how intelligent do you need to be?

michw2 · May 9, 2004

Just to let you know nursing school isn't easy. I got A's in all my prerecs and B's in my science classes. I am repeating the first semester of nursing school because the grading scale is different anything with a 74% or under is failing. It is differnet because in other classes you can memorise things for tests in nursing school you need the knowledge to take the test because not only one answer is correct they all apply you just need to pick the best one.

francine79 · May 9, 2004

I know this is probably not the answer you want, but it's not really about how "smart" you are. I think your success in nursing school through nursing classes and through the sciences really depends on how disciplined you are. Nursing school is tough and it requires alot of work and responsibility. You have to be willing to invest large amounts of your time to learn the information.

I did poorly in high school in the sciences. But in nursing school I have done great. The difference is having an interest in the material. As a nurse you will be dealing with the science of the body on a daily basis. It's something you are interested in, which helps you learn it.

It really doesn't matter how smart you are. It is really all about your desire to learn the material.

Truly_Blessed · May 9, 2004

I know this is probably not the answer you want, but it's not really about how "smart" you are. I think your success in nursing school through nursing classes and through the sciences really depends on how disciplined you are. Nursing school is tough and it requires alot of work and responsibility. You have to be willing to invest large amounts of your time to learn the information.
I did poorly in high school in the sciences. But in nursing school I have done great. The difference is having an interest in the material. As a nurse you will be dealing with the science of the body on a daily basis. It's something you are interested in, which helps you learn it.
It really doesn't matter how smart you are. It is really all about your desire to learn the material.

I agree w/that 100%

purplekath · May 9, 2004

You don't need to be super-intelligent, but you DO need to be prepared to work on it like it's a fulltime job. Sounds like you already have high expectations of yourself. If you keep yourself in check like that, I know you'll do well :-)

jelly · May 9, 2004

From what I have found, it's not exactly about how 'smart' you are, it's about how you think. Mainly, can you critically think? I just finished my first year of an ASN program and it was TOUGH! I work full-time as well so the hardest part for me was time management. Also, like another student said, the tests are difficult because more than one answer is right, sometimes all of them are. That is where the critical thinking comes in. I've known a few students who failed out during this past year, who I thought were smart. They studied their butts off, they were great in the clinical setting, they knew the material in the text, but they couldn't pass that kind of test. And that is how the NCLEX is so you have to be able to do it. Like someone else said, much is attributed to dedication and desire (I LOVED the sciences), but it also has a lot to do with time management (how can you read 15 chapters in a week??) and critical thinking. I made mostly A's in my basics and basic sciences, B's in anat/phys, and I have gotten mostly A's and B's in nursing school. One C cause i missed a quiz! But I didn't find the material that much harder. Good luck!

hello everyone..i posted something like this a few months ago..but my worry has started up again.. it pretty much pertains to how intelligent do you need to be to go to nursing school and succeed?? i am taking prereqs right now such as psych and sociology getting a's ..but i have yet to take the sciences..which freak me to no end.
i am very hard on myself which can be a blessing and a curse. i have never had an aptitude for math or sciences and i have read that many people have felt the same thing..but done well in school.
i want to go for my np degree..so just passing classes with a C isnt going to cut it and i would hate to begin my career in nursing, not being able to attain my goal of a master np degree.
i would really like to hear how you can figure out if you are literally smart enough to do well in school if you sometimes pull a "big duh..uh what?" when it comes to science and math.
thank you so much in advance xoxo jen

Catma63 · May 9, 2004

Yeah, okay, if it took smarts I would have been lonnnnnng gone from there...haha. Now now, seriously....

Prunepie, I am far from the "class brain".....Now, in prereqs I may have qualified quite a bit. Nursing lecture courses, however, have been another story. Of course, part of my handicap has been trying to bite off more than I can chew or trying to maintain the same size, uhm, bolus. Ex..trying to continue working the same kind of hours as always while in nursing school. I would now list that as one of the top 10 ways to crash.

What it takes, I think, more than anything.....You have to want it. If you want it and are willing to work harder than you've ever worked in your life to get it, you will. I envy those who have a grade scale of 74.....ours is 80! I've heard others say their passing grade had to be a 95. Okay, I wouldn't have even attempted that one; I'd been booted out from day 1. (Can you imagine THAT stress!?! Heavens!)

Purplekath and francine79 both said what I think is the main thing: You need to be prepared and you need to be disciplined. Work hard! This program won't last for the rest of your life, but your career can if you want it.

Btw, have I told anyone lately that I'm STILL SO HAPPY that I survived the second semester!?! :rotfl:

susanmary · May 9, 2004

zambezi, BSN, RN · May 9, 2004

I think that yes, you do have to be smart....you have to learn how to apply yourself and adapt to various situations and material that you are learning. I feel that nursing is taking pieces of a picture and putting it together, like a puzzle. You have to learn to to relate concepts to one another (a tidbit that will help with studying and tests...), how does doing X affect Y and Z, etc...You have to learn how to think critically. You have to have common sense (that sounds funny, but it truly is important...some nurses I know have little common sense and it shows...). You have to want to be learning the material (or at least have a goal in your own mind). I think that when you put your mind to something, you can do anything you want to do. Don't psych yourself out early...it is energy wasted and if you don't try, you will never know if you can do it.

Catma63 · May 9, 2004

Okay.....wait.....Y'all tell me this NOW!?! [sNORT]

SmilingBluEyes · May 9, 2004

I think to succeed at ANY thing in life, you need more than INTELLIGENCE. You need DRIVE and the willingness to work HARD. I have seen "average" people perform brilliantly as students and nurses and HIGHLY gifted people totally fail. It's about working hard and being willing to make sacrifices that seperates those who succeed and those to can't.

prunepie · May 10, 2004

i really appreciate all of your responses..i noticed alot of you mentioned to need to think critically....

do you think being a highly analytical person is a blessing or a curse in nursing???

what i mean is i have been told over and over by teachers in my past to stop overanalyzing and second guessing and doing the "why?" too much...

is this a good thing or bad thing in nursing school??

thank you xo jenn