UTA Online BSN Accelerated Program Questions

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Hi everyone,

I'm seriously considering the UTA Online BSN Accelerated program (Not the RN-BSN bridge) and had a couple of questions I was really hoping I could get answers to -

1. For anyone that has completed or are currently in the program - did you like it? Do you ever wish you had opted for a different Accelerated program, maybe one that was in-class, such as TWU?

2. How are the lectures provided to you in the Online program? One of my biggest concerns is missing out on the classroom interaction aspect of things. I learn best when someone's actually teaching the material and I can re-watch lectures if needed. I once took an "online" course where they just mailed you the book and you had to read/learn the material yourself, no lectures/videos, and the instructor was only available via chat/email for questions. Not fun.

3. I have a previous Bachelors and Masters in Business/Accounting so I think I mainly need Science classes for my prereqs. I haven't done a Degree Audit yet (but I will soon). I'm currently finishing up Biology 1406 at Collin College, taking Gen Psych and Life-Span Psych in the summer, A&P-I in the Fall, and maybe A&P-II and Micro next Spring. Are there any other classes I may need to think about taking sooner besides these?

4. I submitted my applytexas application yesterday to UTA with a start date of August 15th this year, mainly did this in the hopes of starting on Pre-Nursing classes - Pharma/ Patho/ Intro to Prof Nursing at UTA (I was told that those had to be taken at UTA only). Is that correct and is it advisable to take these classes while also having a fulltime job and potentially other classes at Collin?

5. Was it easy for you to find study groups in the program and were the professors helpful in answering any questions?

6. Is the Online Accelerated BSN self-paced at all or is it pretty strict on finishing up classes within a set period of time?

7. Is it advisable to have a job (full-time or part-time) once you get accepted into the program?

8. For those that are now RNs, how are you liking being a nurse? Any advice for someone like me who's looking for that much needed career change?

Thank you so much. I know that's a lot of questions, but I would really appreciate any and all feedback.

-Reuben

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Lots of questions! I will try to answer them all. First, I graduated from this program in December 2015. Best decision was to do it all online. The pace is fast, but it was just right for me, no regrets for sure!

1.) I loved this program. All classes are offered online in 5 weeks, 8 weeks or 14 weeks. Most of the longer courses are the most difficult ones that require more information to be given. I chose this program because I was working at partnered hospital and I liked that everything was offered online. The clinical days are at the hospital. Usually you'll do a Monday/Tuesday or Saturday/Sunday. It just depends on the hospital where you're completing clinical and what is available. You also have a test once every week. So there's a day that you need to set aside so that you're able to be at the designated testing site to take your tests. Yes, there is a test every single week....sometimes 2 in a day, but if you are organized and well prepared, then you should be okay. I don't like sitting in classes, so I am happy I was able to do everything online with UTA. No, I don't wish I had done it with another school. Besides, UTA has a great reputation and I've heard that many hospitals will hire a UTA student over other colleges ;)

2.) All lectures are provided online. You can go back and view them as much as you want. I should say they are podcasts. So you can even get them on your phone and listen to them whenever and wherever you want. These were great!!! Also before each exam, many of the instructors will hold live review sessions and quiz you on topics discussed and answer any and all questions you may have. Powerpoint handouts are provided so you can take as many additional notes as needed. In some of the harder courses, the instructional assistants (which are usually other nurses) will provide supplemental information to better help you to understand the subject. Those are great also.

3.) As long as you get all the required pre-requisite classes done then you should be fine. They do require your sciences (mainly anatomy 1 and 2) to be within 5 years. Actually those are the only 2 sciences they require to be within 5 years of admittance to the program I believe. I had to retake anatomy 1 and 2 so that they were current before I would be admitted to the program. The nursing pre-requisite classes (intro to professional nursing, pharmacology and pathophys) are required to be taken at UTA as those are their nursing pre-requisites. I took lifespan and the technical writing class at richland college online to complete my requirements in addition to the pre-nursing courses at UTA (online). I even took anatomy 2 online through UTA. Anatomy 1 and 2 are offered online with UTA....highly highly recommend that....its tough but convenient.

4.) I worked full time while I was in the nursing program...right up until the end. I only worked Friday and Saturday nights at a hospital, but it worked out just fine. I had to quit my job due to a scheduling conflict, but it is do-able. Especially if you have a job that allows you to study.

5.) Study groups can be formed with the people in your clinical group. You will be with 7 or 8 other people in your clinical days, so its just easier to form a study group with them, or if you make friends in the program, you can study with them.

6.) All classes are within a set time frame. You can study at your own pace, but you do have deadlines for assignments, tests, quizzes, projects, etc. Its easy to get behind, so stay organized. Each class lasts a certain amount of weeks.....so its up to you how you plan your study time.

7.) If I could have gone through the program without having to work, I totally would have done that. It was tough to work and to manage all of my assignments, studying time, etc. Some people I know had loans to get them through, I just had to work because I had no family to help me with rent, car note, etc. If you can NOT work great.....it's just a little harder to have to work and do everything for this program.

