DSN Reviews:
Stephanie Arenholz
LPN 2006
ADN 2007
BSN 2011
“I now serve as a charge nurse and a floor nurse in the ICU of Sky Ridge Medical Center, where I serve on the heart team and where I am starting a trauma team. What inspired me at this point in my career was the faculty at The Denver School of Nursing. The way my instructors spoke about the field of nursing and their own love of nursing inspired me.
The faculty made all the difference and made me realize how happy I was in the choice I made to pursue a degree in nursing. Dr. Shelley Moriston was highly instrumental in helping me obtain my bachelors degree and it’s because of his encouragement that I kept going through the program.
Staying with our own group of students throughout the program was very helpful. My cohorts were so important and helpful. The Denver School of Nursing program is so rigorous and intense. It’s on a quarter system which is fast and demanding. And the projects and testing require intense focus and dedication.
I looked at all the nursing schools in Colorado and selected The Denver School of Nursing because I knew they wanted me and I would be prepared. Because of my experience at The Denver School of Nursing, I want to go back to pursue my clinicals and obtain my Master’s.”
Kate Creel
2012 BSN Candidate
Miss Collegiate Colorado 2012
“I think The Denver School of Nursing has great programs, professors and an excellent central location. Its accelerated program and smaller school size means that there is more personal attention for the students from faculty.
Your cohorts are like family. We work on test preparation together and bounce ideas off each other. There’s always someone there to help explain the faculty lecture and to assist you with homework and projects. There aren’t big lecture halls at The Denver School of Nursing where at larger universities you can feel lost. It’s a small, personal environment and I learn better that way where professors are focused and hands-on.
I’ve enjoyed the whole learning experience. I obtained my first Bachelor of Science degree at a large state university in sports medicine. But I never felt I mattered or was noticed.
At The Denver School of Nursing, everyone is working toward the same goal. The school is dedicated to preparing all of us as nurses and nothing less.
I did my first clinical at Presbyterian St. Luke’s and my second at Denver Health and in each instance the instructors were amazing. They were hands-on, they were right there with answers to our questions regarding medications or procedures, they helped us understand the whole scope , they were engaging and quizzed us and were highly interactive especially as we went through the Medical-Surgical/Trauma units.
I have been working as an EMT at St. Joseph’s Hospital for years but I learned so much more as a nursing student at The Denver School of Nursing than I ever did in my EMT training and my education at The Denver School of Nursing has been so much more intensive and better than any training I received anywhere else.”
Anna Eberhart
BSN Candidate Sept. 2013
Senior Editor, The Journal of Undergraduate Research and Scholarly Excellence—Registered by The Library of Congress
“I’m proud to be in The Denver School of Nursing. I hold my BS in heath and exercise science from a large university but I chose DSN because of its open start dates. After my first visit, I said to myself: This is where I’m meant to be.
The Denver School of Nursing atmosphere is so family-like. I was in a pre-med program where it was highly competitive. Here, everyone wants to help everyone. Every student in my cohort shares the same passion and wants to make a difference. We help each other to excel.
I chose The Denver School of Nursing because of its start date. I knew after my first visit this is where I’m meant to be. The professors are intentional with me. The students are intentional with me. They all want to see me succeed beyond 100 percent.
Dr. Spaulding goes out of his way and my patho-physiogiolgy professor goes out of his way as well to meet outside of class to answer questions, to hold reviews and to make sure we all understand that day’s lecture.
I’m excited about my program and can’t wait to do my clinicals. I’m interested in focusing on emergency pediatrics. I know DSN will help me with critical thinking and not rote memorization and I know I’ll succeed.
Farah Kedrie
BSN June 2011
RN at ICU at Swedish Hospital
The Denver School of Nursing really prepared me for my NCLEX and gave me a good base knowledge for my career. I was one of the most prepared RNs here at Swedish when I started my job.
I wanted to start my nursing career right away rather than start my career on a waiting list. The Denver School of Nursing offered me the fastest way to start my education and the fastest way to get into nursing. In many places, I was told I’d be on a three-year waiting list.
