Grades from school to school....

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I don't know if other see it or not but I find it interesting that sometimes people post here that they got 100 or their average is a 98...in nursing courses.

I find it interesting because nobody in my program comes close to that. I know we don't have a group of idiots.

It made me think and wonder how this happens. I honestly think it's a difference of difficulty and/or test creation. Now here's the problem...if an employer wants to see your grades and you went to a school where nobody ever saw grades like that and your competition was somebody who got 100...they probably don't have the ability to take into account that it's possible the person with the lower grade got a higher education, a more challenging education and that the grades can't be compared from one school to the next.

Just something I find interesting because it really becomes an uneven playing field in the end.

To all of you that think that you would do just as well in every other program out there, uh no. You have to understand that you cannot say that without actually spending a semester in our very tired, bloodshot, caffiene driven shoes. It seems to me that you are saying that we just aren't studying hard enough and we would do better if we worked harder. Forgive me if that offends me a little.:angryfire

I'm tired,blood shot, not caffeine driven though I have to stay up late and wake up early with no boost from caffeine( not saying i wouldn't but caffeine does not agree with me) and i can still say that as hard as i work i have every confidence that i could get an A at any school. I think we all work hard no matter what school we go to, most of us know this is what we want to do and we want to be great at it so we learn all we can and push ourselves over the limit. But forgive me if i am a little annoyed that some people think that we are pulling off A' in our nursing programs because they just are not on the level of other nursing program's where not many people get A's or none at all get A's.

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Specializes in Pediatrics, High-Risk L&D, Antepartum, L.

First off nobody ever said that people didn't work hard.

What I am saying is that I firmly believe that programs are different enough that some people wouldn't be getting the same grades in different schools. I know somebody said they are confident they could. Good for you. I don't believe that to always be true.

I know what I see in my program. The classroom is filled with VERY bright people. Grades do not reflect that.

I think it's actually kind of naive to believe that all schools are created equal, that because you do well in one you would do well in another. That's not necessarily a dig at the person but a point that the schools are different. There's no doubt in my mind that at a different school I may have worse grades yet at another school they could be better. I think I would be a fool to believe that no matter where I went I would have a certain grade.

So believe what you want...and the rest of us will think about how it's something interesting and while it may not be an issue with employment it may be an issue with things such as scholarships.

My mother, a nurse, NP and CNM has been FLOORED by the things my program has demanded. She hasn't been out of school forever. She's been an RN forever but her CNM was maybe 8 years ago which isn't that long ago. She is just floored at the questions on our exams and the extent of the content my program requires.

No all programs are created equal and a change in your grade from one program to another isn't a dig.

So I'm sorry if you are tired of people saying things like that. So sorry but I do believe it's being naive.

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Some people WOULD get an "A" no matter where they go. Some people only get an "A" BECAUSE of where they go. You can't say what other people would get because you don't know them. For sure every program is different, every teacher is different, every grading system is different. The world is not a fair place. If it is upsetting that others appear to be having an easier time then what is preventing you from transfering to their school and having an equally easy time? We all make choices, worrying about what everyone else is doing isn't going to do anything other than sap your time and make you bitter. THink of it this way, if you are doing well in a far more difficult program, you are learning a lot and will be well prepared as a nurse when you graduate and pass the NCLEX. There is always a silver lining.

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Specializes in Pediatrics, High-Risk L&D, Antepartum, L.
Some people WOULD get an "A" no matter where they go. Some people only get an "A" BECAUSE of where they go. You can't say what other people would get because you don't know them. For sure every program is different, every teacher is different, every grading system is different. The world is not a fair place. If it is upsetting that others appear to be having an easier time then what is preventing you from transfering to their school and having an equally easy time? We all make choices, worrying about what everyone else is doing isn't going to do anything other than sap your time and make you bitter. THink of it this way, if you are doing well in a far more difficult program, you are learning a lot and will be well prepared as a nurse when you graduate and pass the NCLEX. There is always a silver lining.

Sure maybe they would and maybe they wouldn't. I just think it's very naive to say that no matter what school they went to they would get an A. That approach may somebody bite them in the rear.

This wasn't to bash schools but to consider that programs can be VERY different.

What stops me from transferring? Uh well I don't live near their schools. I mean that's obvious. To suggest that one just transfer...some people have very little options based on where they live. I could go to a city program and drive an hour without traffic if I wanted to...but I can't. I could go to the local community colleges if I wanted to be in a program that NEVER guarantees me a spot on clinicals but instead guarantees that they will make money off of me because I have to take 2 classes every semester while I wait...some people waiting a LONG time. These are people only waiting for clinicals...not classes.

Nobody was complaining that things weren't exactly fair. The point is sometimes it really stinks to see that there are huge difference in programs and that it can be something that changes things for you in a financial way and for some in an educational way. It is not upsetting that things are different. It's something to ponder. If anything I see upset from people who feel they are being ragged on when it's a general conversation about how different schools can be.

