Info: I’m going to become a senior in 3 weeks, so I have to worry about colleges.
want to become ER nurse
wants to go directly into 4 year program (BSN) but (RN) programs are fine.
Questions:
I never knew we had to take an entrance exam (HESI A2) so I DID NOT prepare for it. How in trouble am I?
When do I take the HESI A2 exam (1st semester of senior year, 2nd semester, after high school)?
Some colleges (https://nursing.uth.edu/prospstudent/bsn/prerequisiteguide.htm) require me to take prerequisites before entering the program. —> This confused me. I thought I could go directly into a 4 year program after highschool, why do I need prerequisites?
Additional questions:
UTHealth’s BSN program doesn’t offer a general education course for their prerequisite requirements, how would I obtain the credit hours then o. O?
Much thanks,
Nauseated senior and aspiring ER Nurse
Depends on where you go, all schools are different.
UTH is not a 4-year degree. That's a 2-year program so that's why you would need pre reqs from a community college.
What you are looking for are direct-admit college programs, if you want the BSN. This means you are admitted into the nursing program as a freshman. Other types of programs are 2+2 which means you apply to the nursing school end of sophomore year.
That is not direct admit, but you know, it probably doesn’t matter at a small baptist school. The issue is there is a fear that you won’t get accepted into the program, but at some schools it’s not as much of a problem. Also, I don’t think there are any direct admits close enough to you. Here is the list:
You can call them to find out how competitve their admission process is,
how many people apply,
how many spots are available,
how many got it, what admitted students GPA are etc.
If you scroll down this Nursing forum, you will see the “master list of direct admit BSN " colleges, it is not a complete list but will give you a general idea, be sure to look at the last few pages of that thread for the most updated " direct admist BSN” college list.
If you have to stay at home it probably limits your options.
Do our have a budget?
Can you pay hub ‘out of pocket’ from your parents ’ earnings and savings?
The issue with HBU is that their financial aid is lousy. They expect you to take on extra loans - and if you don’t qualify, You’re stuck. (and of course the longer you take loans, the harder it is to qualify.)
It is not a time to panic, but it is a time to be getting ready for applications to be submitted in September and October, preferably. Many nursing programs do fill up early, and some colleges offer more aid to early applicants.
Most nursing students do better on ACT than SAT, because the ACT has less math and more science. A good score will not only help get you admitted, but may result in substantial merit aid. Therefore, it is worth taking the test more than once and spending time and energy on test prep.
I’d suggest keeping your options open with a few applications a little bit further away. If you can get into a direct entry program, it will reduce stress. You received good advice above about asking for specific info from a college,about the difficulty of getting into a 2-2 program’s nursing major.
Many community colleges also offer RN programs, and then you can later get a BSN. However, many community college nursing programs require you to take prerequisites and then do a competitive admissions process into the nursing major. Also, community college nursing programs often have a waiting list.
HESI is a test that is mainly used for entry into 2-2 nursing programs, and is taken while you are in college. However, please read the fine print for each college that you are considering to make sure there are not any unusual requirements.
Ideally, you will find a college with a hospital nearby. Some nursing programs in rural areas or small towns (and that only have a small hospital nearby) will force students to drive long distances to get to many types of clinicals.