Failed the RN program still want to be an Rn . Help !

[student0810]

Hi I am a 3rd year nursing student in the bachelor of science nursing program who ended up failing my peds and OBS clinical courses this year. At my university if you fail any 2 courses you are withdrawn from the nursing program. My GPA is still good because these two failed courses were pass/fail courses. My university will not let me reapply into their nursing program. I really want to pursue becoming an RN, I love nursing and it's been a dream of mine for a long time. I really don't want to give up and I am determined to get my RN degree. I am finding it difficult to find Universities in the United States that will let me apply to the their RN program , the universities I have spoken to so far say they do not accept students who failed out of their nursing program. Does anyone know a university in the USA that will allow me to do their RN program ?

[kalycat, BSN, RN]

In my experience from tutoring and mentoring in a BSN program, failing two clinical rotations is a very big deal. Remediation was offered for people who had trouble meeting average test grade requirements during patho or fundamentals etc, but to fail two separate clinical rotations made appeal very unlikely.

In my region, all nursing programs are extremely competitive (including ADN and LPN) so transfers are unheard of and progress requirements are stringent. Obviously I can't speak to the entire country. I know that if you failed out of a program in this region, your ability to reapply to another program would be met with limited success; first time applicants with cumulative GPAs of 3.8 or above often have to apply to several different programs just to get an interview.

Our school does allow people to withdraw for up to 1 year and return to a later cohort if there is some extenuating circumstance with family or a medical issue and the student is in good standing, but not with a failure unless there was something truly dramatic going on. I'm sorry not to be more

encouraging, but we work very assertively with students who are struggling before they fail to try to prevent this type of thing. Without knowing the details of the interventions you tried prior to failing and the reason for a failure at clinical, I can't be more specific.

I have to agree that if you got support and help and couldn't get caught up, you may want to consider other options for your career. Yes, nursing school is intensive, but at least in my experience every effort is made to make the clinical portion a success and failures occur for safety violations, not practicing skills in lab appropriately, and other serious infractions, not so much a lack of knowledge or test issues. I would suggest meeting with your Dean or advisor and determining where exactly things went off the rails so you can reflect and see if you can correct the issue or if perhaps this field isn't a great fit. Sometimes no matter how bad we want something, a change of direction that works better with our unique strengths ends up being the best choice for everyone. Good luck!

[CrunchRN, ADN, RN]

Seems smart to really evaluate why you failed and come up with a plan to change that before getting into a new school in my opinion. Are the reasons something you can change?

[lub dub]

So after reading this post and its wild veering off course, I still what to know, how did the OP fail OB and peds?

I don't think we'll find out. This was the one and only post by student0810.

[Raviepoo]

There are lots of ways to fail clinicals. I know someone who failed after an instructor pretty much persecuted her out of it. This is not merely my paranoid perception. I remember a patient asking me, "Why is your instructor so nice to you but so mean to her?" And then there was the "special" final exam that my friend was given while most of the class got a much easier test. Everyone who got that special final failed it. It was the straw that broke the back of my friend's school experience. That instructor was removed from her position at the end of the following semester.

I failed LPN clinicals because of a nervous breakdown. I got back up on the horse at another school and excelled. I will soon finish my ASN with honors.

I don't just assume the OP is a slacker. Anything could have happened. Did she rub the instructors the wrong way because of her culture? Did a family member die during the semester? Is she going through a divorce? Is she dealing with her own health problems? Does she have trauma in her past involving children or babies?

Don't smirk. I have that trauma. I HATE peds and OB. It's very difficult for me to be around babies and pregnant women. I was close to tears my first day in the OB ward. There was another student in my program who WAS crying more than once (especially in the little closet where the hospital keeps tiny clothes, caps, and photos of dressed up babies who were stillborn at 17 weeks.)

My point is that it's not a good idea to judge a person under any circumstances. You don't know what kind of burden they carry. I always try to be supportive of strangers. That is the invaluable lesson I learned from my first, awful nursing school experience.

[BlackBettyRN,OCN]

I did not provide false reassurance, rather I gave a word of encouragement. Obviously OP needs to figure out what went wrong and the fix the problem, that's a given. I am sure OP knows that without having to post it.

Telling someone they will do great is only encouraging if you know they will do great. The OP has already failed two classes, so telling her she will do great in another program is nothing but false reassurance. If the OP knew that she needed to change something, she probably would have only failed one clinical, as opposed to two.

[Raviepoo]

If the OP knew that she needed to change something, she probably would have only failed one clinical, as opposed to two.

Maybe. I'm giving the OP the benefit of the doubt. Did her father die halfway through the semester? Was she thrown out of her house? Did her high school sweetheart cheat and break up with her? Was he killed in Iraq? Did the same instructor teach both classes and refuse to give the OP help when she asked for it?

I don't know, so I don't judge.

[elkpark]

DON'T WORRY! I had to repeat my first semester of med-surg. It just took me longer but its ok I really need to go over that material again and I learned so much more the second time around. Just keep your head up and ignore those that would bring you down. I'm sure there are programs out there for you. You'll do great! I chose to go to an adult school becase tuition was more affordable, I got into there program right away and the school which I attended has one of the highest passing rates in the state of CA for the NCLEX. So I suggest looking on the board of nursings web site for school and look at their passing rates.

... To bad they don't teach tolerance and compassion in nursing school, because you are sorely lacking in both.

Another thing they apparently don't teach in nursing any more is therapeutic communication, because these statements I bolded are, in fact, the perfect textbook example of "false reassurance."

[BlackBettyRN,OCN]

Maybe. I'm giving the OP the benefit of the doubt. Did her father die halfway through the semester? Was she thrown out of her house? Did her high school sweetheart cheat and break up with her? Was he killed in Iraq? Did the same instructor teach both classes and refuse to give the OP help when she asked for it?

I don't know, so I don't judge.

Maybe something awful did happen to the OP. I don't know. None of us know because she's only ever posted one post on this site. She never gave us any explanation of her circumstances or why she failed clinical. We don't know her from Adam. Which is why I told the poster whom I quoted previously that ensuring the OP she would do great in another program was only giving the OP false reassurance.

Also, there is a fine line between "being judgmental" and blowing rainbows up someone's youknowwhat. Providing false reassurance is never beneficial.

[caliotter3]

My father died while I was in nursing school. I remember how I was treated and what happened. People who always assume that the student is 100% responsible for bad school outcomes are not evaluating all possible situations. But then, we don't know that anything out of the ordinary was the basis for the student to fail not one, but two, clinical rotations. Doubt she will be back to explain.

[elkpark]

My father died while I was in nursing school. I remember how I was treated and what happened. People who always assume that the student is 100% responsible for bad school outcomes are not evaluating all possible situations. But then, we don't know that anything out of the ordinary was the basis for the student to fail not one, but two, clinical rotations. Doubt she will be back to explain.

Anything is possible. However, you know how everyone warns you not to read anything additional, or assume any additional information, into NCLEX questions, just work with the info you're given? I kinda figure that, if someone had some complicated personal trauma that would account for why s/he flunked out of school, that person would probably mention that in the first place.

[caliotter3]

Anything is possible. However, you know how everyone warns you not to read anything additional, or assume any additional information, into NCLEX questions, just work with the info you're given? I kinda figure that, if someone had some complicated personal trauma that would account for why s/he flunked out of school, that person would probably mention that in the first place.

I agree with you.