8.) Speaking from the other side, this program really prepared me to be a nurse. It was very challenging and there were many times where I broke down and cried and procrastinated in doing assignments, and studying, but it was all okay in the end. After I graduated, I took a couple of weeks off to just do nothing and then I started studying for the NCLEX. I studied for a couple of weeks and then just took it......I passed and soon after that I started my job as an ER nurse. I can say this program prepares you very well if you soak up every piece of information presented to you. You don't necessarily have to memorize everything, it will make sense when you are applying it to everyday nursing. I love my job and couldn't imagine doing anything else..........

I'll be happy to answer any more questions you may have....GOOD LUCK!!!

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Jessica, those answers were exactly what I was looking for. I have been trying to make the decision to go to UTA or another college for awhile now. If you could answer a couple of other questions that would be great? Online is appealing to me but I worry about the clinicals and not knowing how to do anything and doing the courses on line how to you actually learn? Some colleges have SIM labs that you can practice on. Were the clinical's difficult without having a lab to learn and test on.

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Thank you very much beccap, I'm also looking for this program and this is really helpful information for me.

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Online is appealing to me but I worry about the clinicals and not knowing how to do anything and doing the courses on line how to you actually learn? Some colleges have SIM labs that you can practice on. Were the clinical's difficult without having a lab to learn and test on.

UTA has a smart hospital where you can go and practice on whatever skills you want. I think you have to make an appointment or set a time to go and use it. I never used it. Clinical are 2 days per week (even during holidays) and you hit the ground running. You are checked off to do certain skills and you start right off. Some of the clinical days are actually classroom "lab days" where you go and learn skills, get checked off etc. So there's plenty of time for practice.

You get plenty of opportunities to practice skills before actually doing them on patients. You are never alone when doing your first actual skill on a patient. Your clinical instructor is there or the patients nurse is there to guide you through.

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Hi Beccap, do you have any idea how the clinic will be handled outside of Dallas/Fort Worth/Arlington? I'm in Houston and not willing to relocate for the program. In that sense, I understand I won't be access all the local facility including the "smart hospital" you mentioned above. Basically I worry about doesn't have enough time and opportunity to do any SIM Lab and have no idea who (nurse?faculty?staff?) will lead the clinic part in Houston...

Thank you thought, I'm working full time (7-4) now and your story really encourage me.

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Hi Beccap, do you have any idea how the clinic will be handled outside of Dallas/Fort Worth/Arlington? I'm in Houston and not willing to relocate for the program. In that sense, I understand I won't be access all the local facility including the "smart hospital" you mentioned above. Basically I worry about doesn't have enough time and opportunity to do any SIM Lab and have no idea who (nurse?faculty?staff?) will lead the clinic part in Houston...

Thank you thought, I'm working full time (7-4) now and your story really encourage me.

Hi,

Houston clinicals are held the same as in Dallas/ft worth area. You go 2 days per week and the rest is held online. You don't always have clinical days because in the beginning you start off in lab. Meaning, instead of going to clinical, you go to a lab where you learn skills and practice them then get checked off before you are allowed to do them. In the beginning I think we had maybe 2-3 weeks of meeting in class (two days, 10 hours/day) where we learned then practiced.

Clinicals are held in different hospitals. I'm not sure which ones because they change by semester if I'm not mistaken, but I know there were sites at conroe regional, brazosport, texas children's and not too sure about others although I know there are more.

I worked Friday/Saturday nights 7p to 7a and it worked out just fine for me.....I had to quit a few weeks before graduation to accommodate my capstone clinical rotation.

Good luck.

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Hi! I am very seriously considering this program also. I was wondering how many online courses you can take at a time? I'm assuming you can only take 8 hours per 8 week term?

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Hi! I am very seriously considering this program also. I was wondering how many online courses you can take at a time? I'm assuming you can only take 8 hours per 8 week term?

http://www.academicpartnerships.uta.edu

Click on the links as you scroll down to the bottom and all info is there.

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I've been looking for this information on their site and can't seem to find it. That's why I asked on this thread since there are people who have actually done the program and know. Just wanted to know how many credit hours you can take per 8 week term.

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I've been looking for this information on their site and can't seem to find it. That's why I asked on this thread since there are people who have actually done the program and know. Just wanted to know how many credit hours you can take per 8 week term.

Well the program is set and the classes listed are the ones you will be taking. You have to have the pre-requisite courses done before starting the nursing program because its dang near impossible to take pre-requisites while doing nursing courses. Not sure what you mean by how many credit hours you can take per 8 week term. Look at the course listings and you will see how many hours each one is.

Some of the courses are only 5 weeks and some are full 14 weeks and are listed in the same semester so it looks as though you'll be taking a lot of hours. Truth is that you may start a 5 or 8 week course and once that ends you'll start another course.

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Right! I'm just starting science pre requisites. I am probably asking the wrong way. Lol. What I mean is, since most of the general courses are only 8 weeks, are you allowed to take more than 2 classes per term? I think it would be hard to take A&P, Micro, and Chem all in 8 weeks. Im thinking they will only let you take a couple of classes at a time. I hope I made sense. Thanks for your help :)

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