<p>I am looking at Virginia schools to get my BSN. I am a high school senior right now, and I really feel that I want to go into nursing. I like the idea of a smaller school, but I think I could enjoy a large school as well. I really like the direct-entry programs, so that I am certain that I am guaranteed a spot in the nursing program as soon as I am admitted to the school, but I am not ruling out schools where you apply to the nursing department later either.
I would really appreciate advice on which schools you feel have the strongest BSN programs in Virginia. Specifically, I am currently looking at UVA, Longwood University, Eastern Mennonite University (EMU), and James Madison University (JMU). Any other ideas of schools would also be great!
Thank you so much for your help!</p>
<p>You could also take a look at these schools-Virginia Commonwealth University and Old Dominion University. Also George Mason. Since you are looking at private schools too (EMU), there may be some other schools in Virginia or nearby states that someone could suggest.Good luck!</p>
<p>Radford University
<a href=“http://www.radford.edu/content/dam/colleges/wchs/nursing/documents/Application%20Materials/Nursing%20Fact%20Sheet%20Fall%202012%20Revised%20October%2015%202012.pdf[/url]”>http://www.radford.edu/content/dam/colleges/wchs/nursing/documents/Application%20Materials/Nursing%20Fact%20Sheet%20Fall%202012%20Revised%20October%2015%202012.pdf</a></p>
<p>This is one of those areas where talking to people already doing the job you want is invaluable. You might here from some on this forum, but you can also make it happen. Departments in hospitals have what is called a charge nurse; set up some meetings for coffee with a few of them at area hospitals. When you explain you are a HS student looking for advice about college I’m sure they will be willing to meet with you (they don’t want desperate job seekers trying to meet with them, so you want to make it clear that’s not you). This technique is called “informational interviewing” and you can learn much more about it in any edition of the job-hunting classic “What Color is your Parachute?”</p>
<p>Nursing programs often require supplements to the app in order to enter, and one thing they are very interested in is whether you have exposure to the field. It would be too late in terms of affecting admissions for this Fall to start, but still a good idea to get a first-hand sense of the field thru a job or volunteer work (if you haven’t done so already) before you get too far down the road. </p>
<p>In fact it would be a good idea to go to the websites of the schools you listed and see what they are looking for in terms of prior experience. As an example when applying as a frosh UVA says “Relevant volunteer or work experience in a clinical setting will be taken into consideration and may be a factor in the selection process”, and for UVA students who want to xfer into nursing they say “Q: What kind of experience are you looking for prior to applying to the SON?
A: Strong academic experience and some kind of exposure or experience in health care or nursing: volunteering, shadowing, internships, and/or work experience. Your experience may fall within a wide continuum of exposure to the field.” If I were you I’d also read thru the recommendation forms so you understand the questions your references are going to be answering if you apply to xfer into a nursing program after you are in college.</p>
<p>If you just want to be a nurse, you don’t have to go anywhere special. Just try to keep your costs down so you graduate with no debt.</p>