<p>moving the below to a new thread!</p>
<p>Hey everyone, mom of D#2, D#1 is at Syracuse. D2 looking to go southeast instead of Northeast, we are from Nor Cal. Goeogia, South Carolina, Bama, University of Miami-CG, Loyola or Tulane, Auburn, etc., To narrow down - she’s interested in Nursing with a strong family connection re post college employment - so no worries there. However, Colorado at Colorado Springs has a strong program (5-year) with the study abroad option. UMass Amherst is tough to get in, but very strong and in a great city. I’m open to unleash this process one more time. Let me know your thoughts - Thanks. letsgetthisdone2</p>
<p>Is your D a junior? </p>
<p>Has she visited Bama? Bama has a brand new gorgeous College of Nursing.</p>
<p>[Capstone</a> College of Nursing - The University of Alabama](<a href=“http://nursing.ua.edu/]Capstone”>http://nursing.ua.edu/)</p>
<p>The University of Alabama offers strong academic programs, a beautiful campus, superb super suite housing, excellent merit scholarships, and a genuine welcoming feel to students. The UA also has a very strong college of nursing with better than a 98% FIRST TIME pass rate for the NCLEX. Additionally, the facilities are virtually brand new and are state of the art. Nursing at BAMA is highly competitive and attracts many top students. Unlike some schools, Bama nursing clinicals are hands on and graduates from the Capstone are highly sought after. Clinicals include rotations at various hospitals in the area including Birmingham and will soon include the Children’s Hosptial also. The RN BSN program is nine semesters. Masters and doctoral programs are available also. Early promotion to upper division includes a required summer semester while regular promotion occurs in the fall. Bama promotes 96 students twice per year into upper division based solely on GPA with the students science GPA counting twice in the calculation. The link provided by mom2ck will provide additional information about the required coursework for lower division. If your D hasn’t visited, I strongly suggest you make plans to do so soon. You will be amazed by the opportunities at the UA and within the college of nursing. During your visit, you may want to also consider visiting the East Edge apartment complex office just to see options available once your D leaves the dorms. Although it is currently located in Midtown Village, the leasing office and model apartment will be onsite in June. The complex is directly across from the college of nursing, Druid City Hospital, and Student Health Services and sits beside the law school. The location makes it especially attractive to both law students and nursing students once they are promoted to upper division although it is certainly not limited to those. The complex will open this August with a pool, onsite fitness center, computer lab, meeting rooms, clubhouse, tanning beds, volleyball court, and covered parking is available. Units are fully furnished. Best of luck to your D in selecting a school. Roll Tide!</p>
<p>DD looked at USC and auburn. I can’t give a fair assessment because she already was in love with Alabama by the time she visited those schools. I have to say though as a parent I really don’t think anyone can top Alabama’s nursing program. Not only do they have the nicest facilities, the personal attention to both students and parents is above and beyond any of the schools she looked at. Their program is a 4 1/2 year program but if you want a study abroad option she can do it before she starts the upper division. </p>
<p>The only downside is if cost is a factor because some of those schools offer better scholarships if your daughter doesn’t score a 30 or higher on the Act. If she does score a 30 or higher or money isn’t an issue, you can’t beat the Bama nursing program.</p>
<p>I just heard that this year’s students who made it into upper division for summer promotion had the highest average GPAs ever…3.94. That is quite an accomplishment! Congratulations to all and Roll Tide!</p>
<p>We visited the nursing programs of over ten universities from Texas through the Mid-Atlantic. A couple of comments:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>UA had by far the newest and most impressive nursing school facility (classrooms, technology, simulation labs, etc.). Does this automatically mean that they have the best nursing program? No, but the significant investment in the program by the university is impressive, and knowing that everything is state-of-the-art is a big plus.</p></li>
<li><p>Everyone on staff of the nursing program that we have met is very friendly and helpful. On our first visit to UA, we were not able to schedule a formal meeting/tour of nursing due to upper division registration. However, we did go by to see the new facility on our own. A key member of the nursing IT staff engaged us in a conversation and ended up taking us on a 45 minute tour of the facility. Since he oversees in the simulation software and multimedia capabilities of the nursing school, we felt as if we received a “behind the scenes” tour!</p></li>
<li><p>The proximity of DCA Hospital for clinicals is fantastic, especially compared to some of the other universities where all clinicals may be a significant distance away.</p></li>
