UPMC Shadyside

[Twinmom91]

SO I am a full time mom right now and I work part time. I really want to go to UPMC Shadyside School of Nursing but I have a few questions and problems.

1. I want to get my prereqs out of the way. I need Micro, A&P1 and 2, Nutrition, and Logic done. I was planning on taking Nutrition, Logic and Micro online at CCAC Spring 2014 and taking A&P 1 Summer 2014.

Can this be done and take A&P 2 Fall 2014 and start Shadyside Spring 2015 but get accepted for Fall 2014 and start just nursing Classes Spring 2015. I think the answer is yes for full time, but I have to be a part time program student and they only except admissions for part time in the fall. Could I be accepted a year ahead for Fall 2015? I want to but I'm not sure if they allow this.

2. Also I am in the Army reserves. They will allow me for the most part to miss a weekend drill day and come in to make it up the following week before or after depending on if I know I will be absent, but there are three drills a year they don't want you to miss, which is a Friday sat and Sunday and a two week drill that we take every June. They allow you to make up the missed time for the June drill which is called Annual training where you go away. However, they let you make it up whenever possible with the other College students with Another drill Unit. Anyone else in the reserves attend the Shadyside program? I know you go to school in the Summer especially with the Part time program.

3. My husband is a mailman and works 6 days a week right now( he just started). We cannot afford traditional daycare right now but can afford to pay a sitter. What is the Shadyside full time schedule like. If I knew that I could see if anyone I knew was willing to and able to watch My Sons during those times. Is it all day 5 days a week like 7 to 4 or is it different times during the week and not a full day. I prefer to go full time but part time would work with our schedule as my husband gets home around 5 and my mother in law could watch them on the days my husband gets home later so the night program isn't the problem.

I just have so many questions. I got a packet for Shadyside in the mail today with everything I need to do for admissions. The psb test I plan to study for, but I dont understand why they would send it to me if the last date to schedule the psb was Oct 5th which is today and it had to be postmarked before Sept 25th but i got it Oct 1st. Will there be anymore psb test this year or do I have to wait till Next year to schedule one? I don't mind scheduling one later but I wanted to take it sooner so If I needed to retake it for fall 2014 admission I could wait the 60 days and retake it.

Sorry I just have so many questions. I mainly am curious about the fulltime schedule, I know the classes you take for full time but what are the hours like. Also, if any other reservist attended/ attend the school.

[neverbethesame]

but I dont understand why they would send it to me if the last date to schedule the psb was Oct 5th which is today and it had to be postmarked before Sept 25th but i got it Oct 1st.

This is very typical of the more innocuous "junk" that you would have to put up with.

Do not go to a Diploma school. Get your ADN then eventually do a bridge to BSN even MSN. Given that you are in the military, CCAC has a great Veterans program with lots of services that will help you. Perhaps even be able to do your reserves weekend. No way at Shadyside. They are very, very inflexible among many other negative adjectives.

Seriously, save yourself, sanity and self-esteem and do not go to Shadyside!!!

[ChristineN, BSN, RN]

This is very typical of the more innocuous "junk" that you would have to put up with.

Do not go to a Diploma school. Get your ADN then eventually do a bridge to BSN even MSN. Given that you are in the military, CCAC has a great Veterans program with lots of services that will help you. Perhaps even be able to do your reserves weekend. No way at Shadyside. They are very, very inflexible among many other negative adjectives.

Seriously, save yourself, sanity and self-esteem and do not go to Shadyside!!!

Wow, I don't know what your problem is with diploma schools but I can tell you they are an excellent program and even have higher NCLEX pass rates than CCAC. I am a Shadyside grad, and I am very grateful for the firm nursing foundation they gave me that I built my career on. Also, if you get a diploma, you can also do a RN-BSN or RN-MSN bridge at any program.

Really I think you are a little harsh on a school just cause of a clerical error.

[ChristineN, BSN, RN]

OP I suggest you call Shadyside and speak to their admissions advisor who will be able to assist you in finding out when the next and best time for you to test is. If you are not very scientifically savvy, you might want to wait til you take A&P or micro to test, but there are review books you can get from the public library to help you test.

As for the reserves, if you go to school part-time I don't see a problem the first year or so but once you start clinicals you will have clinicals every single Sat and Sun. If you bang all your pre-req's out at CCAC as you are talking, you could take what would be 1 class per every eight week semester during the day, but you would have class Mon-Thurs.

I suggest you talk to the admissions advisor as well as the Reserves. I don't know if there is a way you could put your reserves on hold or something if you are continuing your education.

Whatever you decide, good luck

[Twinmom91]

Thanks guys for the advice. My gpa is too low to be accepted right away for CCAC so I need to knock my sciences out for their program to get the extra points so They will consider me anyway. Which I have to do for there program because I don't have a flexible schedule where I can take them with nursing classes. I know they would be more flexible and I have been with their veterans department before and yes they are great. I prefer Shadyside though. I called there admissions department and Natalie told me to call her back the first week of November because they are changing the program at shadysides curriculum a little so you can graduate earlier. She doesn't have the details about it yet. Either way Im going to take the psb in January or February when the next round of psb test starts and figure it out from there. My reserve unit just has to see my school schedule before they are able to tell me what They will allow me to do. Unfortunately it looks like no matter what I do Ill have what they consider a bad year which will make it harder for me to reenlist:( If I do the ccac night is it just at boyce now?