<p>I was told to come here for opinions, so I"m just going to copy and paste my OP.</p>
<p>"Hello. Well, I've only applied to three schools which include Rutgers NB, SUNY Brockport and Plattsburgh. I would like to apply to two more, but I have no idea where else I would like to go. I was wondering if you guys could help me out a bit? I would ask my counsellor for assistance, but he is no help at all.</p>
<p>Here's some back info to help:
~ In-State for New Jersey
~ 1530 for all SAT scores (490 CR, 520 M, 520 Writing) Improved from last time. Good Essay. Some Volunteering. Track during my Sophomore year
~ 3.6 Cumulative GPA. Took an two honours courses, half semester of AP, and I'm taking a full year of AP Lit right now. I've taken 4 years of Lang, 4 years of Math, 4 Years of Science, and 3.5 years for Social Studies.
~ African-American Asian Male
~ Would like to major in NURSING</p>
<p>Additional information to help find a best fit:
~ Of course, quality academics! Cheaper tuition.
~ Don't mind the weather, but not too hot.
~ My family is in New Jersey, so I would like to go to a school near or in the state of New Jersey.
~ A nice, clean campus. Decent surrounding city with some activities to do. Cheap parking permits
~ Diversity. It'd be nice to see different kinds of people from around the world, and across the country. Open and friendly students as well!
~ Would love to go to parties, but I'm definitely not one of those kids who'd want to get sloppy drunk. Just looking for a fun time.
~ Safety! </p>
<p>Apply to several more colleges very soon - nursing seats often fill up soon, and some colleges have stopped taking applications already. There are many direct entry nursing schools in eastern PA. A few include Misericordia U. north of Wilkes-Barre, Wilkes U. in Wilkes-Barre, Drexel U. in Phila, U. of Scranton, Alvernia U., De Sales U., Holy Family U. in Phila., and Neumann U. west of Phila. Most of those colleges have low application fees and simple applications, so go ahead and submit several.</p>
<p>The only other public college I know in NJ is College of New Jersey, which is supposed to be difficult for nursing admissions (as is Rutgers). I think there are a couple others at NJ public colleges.</p>
<p>If you go to a college outside of NJ, I believe you will lose any New Jersey state grants for colleges. That might account for thousands of dollars a year.</p>
<p>Some of the private colleges offer need-based or merit-based aid which may bring the cost down closer to public colleges. Some may also target aid towards minorities. </p>
<p>The three main public nursing programs in eastern PA are at Temple, Bloomsburg and West Chester. It may be too late to apply to Bloomsburg and West Chester, but you can check. There also is one at East Stroudsburg, but they are on probation for low RN test scores. Much further west, there are public programs at Mansfield U. and Edinsboro U., which are PA. public colleges that are easier for admissions.</p>
<p>Rutgers University School of Nursing in Camden now has a direct entry Nursing Program (started in 2011). While still very competitive for admission it probably is less so than Rutgers-NB (extremely difficult to get accepted to this school for Nursing because of the very small class size). You might want to consider the Rutgers Nursing Program in Camden as an option.</p>
<p>Charlieschm - Thanks! I’ll be checking those colleges. Do you recommend any other universities not limited to the NY/NJ/PA area?</p>
<p>Mwallenmd - There is no way I would go to the Camden area. I heard it is an extremely dangerous area, and I wouldn’t want to attend a school there. Do you think I would be able to get into the Rutgers Newark nursing program? I clicked the ‘consider me for other schools within Rutgers’ option while applying, so do you think they might consider my admission to the Newark nursing program instead?</p>
<p>The area immediately around Rutgers-Camden is fine, but you don’t go for a midnight stroll off of campus.</p>
<p>I only know about colleges in the mid-atlantic states, because that is what I researched and visited for my two kids. </p>
<p>Many of the colleges in Maryland and further south do not offer “direct entry” into a nursing major from high school. That can be beneficial to give you a second shot to get into nursing if you don’t get in as a freshman, but it adds to the uncertainty. Some of the non-direct entry public colleges with nursing include James Madison and George Mason Universities in Virginia and Salisbury University in Maryland. The eastern shore of Maryland (Salisbury) is actually not that far from parts of New Jersey.</p>
<p>It is my understanding that the the Rutgers College of Nursing has two locations (in New Brunswick and Newark) but it is one single College within Rutgers University. The curriculums are almost identical except for some differences in course name/number. As a result of this I would be of the opinion that while you might apply in a preferential way to one of the locations you might, in fact, be offered admission to the other one. How they determine which one is anyone’s guess. Nursing is an extremely competitive for admission at Rutgers due to the relatively small size of available slots and the large number of applicants. I don’t believe the stats/GPA of applicants accepted to one location is significantly different than those accepted to the other location (in other words I don’t believe the students accepted to NB are necessarily of higher “quality” than those accepted to Newark because the overall “quality” of the applicant pool is so high-although some individuals might have a different perspective on this). In any event IMHO your GPA is very good but your SAT scores are below those that most people would probably identify as being reasonably competitve for admission to Rutgers Nursing (probably at least 1800-1900 are needed for serious consideration). I am not saying that no applicants are accepted with lower scores but the odds decrease progressively the lower the scores. Rutgers is big on affirmative action consideration for admission so being an African-American Asian male might increase your chances (but I am not sure about this). It would probably be in your best interest to apply to some additional Nursing Programs for “back-up” in case things don’t work out at Rutgers. I wish I could be more optimistic about your chances. Best of luck to you.</p>
