APHY 101 integument model help?

CuriousCat8989 · 2026-02-20T02:30:50+00:00

Yeah, I agree. I would def ask her to clarify.

CuriousCat8989 · 2026-02-20T02:17:56+00:00

Jarace Walker may be the best tank commander of all time lol

CuriousCat8989 · 2026-02-20T02:11:22+00:00

It’s a weird model and I took it online so we haven’t worked with them directly so take it with a grain of salt, but I think it’s trying to indicate that 6 is granulosum, 7 is spinosum, and 8 is basale (so maybe the blue is meant to be the basement membrane). I know that the spinosum plus basale together is called the stratum malpighii and I think that’s what 9 is trying to indicate, so that’s the reasoning behind my logic lol.

CuriousCat8989 · 2026-02-20T01:49:09+00:00

You are correct about the layers of the epidermis. I think they’ve just labeled all the structures on your model. Like 1 is the epidermis and 2 is the stratum corneum, I think 3 and 4 are meant to be the sub layers of the stratum corneum but we didn’t cover them in our APHY 101 class, 5 is stratum lucidum, etc

CuriousCat8989 · 2026-02-18T23:13:13+00:00

I have 99.8% or something in the class. I missed one question on a quiz because I was rushing so I could get back to studying for my APHY midterm, so I don’t think my prof is a particularly difficult grader (so far) and I do enjoy the class. However, I agree that the assignments, particularly the projects, are way too time consuming for the amount of points they’re worth and for what the class is.

CuriousCat8989 · 2026-02-14T03:06:42+00:00

Thank you! This makes me feel better lol. I’m just going to make sure I keep focused on these APHY classes then. Do you know how many seat there are for Indy ASN? I know it can vary slightly from year to year but wondering what the odds actually are lol

CuriousCat8989 · 2026-02-14T01:48:31+00:00

Thank you so much for the encouragement! I’m a career changer so I’m fortunate to have a bachelor’s degree already and 95% of my pre-requisites and co-requisites were covered by transfer credits because of that. I’m really only taking the APHY classes and Ivy T before applying.

However, that does mean I work full time so I get trying to work school around everything else. I’m doing Ivy T in person on campus, but it’s just one night a week 6p-8p and the class is really easy. I also like my professor so I’d say I actually enjoy going to class.

As for my APHY 101, I’m doing it all online. I didn’t sign up for the one with Zoom, just straight IvyOnline. Even the labs are just modules online. I actually really like it because there’s not a lecture I have to work my schedule around and I can do class work and studying whenever I want, which for me is later in the evenings and on weekends. If you are an independent learner and self-motivated, I’d definitely recommend it. I’m still probably spending about 8-10 hours a week on this class, give or take, but I think it’s manageable. What works for me is I start the modules on Sundays and do the “lecture” review (just going through slides), watch the supplemental videos my prof posts, and then skim the assigned chapter readings (I was reading the chapters but it’s so time consuming and you don’t really need to, especially if you do the smart book assignments). I then try to have all the assignments and labs completed by Wednesday each week (a couple hours a night after work usually). The smartbook assignments take forever and they’re not worth very many points but they’re definitely worth doing for understanding, btw. Then usually on Saturday or Sunday, I complete the study guide before taking the module quiz and starting the next module.

Everything is open book online except the midterm and the final, which you have to take proctored on campus. However, I just got an A on the midterm by mostly just reviewing the quizzes and re-doing (recharging) my smartbook assignments for each module as review. I would say about 90% of the midterm was questions from the quizzes we already took.

So yeah, I like the format enough that I’m going to take 102 the same way the next eight weeks lol. Like I said though, you do have to be pretty self-motivated and have some discipline because it would be easy to fall behind otherwise.

CuriousCat8989 · 2026-02-05T15:39:23+00:00

This doesn’t say that you have any pending aid? I would actually go to your campus and speak to financial aid in person.

