What was your GPA?

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

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does your high school GPA matter for getting in to a BSN program, how do you get in to BSN programs in the states cause in Canada you just apply right after highschool and the pre reqs are ur basic highschool courses, but im doing my last 2 years of highschool in texas so whats it like there ?

What do you mean by that? than what are they advanced high school courses cause i have never heard of anything like that and i live in canada

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should i take honor classes or regulars im not sure about how american high school woks

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Specializes in Psych ICU, addictions.

Grades do matter for getting into a nursing program. However, high grades do not always guarantee admission; a lot of programs consider a number of factors in addition to grades when deciding who they will admit to the program.

Different nursing programs have different admission requirements, so we can't give you a blanket statement. You need to check with the individual program(s) to find out their specific admission requirements, including required GPA (if any).

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Specializes in ICU.
What the OP describes is precisely how my experience was. I applied to college directly out of high school and selected the School of Nursing on my undergrad application. There were no pre-reqs to be accepted into the nursing program, the courses were built into the 4 year program. That's how every school I applied to was. And, yes, your high school GPA did matter for getting accepted, as did SAT or ACT scores.

My school was exactly the same.

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Specializes in Cardiac/Tele.
should i take honor classes or regulars im not sure about how american high school woks

I used to be a college admissions counselor for a few years at a US college, so I can give some (anecdotal) insight about this. We looked at the entire application, but, yes, one of the things we looked at was whether the applicant had taken honors courses (if they were available). Not all schools in the US offer honors/advanced placement courses. Some schools that don't offer honors courses have cooperative agreements with community colleges and offer dual-enrollment, and students can opt to take college credits in lieu of HS courses (e.g., college physics instead of high school physics), and still satisfy the high school curriculum. But if honors courses are available at the school you go to for your last 2 years, yes, take them. If GPA was high, but the applicant hadn't taken any "challenging" courses, that was less desirable than if someone had a slightly lower GPA but had taken honors or other challenging courses. Exactly how much those considerations weigh in your application will depend on the college to which you apply. So, if you know the high school you'll end up going to, Google them, find their website, and see what they offer. Check that against the requirements of some of the local BSN programs. Plan accordingly.

Good luck!

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OP, please ignore some of the ruder responses. Generally your high school GPA and SAT scores only matter for getting into the university you want. After you are accepted there is usually a separate process for applying to the nursing program and they look at your college GPA and your grades in the nursing program pre-requisites. Generally you don't even apply to the nursing program until you have taken 2-3 semesters of pre-reqs.

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Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.
Ok thank you, is your daughter planning on getting a BSN? if so how much will those 30 credits shorten the length of the BSN.
Every school has their own requirements. Nursing is very competitive right now and they consider only the highest scores/GPA. You need to speak to your high school guidance counselor.

In the US there are 3 paths of entry onto nursing.

BSN: This is a 4 year university. You may enter this without "prerequisites" IF you SAT/ACT/GPA are good.

The SAT is a standardized test for most college admissions in the United States. Most nursing programs want critical reading and math >1000 combined score. Take them often and early.

SAT https://sat.collegeboard.org/home

The ACT is an achievement test, measuring what a student has learned in school. The SAT is more of an aptitude test, testing reasoning and verbal abilities. The ACT has up to 5 components: English, Mathematics, Reading, Science, and an optional Writing Test.

ACT Score Information | ACT Student

Nursing programs seem to value the SAT over the ACT

ASN: A community college two year degree that usually takes 3 years to complete. Your prerequisites are taken the year before your actual starting of the nursing part of the program.

While this is a shorter path to the nursing profession there is a trend in the US to hire only BSN graduates and a movement to have your BSN within 5 years after graduation.

Diploma: These are hospital based programs and typically take 3 years to complete. Some of your core courses like anatomy and physiology are taken at a community college.

Now some high schools offer collaborative classes at the local college to take college courses that will count towards your education in nursing. These programs are for advances AP (advance placement) students. Not all high schools offer this program. Check with your adviser.

My daughter recently got into 3 BSN state college programs. She applied to 4. She was accepted to the ASN program as well that she applied to. She will be getting her BSN. She graduates high school in JUNE. She has a 3.8 GPA and received a 1200 on her SAT combined math and critical reading. She is active in school and a high honors student. She does a mission trip every summer to a community of elderly and under served up in Maine to repir houses of the disadvantaged and elderly after the rough winters.

She took all the honor courses she could in high school and maintained a 3.5 - 3.9 GPA. AP/advanced courses count higher as a "weighted GPA"....so do honors courses.,

Take all the science courses you can. Biology, chemistry, anatomy and physiology. Calculus, physics, advanced algebra/trigonometry. Become active in school clubs join HOSA if your school offers it. Become active in your community. Volunteer at a local hospital.

I hope this helps.

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Specializes in ICU.

When you asked this question about a month ago you were given some pretty good answers then. Your GPA and SAT scores will matter when applying to colleges for general admission. Not so much when you apply to nursing programs. They will want a transcript but just to see what you completed. High school classes here do not count for college credit unless it is an AP class and you pay the money to take the AP test at the end of the year. If I remember correctly you need to score at least a 2 to get college credit. It is just basic courses though like math and english. Once you get into college you will generally have 2 years of prereqs and then you apply to nursing school. Then nursing school is 2 years. That is how it works in the states.

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