Feels like the past week has gone by at hyper speed! Bored and want to feel exhausted?

  • 12/11/16: I drove to SD at 5:30AM
  • 12/12/16 (AM): I had orientation Day 1for the ELM program in LA
  • 12/12/16 (PM): Appointments to see apartments in SD
  • 12/13/16 (AM): Picked up a used uniform and books from a previous student
  • 12/13/16 (AM): Orientation Day 2 at the SD campus (my campus)
  • 12/13/16 (PM): Rush to get a cashier’s check and take it with the apt. application to the prop. management’s office
  • 12/14/16: Drove back to Sac
  • 12/15/16: Best friend’s graduation from SMU’s ABSN program
  • 12/16/16: SF trip with my boyfriend
  • 12/17/16: 3 graduations for friends
  • 12/18/16: My other best friend’s birthday plans at the PACE gallery and then a visit to Santana Row in SJ

I AM BEAT! However, I have zero obligations (except the 4 chapters we were assigned at orientation *eye roll*) until this Friday, which will be my bittersweet, going away/26th birthday dinner. =] For those of you possibly looking for nursing school answers, I go into depth about orientation below.

For the rest of you, happy holidays! My PACE gallery pictures will be coming soon!

APU Orientation:

It was half what I half what I expected and half an eyeopener in itself. I keep hearing about how this program will not only test me as a person, but test the sincerity of the friendships/relationships of those around me. Some “friends” will not stick around to endure the hardship with you, and the true friends will be there every step of the way dealing with possible ignored texts/calls (not intentionally of course), missed events, etc. I can already tell which ones will be weeded out by my journey. Although, it hurts me… apart of me knew who they were all along.

Day 1 8AM-3PM at the Monrovia Campus (LA): 

Staying in SD with two of my best friends so myself and another student in the program carpooled together. We left super early (5:45AM) and hit very little traffic. We had actually been told in an email it started at 8:30AM by mistake (or type) by our program coordinator. Each location has an assigned coordinator to help them through the process of what is needed to be cleared to work in the hospital, books to buys, equipment to buy, etc. Luckily, we left so early because we showed up right at 8AM. Most of our other cohort came in late tho… want to make the SD look too laid back *eye roll*. They went over our Strengths from the Strength Finder test they have us take, go over registration, financial aid, study abroad opportunities, go over our learning strategies, and some material about the upcoming semester, the pre-licensure portion of the program (BSN/RN) and the post-licensure portion (MSN). We also had breakfast and lunch provided, which was great =]

Being me. I had already researched and contacted resources to know pretty much everything I needed to know about registration and financial aid. I really think the rest could have been squeezed into Day 2, but oh well! I guess it was good for those who were still not sure about the technicalities. I think the only things I took away were the study abroad info. (Cape Cod I might be coming for ya!) and the scholarship list.

Day 2 11AM-4PM at the San Diego (SD) Campus: 

We started with a tour of the campus, meeting all the faculty, and got our pictures for our IDs. We filled out some paperwork and then got to meet with students and ask them anything we wanted. We took a break for lunch and got to eat with the students as well. We literally asked every question imaginable. We also got to mingle with our cohort a little. This is the cool part! They had the IT guy (who is there every Monday) come in and had everyone connect to WIFI and the 3 websites (ATI, Kaplan, and SAKAI) we’ll be using. This way anyone who had a problem could get it solved right then! Next, we went over what the semester would be like and preparing us for the hard days ahead. Lastly, we got to meet each member of the cohort (via a 5 picture slide show we sent in and present), then did a team building exercise. Overall, I am really happy with the process so far, and I definitely like that I decided to attend APU.

Feel free to ask any questions about orientation, tuition/bills, applying, etc!