It’s easy for students to become very involved in the school and I was student liaison between the student body and faculty and administration. I worked while I was going to school and the faculty really works hard to accommodate you.
I enjoyed very good clinical placements at Swedish and that’s where I wanted to begin my nursing career. And that’s what happened.
The school’s faculty is really encouraging and supportive of a student’s goals and they excel at preparing us for the demands of nursing. You can enjoy a real relationship with the faculty. They’re personable, easy to approach and many nursing faculty have worked in the fields they teach.
I passed my NCLEX in 75 questions and that, I think, speaks for itself.
Maggie Mayers
BSN June 2012
ER Nurse – Porter Hospital
The Denver School of Nursing is a very good school with excellent faculty. The small classes provide for a great learning environment. The proof is in the pudding: Just look at how our students exceeded the national averages in our NCLEX scores.
Involvement is easy and important. I served on the Student Nurse Association board and found the faculty open and receptive to new ideas. I wanted to move our graduation ceremonies to a site downtown close to the school and the faculty supported my decision.
I always felt wanted at DSN. From the first time I met with admissions, I was told “When you come here, when you’re a student and when you graduate, we’re here for you.” I never got told I’d face a three-year waiting list. There’s a warm and receptive faculty at DSN. You see the faculty’s impact on our results, in our placements. It’s an environment where you really can succeed.
I believe in this school and will do anything I can to help The Denver School of Nursing.
Cara Wilkerson
BSN Candidate December 2012
DSN Cohort Representative
My experience at The Denver School of Nursing has been wonderful. I’ve especially enjoyed my clinical sites as well as the classroom experiences. My first clinical was at Azura Rehabilitation Center and my current clinical is at Presbyterian St. Luke’s.
Overall, I’ve enjoyed my clinical experiences since I’m a hands-on learner. I’ve also been a CNA for 8 years, working through school, yet I’ve found the Medical-Surgical II class at DSN to be most helpful in bringing together everything I’ve learned so far.
Getting involved in the Student Nurse Association (SNA) has been very enjoyable. Students and faculty are involved and open to suggestions so any idea you have can be done because it’s a small school and everyone is engaged.
The association is very helpful. For example, my family started a foundation, Love Takes Root, which operates an orphanage in Haiti for 54 children. The SNA is helping me and my Cohorts organize a trip to Haiti in 2012 and the SNA is leading the fundraising and medical supply drives so that I and my Cohorts can do our community health rotation there.
Employer/Clinical Sponsor Testimonials
Dave Blanco
Nurse Recruiter
Rose Medical Center
“I tell everyone that The Denver School of Nursing is the best of the newer nursing schools in Colorado. Their students and graduates are the most professional and most prepared.
Whenever I’ve visited the school, I find the students are ready, they’re grounded and they’re realistic about the work ahead of them. They show flexibility in the hospital environment and a willingness to do the work that needs to be done.
The school’s faculty and staff really care about where their students go to work after graduation. They make a conscious effort to get them placed and are diligent about follow-through with healthcare employers.”
Denise Baskerville
Clinical Nurse Educator
Colorado Acute Long Term Hospital, a 63-bed hospital in Denver, Colorado, providing high acuity care for patients requiring intensive medical, nursing, respiratory and therapy services.
Lifecare Hospitals
“We look for the qualities of good time management skills and excellent critical skills when we employ nurses at our hospital. Complex care is required for our patients as our population base is comprised of patients with multiple and complicated diagnoses. It’s important that our nurses fit well with our patient population.
Nurses from The Denver School of Nursing are very well prepared and work extremely well in a critical function site, especially those who are doing capstones. Nurses we’ve hired have worked out well. We’ve hired several and have three on staff currently.
They’re well prepared to be out in the field. They’re team players. They’re always willing to help and to learn about physician procedures.
They come in with a good attitude. They have high energy, they’re interested in providing the best patient care and they’re very responsible.”
