Worried about not having a 4.0? DONT!

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Hello fellow nursing school hopefulls. I have been using AN.com since I got out of the military and started on this journey towards my RN. In the last year and a half I have seen alot of joy, anger, frustration and strife on this website. Recently I posted some information on another thread in reponse to a Community College vs Ivy League debate, needless to say that thread was shut down. However, I think my findings are relevant beyond that debate and wanted to share them with you all.

If we follow the trends of AN.com it seems that everyone and their brother has a 4.0, but thats not an accurate indication of what the competition really looks like. A 4.0 is a very rare grade to get, one bad test in one class at a bad time and bam 3.95. Based on my states data (so there is sure to be some error when taken nationally) there is only a .5% chance that a transfer student has a 4.0!

How easy is it to get a 4.0 GPA in community college? Well 1 in 200 students in my state that transfers from a community college to a 4 year school has a 4.0, so its not that easy.

Of course this includes a few assumptions as I dont have the grades for all 9,702 students that transfered, but I do know that 50 transfer scholarships based soley on GPA were handed out and the cut off was 3.93 (so I assumed all 50 were 4.0).

Also I only have the instate transfer data, I am sure a few students that transfered out of state had 4.0's. But I am sure the ratio is pretty accurate for any transfer student as it doesn't take much to ruin a 4.0.

That being said, all of you out there that are worried about not getting into school because you don't have a 4.0, don't. If my state is a decent sample, it is highly unlikely that there are multiple applicants to your school with a 4.0. Not to say that you shouldn't still try your hardest, but a slip here and there isn't the end of the world.

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That makes me feel better! :)

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Ugh, I'm glad someone else noticed this and pointed it out! Almost all gpa related posts on here are all like "I have a 4.0 but blah blah blah is still happening to me, oh noes!" OR "I have a 3.5, it's just so low, me so stupid!" Or something like that...

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Specializes in Med-Surg/DOU/Ortho/Onc/Rehab/ER/.

I so agree with you.

Everybody's brothers moms sister cousin has a 4.0

Not true!

I do think its possible to have a 4.0 in pre reqs though and I know people don't know the difference, or they say that to make themselves feel better idk.

All I know is that its the internet and people can lie, easily.

Also, I depends on where you live. Some states, not necessarily are smart than others but, more populated states, are more competitive.

More people=more statistically smart people. Ya know? I'm not trying to offend but its common sense. Just like those same states have a bad job market and the economy might be worse there.

For example. My top choice school, CSULB, its not some top 5 ranked nursing program but its highly competiive. Average applicant, includes transfers and attending students, was 3.8. Which is pretty high. I mean I don't have that, I have a 3.5. So its like, is that going to deter me? No, I have a 4.0 pre req so I'm banking on that. This school is the only BSN school in the area who goes off purely academics.

So as much as everyone thinks a 4.0 is necessary, which in some places it is, like here. Is it true that everyone has it? Uh no.

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Well, I'm waiting to see what happens with my 2.56...

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Specializes in School Nursing.

I think a lot of people who have a 4.0 are also people who have retaken several classes and are calculating their GPA on the better grade. To be honest, I don't think that is a fair comparison to someone who made a 4.0 without repeating anything and to be honest, it's not exactly fair to the person who got a 3.5 the first time around. ANYONE should be able to make an A in a class they've already taken. Period.

I can only hope colleges notice this is some applications. Someone who has retaken 4 or 5 classes to inflate their GPA shouldn't necessarily get in over the lower GPA students. (Just my opinion)

Also- a lot of people here have different perceptions of what is considered for a GPA. Some people only include the basic nursing pre-reqs in their GPA and not general eds. Some schools look at each individually too. But it's easier to say Wow- such and such has a 4.0 GPA but when you dig deeper they are basing that on only 3 or 4 classes. The more classes one takes, the chances their GPA is going to drop (or go up if it starts low). I've taken over 90 hours- not many people with 90+ hours are going to have a 4.0. There is just too much room to mess up a class or two. If I only counted my nursing science pre-reqs.. I'm a 4.0 too! But you add in all the other classes, well it's not nearly that impressive. (not bad, but not uberultra high either)

There is a lot personal perception that goes on here. I've seen in the BSN/ADN debates people insist that their local ADN programs require more classes than the BSN do. IMPOSSIBLE. By default, a B.S. program is going to require more classes. So, be aware that what you read here is highly subjective to the person telling the story.

