Looking for advice on Humber program...

[vbriggs06]

Hi all,

So from what I've read, there are quite a few choices for college programs but, limiting myself to those that are relatively close to Mississauga, Humber seems to be at the top of everyone's list. This makes me pretty happy as I am a former Humber student and currently doing the BIOS 101 (Basic Human Anatomy and Physiology) Night Course there... and I am applying to the Paramedics program there this year.

But my questions are more about what I could do to better my chances of getting in... Here's where I'm at so far...

I'm a mature student, graduated high school 6 years ago
I'm doing the BIOS 101 course (doing well so far)
I volunteer with St. John's Ambulance (right now just general volunteering, but as soon as I am done night school, I'm going to volunteer as a Medical First Responder)
I recently renewed and upgraded my Standard First Aid and CPR to HCP Level...

Now here's my worry...

I do not have grade 12 Biology or Chemistry or Math...

What I do have is grade 11 math and grade 11 general science... :( Is this going to be a problem?? I'm not bad with math and science (as I said I'm doing well in the BIOS 101 course right now, not to mention I've been studying since July for this...)

That being said, this is a big reason for me choosing Humber, because they seem to be the only one that doesn't look at high school marks. (Thank goodness!!)

Any hints on gaining extra admission points would be incredibly helpful!! And any other advice too! lol Thank you so much!

[lim075]

It should not be a huge limiting factor, unless those are the requirements.

Everyone is basically put in the same boat, you pay and register for an aptitude test which there are several dates for. There's a chem, bio, math, and essay component. You're 'resume' of medical is also taken into consideration as there was a checklist basically of stuff you had.

I got offered a seat (didn't even study, but some people study their butts off and don't get in) but since I already did Pre-Service, I took Northern College's bridging program and currently and quite glad.

Most of the people that got into Humber this year and those in the second year had university degrees. As such, my friends got several exemptions and basically go to school three days a week. I'd rather finish mine in less than 12 months! Hope this helps.

[jynx]

the person above me is right everyone is in the same boat it all depends on the aptitude test. (they may require gr 12 biology. but your taking that nigh clas which may work out in your favour. i know i only had gr 11 chem and gr 11 math and they were ok as long as it was university level gr 11 cus apparently university gr 11 classes were equivillant to college level 12 classes)
the test is math bio chem and some english stuff. id say chem and bio levels are gr 12. compounds, elements, polarity, electron sharing, solutions, cellular biology, anatomy etc. the math was relatively easy (and i hate math) factions, multiplications, percentages, decimals and ratios. its a pretty long test. at the end you have a form to fill in any experience related to the field some people can fill a whole page and then some others have had no experience at all. it helps to have some background but the aptitude test weighs more i know people who have years of volunteer in st johns and were life guards and first responders at events and therapists and personal trainers and all that junk and if they had crappy scores u dont get it. the experience level i think is more of a tie breaker if theres a bunch of people vying for the last few spots

1500 people wrote last year they said they were gonna take 70 so its competitive. i was out of high school 7 years when i wrote it i have a kin degree and an athletic therapy degree so im pretty good in the science division but when i went in i forgot some of the basics cus its going back to highschool classes right? so if youve been out for a while i would suggest maybe takin a look at some gr 12 level info esp. on cells and organisms. make sure you know your compounds for sure and hone up on your ratios and decimals. (to be honest i dont even remember doing ratios in high school! haha) its amazing how quickly you lose the basics when you dont have to sit in class every day!

i hope i put some insight down. I decided not to go to humber for the same reason the person before me said. i would rather finish in 12 months than have to take 2 more years on top of my 7 years in post secondary already (GAH! like i havent had enough school eh?)

just another tidbit. my room mate form university went to humber if you fail something (less than 70%) you are ejected from the program and cant reapply for like 1 year from the date of ejection or something. So make sure when you get in that you study hard and dont piss off you preceptor! my friend made it all the way through 2 years at humber top of her class and failed her final ride out evaluation from her preceptor. she spent 2 years there completed the degree classroom wise (even had job offers waiting for her if she graduated) and failed placement, got kicked out.no degree. it sucks but its a lesson. gotta make sure your on your game cus thats a good sum of money to put to 2 years to get nothing out of it :S
good luck! keep us posted! welcome to the wonderful world of medics its a blast if you can keep your head above water :)

feel free to pm me if you have any other questions i was in the same boat as you not too long ago