<p>Okay, I'm going to be a junior at college this year.
But I'm thinking of changing majors from accounting to nursing.
Two very different fields, I know, but I'm sure I want to do this.</p>
<p>However, I'm not sure what course of actions to take. It's already summer, so is it too late to apply into the BSN program at school for THIS upcoming fall? Do I even have to apply, or do I just take prereqs (chem, bio) this fall?</p>
<p>I looked at the BSN program at my school, and it says deadline to apply is Feb 15.
But I didn't even know you had to apply, I thought if you're already a current student, you just declare a major change.</p>
<p>I'm not quite sure what to do, and since its summer, the advisors aren't really responding to my questions right away.</p>
<p>At most colleges, it is not a simple change to enter the nursing program. Some colleges make it extremely difficult or almost impossible to transfer into nursing. This is because of limited seats (and limited teachers) , and because the nursing curriculum may have already had several classes in the first 2 years that build upon each other. If you have difficulty at your own college, you might transfer to a college that is set up for a 2 year liberal arts program and then you enter into the 2 year nursing program. There also are some universities that only offer the last 2 years, and are designed for transfers from other universities, such as Thomas Jefferson U. in Phil.</p>
<p>so what do schools base their acceptance on? i thought i was suppose to take all the nursing prereqs as soon as i can, and then apply so they can base their decision on my GPA from that.</p>
<p>because how does it make sense that they’re basing their decision on my GPA as an accounting major? because i have realized that i don’t have an interest in business, which is why my GPA is pretty low at the moment. </p>
<p>and do you know how other programs are like in philly? im currently at temple university right now.</p>
<p>Your answer is quite simply “it depends”. Is the program at your school direct entry? Or are you nursing interest until you finish prerequisites and apply for the program? My employer/d’s school is a nursing interest school. You cannot apply to the program until prerequisites are done (or you are at least enrolled in them). Your GPA requirement may be a cum. However, given the number of nursing interest students who are able to progress, there can be spots available for latecomers like yourself. Your school’s nursing program should have some of this info on their department website.</p>
<p>You also need to be prepared for the possibility that a bsn may still be a four year program for you. The sequencing is often very inflexible.</p>
<p>There are a ton of nursing programs within the Phila. area. However, many have shifted to emphasize direct entry (including Temple) and many no longer take transfers (such as West Chester). You might also look at some universities with less competitive admissions in the area, such as Holy Family U., Gywnyd Mercy College, Neumann University, etc. Some of the universities that has less competitive admissions reportedly still have good nursing programs. Most Catholic universities have nursing programs.</p>
<p>If you look at colleges in Maryland and further south, you will see many that do not accept students into nursing until their 3rd year, and therefore may be friendlier to transfers.</p>
<p>I’d try to take as many prereqs for nursing as you can this fall. It also is a good idea to do some volunteer work in a health care setting to show you are serious and to make sure that is what you want to do.</p>
<p>Another option is to get an associate degree in nursing at a community college and then later upgrade to a bachelors. That is not the best option for job prospects, but it can minimize your time to get into the workforce.</p>
<hr>
<p>You might also look into some sort of health care administration field. That might combine an interest in health care with your existing college credits in accounting.</p>
<p>Temple’s BSN program is 4 years and direct entry, and they require a 3.5 GPA from transfers. My GPA is definitely not a 3.5 at the moment, and I find that ridiculous that its the requirement because the reason why I want to switch is because I feel like I have a better competence of science than business. </p>
<p>How does it make sense that they’re judging my GPA off as an accountant major as to whether or not I will be accepted into the nursing program? Obviously, business isn’t my field of expertise, which is why my GPA is fairly low, but that doesn’t indicate that I won’t do well as a nursing major.</p>
<p>Generally, the larger public universities are more driven by pure numbers in admissions. Smaller colleges may be able to understand your point. </p>
<p>I’d also look to see if Temple offers any other health care majors that might have easier entry and might be attractive to you. Some other health care majors have more standardized work hours than hospital RNs, which is an advantage.</p>
<p>charlieschm, i would just like to thank you for your responses! they’re definitely really helpful. i just talked to the advisor for nursing at temple, and she told me because it doesn’t seem promising that i’ll get into their BSN program, i should consider finishing my bachelors degree and then applying into an accelerated nursing program.</p>
<p>however, since accounting really isn’t my strong point, she suggests finishing my bachelors in something else within the business school, something with a bit more social science aspect to it. i can’t really think of anything at this point, except maybe health care admin like you suggested. any other ideas?</p>
<p>So, now I’m possibly thinking of switching my major from accounting to healthcare risk management. That way, I didn’t waste my last two years at Temple because its still within the business school. Any thoughts?</p>
<p>Any overlap between your previous courses and your future field is helpful. Even if you become a nurse, having some business/accounting/administrative credentials could be valuable in getting a management job (with better hours and possibly better pay).</p>
<p>If you are thinking about applying to another college for a second bachelors’, I’d talk to advisors and check websites from those colleges and see what courses you can take now to save yourself time and effort later. Most nursing programs list their standard curriculum online - I assume that is also true with second bachelors programs.</p>
<p>I assume you are paying in-state tuition at Temple. If not, it may be time to transfer soon to a college where you can study nursing.</p>
<p>yes, now im kinda looking at absn programs after gradution at either west chester or penn state harrisburg. if anyone knows any better ones, let me know!
so my plan is to switch to healthcare risk management, continue my bachelors while take science pre-reqs and then apply to absn programs after graduation!</p>
<p>Nursing schools fill up super fast because there are a limited amount of faculty to teach. Most schools only have a very small amount of seats, so pre-nursing students compete hard and early in the game.</p>
<p>I would ask to speak with the dean of nursing to see what you can get done this year to be ready to apply for the next starting date.</p>
<p>BTW, skip the admissions councilors. Mine was helpful, but she had to turn me over to the dean of nursing for my questions about nursing. Really, any nursing faculty can help guide you but leaving a good impression on the dean is really worth it. (I speak from experience!)</p>
<p>Just so you are aware Accelerated BSN Programs are becoming increasingly competitive for admission, and most of them that I am aware of require a minimum college GPA of 3.0, some 3.2 (this usually is listed in their admission requirements, so you might want to check this at the schools you are interested in). Best wishes to you.</p>