Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) CRNA 2025 start

Nursing Students SRNA

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Is anyone in here applying for the upcoming VCU CRNA application cycle for January 2025 start?

Specializes in CVICU, ICU.
pulm_icu said:

What's up everyone, has anyone heard anything about interviews?

Hi. They won't start reaching out until May to interview in June and final decisions by Aug 1st the latest...according to the info session they had. 

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Hey all, current senior student in the program here. I can't speak to the current application process or interviews, because that changes from year-to-year. If anyone has questions about the program though, I'm happy to share what I know.

Good luck to everyone.

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Specializes in ICU/RAPID nurse.
WillResuscForCookies said:

Hey all, current senior student in the program here. I can't speak to the current application process or interviews, because that changes from year-to-year. If anyone has questions about the program though, I'm happy to share what I know.

Good luck to everyone.

I have a few questions, how was the interview process? Clinical based or emotional intelligence ? We're most clinical sites close to the school ? 

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Specializes in CICU.
WillResuscForCookies said:

Hey all, current senior student in the program here. I can't speak to the current application process or interviews, because that changes from year-to-year. If anyone has questions about the program though, I'm happy to share what I know.

Good luck to everyone.

Thanks so much! My questions are: How well prepared do you feel to practice independently? Do you feel well supported by the school? Also, this is just a side question about all CRNA schools, but is there an opportunity to be a TA? 

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pulm_icu said:

I have a few questions, how was the interview process? Clinical based or emotional intelligence ?

The interview process is updated each year. So, as I said, I can't speak to what you'll encounter. My advice is to be well-prepared for both types of questions, so that you can be relaxed during the interview and give thoughtful, genuine answers.

pulm_icu said:

We're most clinical sites close to the school ? 

Speaking for myself, yes, but your individual experience may vary. It depends somewhat on whether you attend in Richmond or one of the three distance sites (Abingdon, NOVA, and Roanoke), and also on what kind of experience you're looking for. Some of our elective or specialty rotations are assigned based upon student requests, so you have some limited ability to "curate" the clinical experience to fit your interests.

I think that the diversity of our clinical sites is one of the programs greatest strengths. There are almost 70 including level I trauma centers, children's hospitals, community hospitals, military hospitals, CRNA-only hospital practices, ambulatory surgery centers, and even CRNA-owned and operated office-based dental anesthesia practices. Taken as a whole, we have ample opportunities for some of the harder to get clinical numbers like regional blocks, obstetrics, and pediatrics under age 2 years.

Speaking as a Richmond student, I could get everything I need to graduate and sit for the NCE within 30 minutes drive of my apartment. That being said, a lot of Richmond students still elect to travel further away for additional experiences (above and beyond what's required) with regional or pediatrics, if that's their thing. Those clinical sites generally have free housing.

What I know about the distance sites is all second-hand, so take it with a grain of salt, but I think our students in Abingdon and/or Roanoke tend to travel a bit further for clinical, owing to how sparsely populated those parts of the state are. Again second-hand, but our students in NOVA are in a pretty saturated area where there are five anesthesia programs within 50 miles of each other. So, I think most of them end up needing to travel at least once.

MCSatYS said:

How well prepared do you feel to practice independently?Also, this is just a side question about all CRNA schools, but is there an opportunity to be a TA? 

I guess that depends on what you mean? For most cases, I'm practicing "independently" right now, with my preceptor acting only as a resource. If you're talking about being prepared for practice in an independent CRNA-only environment after graduation, then no, I'm not prepared for that, but I could have been. As I wrote earlier, you have some ability to curate your experience here. If I were interested in independent practice, then I (personally) would have sought out more obstetrics and regional, because those are really the only two areas that give me pause when I think about solo practice. Neither is really my jam though, so I focused on the areas that were.

MCSatYS said:

Do you feel well supported by the school?

Yes. Culture was really important to me when I was looking at programs. I had other options, and chose VCU in large part because a trusted friend had attended a few years before me. They spoke a lot about what a challenging yet supportive environment it was. Make no mistake about it... this is the hardest thing I've ever done, but everyone here wants you to make it to the finish line. It's not the kind of program that admits 50 people planning to graduate 35 of them. I feel like a person here, not a number.

MCSatYS said:

is there an opportunity to be a TA? 

Yes. There are lots of opportunities to TA for simulation labs, and a few people TA for some of the core science courses too.

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Specializes in ICU/RAPID nurse.

Anyone get interview yet?

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Specializes in Medical/Covid ICU.

Nope. They said after may 31 now.

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Specializes in ICU/RAPID nurse.
Roses_and_poses said:

Nope. They said after may 31 now.

Ugh the waiting!! 

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Specializes in CVICU, ICU.
Roses_and_poses said:

Nope. They said after may 31 now.

Oh wow. They had said may and interview the first two weeks of June. Good to get an update! Thanks 

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Specializes in ICU/RAPID nurse.
Isa A said:

Oh wow. They had said may and interview the first two weeks of June. Good to get an update! Thanks 

Such a short notice for some people like me who has kids and works 4 -5 shifts at the hospital a week. 

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Specializes in CVICU, ICU.
pulm_icu said:

Such a short notice for some people like me who has kids and works 4 -5 shifts at the hospital a week. 

This is what they said on an email they sent a few weeks ago in April. But now someone said we won't hear until after May 31st so I would assume interviews will be late June or July ? IDK 

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Specializes in ICU.

Those saying after may 31- did you get an email that said this or contact the school directly? 

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