UT Austin BSN

JPnewACNP, BSN · Oct 31, 2011

Hey!! So I am a first year Pre-Nursing student at UT Austin. I'm in my first semester but I will be applying for the upper-division professional sequence in September. Basically I'll take classes in the winter break and summer and then be eligible to apply in September. The application process for the upper division is competitive as there are over 100 students applying for around 50 positions in the fall and 60-70 positions in the spring. They really look at GPA, volunteering experience, and your essay. The GPA is then divided up into the UT Overall GPA (which is all UT courses taken at UT), UT Science GPA (all science courses taken at UT), and you overall GPA. I have been told to keep at least a 3.3-3.5 GPA in order to keep competitive. Its sort of stressful in lower division, but from what I hear from upperclassmen, the upper division is really good... Hope this helps.

hopefulprayers1 · Oct 31, 2011

oh ok, yes it does help a lot! Thanks for the info. Sucks that there's such a small number of positions open.

hopefulprayers1 · Nov 21, 2011

bump!!!

hopefulprayers1 · Nov 21, 2011

So is it safe to say that it'll be better if you completed your sciences and other courses there? I'm in San Antonio and planned on taking my prereqs at a community college to save money.

JPnewACNP, BSN · Nov 21, 2011

I think it kind of depends... The when your applying to the upper division, the committee takes into consideration whether or not you are an in-house applicant. I think they prefer in-house students to transfers but it won't be impossible. I really like the program here and next semester (second-semester first-year) I will be taking some sophomore nursing classes. If you are starting school right from high school with transferred hours (i.e. AP credit, Duel credit) it might be more beneficial to go ahead and come to Austin to start meeting the staff here and start networking for letters of recommendation and such... That is what I did and I have met a Maternity professor and an adult care professor. I have also met a LOT of upperclassmen and graduate students who have given advice on applying to upper division and who to take for what.... I will be applying for upper division professional sequence in Fall 2012 so I am trying to network like crazy so I can get great in-house letters of Rec...

On a side note... I don't know about other schools, but here at UT Austin School of Nursing, it is encouraged to start volunteering at a hospital or clinical setting early. This shows that you are committed to the profession and that you are willing to do whatever it takes to graduate. So if you decide to come to UT Austin, I would highly recommend applying to volunteer at one of the major hospital groups early as it can be a long process. I applied before the 15th of September to volunteer at UMC Brackenridge and I am just now starting to volunteer.. It is a long process but well worth the effort and the wait. You can find that application at seton.net and click on the Volunteer tab at the top of the home page.

Hope this helps and Hook'em!!

hopefulprayers1 · Nov 21, 2011

If I'm a transfer do I have to complete the freshman course?

hopefulprayers1 · Nov 21, 2011

Sorry I mean the first yr class

JPnewACNP, BSN · Nov 21, 2011

It depends on the course... I think all freshmen or transfer students have to take an Undergraduate Studies Course (UGS), but I think that is the only in-house requirement... I might be wrong as I haven't really talked to many transfer students if any... you can go online to utexas.edu/nursing and find a lot of information. If you have a question about a specific course or something, I might be able to get an answer for you...

hopefulprayers1 · Nov 21, 2011

Oh ok I took a forst year course but didn't do very well in it. I would hope the first yr is just for incoming freshman and not transfers. I'm thinking of applying to the prenursing for fall 2012 and seeing if I'm able to start the professional phase spring 2013.

hopefulprayers1 · Nov 21, 2011

Is it a straight through program or only fall and spring

JPnewACNP, BSN · Nov 21, 2011

I guess its possible... The only thing is that with UT's upper division, you absolutely have to apply and you can only apply sometime during the spring for the coming fall (apply spring 2012 to start upper division in fall 2012) or in the fall for the coming spring (september 2012 to start in spring 2013). You might want to talk to one of the advisors that is listed on the website. Or call the School of Nursing Advising Office to find out if that is possible. There are information sessions at the School of Nursing on December 2 and 6 so you might consider attending one of these. The sooner get going on your transfer the better because the pre-nursing major can be hard to get into. Its not impossible but possibly difficult.

Check out this worksheet, figure up what courses you have already taken and see which ones you will have to take here and when they are offered (i.e. pharmacology is only offered during the spring and summer). If the school you go to doesn't use UT's numbering system, you can find the equivalent courses in the Undergraduate Catalog to be found at beALonghorn.utexas.edu.

http://www.utexas.edu/nursing/docs/bsn_degree_plan_2010.pdf

Hope this helps more....