<li><p>While promotion to upper division is a competitive process (and will likely only get more competitive as nursing continues to be identified as a “best major” for undergrads), all nursing students at UA are in the school of nursing, and both lower division and upper division programs are held at UA-Tuscaloosa. At some schools, only upper division students are considered part of the school of nursing. Even worse, at several schools we visited, the upper division program is either not located in the same city as the main university campus or the nursing school is not even technically part of the actual university. Understandably, this was a big negative for my D, as she does not want to “start over” after only two years at her chosen university.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>Wow, 3.94 is a really impressive average GPA. Out of curiosity, what happens to the kids who enter the school of nursing but don’t have the super high GPA it takes to make it to upper division? Do they have to switch majors or transfer?</p>
<p>^^ I was just about to ask the same question. With an average GPA that high for promotion, I was also wondering what percentage doesn’t get promoted?</p>
<p>I don’t think you “enter the school of nursing” until junior year. Before that, you’re pre-nursing.</p>
<p>As with any of these kinds of things, even very early on (maybe first semester), kids realize that they aren’t going to have the GPAs to go forward. I doubt that a bunch make it all the way to the 4th semester and then don’t get promoted unless that last semester’s GPA fell apart. If by the end of frosh year you don’t have a high GPA, you’d change your major.</p>
<p>Like pre-med, engineering, and other majors, kids are weeded out quite quickly…</p>
<p>M2CK is right about being “pre-nursing” until upper division promotion.</p>
<p>I know there were over 300 that applied for Upper Division Promotion for Summer '12. They had room to accept 96. Even more are expected to apply for Fall promotion. In Fall 2010 (when this year’s applying class started at Alabama), average promotion GPA was a 3.75 summer and 3.65 fall - that’s what students were told, and so that’s the kind of numbers they expected would get them admitted. Students aren’t weeded out quickly because MANY thought their 3.8 would be enough. </p>
<p>Upper division will take another 96 in the fall. The ones who don’t get in will try to transfer (which is difficult… since most programs have already accepted their students before UA even requires the applications for Upper Division) or change majors. Advisers used to advise pre-nursing majors who weren’t accepted to pick up a minor in hopes that the average GPA would fall by the next year, but this seems pretty unlikely.</p>
<p>300 that applied for Upper Division Promotion for Summer '12</p>
<p>Were those all Bama students? Wouldn’t some of those be community college transfers as well?</p>
<p>I’m sure some were transfers, but I didn’t think to ask how many.</p>
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<p>I love you for this!! My hope is that all others will do as you have done from here on out in all prose.</p>
<p>I wonder where we can get more info. As I see it, there are about 1400 nursing undergrads. I doubt that the numbers split evenly by years. Likely the frosh numbers are the highest, then the sophs, then the upper classemen. And, some may already have AA RN degrees and are seeking bachelors degrees.</p>
<p>It looks like about 200 get promoted each year to the upper classmen program (some may be CC transfers). So, does that mean that only about 400 are upper classmen? </p>
<p>I know that the program is tough. I know that 2 of my kids’ high school classmates’ grades couldn’t “cut it” for Bama nursing and are now at UAH (which is still a good program, but has lower GPA req’ts.)</p>
<p>Nursing is a tough gig everywhere. My Calif niece gave up on the idea of nursing because Calif nursing schools are impacted and she was told that despite her excellent grades, she’d have to wait 18 mons to 24 mons to get into a program. So, now she’s graduating with a math degree.</p>
<p>Yes, roughly 400 would be upperclassmen because 96 are promoted each year for summer and for fall, so 384 would be upper division. I think there are usually around 4 students accepted as transfers, but this will vary from year to year depending on the average GPA. I’ve heard but have not confirmed that there were no transfers accepted this time and that sounds reasonable with the GPA for this period. Part of the formula for promotion includes a value for preference for a certain number of credits earned at the UA, so it would be difficult to overcome that obstacle when the GPA runs high. The higher GPAs are generally during the summer promotion period and level off a bit for fall promotion.</p>
<p>An important question to ask when comparing nursing programs is the first time pass rate for students taking the NCLEX. The pass rate provided by some schools will be the overall pass rate which includes students who tested multiple times.</p>
<p>There is an Intro to Nursing class freshmen can take at the UA to see if it interests them.</p>