in place.  They had to make major adjustments very quickly to the classes, clinicals and assist students by helping them deal with the situation we all had to deal with, remember they felt the burden of the pandemic as well.  I am sure they had situations come up in their lives but they were there for us.  I feel saddened that you felt the need to express YOUR feelings in such a negative way to the incoming students and about UMass GSN.  I just want the incoming class to know that your feelings are not shared by all. This is a great school with great faculty.  Work hard, stay focused and you will be successful and become a GREAT RN & NP!  

Believe it or not I am happy for you too that you did not experience the obstacles I faced or that other students faced over the last couple of years but that does not give you the right to invalidate my opinion and perspective because you clearly said you can't relate. It is preposterous of you to say I blame the GSN for the pandemic because I never once stated that. Also, not every student had or will have the same faculty members available for support. As we know, in DNP year 2 there's different concentrations. Perhaps your concentration leaders were very supportive and flexible with course expectations and clinical requirements however mine were not. Also, students have different thesis advisors. I was fortunate to be paired up with a great advisor however some of our classmates didn't have that luck. I will not share specific details of private conversations that occurred between myself, faculty, and/or other students but I will say that another example of less than supportive faculty members was when the first and only option offered to students who needed help or had a personal situation come up was to take a leave of absence which did happen to multiple students in our graduating class. The goal of this post is not to share names about the faculty who are and aren't supportive, because yes, I agree with you there are quite a number of supportive staff. For example, the GEP first year faculty for example were extremely nurturing and supportive which is why I had that expectation of all faculty members we were to encounter until graduation, especially during a pandemic. So again, just because you didn't experience adversities or didn't feel disappointed by some faculty members does not mean that what I've shared isn't valid. Also, if you want to brag about getting a job at UMass perhaps you should share the fact that that residency only accepted perhaps less than 2 handfuls of students from our graduating class back in 2019 compared to the 30 that applied. Did you go around asking the rest of us how did we end up finding jobs? I don't think so. So again, just because you didn't have any issues getting a job doesn't mean that there isn't an issue getting entry level RN jobs without a nursing degree. In fact, prior to me taking the boards last year, I still had issues transferring hospitals because I don't have a BSN despite accumulating 2 years of experience. That was told to me by HR. Just to be clear, I'm referring only to students who need to obtain an inpatient hospital job. I cannot comment on job hiring with respect to primary care clinics and other outpatient jobs. What do I recommend to offset this? Keep an open mind in terms of workplace locations and apply everywhere even if posts state they want nurses with experience and BSNs.  

Lastly, my post was not meant to be representative of all students. But the truth is I've met students from other incoming years who have experienced this disappointing attitude from certain faculty members. So yes, just as they have high expectations of us, so do I of them. I expected a lot more humanity from the faculty that weren't so supportive. My advice to all incoming students is exactly what I wrote in my original post: only count on yourself, have a good support system inside and outside of school, make time for self care, be proactive and resourceful in your studies. Also, maximize the mental health student services as often as you need it. They have wonderful clinicians as well as stress management programs. 

These are the tips and tools I used to overcome the personal and academic adversities I faced and am happy to report I am also graduating this year as well! 

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