<p>charlieschm - I assumed the campus area would be safe, but would I be able to go off-campus to go to some things? Also, may I ask what “direct entry” is? I don’t think I would be able to get into James Madison or George Mason with my scores.</p>
<p>Mwallenmd - I applied to the nursing majors/programs at SUNY Plattsburgh and SUNY Brockport, and I think I have a greater chance of getting into those than Rutgers nursing. However, I was wondering what I should do if perhaps I was accepted to SUNY, and maybe accepted to the School of Arts and Sciences at Rutgers. Would it be better for me to enter straight into the nursing major at SUNY, or wait a year at Rutgers and see if I can get into the nursing school after my freshman year? </p>
<p>But hopefully, I could get into Rutgers nursing at either locations.</p>
<p>In Camden, the waterfront attractions are heavily patrolled - the outdoor concert arena, the baseball stadium and the aquarium. I’ve walked those areas by myself without the least fear. However, much of the rest of the city is dangerous. It is aggravated by budget problems and a current attempt to replace the city police force. However, from the Rutgers campus, you can easily take the High Speed Line into Center City Phila., with connections to reach all of the major destinations, arenas and colleges in the region.</p>
<p>SUNY Brockport and SUNY Plattsburgh are not a direct entry nursing programs and even though the general SAT/ACT scores are within your range, the applicants for the nursing program scores are generally much higher than the average student due to the low number of spaces available. If I were you, I would definately apply to some private colleges and see what type of financial aid you receive, because the state schools for nursing are highly competitive due to the low cost of the programs for NY state residents. Since you would be paying out of state tuition, look for some smaller private schools, if you are going to receive financial aid. I would also apply to Drexel (i think the application is free on line) and I think they take 300+ nursing students and it is one of the schools with the largest incoming class. Get some more applications in today, because my D has already been accepted to four schools with substantial merit aid (not financial aid) and the programs are starting to fill. We applied to 10+ nursing programs. (private and public)</p>
<p>ohtacos:
In Direct Entry Nursing Programs applicants apply for direct admission into the Nursing Program beginning in their freshman year. If accepted you are guaranteed continued involvement in the Nursing Program to obtain their BSN. In Non-Direct Entry Programs students apply for, and, if accepted, are usually placed in a category of “Nursing Interest” as a major. Students must then apply for formal admission to the Nursing Program at the same college, usually in their sophomore year, in order to try to gain entry to the Nursing Program beginning in their Junior year. However many schools initially accept many more students to the “Nursing Interest” major than they have slots for in the Nursing Program. In effect you have to compete with your classmates for the available slots and usually not everyone is accepted into the major. So this is somewhat of a risky approach, but obviously many students do it.</p>
<p>If you are not accepted into Rutgers for Nursing (and really intend on becoming a Nurse) but are accepted into Rutgers SAS I would not recommend doing this with the intent of trying to subsequently transfer into the Nursing Program. Direct Entry Programs generally have few available slots for students to transfer into and the odds on being able to accomplish this are extremely small. Competition for these few available slots is intense. My D attended the Univ. of Delaware (Direct Entry) for Nursing. Each year they only had 2-4 transfer slots available, and some students who attempted to transfer with GPA’s of 4.0 were not accepted (the competition was this fierce). So I really would not recommend this approach.</p>
<p>If you are really interested in staying in NJ (due to the relatively better in-state tuition for public schools) I think you really should at least consider Rutgers School of Nursing in Camden. I believe this School is not connected with Rutgers College of Nursing in New Brunswick/Newark and I therefor suspect might require a separate application. You might want to check with Rutger’s Admission about this. You still would have a Nursing Degree from Rutgers University if you complete this Program. From what I understand the crime rates at the Rutgers Camden Campus are about the same as in Rutgers New Brunswick and Newark. Obviously you need to take appropriate precautions for safety no matter where you go to school. Obviously there are areas of Camden you would want to avoid (but similarly there are areas in NB and Newark you would want to avoid). Whatever you decide to do, as recommended by the previous poster, you need to move on this ASAP. Again, Best wishes to you.</p>
