Valencia College ADN Spring 2019

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Hi,

I have been looking for a spring 2019 thread but I have not found one, so I decided to make one. I have applied to Valencia College nursing program spring 2019, and just wanted to connect with others who are doing the same! I'm excited and nervous at the same time, I hope I can get in!

I am currently in Nursing 4 at Valencia. Each semester you will have class 2 days a week for 2.5 hours, and one day of clinicals that is 6:30 -4:30. Class days can vary each semester, but we have never had class on Fridays. You may have a mental health clinical on a Friday but just once in a semester.

Be prepared to spend every day off in the nursing lab practicing your skills in N1 if you want to be successful. Also, make sure you sign up for a mentor through the VNSA. It is extremely helpful to have a resource for.when times get tough. Good luck!

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Hi All Valencia Nursing Students!

I am looking to do an associates degree in Florida. I see that Valencia has a high rating on one website.. I was looking at Miami Mercy but Valencia has a much higher score (according to this particular site).

Can you tell my how/why you have chosen Valancia? Thanks in Advance for your great insights and suggestions! ?

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25 minutes ago, elzabeellie said:

Hi All Valencia Nursing Students!

I am looking to do an associates degree in Florida. I see that Valencia has a high rating on one website.. I was looking at Miami Mercy but Valencia has a much higher score (according to this particular site).

Can you tell my how/why you have chosen Valancia? Thanks in Advance for your great insights and suggestions! ?

Hi Elsabeellie,

I can't compare to Miami Mercy as I don't know anything about that program, but I can for Valencia. It's a difficult program, but we have a 100% NCLEX pass rate so it definitely prepares you. There's the traditional daytime program, but they also just started a night/weekend program this year so that's another option if flexibility is important to you. The other plus is the option of the UCF concurrent program which will get you your bachelors a lot faster. That program has its own admissions process and requirements though. From what I can gather, Valencia graduates have a great reputation with Orlando hospitals and finding work here after graduation is not too difficult. I'm not sure of the programs reputation statewide, however, so I don't know if having Valencia on your resume helps get you in the door in other cities.

That's about as broad as I think I can answer. If you have specific questions I'm happy to try and answer those. Best of luck with your research!

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Hi Scobyroo! Thank you for the feedback. I really appreciate it! This is a difficult decision.

Are there particular aspects of the program that have drawn you to study there as opposed to other Nursing Programs? I am interested to know what prospective nurses are on the look out for in terms of training. [NCLEX passing rate being one]. What are the other key variables to look at?

In terms of gaining higher level training, I hope eventually to become an NP.

I currently have a BS-bio and an MHS-global health, so getting another Bachelors degree is not an objective.

I am hoping to build upon my interest and experience in MCH to move into a nursing career in Postpartum, maternity or public health nursing. Might you know anything about the abundance of opportunities in these areas? What are the best specialities to try to prepare for?

Again, Many Thanks for your thoughtful considerations.

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Hi Jeanette, Thanks loads for the helpful suggestions. Would I be correct in concluding that the program is very demanding? ? You mention that it will require every free moment in the lab during your first semester. I wonder then, if one has the time to work during the program ?

I hope to be able to work a bit, perhaps even at the hospital. I have a BS-bio and an MHS-global health, so I am familiar with health sciences and statistics; I hope this will aid in my efficiency of studying.

A mentor sounds like an excellent component of a complete training program. Are the mentors part of the faculty? Where do they come from? How can one optimize one's change of finding a solid mentor...perhaps even in the area in which one hopes to specialize?

Many Many Thanks! ?

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Valencia looks pretty competitive - They are listed as #4 out of 50 ASN programs in Florida.

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12 minutes ago, elzabeellie said:

Hi Scobyroo! Thank you for the feedback. I really appreciate it! This is a difficult decision.

Are there particular aspects of the program that have drawn you to study there as opposed to other Nursing Programs? I am interested to know what prospective nurses are on the look out for in terms of training. [NCLEX passing rate being one]. What are the other key variables to look at?

In terms of gaining higher level training, I hope eventually to become an NP.

I currently have a BS-bio and an MHS-global health, so getting another Bachelors degree is not an objective.

I am hoping to build upon my interest and experience in MCH to move into a nursing career in Postpartum, maternity or public health nursing. Might you know anything about the abundance of opportunities in these areas? What are the best specialities to try to prepare for?

Again, Many Thanks for your thoughtful considerations.

Hi again,

Those are great questions. I will say, questions about higher level nursing education are above my scope of knowledge and experience still being in the ADN program. I may be mistaken, but I believe you will still need a BSN in nursing in order to continue on to masters level degrees. Masters level NP's are being slowly phased out, and doctorates are going to be required going forward. I do know that some schools, including UCF do a combined program from BSN to DNP. You may want to do some research to find out if your past degrees will count toward nursing. Those are all questions for NPs though; as an ADN nursing student I can't portend to know more than what I've heard.

As far as what drew me to this program, part of it was cost. I have a previous bachelors degree as well, and the student loans that go along with it, so I was looking for a good program that I could afford to pay for without taking out more loans. I have worked through the nursing program thus far and it is completely doable. It's not easy, but neither is the program.

When it comes to choosing a specialty, you'll find that once you start the program you won't be thinking too much about that. You may find things you enjoy during clinical, but as far as the lecture portion of the program, you're going to be fully and solely focused on learning and retaining the endless information you'll encounter. That's any nursing program really.

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4 minutes ago, elzabeellie said:

Valencia looks pretty competitive - They are listed as #4 out of 50 ASN programs in Florida.

The way Valencia does it, is if you meet the requirements you will be guaranteed admission. There is a waitlist though for this reason, so when you apply and are accepted it generally takes at least a couple semesters until you can start. As long as you meet their GPA and TEAS score requirements though you're in.

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Cost is huge for me as well! Not only have I had enough with student loans.. I am an older student and would not be guranteed have enough time working to pay off loans, plus I have kids who need education money... So I would definitely want to work...perhaps as some kind of assistant in a hospital/clinic to get clinical experience.

How much tuition do you pay for an ASN at Valencia?

The other collage took many of my science courses, so my load would be lighter and cost would be less. [In college I took A&P with Labs I and II; Inorganic Chem, Organic Chem, BioChem, Bacteriology, Cell Biology, ...Psych, Soc., ...] What I need is lots of practical nursing training, plus patho-physiology, pharmacology...

I am not familiar with TEAS - what does that test exactly ?

btw - I'm frankly a bit concerned about the emotional climate I'm hearing about in nursing. How do you feel with your peers? with your professors .. Are people kind, generous, mentoring, professional, brilliant or are they critical, demeaning, undermining, 'catty' .. ? I'm afraid I'm hearing too much about this! ?

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