I am currently a high school student interested in going into Nursing. I've been hearing all about how difficult it is to get into Nursing schools, how new grads aren't finding jobs, how there really isn't any nursing shortages, etc.
Despite all this, I am still interested in going into Nursing school. Right now, I live in the California Bay Area, and I have considered going as far as Hawaii, LA/San Diego for Nursing school. I am considering going into community college first then transferring to a CSU, which is obviously the cheaper route. However, i've been hearing what people have to do just to get ACCEPTED into the program. Volunteer work galore, straight 100%'s on their Teas exams, everything. The alternative to this is going to a private college, and I'm looking at schools such as Dominican, St Marys, and USF. Obviously it is A LOT more expensive to go to, but there isn't as much competition, and a 4 year guarantee is something that I really like.
What should I do to make myself look better when I turn in that college application? As in where to volunteer, what classes to take, etc... Thanks!:)
Keep in mind that a lot of the credits from the private schools will not transfer if you ever want to get your BSN or MSN (where I live). You will have to pay MORE money to retake these classes. For example, 2 privates school by me, Galen & Hondros - $18K per year(which is expensive in my area). None of their sciences will transfer to universities so the university makes you take it again. Plus, they can't get licensed in other states.
My friend went to a private nursing school for her LPN and hated it. She said the teachers were rude, the students were snotty, and they all had a hard time passing the NCLEX. And she is putting off her RN because of the debt.
Just because it's fast track doesn't make it better. You need to do some research on these schools.
Is it really worth the debt just to save a little work and time?
By private I think we are talking about colleges/universities that are recognized but not public. So not schools like Mount Caramel College of Nursing but schools like University of San Francisco.
It depends on the school, each one has different requirements. Some make you take an entrance exam and others don't. Some schools conduct interviews prior to starting the nursing program...my school did not conduct interviews and we also did not have to take an entrance exam.
Instead we started our freshman year as "pre-nursing majors," completed our pre-requisites, which included English Comp I & II, a statistics course, an "Intro to Nursing" course (which was a COMPLETE joke...if I knew *NOTHING* about nursing prior to taking that class, that class would make me NOT want to do nursing at all...the instructor was horrible ), psychology, ethics, speech (actually that was a co-requisite) and of course your major science courses. When I got admitted, I had to have a microbiology course (with a lab) as well as a biochem I & II (+ labs) completed. A&P I & II (+ labs) were co-reqs at the time. Now they are pre-reqs and microbiology has been changed to a co-req. After completing your science courses, my nursing program takes all applicants and ranks them based on their "science GPA average" (between biochem/micro at the time, now it's between biochem/A&P) and then decide on an average based on that which will decide who to admit. When I got admitted, I think they used a 3.2 GPA as a cut-off. My science GPA was a 3.8. This past year the cut-off was a 2-point something. It varies every year.
I think when talking about "private" schools, "public" schools, and credits not transferable towards BSN / MSN, you're referring to ACICS accredited schools & WASC accredited schools in general. It's not necessarily the tuition cost that determines whether a school is "public" or "private". For example in the SF bay area, University of San Francisco & Samuel Merritt University are both WASC accredited, while Unitek is ACCSC accredited (another accreditation agency). From what I understand with nursing schools, credits from ACICS & ACCSC accredited schools will not transfer over to WASC accredited schools.
You provide a good point. My cousin wanted to help me with deciding which schools to go to, and she said that I have to make sure that the school is accredited. I know all the CSUs are accredited, but i'm not sure about the private schools. The only ones I'm really looking at, just so everyone knows, is USF, St Marys, and Dominican.
There is a little more to it. You want to look at who they are accredited with as well as whether they are accredited. I don't know which to look for and which to watch out for, though.
If you're a chick, I'd go to Mills college or St. Marys because you're pretty much guaranteed a spot in one of their partnership nursing schools (like Samuel Merritt), if you enter as a freshman student there and choose pre-nursing. If you're a dude, tough luck because we don't got that lol.