<p>Drexel University does have an excellent Nursing Program with a relatively large freshman class. It is however, pretty expensive with a yearly cost of over 45K for tuition/fees/room and board. Also, unless things have recently changed, Drexel requires Senior Nursing Students to achieve a certain score on an exam called the HESI exam (it is a pre-NCLEX exam thats predicts the odds of someone passing the NCLEX exam) or they will not be given their BSN Degree. Students are given a certain number of chances (I don’t know the exact number-I suspect no more than 3 times) to achieve the minimum required score. If you are not able to do this you are given a Bachelors Degree in some other area but it is not a BSN. Without the BSN Degree (for students attending 4 year BSN Programs) you are not eligible to take the NCLEX exam and therefore cannot become licensed as an RN. In this situation the HESI exam is the “Granddaddy” of all Final Exams. I understand that this happens to only a few students each year but is is a potential risk in attending Drexel. Just thought I would make people aware of this. I understand there are a few other 4 year BSN Programs that also do this (I don’t know which ones however).</p>
<p>Marybee33 - I would apply to more schools, but I have no idea where to yet. Also, I would be beyond discouraged if I get accepted to a private university, but I am unable to attend because my parents won’t pay for tuition and room & board. I doubt I wouldn’t get any scholarships as well since my SAT scores are borderline average. FAFSA wouldn’t grant me financial aid because my dad makes quite a lot. Do you recommend college loans?</p>
<p>Mwallenmd - So, if I work really hard and do well my freshman year, I could get into the nursing program for sophomore year and beyond? </p>
<p>I am considering the School of Nursing in Camden. I’m hoping that they will consider me for admission to that location if I don’t get into NB. I wouldn’t mind attending Rutgers at Camden, but I’m just really nervous about the area because I’ve heard stories and seen pictures.</p>
<p>Another note, I checked my status for the College of Brockport, and they seem to have made their decision already. It says that I should expect a notification shortly, so hopefully I got in. It was a quick decision as well because I had got everything in on the 14th of November. This is my back-up school, and if I do attend, I’m hoping that my non-direct experience will be smooth as possible.</p>
<p>Any other school recommendations? Do you guys know much about Monmouth University?
Thank you guys for helping me so far. I really appreciate it.</p>
<p>The Sunys are nice because they have relatively cheap out of state tuition. However, there is no guarantee that the tuition will stay that low for the next 4 years.</p>
<p>It typically is very hard or impossible to transfer into a direct entry nursing program as a sophomore or junior. </p>
<p>At colleges that are not direct entry, there is no guarantee you will get into the nursing program - it is a risk. You might ask how many students typically apply vs. are accepted for entry into the program before you agree to attend.</p>
<p>Because nursing school is time consuming, you should not plan on attending a college where you would need to work during the school year in order to afford it. </p>
<p>There is nothing wrong with taking out federally subsidized student loans for a practical degree like nursing. However, the maximum amount of subsidized loans that can be taken out over 4 years is about a total of $20,000. You can also take out $2,000 a year of non-subsidized federal loans per year. You should not plan on attending a college that would require you to take out expensive private loans. Another option is parent PLUS loans, but they also are not subsidized.</p>
<p>Charlieschm - So I probably wouldn’t be able to manage Nursing coursework and a small part-time job (to make a little side-cash?)</p>
<ul>
<li>In your honest opinion, do you guys think I have a shot at getting into the Rutgers College of Nursing @ Camden if I didn’t get into the NB campus? I selected the option while applying to Rutgers to be considered for other schools within Rutgers if I didn’t get into the three I originally applied to.</li>
<li>Also, I think I’m going to apply to Bloomsburg and West Chester this week.</li>
</ul>
<p>Federal Stafford loans are subsidized and non-subsidized as previously noted. However, depending on family income (as reported in the FAFSA), you only may be eligible for the non-subsdized loan if your family income is too high. Everyone is eligible for the non-subsidized loan. I would avoid any other types of college loans if at all possible as they are all rip-offs because of the high interest rates they charge (including Parent Plus loans) and most all of them accrue interest which is added to the loan while you are still in school. You might think you borrowed $40,000 but by the end of 4 years you may actually owe nearly $50,000.</p>
<p>IMHO depending on how you are doing grade-wise once you enter college it might still be possible to hold a small part-time job. I would wait and see how you are handling your coursework and then determine if it is OK to try it. My D actually worked at two paid Nursing externship programs in her Jr. and Sr. years while attending school. But she had well developed study habits and is a highly organized indivdual. </p>
<p>I really don’t know for sure if it it easier to get accepted to the Rutgers School of Nursing in Camden as compared to the Rutgers College of Nursing In NB/Newark but my guess would be that it might be a little easier. But it still would be highly competitve. Again, Best wishes to you.</p>
<p>Bloomsburg’s website specifically says that nursing applications are due by Nov. 15. It might be a little late to apply to West Chester, but you can try. Their nursing class fill up fast. I don’t know if Indiana U. of PA. is still taking nursing applications. You can try Mansfield, Temple and Edinboro if you want a PA public college.</p>
<p>I have no first-hand knowledge, but would assume that Camden is easier for admissions than New Brunswick because of popularity.</p>
<p>Many community colleges have programs that allow you to take the RN exam. You get an Associates degree, and then can finish the bachelors later at another school while you work. It is not the best option, but it is a good backup.</p>