Western PA schools interviews

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I just got an interview at Allegheny Valley school of anesthesia and was curious if anyone could give me some insight on their interview process. Do they ask a lot of clinical questions? What should I study for the interview? I would be very thankful. I also applied to the U of Pitt and Westmoreland anesthesia schools. Any help with their interviews would also be appreciated.

what kind of situation did they have? Just curious

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I guess I should have also told you that Westmoreland's interview was the most laid back of the three (Pitt, Allegheny Valley). I felt the most comfortable in that interview, and that is why I chose that school (I got into all three). Westmoreland's interview is really, i think, about getting to know your personality, and what kind of person you are, rather than how much clinical experience you have. Pitt's interview was kind of intense as well. They start with an overview of their program via power point presentation, then they give you a tour. You get to see the simulation lab (pretty nice, but imagined myself being grilled by the program instructor while trying to intubate this dummy- but i guess it would be better than a human being). Then you interview with approximately five different people- a junior or senior, a couple of instructors, the assistant director of the program, and then John O' Donnell (his interview made me the most nervous, the questions are a little more personal here.) I went with my gut when i chose my school. Pitt didn't seem to be understanding with anything that might pop up in your life during your schooling (your life revolved around their program) Well, good luck on your interviews! Perhaps, I may see you at Westmoreland next year!

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what kind of situation did they have? Just curious

Well, the assistant director let it be known that they had a student a just a few years back( she mentioned the time but I cannot remember correctly) while in the OR could could not interprete basic cardiac waveforms, or use the Swanz. An MDA apparently had noticed the deficiency. The The second year student had a few months to graduation.The MDA promptly called the director of the program, the student was sent out of clinical site for that day, a decision was reached later to let the student go.

My understanding at the time(during my interview) that is why they take critical care background seriously. The assistant program further explained, the program is 24 months and they really do not have time to fit in a critical care nursing component into the program.

During the interview we were told the school had maintained a 100% first time pass rate for more than a few years or so, and they will like to keep it that way. They really press for you to take the exam within two months after graduation. The assistant director claims there is some data or sliding scale, the more that the more time lapse between completing the program and you taking the board exam the chances of assured success depreciates appreciably.

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Pretty interesting. Reminds me of the other thread where a CRNA was saying that SRNA's don't necessarily need ICU experience for admission to CRNA school. I guess that is evidence that they do need the CCU experience. You may want to consider posting on that thread.

Even still though, wouldn't it have been prudent to remediate the student, or at least make her repeat something? I just think it is pretty harsh to let her go a few wks before graduation. Sounds as if there may have been more at issue that just not knowing the swanz and waveforms too though, so one cannot pre-judge. Not only that, it is not difficult to learn the cardiac waveforms if you see them enough, and this student should have taken the time to do so while she was in SRNA clinical. In any case, I feel bad the student had to go through all that grueling education, and then be let go. CRNA school I do not expect to be easy at all.

I have heard the PITT interview is tiresome. I know a person who is going there. I have heard that Allegheny's Interviews were more clinical based. I interviewed at Westmoreland and Nazareth Hospital in philly. I was scheduled to interview with Allegheny, but cancelled because I chose to go to a school in philadelphia that I liked much better, and clicked real well with.

I know you did not have anything to do with it. I was just bringing it up for the sake of discussion. Where did you decide to go to school if you did not go to allegheny, and why did you not select allegheny just out of curiosity?

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Pretty interesting. Reminds me of the other thread where a CRNA was saying that SRNA's don't necessarily need ICU experience for admission to CRNA school. I guess that is evidence that they do need the CCU experience. You may want to consider posting on that thread.

Even still though, wouldn't it have been prudent to remediate the student, or at least make her repeat something? I just think it is pretty harsh to let her go a few wks before graduation. Sounds as if there may have been more at issue that just not knowing the swanz and waveforms too though, so one cannot pre-judge. Not only that, it is not difficult to learn the cardiac waveforms if you see them enough, and this student should have taken the time to do so while she was in SRNA clinical. In any case, I feel bad the student had to go through all that grueling education, and then be let go. CRNA school I do not expect to be easy at all.

