Struggle with pre-reqs, and go on to be successful??

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I was just wondering how many people that struggeled with their pre-reqs like A&P, Micro, Chemistry and Pharm....went on to their Nursing program and were successful? I have heard people say that if you cannot excel with the pre-reqs, you dont stand a chance in the program. Anyone had a similar experience? Thanks :)

If you struggle in pre-reqs there is almost no chance you'll be an A student in nursing school.

But there is a CHANCE.

Don't let anyone define what you can and cannot do.

To the original poster, I hope I can offer you some hope with my story. I got a C in Anatomy and Physiology I, a C in Anatomy and Physiology II, a C in Biology I, a B in Gen Chem I, flat out FAILED Gen Chem II, had to retake it and got a C (and it may have been a C, but I learned so much more than the first time that I was happy to have that C), and a B in Microbiology.

I had very little hope of getting into nursing school. Those pre-reqs were hard for me and admittedly, I didn't study as much as I should have. I took about 17 credits/semester and felt like I never had time to study for my science classes.

But...I got into an accelerated BSN program, am at the end of my 3rd semester, and have a 4.0 GPA. Nursing school is HARD because there's so much work and so much to learn and a different type of stress that's associated with clinicals, but give me an NCLEX-style nursing exam over a chemistry or biology test any day.

I work hard and I could have let my not-so-flattering previous GPA rule me and make me believe that I wasn't going to succeed in nursing school, but I didn't, and you don't have to let your past GPA control your future either. Give 'em hell and prove 'em wrong!

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WOW! thats a great story! Thank you:D

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Hello Everyone,

I got into nursing school with a 3.4ish. I believe you are doing yourself a disservice if you obsesses over GPA minutiae in nursing school. God forbid if you drop from a pre-req GPA of 3.9 to 3.7! I'm not trying to make fun, but illustrate how silly it is. You will need to focus on being able to learn and apply the material using your critical thinking skills. The test questions in nursing school are unlike any Biology or Chemistry exam. Simple memorization will not do (trust me, I tried this at first). You have to know what and why, otherwise the information will be useless to you. Having a good working knowledge of what you learned in Anatomy, Micro, and Chemistry will be very beneficial to you but one doesn't need straight A's in those classes to demonstrate competence and understanding. I got a C+ in Anatomy I, B+ in Anatomy II, B- in Microbiology, and A in Chemistry.

When you are sitting in front of the computer taking your NCLEX, it is not going to matter whether you had a 3.9 or a 3.7 GPA. When you get onto the floor for the first time as a registered nurse, it is not going to matter either. What *will* matter is that you *know* what to do.

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pitaya...great post!!!

I am doing well in A & P 1....90 average..so far...but i find it very dry....i hate learning about how a muscle contracts,or the cells that contract it for that matter...now we are on to nerves...same ol same ol....it doenst stick,i can read it,write it,flash card it 100 times and it wont stick.....

does nursing classes go in that deep?...about the cells and the parts and how they work.....

i went to LPN school 4 yrs ago and they always had NCLEX style questions..i will take that type of question over an essay or diagram any day of the week....if you know the material you can do process of elimination...

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I agree! My concern was not so much that i would not have a perfect 4.0 of drop to a 3.8 but more of wondering if people that struggle with pre-reqs go on to be sucessful in the program..and if it even makes a difference if you have a high gpa....i was hoping the odds of a high gpa would help me more once i get in the program but from what everyone has been sayn the nursing classes are so much different than pre-reqs....so i guess it does not matter as much. Im just nervous of getting so far and failing out!!! i guess thats a pretty common fear for a new nursing student.:/

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i think it is a common fear for any student...nursing or not..

good luck..sounds like you will do great!

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I for one had a baby over the Thanksgiving Holiday and spent a good two weeks at home. My eldest daughter tended to the baby and helped out a lot. I would leave school to check up and feed her and rush back to campus! You can do anything you put your mind to. Although, it might wear you down a little, but life is about hard work and sacrifice.

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I made Cs in all my Pre-reqs! Failed Nursing one in the summer but now doing great! Don't give up!

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I think it depends on the teachers and experiences you had in your pre-reqs. I was able to pull all As and Bs but some of my classes were harder than others. Some students I talked to in different classes here at the college had different experiences than me because of the teachers. I think some teachers decide to make things 10x harder than necessary in order to "prepare" you for nursing school. None of my classes have been as hard a Micobiology but I feel prepared now when we discuss bacteria in the classes I am taking now.

The biggest difference is the testing you do for Nursing School. My teachers select NCLEX questions because it prepares us better for the actual exam we need to pass for our license. No pre-req classes will be formatted like that. The material is presented fast and it is difficult but we can't really compare those to pre-reqs unless we have taken the exact same classes with those teachers.

I think you should go for it. My first semester of nursing school they taught us how to test better and how to time manage to get all the work done. Its definitely possible even if the pre-reqs are hard.

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Specializes in Hospitalist Medicine.

Talking with our faculty, they have stated that the students who got in to the program with a lower GPA in the pre-reqs tend to struggle the most with Med-Surg.

FWIW, I think you get out of it what you put in to it. Do your best and forget what "everyone else" is doing. Stay organized, keep up with your studying and know the rationales behind what you're doing (skills, fundamentals, assessment, etc.)

Nursing school is nothing like any class you've experienced. NCLEX-style questions require more critical thinking than the usual pre-req exam questions, so it's hard to predict who is going to do well and who won't.

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