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Specializes in CNA.

Having a 4.0 should never be anyone's main focus.

Doing the very best you can should be. I have a 4.0, but after this (my last) semester I won't have one anymore, I'm on track for a solid B.

That's OK with me.

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California BSN programs across the state enjoy a pretty lax amount of competition with just over 2 qualified applicants for every 1 slot. But you are totally right that every school is different in it's application pool and the UC's and CSU's are going to have alot more applicants than WCC or National University (only basing this on cost). Take all 11,000 or so qualified BSN applicants from 2009/2010 in Cali, using my data (not really useable in this case, seeing as the two states are very different, but lets assume that my state is a decent sample of the US) there are only going to be 55 students with a true 4.0, which means the other 4,045 BSN students that got into school had less than a 4.0. Kinda cool.

This data is for first time nurses (RN-BSN programs were not included) and I would use real numbers but I am on my phone at a baseball game so I am roughing them slightly.

MJ, nothing is impossible. The local ADN program for me does require more pre-reqs than a BSN program at a state school up the freeway a bit, but then again that is a 1+3 program, not the typical 2+2 so it's possible that some of those arguments stemmed from similar situations. But I definitely feel you on the wide range of meanings a statement of "I have a 4.0" can have. Although I tend to believe people when they say their grades on here and I just think we have alot of that .5% represented on this site (although I am sure there are a fair share of 4.0ishes mixed in there as well).

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Specializes in School Nursing.

MJ, nothing is impossible. The local ADN program for me does require more pre-reqs than a BSN program at a state school up the freeway a bit, but then again that is a 1+3 program, not the typical 2+2 so it's possible that some of those arguments stemmed from similar situations

What do you mean by that exactly, though? What pre-reqs are required at your ADN program compared to the BSN program? Again, I think it's a perception thing. A B.S. degree requires a lot of liberal arts classes. I guess if one doesn't count these as 'prereqs' maybe one can make the argument- but I'd love to see a graduation check list from both programs.. as I'd place money that the BSN programs will require many, many more classes for the degree than the ADN program, overall. (I'm not trying to be argumentative, I really would like to see a side by side comparison- If I'm wrong, I'll happily admit it)

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Oh, it's not my ADN program just the one close to me. The way it works out is the ADN has "recommended" courses that are technically co-reqs but applicants can't get in without them, it seems like most ADN programs are set up similarly. However the BSN program has students entering in sophomore status, not junior like the majority of programs out there so many courses are done while in the program. In this situation the ADN applicant will take more classes than the BSN applicant. I know it semantics, and upon degree awardation (I just made a word) the BSN will have completed many more courses, was just saying it's possible to happen but is a very biased argument. For the record I am not applying to either of these schools as I want my BSN in 2 years.

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Okay, while I don't think it's necessary to have a 4.0, I think you should have a pretty solid GPA before starting nursing classes if you intend to go further in your education (BSN or MSN). The reason I think it's good to have a solid GPA before starting is because, for most, nursing programs use a different GPA than the rest of the college. For our program, a 78% is a C, and anything lower is failing. Now, we've all heard the C=Continue motto, and truly, I want to be a nurse, so if a C is what I end up with, so be it, though I'm hoping it's much higher. However, if I have a 3.6 today (and am taking two classes so it might go up a smidge or down a smidge, one class I should have no problem getting an A, the other will be a B at the lowest) and if I got C's in all of my nursing classes (I start this fall), I could end up having a 2.9. Not very competitive when applying for other opportunities, higher up. That said, I don't plan on getting all C's, so hopefully I won't fall below a 3.0!

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Specializes in School Nursing.
Oh, it's not my ADN program just the one close to me. The way it works out is the ADN has "recommended" courses that are technically co-reqs but applicants can't get in without them, it seems like most ADN programs are set up similarly. However the BSN program has students entering in sophomore status, not junior like the majority of programs out there so many courses are done while in the program. In this situation the ADN applicant will take more classes than the BSN applicant. I know it semantics, and upon degree awardation (I just made a word) the BSN will have completed many more courses, was just saying it's possible to happen but is a very biased argument. For the record I am not applying to either of these schools as I want my BSN in 2 years.

I'm sorry, I see what you mean. :)

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