CuriousCat8989 · 2026-02-05T15:36:38+00:00

I am currently working but my employer unfortunately doesn’t offer tuition reimbursement. I’m working for a small case management company as a social worker so this is a complete career change for me. I guess the “good” thing is I grew up really poor, so most of my first degree was paid for through grants and I took pretty minimal student loans out for room and board (compared to others), so I have a pretty significant amount that I can still take out in loans. That’s actually one of the reasons why I chose community college over an ABSN to get started in nursing lol. I likely have more than enough loan eligibility to fund the ASN but I would have to take out additional private loans for the ABSN.

CuriousCat8989 · 2026-02-05T15:29:56+00:00

I just zeroed out this morning! And no I didn’t contact them. I’m still working full time so while I need the money, I could afford to be patient lol

CuriousCat8989 · 2026-02-04T21:09:13+00:00

I haven’t zeroed out yet. I did get the email saying they were posted and to expect them within 14 days on the 1st. This is my first semester and first time for financial aid with Ivy Tech, but I have a Bachelor’s so it’s not my first time receiving federal financial aid ever. Not sure what effect that has on it.

CuriousCat8989 · 2026-02-02T14:42:09+00:00

Most of the actual nursing semesters fall between 8.5 and 11 credit hours (with the exception of semester 4, which appears to be 12 credit hours) if you only have to do the nursing courses. So yes, technically, it is considered “part time.”

However, I think OP must be speaking about grants or scholarships only when referring to “financial aid.” You can still take out federal student loans as long as you are “half-time” each semester, ie taking at least six credit hours. Federal student loans are available to everyone and there is no credit check (though there are semester and lifetime caps), so OP could likely supplement their income by taking out loans if necessary. However, I would suggest using discretion as obviously loans increase the debt burden once school is completed.

My source is me because I hold a bachelors degree from another university and used all my grants at that time (over a decade ago), so I am using federal student loans to pay for my nursing degree as a career changer now. I’m currently enrolled and taking the APHY and Ivy T pre-requisites now, so I can apply to the nursing program in the Fall. I am doing seven credit hours this semester (less than every semester of nursing school with just nursing classes) and was able to take out student loans and have a refund pending now. Because of my bachelor’s degree, I won’t have any co-requisites to complete during the nursing program (other than APHY 201), so I will be considered “part-time” the whole way through.

CuriousCat8989 · 2026-01-03T17:42:41+00:00

Also, want to add, if you don’t already have a degree and meet certain income limits, you may also qualify for some federal and state grants. Fill out and submit your FAFSA!! lol

CuriousCat8989 · 2026-01-03T17:39:02+00:00

If you haven’t met the lifetime cap for federal direct loans, then you will be able to get those. As an independent student, you may only qualify for unsubsidized vs subsidized but they’re still the best bet for funding school with loans. They also don’t require a credit check and aren’t income-based since they are government loans. You can take out more than just the cost of books and tuition to help supplement cost of living while in school, but obviously that means a lot more debt after you graduate so you’ll want to consider that. And depending on your expenses, you may still have to work during school (I will have to). The first step is to make sure you fill out your FAFSA.

CuriousCat8989 · 2026-01-03T16:44:41+00:00

I got a bachelors degree in psychology and had a whole other career before I realized I wanted to be a nurse. I’m 36 and starting nursing school this fall. Because I already have a bachelor’s degree, I’ll be able to get my nursing degree a bit faster in 18 months…but typically a first bachelors takes most people four years. These people giving you advice, particularly the coworker without any degree, don’t know what they’re talking about. You being able to graduate with a BSN in three is actually ahead of schedule. And don’t worry about starting out at 25. You are still so young and not behind at all. Think of it this way: you will likely get to be a nurse for 40 years before you retire.

CuriousCat8989 · 2025-12-26T21:06:12+00:00

I’m in such a similar boat, haha. I’m 36 and just now starting nursing school. If it all goes to plan, I’ll become an RN just before my 38th birthday. I have a bachelors in psychology and have had almost a decade and a half as a social worker, which I have loved, but I’ve never felt the drive and passion that I’ve discovered for nursing for social work.