I do consider the fact that NCLEX is something that should go well. In the meantime it's interesting to ponder the differences.

Again, I just find it naive and a little cocky to say point blank...I would get an A anywhere. Confidence is a good thing but sometimes it goes beyond that. This topic wasn't about how hard one person works over another. It wasn't about whether people who were in a program getting a certain grade and whether they deserved it. Hey let's face it...in that program that may be what they deserved but be open to realize that isn't how it would be everywhere.

For example...A&P. Some people took it at the school I attend and some took it at another school. Well some also took it at both places. They were very open to say that they programs were EXTREMELY different. Their grades in the same class at 2 different schools were VERY different...as in an F in one school and an A or B in another.

It's not a dig on people as one would like to take it. It's an interesting thing to ponder. In truth it certainly may make some people who are struggling for the first time in their education experience the realization that maybe it's not them when they try to compare grades with another program...may it's the differences in the school.

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Specializes in Policy, Emergency OR, Peds OR, CVOR.

I justwantto state for the record, I am not bitter but I am glad I have this forum to vent on. My program is far from great, but like SAHS said, sometimes it is the only option available for current circumstances. I have every confidence that my classmates will make supremely well prepared RNs because we were pushed so very much harder.

My only gripe is that when I am interviewing for a coveted spot in a Master's program, my GPA may be compared to a higher GPA that was earned with less work.

This isn't a bash 4.0 GPAs thread, it is a "hmmm, this is interesting..." thread.

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I know all about going to the "hard" school while others have it easier. The hard school is convenient for me, but if I didn't want the stress I could drive the distance and make it easier on myself academically. Because I choose not to do this I really don't complain too much. I guarantee you that if there is a known difference that is as vast as you insinuate between schools in your area, then the admissions office has an idea of the quality differences of the schools their applicants attend. ( I say this because it sounds like you are staying in one area for your entire education). Bottom line is there is always going to be a difference from one school to another, one state to another, one teacher to another. There is NO way to make everything completely fair. We also can't really judge other people's situations. (people have kids, fulltime work, learning disabilities, full class load or one or two classes at a time for prereqs etc...). I understand the frustration when competing with other applicants, but there really isn't anything that you can do besides...make your circumstances support your effort in getting competitive grades. I still say that some people absolutely would get an A no matter where they went. Some people are just that way and it isn't a cocky thing to say it is just the truth. There are people going to Harvard medical school who graduate with top honors. These people could probably get an A no matter where they went. I think it is MORE cocky to say that because you or your classmates are not making A's, no one would get an A. In any case we seem to just have a difference of opinion.

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Specializes in Pediatrics, High-Risk L&D, Antepartum, L.
I know all about going to the "hard" school while others have it easier. The hard school is convenient for me, but if I didn't want the stress I could drive the distance and make it easier on myself academically. Because I choose not to do this I really don't complain too much. I guarantee you that if there is a known difference that is as vast as you insinuate between schools in your area, then the admissions office has an idea of the quality differences of the schools their applicants attend. ( I say this because it sounds like you are staying in one area for your entire education). Bottom line is there is always going to be a difference from one school to another, one state to another, one teacher to another. There is NO way to make everything completely fair. We also can't really judge other people's situations. (people have kids, fulltime work, learning disabilities, full class load or one or two classes at a time for prereqs etc...). I understand the frustration when competing with other applicants, but there really isn't anything that you can do besides...make your circumstances support your effort in getting competitive grades. I still say that some people absolutely would get an A no matter where they went. Some people are just that way and it isn't a cocky thing to say it is just the truth. There are people going to Harvard medical school who graduate with top honors. These people could probably get an A no matter where they went. I think it is MORE cocky to say that because you or your classmates are not making A's, no one would get an A. In any case we seem to just have a difference of opinion.

I actually will be going in another area for my continuing education because of an anticipated move.

I'm not saying that because A's are not common that nobody can get them. I think it's okay to think you will do great. I think it's a little naive to say "I will get an A"...like there is no other option. Sure you might get an A...you might not. Sure somebody could come into my program and get a 4.0...though I doubt it and would even put money on it.

This isn't about judging people and what grades they get. It's about the idea that programs are so different.

There is a program near where my mom worked and she cringed when people came to work after graduating them. She was a higher level then them and she said they would come in and the vast majority were idiots. She couldn't believe the things they didn't know. Sometimes it was the things they refused to do. One girl said to her "I have a college education, I don't do baths". Uh this to my mom who has a lot of letters behind her name and still does baths if one needs to be done. So this program did graduate some decent nurses...there's no doubt there. The school is known for it's share of morons....they still get hired.

