I am taking Anatomy and Lab. I had my first test (we only have 4 a semester) the lab part I aced (I could identify all the bones and muscles easily thank god) BUT the written exam blew my mind!! I was not expecting it to be as hard as it was....I am really scared I might have failed it (but I think maybe a C). I will find out tonight what I made for sure. I knw it wasnt just me everyone after class was totally freakin out and we have lot of LPNs, RNs, etc in the class (doing their BSN pre reqs)

Is it just me or is this a hard class for most of us? I was soo confident going into the test but after the written exam I was scared sh*tless I will never make it into nursing school! I have a 3.7 GPA too!! I am not stupid so why is this class so damn hard?!

My professor normally teaches Med Students at the university here, I wonder if she realizes that we are not med students....lol

Anyways, I refuse to drop out but this is a lot harder than i thought it would be. I am taking 13 hours this semester and have 2 little kids....arghhh

Please make me feel better....lol

Marilyn

Hey'a Marilyn,

I have A&PII right now. A&P is tough, but you will get the hang of it. It is a lot of information to remember and it involves a lot of different aspects and ways of understanding and memorizing the information, ie. not only are there complex chemical reactions to understand, on top of it you have to memorize the names and locations of all kinds of organs (visualization/memorization) and then on top of it figure out how they all work together and function.

Give yourself a break for the first exam. It is rare that a whole class let alone a few students breeze through the first A&P Exam. Give yourself sometime and you will do better.

I always say that A&P is unlike any other class students have ever taken. It takes a little time to get into the swing of it but you will find your "niche" of how to study and it will become much easier.

I had some trouble when I first started A&PI. I spent hours upon hours going over the information. But now that I am in A&PII I have the mentality set for it, so it only takes me half the time it used to study and I grasp the information a lot quicker than when I started.

Marilyn,

You are not alone. I took A&P I last semester, and am taking II now. There were a lot of people in my class last semester who had failed once before. Some made it to A&P II, and some didn't. This is not to discourage you but rather to let you know that it's not unique to your class.

One thing that makes a HUGE difference is your teacher. My teacher last semester was great. He covered everything very thoroughly and slowly, answered all of our questions, and gave us take home exams to fill out before our real exams. This forced us to study the right material.

My teacher this semester is so much harder. She goes over everything sooo fast, doesn't explain new terms, and basically just reads what's on the power point slides to us. This means that I have to do a lot of my learning myself, from the book. I was briefly considering dropping her class and taking A&PII from the other teacher over the summer, but I decided not to postpone it, as I want to get into nursing school this year.

You may want to ask your teacher for review sheets to study from before the exam, or see her for extra help. A lot of times if you make an appt. with your teacher outside of class, s/he will give you specific examples of things you should be studying.

Good luck!

I'm in A&P2 this semester which is a co-req for 1st semester nursing and it's rough too. I have 3 kids, dh and my nursing classes equalling 16 hrs. Let me tell you, it's kicking my BUTT too! I'm a 4.0 student going into this semester and I just have realized that 4.0 isn't realistic for me being a mom, wife and student. All I need to get my RN is 80% and pass the boards. No one will care if I was 4.0 or 3.0!

Work hard, use note cards, study, read and in your own words, describe your systems, etc.. Doing it in my own words really helps me to picture it and apply it to the questions.

Good luck! You'll do great! It sounds like you have the "go gettum" attitude you'll need for nursing school too! :)

I'm in A&P right now and even with a previous Bio degree it's not easy. I've found that it really is just a lot of spending time with the material and memorization. I've found that it really helps for me to network with other students who are also trying to get into nursing school. We've formed a group and we get together in the mornings before class to study, ask questions and review for exams. It's nice to be able to bounce ideas off someone else, get a different perspective and most importantly if you can explain it to someone else then you know you've got it.

Hi Marilyn,

I am in a&p 1 and I aced the first lecture test and lab practicum......had the 2nd lab practicum last night and I am not even sure I passed. I am hoping I may have gotten a "C" ....now I have to wait until Monday evening to find out. I usually get all "A"'s so it was really a wake up call for me. I walked out after taking the test last night....got in my car, and broke down crying!!! I don't know how I will ever be able to remember all of this! I am soooo exhausted.....I study constantly and still feel like my brain just can't hold anymore. I am not giving up though.....quitting just isn't an option for me.

AP I here, taking AP II in a 5 week class this summer and micro in a 6wk class this summer (trying to get fall enrollment!). AP I is a science class, some find science hard. I find enlightening! I did well on the first exam, the second exam not so much I didn't really study (long week!), but I'm lucky. My teacher is EASY so I"m not complaining. Its a night class so he knows most of us work fulltime or ALL the time :) I think the first two tests were easy if you studied ... but its all down hill from here ... those DARN bones ...

I'm in A&P II right now... I pretty much breezed through I... bones were a cinch, muscles went just fine... all my lecture tests were pretty strong 90's. Different story this semester. I've got 3 B's so far on lecture tests... I'm needing to learn new study methods!

Our prof does not lecture... sometimes he does read notes from the book. All of our learning comes from doing his study guides... it's all memorization, no real application. I am trying to rewrite each chapter into my own words so that maybe I can understand what it is truly saying.

A & P was "taking me" until I found a system that worked for me.

I read the chapter into a tape recorder. (And for variety information from internet sites).

I listen over and over, while I color pages from the Anatomy and Physiology coloring books. Oddly enough, it's helped things to finally stick.

I'm the same that I thought previous A & P was easy. This, this is way way more intense. So much to memorize. And the body is sooo complicated and intricate. I keep reminding myself of all the nurses and doctors I've met that seemed like airheads, and telling myself if they can do this and pass, SO CAN I!

Try to understand all of the systems instead of just memorizing things. It will help you in the long run....

Buy one of those "Incredibly Easy" books on A and P. I've heard they're great!

Remember that you are not alone. Talk to your instructor if you're struggling. I tutor A & P I and II. Take advantage of that if your school offers it. My old I instructor said that 99 % of those that fail his course don't seek him out for help.

Kristy

Well I am doing better than I thought!! I just got my grade back from the written exam and lab and I aced them both!!!! Yes!!! Now hopefuly the rest of the semester will go just as good.

Thanks for all your advice though! I feel more confident it this now.

M

Definitely understand what you are learning because it will show up in your nursing classes again. If your professor isn't doing a good job, then supplement your education by reading other material relating to the topic at hand or even go online & look for web pages relating to the topic if you don't want to spend money on other books. Sometimes just reading the way someone else explains it in a different way will help you understand better. I was always printing out other web sites about the material...especially with A&P II where you truly do have to understand how all of the systems work. Repetition is what worked for me...read the information over & over, write it down if that is what helps you learn, tape it & listen to it while you are driving if you learn better by listening.

Don't rely on your professor to teach you all you need to know. Sometimes they aren't very good at what they do & if you rely on them, then your grade will suffer. My AP II professor was used to teaching graduate students....half the time we didn't know what he was talking about because he was using very technical terms. I managed to get an A because I turned to outside sources rather than just his lectures.

If you search this message board, you will find links for great anatomy sites. Trust me...they help tremendously.