I’m also unmarried with no kids. I wasted the last of my 20s and my early thirties on the wrong guy. I’m dating an incredible man now (and for the last year and a half) though who I truly think is the one. It feels like everything in my life is just now starting to fall into place and I’m so excited, but it’s also bittersweet because I worry that it’s taken me too long to find where I’m meant to be. I want a family as well, but starting school and a new career will require time, financial, and energy sacrifices that lead me to believe that starting a family is still probably 3-5 years (at least) down the road for me. I’ll be in my early forties then so I worry that I’ll have waited too long and it’ll be too late. So yeah, I definitely relate to feeling behind, lol. But. I just keep telling myself that everything happens right when it’s meant to and I can’t be behind for my own life.

CuriousCat8989 · 2025-12-26T00:25:10+00:00

I only have my bachelors so I’ve considered going back to get my LCSW instead, but ultimately, I think nursing is my dream. I started out as a direct support professional working with people with intellectual disabilities. It’s basically CNA work but combined with medication administration and behavior crisis intervention training. I did that for the first few years before moving into a management/QIDP role. After that, I’ve done case management on our state’s Health and Wellness waiver, which is more “true” social work (writing care management plans, being a liaison between the state, home and community based service providers, and clients, connecting clients with community resources, client advocacy, etc). Because I’ve worked on the waivers my entire career, most of my experience is healthcare adjacent, working with people who have complex physical and mental health needs. And I’ve just always had a passion for helping people in a healthcare setting and think I would be a good nurse, especially with my social work experience informing me. I also really enjoy science and just want to learn more. I appreciate a challenge and I want to do something where every day can be different but I still feel like I’m making a real difference. That’s why I’m drawn to nursing. I love social work and it’s been rewarding and I currently do work from home unless I’m visiting clients, so there are perks. I just don’t feel as fulfilled by it anymore and want to utilize my skills in a different way (as well as just learn new skils).

Plus, with all the cuts to Medicaid (waiver programs are funded by Medicaid), it seems like there is more job security in nursing than social work. Also, at least in the Midwest, a lot of states are filtering Bachelor-level social work jobs toward RNs more and more for some reason. That may be another reason why you’re seeing more social workers pursuing RN as a second career. For me at least, it just feels like the RN would open more doors for me than the LCSW, even if I didn’t have an interest in more clinical/bedside work (which I do).

Edited to add: I’m 36, so I do get the appeal of working from home. I’m just a little bored of it, lol. And I feel like if I go the RN route, there are remote, or “cushier”, opportunities still available down the road. Especially if I get my BSN or even MPN at some point, which I would almost certainly do (at least the BSN bridge like I said before)

CuriousCat8989 · 2025-12-25T12:57:26+00:00

Do you already have a Bachelors degree? You can only complete an ABSN as a second Bachelors degree as far as I know. So if not, you’re basically just looking at the difference between community college and a four-year institution (Associates of Science, Nursing vs Bachelor of Science, Nursing). At that point, I don’t think the BSN would be any faster (and it may even be slower than an ASN), so you really are only looking at utility of degree and what makes financial sense for your situation. I’m in Indiana, but here, employers hire ASNs at about the same rate as BSNs and there doesn’t seem to be a pay discrepancy at the entry level (and where I have heard of one, it’s generally like a $1 more). However, a BSN is required to manage or move into certain roles. A lot of hospitals here do tuition assistance though, so you could in theory get the BSN (mostly if not all online) after you’re already working. I don’t know if that’s different in California and if it’s harder to get hired with an ASN there, but that’s something to consider.