The Squire is right. Many nursing schools are highly competitive to get into, but if you're a good student in high school, you'll have NO problem at all. The TEAS is easy...EASY...and I took it almost 20 years after graduating from high school (got a 98%). Just do a quick TEAS prep course online with practice tests so you know you did everything you can to prepare. If you can start right into a 4 year program, that would be the best, but you can always earn your ADN, get licensed as an RN and then transfer into a university or do an RN to BSN program.
It usually isnt that difficult to get accepted into a nursing program. It will be most beneficial to you to make sure you are taking all of the science classes you can and do well in them.
In order to make sure you can get a job when you graduate, my suggestion is to get your STNA the summer after you graduate high school. (it only takes a few weeks). You can work as an STNA part time.
With your STNA you will have no problem finding a job they are in high demand!
The benefits of getting you STNA first:
1. you will get some nursing experience
2. you will hopefully be employed by a facility that you like, and they will hire you as a nurse when you are finished with your education.
3. you may get a job that will help pay for your education.
4. you will see what nursing is like, so if you decide you dont like it, it will give you the option of going for another degree. ( many people who "think" they want to be a nurse, end up hating it once they do).
Getting your BSN is a great thing.
If money is an issue then you can consider getting your associates first and then transferring to get your BSN.
Once you get your Associates degree you can get your license and start working sooner.
Dont pay so much attention to what college you go to, many employers really dont care if you go to a major university or yahoo college of nobody... everyone takes the same test in the end!
dont get me wrong, some colleges do have better reputations then others so make sure you research them. Stick with a school that has been around for a while and is fairly well known. There are a lot of smaller schools that have just as good of a reputation as some of the bigger schools. They also cost less money and are easier to get into.
I am currently waiting on my letter of acceptance for the nursing program at our community college. Granted it is competitive but, if your grades are A and b's and you score well on their entrance exam you shouldnt have to worry about, getting into the program. I got a 92% on my entrance exam, and the class average was 55%. btw, for our school if you didnt have a chemistry class in high school you had to take it in college. So make sure you take the high school chemistry and save yourself some cash.
You should go and talk to your counselor about what is the best plan for you? There may be college dual credit course you can take while in high school, Dont forget to apply for financial aid, and take as many classes as you can at the 2 year community college it will save you a ton of money, our community college cost 90 a credit, while our public university is 280 per credit hour.. as opposed to 32,000 for the private college per year.
It would be good to volunteer at a local hospital as a candy stripper (or what every they call it now days) Its a good way to get your feet wet and learn the hospital environment.
), psychology, ethics, speech (actually that was a co-requisite) and of course your major science courses. When I got admitted, I had to have a microbiology course (with a lab) as well as a biochem I & II (+ labs) completed. A&P I & II (+ labs) were co-reqs at the time. Now they are pre-reqs and microbiology has been changed to a co-req. After completing your science courses, my nursing program takes all applicants and ranks them based on their "science GPA average" (between biochem/micro at the time, now it's between biochem/A&P) and then decide on an average based on that which will decide who to admit. When I got admitted, I think they used a 3.2 GPA as a cut-off. My science GPA was a 3.8. This past year the cut-off was a 2-point something. It varies every year.
happy2learn
1,118 Posts
Keep in mind that a lot of the credits from the private schools will not transfer if you ever want to get your BSN or MSN (where I live). You will have to pay MORE money to retake these classes. For example, 2 privates school by me, Galen & Hondros - $18K per year(which is expensive in my area). None of their sciences will transfer to universities so the university makes you take it again. Plus, they can't get licensed in other states.
My friend went to a private nursing school for her LPN and hated it. She said the teachers were rude, the students were snotty, and they all had a hard time passing the NCLEX. And she is putting off her RN because of the debt.
Just because it's fast track doesn't make it better. You need to do some research on these schools.
Is it really worth the debt just to save a little work and time?