Tips for Surviving the 1st Semester of Nursing School

[ArrowRN]

I can't believe I made it through finals week and my first semester of nursing school is done. I was totally exhausted with several days of 3 hours of sleep and 5 straight exams. Anyways I'm like a straight B student, that's not bad considering I have a family and lots of distractions at home...for me that not where I usually am, so I wanted to offer up some tips on how to survive the first semester of nursing school.

1. READ your books.

This is probably the most annoying thing especially for those like me who learn visually or auditory, so I ended up having to rewrite my notes ( because highlighting does not work for me), and reading out loud.

2. Buy an NCLEX book and start using it now!

Some might not like this idea, but nursing questions suck because all the answers are viable and getting an NCLEX book in your first semester will help you get past the shock phase of those crazy critical thinking questions for those who are more fact-based learners like myself.

3. Be outspoken.

I think it's no secret by now that almost all nursing instructors highly favor students who are extroverts and who talk a lot. Being an introvert did not help me out much. My clinical instructors said I'm too shy to be a nurse when I really have no problem talking in front crowds, I'm just quiet and that's how God made me. If you are quiet like me, make it a point to be extra loud and outspoken especially to your clinical instructor and always volunteer to be the first to try new skills...just trust me on this.

4. Get a good calendar.

Be it an online calendar or old fashioned one, it is needed cause you won't be able to remember all the dates and commitment you have for assignment deadlines.

5. Start projects early.

Go into each class schedule on the first day of class and find all your big papers and start drafting them. Do a little each week so you won't be overwhelmed especially with the time-consuming task of finding evidence-based research.

6. Nursing students Don't get sick.

Ok apparently nursing students are not allowed to get sick, I had a long sick weekend and missed a few assignment deadlines one week and missed 1 day of class for being sick...next thing I'm being called into the nursing office as they question my motives for being a nurse. Anyways...as long as you not in a casket...drag yourself to school, it's better for them to send you home than to call in sick.

7. Say goodbye to life as you know it.

The boyfriend, girlfriend, wife, husband, dog, cat and pet rats will need to understand that you are in nursing school. This means you basically don't have a life and won't be seeing much of them...ok they won't understand but they will try to. Just be patient with the transition of the school life, it is not easy and many relationships do not survive this test.

Finally good luck to those who will be entering their first semester in summer and Fall. I know it's an exciting time. Got some tips of your own? Please add them to this post, I need all the help I can get as I move into semester 2.

Get youtextbookok early and start reading

[ArrowRN, BSN, RN]

Man-nurse 2b, congrats on finishing the first semester. For me, it helps to hear from those who have experienced it and are honest about what to do and not to do, thank you.

Thank you for all the great tips. I start the program in a week and need all the advice I can get.

What are the most useful apps?

Great idea about Dropbox, I have one but never use it. I will now.

I honestly have not used any apps for the 1st semester. However, most of the common ones that people refer to and I have on my phone are Medscape, Epocrates, Micromedex, and Eponyms. Most Apps are geared towards pharmacology, and I won't have that until fall. Medscape is pretty good for medical info and Eponyms gives a brief explanation of just about every sign and syndrome and anatomy you will come across.

P.S they are all free apps, I read some people spending as much as $160 on an app for nursing school. I don't think it will make you anymore genius than anyone else in class. And besides that, most facilities still have strict policies regarding use of phones on the floor during clinicals, we had to go to the break room to use it.

[Wrench Party]

My reflective advice ( I graduate tomorrow):

1) Coffeecoffeecoffee. My travel mug was my security blanket and my best friend.

2) Figure out a study method that works for you. I used the companion workbooks and also skimmed powerpoints. Reading the book helped maybe 1/2 the time. I also studied after having a few beers.

3) Group projects suck, but are a fact of nursing school life.

4) Be yourself. I'm an introvert and have a good BS detector, it saved my sanity and my patients. I didn't engage socially with most of my class and have no regrets about that.

5) Not everyone has to devote their entire life to nursing school. I worked part time, was able to race bikes on the weekend, and did things I enjoyed, but became a planning ninja to accommodate.

6) PLAN EVERYTHING. It won't happen unless you plan it.

7) Not to make light of bipolar pts, but you will feel a wide range of emotions. You'll be deliriously happy, cry, crushed to the lowest depths, panicky, anxious, indifferent, etc. Feeling all these things is normal.

8) Do not let anyone belittle your accomplishments in school, and I mean NO ONE. You are becoming a NURSE and be proud of that fact.

9) You'll know who your real friends are coming out of school. Everyone coming to my party tomorrow had some small or large accomplishment in my success.

[nursing_student93]

This is all great advice! I haven't even started my nursing program yet, but just wanted to comment that one way to ensure papers get saved is to write them in Google docs - autosaves it every few seconds. You can always C+P it to Word when you're done.