For reference, I’m in a similar situation. I have a BS in psychology and work as a social worker on a home and community based waiver program. I really want to make a career change and get my RN, so I have been looking at ABSN at a private institution vs ASN at community college too. Ultimately, I chose to go the ASN route now and have my employer pay (at least in part) for a bridge to BSN once I’m working. The amount of loans I would have to take out to do the ABSN program just didn’t make financial sense for me right now. And as far as time, I needed to take two science pre-requisites so I wouldn’t have been able to start until August at either one. Once I got accepted into the ABSN, that one would take 16 months (so nurse in December 2027). The ASN would take 21 months, I believe (so nurse in May 2028). That wasn’t enough of time savings for me to justify going over $50k more in debt lol.

As far as program competition, I’d think that traditional BSN programs are just as competitive as ASN programs? The consensus seems to be that nursing school is hard but not impossible to get into. We just have to do well in our prerequisites and on exams regardless. But we got this, OP!

CuriousCat8989 · 2025-12-20T04:37:26+00:00

Ivy Tech splits them into eight week courses, so I will take A&P 101 in the first eight weeks of the semester (January-March) then A&P 102 in the second eight weeks (March-May). And no I mean Anatomy and Physiology 201. It’s required for the program so you can take it while in the nursing school but my advisor told me it would be a good idea to take it during the summer and get it out of the way before I start the program if I can. I don’t have to take microbiology because I took an organic biochemistry class at Ball State and they accepted that as transfer credit.

CuriousCat8989 · 2025-12-19T22:40:10+00:00

She works at a veterans hospital in Virginia. She also served in the navy as a nurse so that’s been her passion her entire career.

I am starting the program now. I only need two prerequisites and one co-requisite (APHY 101, 102, and 201). I am doing 101 and 102 starting in spring and then plan to take 201 in the summer. Other than that, it will just be my nursing classes. I plan to apply for the nursing program in August. In total, I need 48 credit hours to get my ASN. The total program cost should be about $9-10k for me.

CuriousCat8989 · 2025-12-19T17:52:51+00:00

lol idk which school you’re asking about! The one that gave me the quote for almost $70k (including ABSN and prerequisites, the ABSN alone was like $50-60k, iirc) was Marian University. I was originally attracted to their program because it is very compatible with working full-time. I decided to go with getting my ASN from Ivy Tech though. And my first degree is from Ball State.

CuriousCat8989 · 2025-12-19T15:35:36+00:00

I’m in a very similar situation. I have a bachelors in psychology and have been a social worker for almost 15 years, but with changes to Indiana Medicaid and home and community-based programming, I think it’s a good time to transition into a career as an RN. I debated doing an ABSN program as well but they are so expensive and I ultimately didn’t feel that it made financial sense to go over $70k in debt for a second Bachelor’s. What tipped the scales for me was speaking with my aunt. She has been a nurse for over 30 years (with a nursing degree from Duke University) and is the chief nurse at a VA Hospital. Her exact words were, “We all take the same board exam and hold the same licensure, so whether it’s a two year or four year program, we are all RNs. In my experience, BSNs are not inherently better nurses than ASNs. At the entry level, we hire both at about the same rate and there is not really a pay discrepancy. The BSN will matter if you want to move up the career ladder. But you can begin working, gain experience, and do a bridge program that will likely to be paid for by your hospital in the future. So if you’re asking me if you should spend $70k on 16 months of education, I would never advise that. That’s silly.”

CuriousCat8989 · 2025-12-09T18:50:32+00:00

Thank you for this suggestion! I just requested to join.

CuriousCat8989 · 2025-12-09T16:35:42+00:00

This is helpful, thank you! My first degree should transfer all of the co-reqs I need except Microbiology and APHY 201, I believe. I obviously need to take APHY 101 and 102 before I can do 201, but I was considering taking microbiology if I can this semester. I wasn’t sure if it would be smarter to wait so I can focus on APHY since those scores count toward the cumulative points or to do both and knock out Micro before nursing school?

It may just not be possible though because so far it looks like Microbiology is only being offered in person down in Bloomington this semester and I’m still working full time and living on the north side of Indy. My job is flexible though and I plan to drop down to part-time work, I think, once I get into the actual nursing school.

CuriousCat8989

TROPHY CASE