The one thing that has always stopped me from applying for Nursing School is the wait! Where I use to live it was a lottery and I knew people who had been waiting over 4 years. Where I live now there is about 1,400 people waiting.

I still haven't finished my pre-reqs yet and probably won't be able to apply for the program until at the end of the next year. Then I'll probably have at least a two year wait. so I am looking at five years probably until I can call myself an RN!

What is the wait like where you live?

I can't believe how things have changed since I went to nursing school. Don’t get me wrong, it was a competitive process back then, but not like it is today. Holy cow! I think the average wait to get into a nursing program in my area is two years, and that's only because our local community college has dedicated big bucks into gearing up its nursing department. Hang in there. We need you in the nursing profession!


MJ

I think much of it will depend on the area that you're in, and how many programs are available. In the DC area, there are quite a few, and if you're willing to commute out a ways, there are even more.

Let's see, I returned to school in Fall of 2006 and started taking my pre-req's at my local community college. I didn't dare apply for any program until I was sure my GPA was solid and I only had on more semester of pre-req's left (which is where I am now). So I guess for me, it took 3 semesters to get into a nursing program.

I'm in the DC area and nursing school admission is really competitive. I was told by more than one admissions officer that I shouldn't bother applying unless I had a 3.5 in my sciences. My undergraduate GPA is painfully bad - ah, there is truth to the saying that youth is wasted on the young. I was really worried that even though I graduated more than 10 years ago, my partying reflecting GPA would haunt me forever. I nearly wept when I got my admission letter for next semester.

Hang in there! The education that you're getting is worth the sacrifices.

In this area (Seattle) there is also a 1-3 year waiting list for the schools that allow waiting. Many of the schools are competitive entry only. But don't let that discourage you, as another entry said. If you have to be on a waiting list, then continue to do things to bolster your application (volunteer, work as an NAC, etc.) and keep applying to competitive entry programs. Plus if you don't have roots where you are, cast a wider net for schools. It'll be easy to find a job in your dream area once you're done. School will go quickly so it doesn't matter if it's not in your ideal location.

Good luck!

In the Northeast the wait is about 2 years for the 2 year program, and the top students can get into a BSN program the next year. So...it's about the same amount of time to get a degree either way, but put in the first two years in school instead of waiting and you get the BSN! It's also easier to transfer in...if you do a year of community college and work on getting the GPA up and then transfer in to a bachelors program it's more timely...

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StorkNurse05

http://obrninma.blogspot.com/

I joined the training two days into the course.. guess I was lucky eh?

I waited no time at all! I just sorta slipped in sideways through a nursing program at what was then the University of the State of New York, Regents, Albany, NY. The twenty-plus-year-old program became Excelsior College a few years ago ( https://www.excelsior.edu/ ). The opportunity is the same, however, for paramedics, physicians, LPNs, and respiratory therapists to become eligible to sit for the NCLEX by transfering credits and taking a number of written and practical examinations. This is not the easiest path to take, but for a person who has a good grasp of medicine and has the requisite letters after his/her name, it can be a most expedient and satisfying means to a great end.

Hope this helps.

Joy

When I went to school 4 years ago, I had to wait one semester after pre-reqs to get in; now the wait is an average of 18 months...

The state university system is based solely on GPA and a pre-test score, so the wait can be minimal to never-ending...

There are two private schools with 4-year degrees that say they have no wait, but of course you'll pay for it...(last I heard about 16K a year)

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John

DisappearingJohnRN

I must be really out of the loop. I didn't wait at all to get into a nursing school. In fact, they recruited quite a few from job fairs. But then, that was almost 20 some years ago.

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www.MyOwnWoman.blogspot.com

Same here. I did a year of prerequisites before I applied, I was eighteen and there were 350 applicants for 40 positions. It was merit based, no lottery and I got in!

I nearly fell over! So, I graduated from nursing school at the ripe old age of 20.

Didn't know my head from a hole in the ground, but I hung in there!

We have go to get away from this lottery business.

I fell a post coming on.......

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The ER is the only place where you are rewarded for efficiency by getting more patients!

Kim
http://www.emergiblog.com