Help with nursing school application!

[jhabvala]

Hi There,

My girlfriend is working on completing her prereqs in order to go to a nurse practitioner program. She holds a B.A. in anthropology from Smith College with a B+ average, but has little previous experience with science classes.

She is currently taking Gen Chem, Bio, and labs for both at UC-Berkeley's extension campus (for nontraditional learners). It is a particularly expensive program.

She is extremely concerned about her ability to afford the classes, and about her performance generally, but especially in gen chem. Doing some calculations, we figured out that she would need to get at least a B+ or A- on everything else in order to get a B- average (80%), and she figures the prospects for that aren't particularly good.

She is considering transferring to local community college to finish out the prereqs (which also include anatomy and nutrition) -- this would be a cheaper option, obviously, and also offers more scheduling flexibility.

Our questions are:

1. Does it 'look bad' to have your prereq coursework done at a community college?

2. How bad would it be to have a C in chem? Could she explain that by indicating that she hasn't taken science/math in a very, very long time? (since high school)

3. How bad would it be to have a 'W' (for withdrew) on her transcript?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks

[Dreams]

Your girlfriend is right where I was a few years ago when I was planning to apply to nursing programs. I have tried to answer your questions below.

1. Does it 'look bad' to have your prereq coursework done at a community college?

2. How bad would it be to have a C in chem? Could she explain that by indicating that she hasn't taken science/math in a very, very long time? (since high school)

3. How bad would it be to have a 'W' (for withdrew) on her transcript?

1. Taking classes a community college will not be looked down upon. People choose a cc for many reasons, especially financial.

2. Grades are perhaps one of the most important factors that will influence the admission committee's decision. I would encourage your girlfriend to buckle down and aim for at least some sort of B in the chemistry class. The grade requirements for nursing programs vary. Some require no less than a B in the prereqs. Some require overall a 3.0 (or more) with no grade less than a C. You will need to narrow down your program choices and check with those programs to see what their specific requirements are. If she is worried about future performance, then I recommend she locate a tutor, either through the university, or privately. I will forewarn you, anatomy and physiology kicks butt for a lot of people. And it is crucial that she master this.

3. If it is just 1 withdrawal on the transcript, then I doubt it will matter. I would be cautious if it were in the sciences or a clinically related class though. If it is in a gened course, disregard it. It is the overall performance that matters.

Hope this helps. Good luck