Sophomore Latonya Turner was one of 400students to apply to The University of Memphis nursing school thisyear, and she was among the 300 students who were notaccepted.
"They need to make the nursing programbigger so more students can get into their major courses," Turner,21, said.
Among the 400 applicants applying forentrance into the Loewenberg School of Nursing, only 100 will beaccepted. The application deadline for fall 2004 was Feb. 15, andsome students were unable to pursue their major for anothersemester because of the school's spacing limitations.
Loewenberg has several pre-requisitesstudents must take before applying to the college, includingmicrobiology, nutrition and anatomy and physiology.
Students are also required to have a 2.7overall GPA and a 2.4 GPA in their pre-requisite sciencecourses.
Loewenberg is said to be one the mostcompetitive departments on campus, and one of thesmallest.
"I don't know much about the nursingschool, but what I do know is that it is very hard to get into andvery competitive," said Mackenzie Owen, sophomore nursingmajor.
Although she is classified as a nursingmajor, she has yet to apply and be accepted into Loewenberg, Owenssaid.
"I am afraid I might not get in because Idon't have a 2.7 GPA," Owens said, adding that she will apply tothe school next fall.
GPA is the determining factor of whetherstudents are in the select few to get into the college, saidLillian Bargagliotti, dean of nursing at Loewenberg.
"We denied about 129 or 139 outstandingapplicants, because of a lack of space," Bargagliottisaid.
Loewenberg has two undergraduate degreeprograms, one of which is a B.S. in nursing. The other B.S. degreeLoewenberg offers is geared toward students who are alreadyregistered nurses. They also offer a M.S. in nursing for graduatestudents.
Loewenberg has approximately 1,500graduates per year, yet it continues to take few newstudents.
"There is a shortage of space. There arenot enough facilities, and we can't accept as many as we would likebecause we don't have the means to," Bargagliotti said.
Applications for nursing school areaccepted twice a year for undergraduate students and once a yearfor graduate students. Loewenberg does not have a post graduationjob placement program for its students.
"We don't need one, I have a problem justkeeping our students," Bargagliotti said, "People buy them lunchand dinner and try to recruit them."
The nursing field is one of the fastestgrowing fields in the nation, averaging 2.2 million jobs in 2000,according to the United States Bureau of LaborStatistics.
"There have been students who have had twoor three job offers once they graduate," said Karen Hayes, directorof U of M Career and Employment Services. "Hospitals say they don'thave enough nurses."
For those students who did not get intoLoewenberg this application period, there is a chance for them toraise their GPAs and guarantee their acceptance next enrollmentperiod.
"Not being accepted does hold studentsback another semester," Turner said. "But now I get to work on myGPA and complete my general education courses."
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Nursing Facts *Employment of RN's is expected togrow faster than average through 2010. *As of 2000, the average annual salary of nurses ranges from $31,890 to $64,360. *As of 2000, there are 2.2 million jobs for nurses. *Nursing is 1 0f 10 occupations projected to have the largest number of new jobs. *There are a variety of jobs available for nurses, such as: nursing homes, hospitals, private doc tor's offices, private home health care, etc... *Nursing will be driven by technological advances in patient care. |