I have heard the PITT interview is tiresome. I know a person who is going there. I have heard that Allegheny's Interviews were more clinical based. I interviewed at Westmoreland and Nazareth Hospital in philly. I was scheduled to interview with Allegheny, but cancelled because I chose to go to a school in philadelphia that I liked much better, and clicked real well with.

I know you did not have anything to do with it. I was just bringing it up for the sake of discussion. Where did you decide to go to school if you did not go to allegheny, and why did you not select allegheny just out of curiosity?

Most schools determine what they consider to be Critical Care(CC).

Some programs have some restrictions to ICU only, some programs even go forward make you understand that the ICU experience most expose you to certain clinical senerio.Top of my head example, Mayo, would take you even with Telemetry experience. While a program in South Carolina would not consider you an interview candidate if you had less than 2-3 of ICU experience.

The student in question had but months to graduation. Well, the assistant Director let it be known that, the 24 month program really does not give them time to play around with teaching students CC stuff. Actually I also wondered why they did not just bring the student up to speed on CC nursing. The used to be a program in near the pittsburgh area that closed just of recent, well some of the students in that program were admitted into allegheny valley program. To me, that shows that these people are reasonalbe. I am not trying to defent their action towards the student they the let go, it only goes to explain the reason for their 80% clincal based interview.

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I am considering going to Westmoreland's/Excela 2009, can you please tell me about your experience in the program? Were the faculty supportive, how were clinicals? Basically anything worth mentioning.

Thank you.

I guess I should have also told you that Westmoreland's interview was the most laid back of the three (Pitt, Allegheny Valley). I felt the most comfortable in that interview, and that is why I chose that school (I got into all three). Westmoreland's interview is really, i think, about getting to know your personality, and what kind of person you are, rather than how much clinical experience you have. Pitt's interview was kind of intense as well. They start with an overview of their program via power point presentation, then they give you a tour. You get to see the simulation lab (pretty nice, but imagined myself being grilled by the program instructor while trying to intubate this dummy- but i guess it would be better than a human being). Then you interview with approximately five different people- a junior or senior, a couple of instructors, the assistant director of the program, and then John O' Donnell (his interview made me the most nervous, the questions are a little more personal here.) I went with my gut when i chose my school. Pitt didn't seem to be understanding with anything that might pop up in your life during your schooling (your life revolved around their program) Well, good luck on your interviews! Perhaps, I may see you at Westmoreland next year!
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Specializes in Cardio-thoracic ICU, SRNA.

Air is right, I have also heard about that incident as well. My best friend graduated from Alleghany Valley last year and I applied thinking that he would put a good word in for me. Well, like my other classmate that posted earlier who is currently attending Excela Health School of Anesthesia, I too interviewed with Deb and the then Assistant Program Director. Deb is an excrutiatingly intimidating personality. She is extremely intelligent and I promise you she will find ANY weakness you have in your knowledge base. My recommendation is whatever experience you have put on your resume, ya better know everything about it, inside and out. I though I was gonna be cute and sound professional by putting that I worked with Balloon pumps and LVAD's and some other really obscure equiptment, and she started ripping into me about pressures and muscle size and some pretty in depth stuff. Needless to say I left that interview with my head up my !#$. It definitely gave me an idea of what I needed to know for any subsequent interviews.

Then I interviewed at Excela, 180 degree difference, got accepted and am looking forward to graduating next December. Good luck.

Oh yeah, one more thing, I am dead serious when I say this that the 2 girls that I interviewed with that day left crying. The other guy just left with this completely confused look with his eyes glazed over. It's a brute of an interview. Not to get you nervous or anything, haha.

Marc

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