Importance of good grades!!!

Editorial Team / Moderator · Apr 27, 2013

You're very right. The days of "C = RN" are numbered with both schools and employers looking for ways to weed out an overwhelming number of applicants, and GPA being a handy tool for them to do just that. Good luck in your MSN program!! Have you decided on one yet? And which focus?

mochasouter · Apr 27, 2013

That sounds good. You can strive for all A's but what do you do when you get the C?

Editorial Team / Moderator · Apr 27, 2013

That sounds good. You can strive for all A's but what do you do when you get the C?

It can be tough for EC students because we don't have a semester-long class with assignments and tests and quizzes that can be helpful in bringing up a grade. I didn't graduate from EC's ADN with a 4.0 -- I got a couple of Bs, actually on my first two exams (A&P and what is now Health Safety). Then I figured out my study groove and what worked best for me, and my grades (and confidence) improved.

Just do your best. :) If you've done your best, you know you have, and you can be proud of whatever you get!

BerryHappy · Apr 27, 2013

LunahRN has an excellent point. No homework, no quizzes, no extra credit can help pull up a grade up with EC. You MUST realize this before choosing the EC route. If you do get a C on a test then you MUST get an A on your next test. Otherwise, I think you can pay to retake the exam, but of course that adds to your costs. As much as I appreciate the program EC offers, I really hesitate to recommend it to friends.

If you are already enrolled mochasouter, keep in touch. Between me and LunahRN, we will do allllll we can to help you successfully complete your program. :yes:

netglow, ASN, RN · Apr 27, 2013

Hmmm. Been thinking back. My ADN didn't have a means to bring your grade up either. Strict point system on tests. And for end of semester skills performance test it was pass/fail. If you failed the skills performance on really any minutia you were dust, period.

springsong · Apr 27, 2013

Oh no! But I am still very proud of you that you made it to the finish line. I understand you situation. With other responsibilities work, family, and school it is tuff but the bottom line is you have to fly. You have to push yourself to the max and to always do your best. I learn from being a student to always doyour best and to always give your best shot. That is why when I start a new course in my degree that I am now I am looking forward for an “A” and that requires a lot of hard work, perseverance and determination. So at the start o fthe course I already have a goal and I mean it. I am taking online course in the nursing program and online courses are very expensive. It is very depressing to get a grade below “A”. I am trying not to be a perfectionist but with the amount of money you are paying it is worth it if you will get the highest grade possible. But it can be done. It just needs a little hard work on your part. I encourage you to keep moving with your professional career. Thanks for sharing.

springsong · Apr 27, 2013

If you are enrolled in graduate school good grades at least a B+ and above is an expectation and your GPA should not be below 3.0. In some school 2.5 and if you are in the program you have to maintain your grade above these GPA parameters. If you get a "C" and your GPA drop below 3.00 the school will put you underprobation and you have to struggle hard to keep this above 3.0 otherwise you will be out of the program. In some school they give you 6 months to reapplyand reconsider you to be accepted in the program. So grades are very important in academia. It is use to gauge your intelligence how you are going to make it in the program. Any thought.

mochasouter · Apr 27, 2013

Yes, I am enrolled. I tried really hard to get an A but it didn't happen. I will try to get one for A&P. That is the last test I have before I finish the nursing exams besides info lit. All of my other classes transferred from my other degrees. I didn't get straight A's in those programs and I didn't get all C's either so I don't know what to say.

Editorial Team / Moderator · Apr 27, 2013

Girl, I was THRILLED to get a B on the A&P exam! LOL. It's not that it is that difficult, but it covers two semesters of A&P. Big exam!

tokmom, BSN, RN · Apr 28, 2013

I can attest to how important this is, even 20 some years later. My pre-requisite and LPN courses were littered with A,B,C grades and some of the more difficult classes were B,C.

Now I'm in a BSN program and I was put on academic probation because my GPA wasn't at least a 3.0. Talk about wanting to kick myself. I'm working my butt off and pulling a 4.0. Of course being twenty years older has made a huge difference in mindset.

MotherRN · Apr 28, 2013

He! y, I've been frustrated because my GPA WAS really good, and I was even in the honor society. But, i didn't work during school because I knew my grades would suffer if I did.

Well, the joke is on me! Those employers don't care a lick about my GPA or the honor society. NO! All they want is the experience.

So, all those student's who worked as CNA's and squeeked by with an "C = RN" degree- well, they have jobs because they have experience and connections.

Maybe I know I can get into my RN-BSN program no sweat, but I can't pay my bills or loans because I can't find a decent job ANYWHERE!!!

I think nursing education should be run this way: you achieve CNA status- then your next semester you are employeed full time as a CNA. Next, you achieve LPN status- and the next semester or year, you are employed as an LPN. Then the final leg, you achieve your 2 year degree and you guessed it, get the job and go to work. You will be able to do this because your clinical skills will be practical and strong and your theory grades will be reinforced through on the job real training. Our clinicals today are a joke! That's why we don't know anything when we graduate and no one want to pay to train us! Nursing is a hands on profession!