Where are all the Direct Entry students???

Nursing Students Post Graduate

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Hi everyone!

I'm wondering where all the Direct Entry students are? Perhaps you are all swamped this semester, and unable to chat, but I'm getting ready to start my prereqs and need a little motivation! :)

I'm wondering if anyone has advice in regard to where I should take the prereqs? I've heard from many schools that they do not give preference to a class from a top 4-year university compared to the same class taken at a community college. I do need all the help I can get to make myself competitive, so do you think the safer bet would be to take the class from a well-respected 4-year university? I'm also planning to rock the GRE, lol. ;)

Finally, my other question is whether I should apply to both Accelerated BSN and Direct Entry programs, keeping in mind that my end goal is to become a Nurse Practitioner. Thoughts?

Happy Thanksgiving all! :)

-K

Patrick1RN wrote: " Do you students who are doing a DE into a FNP program have any medical or nursing experience at all to begin with " Rest of post is above.

May I suggest you look into what a DE program requires before you and others shoot it down? (Also this isn't the thread to be discouraging DE students on). We are required to have as many clinical hours as regular RN students just in a shorter amount of time. Part of the reason getting our RN doesn't take 4 years is we already have all of the gen ed requirements out of the way and science prep classes BEFORE we can apply to the programs. A lot of programs that are DE require their students to become RNs and then work for a minimum of a year, some specialities 2 years BEFORE you can start taking your MSN classes. I agree MSNs should have experience as an RN so that they can understand what nursing is all about and gain experience.

School is my job and is all I and my classmates do unless they are also working part time or less in the hospital as CNAs/research with patients/other patient contact. My program didn't require people to be CNAs just to show they had worked in healthcare and knew what nursing was about. Just as the program states applicants are non-nursing students but you have to start somewhere just like regular RN students.

Best of luck to you.

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Specializes in SRNA.
Do you students who are doing a DE into a FNP program have any medical or nursing experience at all to begin with . At all ? I guess since people want to go straight into working as a FNP and what have you. I wish you all the best of luck, but to be honest I feel that you need to work as a RN for several yrs at 1st before you start grad school. 2 yrs full time at least in my opinion. I dont know Im not an academia. I know that working as a RN and working as a FNP is clinically significantly different, but the things you learn as a RN just from seeing those patients with those common and not so common diseases and seeing what CHF vs Cellulitis VS venous insuffiency makes a world of difference. Seeing what the MD or the NP prescribes for the patient and seeing the disease first hand really affords the RN a chance to see how that disease process is treated, what works, what doesnt, what other lab tests you should order and what is not clinically significant. No way can they teach you all that in a DE MSN/FNP program. It would take years, but then again I do not have your curriculum in front of me. I can speak for my regular FNP program and myself where I went to school as a Army medic in the US army to learn how to be a medic, worked under several physicians both in combat and in peacetime for 6 plus yrs, got my associates degree as a RN , worked and went back to school for my BSN, worked, deployed again as a medic to afghanistan and worked in the medical field over in the war, then coming home to start my FNP program and still working in the MICU part time while i am in school. I assume you people go to school full time, study all the time, dont have a job and make school your job.. I would hope so anyway. I dont mean to sound condescending in any way, but their is no way you can learn what is normal good or normal bad or bad bad or good good unless you work as a RN for a while. But Best of luck with your programs and wish me best of luck with mine, I have ten months to go till I am done with my FNP program !!!!!!!!

Patrick,

So with this tedious post (sans paragraphs and quite painful on the eyes) you've decided to insult potential and current DEMSN students and their choice of academic paths while claiming that you have no idea of the various program curricula and what the respective programs entail.

Good for you and your work ethic, please feel free to share any advice or tips you may have for many of the students who succeed here and support each other, but please leave the rest at home. :uhoh3:

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Asherah,

My apologies that my last post was so painful on the eyes. I had directly quoted the original post that I was replying to (see the post above mine). As I stated originally in my post, Patrick1RN should look into what a DE program entails? I am CURRENTLY a DE student so I know what it all about. I also agree that people should be supportive especially in this thread which I noted.

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Specializes in SRNA.
Asherah,

My apologies that my last post was so painful on the eyes. I had directly quoted the original post that I was replying to (see the post above mine). As I stated originally in my post, Patrick1RN should look into what a DE program entails? I am CURRENTLY a DE student so I know what it all about. I also agree that people should be supportive especially in this thread which I noted.

Student...

No, I was responding to the poster above you, the same one you replied to. I quoted his post in my response. ;)

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Specializes in Family Nurse Practitioner.

Wow, I didnt realize you all got to offended by my opinion. No mean to offend anyone who is in the DE program. All I meant is NPs should have some clinical experience as a RN before going into a NP program.

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patrick1rn,

I'm sure you were just sharing your opinion, and I'm sure your intention was completely innocent, however, I started this topic as a way for Direct-Entry students to chat with each other, and hopeful DE students to ask questions of them. For those of us who are DE students, or want to be, we get tired of hearing how people think we should have RN experience before going straight into the NP program (which they do get plenty of experience, and many choose to work for a little while before entering the masters portion, but I digress). My point here is that if you would like to discuss your opinions on this topic further, feel free to start your own post, or add to the ones that currently exist.

We all want to be APNs, and there are many paths to get there. I wish more RNs accepted this!

Thanks,

Kens

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