So it's not about the person like some have tried to make it. It's about the school and the differences and in no way does that belittle your grade. Hey if you go to an easy school and you fly through with an A...that is your choice, your loss..whatever. My point is that you just can't compare grades from one school to another. You can take an A student in one school and plop them in another school where they are a C student and take a C student and make them an A student but plopping that one in yet another school.

It's just a thought that it is impossible to make a nursing education equal when it's a field that really needs that. I think more then most fields the solid education of a nurse should really be standard and it's just not.

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Specializes in Adolescent Psych, PICU.

OMG who really cares about any of this?

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There are grad programs that rely heavily on interviews, GRE etc... so that can even it out the playing field somewhat for you. We might have to agree to disagree because just as you are skeptical that anyone could get a 4.0 in your program, I am skeptical that there aren't plenty of people who could. I mean seriously the majority of the of 4.0 students coming out of engineering, medical and physics at major universities (not to mention Ivy league schools) could probably do this. Others as well. Doesn't seem logical to put money on the fact that they couldn't. At least inmho. In any case good luck in your studies and reaching grad school at least you will be well prepared.

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Specializes in Pediatrics, High-Risk L&D, Antepartum, L.
There are grad programs that rely heavily on interviews, GRE etc... so that can even it out the playing field somewhat for you. We might have to agree to disagree because just as you are skeptical that anyone could get a 4.0 in your program, I am skeptical that there aren't plenty of people who could. I mean seriously the majority of the of 4.0 students coming out of engineering, medical and physics at major universities (not to mention Ivy league schools) could probably do this. Others as well. Doesn't seem logical to put money on the fact that they couldn't. At least inmho. In any case good luck in your studies and reaching grad school at least you will be well prepared.

We aren't talking about people coming out of engineering and such. Why not stretch it a little.

You can remain skeptical...I will remain realistic. Also I didn't say it was 100% impossible. I did say it is not the norm and not even close to the norm. I hold true to that.

The point is that you can't even begin to compare grades on a site like this. Posting you got an A might be the same as posting you got a C at another school. Things do not line up all the time and in this case they variability is probably huge.

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Specializes in Policy, Emergency OR, Peds OR, CVOR.
OMG who really cares about any of this?

We must, hence the conversation. Our conversation may not be important to everyone, but it is relevant to our current situation. If it does not concern you, then feel free to move on without participating.

I must say that we do have differing opinions and have a fantastic forum to discuss them on. I have been b*tching about my program from the get go but, more than anything, it is just to vent. This is a difficult situation, but it will all be over when I graduate in May. :lol2:

I have no doubt that there are tons and tons of people that could 4.0 through my program ANY OTHER YEAR. (Heck, if I had enrolled one semester sooner or one semester later I probably would have been telling a whole different story, as we have a few 4.0 students in each class.) We have faced a butt load of unlucky circumstances and we will survive. That is life. I actually roll with the punches rather well, believe it or not. I am just irked by the snide tone that some have on the forums about the people that aren't making the 4.0 like them. (Not really evident in this thread so far, thank goodness) It is nice to know that somewhere out there other people know that all nursing educations are not created equal.

I know that with how hard i work i could do this good at ANY school !!!

And I'm sure most other people could no matter what school they went to

I think that statement is what crawled up our behinds, how can anyone definitively say that? It is ludicrous to assume that all programs are equal and that you can do just as well everywhere you go. I think that I could maintain a 4.0 in a majority of the nursing programs in the country. Can I say it definitively? No, I haven't attended every nursing program. I am also not assuming that every student on here with a 4.0 would bomb in my shoes, but I am sure some would.

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I think that statement is what crawled up our behinds, how can anyone definitively say that? It is ludicrous to assume that all programs are equal and that you can do just as well everywhere you go. I think that I could maintain a 4.0 in a majority of the nursing programs in the country. Can I say it definitively? No, I haven't attended every nursing program. I am also not assuming that every student on here with a 4.0 would bomb in my shoes, but I am sure some would.

I never said anything about programs all programs being created equal, now that would be being naive. What I did say and Ill stand by it because i don't think anything ludicrous about this, is that I feel because i know that no matter what school i went to, I would do just as well( meaning get A's yes) because i feel that i know the material well enough ( up to this point so far and I'm half way done) The information is that same or similar( nursing is nursing) at most schools the only way that can be extremely different is the way it is presented, and then the attitude of the instructor as well. Also You haven't been to most other nursing school to know that your program is any harder, the only thing you maybe can say for sure is that the class before yours at your school had it easier/harder...just like you say that we don't know if we could get A's at any school because we have not been there, its the same thing with you saying that your program( or other programs) are so much harder just because there are no or not many A's in the nursing courses, you haven't been to all these other schools to know that your C has to be so much more valuable then A's from other programs because your work is just so much harder and you get pushed so much more, and so much more is expected of you, now that is naive.

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