[Baubo516, RN]

I just want to agree with #6 (if that's the right number) - Nursing students don't get sick!!! This is a pic of me attending class with a mask on because I had a fever and body aches... it seriously may have been the flu. The thing is, we are not allowed to make up in class quizzes that we miss, no matter what the reason is, doctor's note or whatever. Also, we go over our tests at the very next class period, and if you are not there, you don't get to find out what you missed or look over your test at all.

I did what I could to protect my classmates - I sat in the corner, didn't touch anyone and wore a mask - but I got my butt to class! We were going over a unit test that day and I did not want to miss out. We also ended up having a 5 point quiz, so I am glad I went. It probably did not hurt to demonstrate to my instructors how freakishly committed I am!

Oh yeah - there's another tip - EVERY POINT COUNTS! Do not blow off an assignment because it seems like a lot of work for only one-three points. Those points may later make a difference between passing and not passing, or for the extremely studious, between getting an A or a B.

One more tip - eat healthy and try to get some exercise. Both of these things will help with stress. I am not a big work-out guru, but I did walk and talk with a classmate after class for 30-45 minutes as often as we could. For sure twice a week, sometimes as often as 4 times a week. I have been eating healthy food and I managed to lose 10 lbs this semester even with the stress of school. (I have about 20 more to go, but that's another story...) I think walking and talking really helped me deal with the stress - especially during the first two weeks of class when we were adapting to the huge culture shock of everything that was expected!

Good luck to everyone and enjoy your summer!

p.s. If you recognize me from the pic, don't blow my cover! :)

[Shelby, BSN, RN]

You are absolutely right about not getting sick! I became a germ freak because I was so concerned about catching something. Not only could I not afford to miss a class, but I couldn't afford to miss time from studying. Which brings me to two important points:

1. Record your lectures. If nothing else, you can listen to them in the car. I listened to them while cleaning my house, grocery shopping, driving, and just to hear the teacher explain something again. Very handy when you fail to take good notes in class because you were so exhausted from doing nursing care plans all night.

2. Study or work on nursing every day. Some people take the weekend off, or an entire day. I tried this a couple of times and paid dearly for it. I ended up being even more stressed because I realized that I might not be pulling an all nighter if I had worked two hours on a paper instead of doing nothing. I know many will disagree, and I understand some need the mental break, but it never worked for me.

You can have a life outside of nursing, but it will be very different from what you had before nursing school. I have children and do all of the child care and house work. I managed to juggle everything and have the highest grade in my entire graduating class. But I never consumed alcohol while I was in nursing school. I also completely quit watching tv and movies and playing games on the internet or facebook. My facebook friends figured I quit FB too just because I didn't have time to get on that either.

If you are a nontraditional student, or have to juggle more than just a student role, then you need to be extremely organized. Nursing school is hard enough and requires a lot organization, but add a couple of kids... everything gets planned (dinners, laundry, grocery shopping trips, help with homework, etc).

Do NOT read everything! I know I am going to get slammed for this. I'm sorry, but there's just too much info. There's no way you can read everything and do everything and study everything. You need to learn what you have to read, what you can skim, and what you can skip all together. My first day of nursing school I was assigned 250 pages for one nursing class and 100 pages in another nursing class. Some nursing classes assign around 200 pages per class. I had a class that required 5 giant texts. Seriously, it's too much. I asked a trusted nursing professor if this was normal. She said yes, and it gets worse. She said the instructors know you can't read everything and to read the chapter summaries and IF you have time then skim the chapter. I say take your class time very seriously and absorb as much as you can. Read what is emphasized in class (especially the tables!) and anything that you don't understand.

Turn in everything on time! Do not submit things late, and do NOT ask for extensions. Teachers hate that (and yes they will remember that you didn't turn your work in on time because you were "sick") and your classmates will be irritated that you didn't have to turn in your work by the deadline that was posted in the syllabus and they busted their rear to complete it on time. We all know that "things happen." But here's the news flash: "Things" happen to everyone. We all have to learn how to handle things, get over things, deal with things, and still complete everything to the best of our ability.

Learn how you learn, and realize sometimes you need to try new things. I learn best by writing, so I am one of the few students that still pulls out a notebook and pen during class, not an iPad. I will also listen to my lectures and watch videos to understand things better. I never used flash cards, they never worked for me. Until I had to start learning a million drugs and drug related facts. Writing everything out no longer worked, so I had to try a new game plan. Flash cards were a huge help. And for anyone wondering about which ones to buy, the best ones are in a package of 100 and are about $1 at Walmart. Make them yourself. It will tremendously benefit you to make them yourself and you will remember more this way.

Practice, practice, practice. Practice assessing family members, friends, classmates. Utilize the nursing lab during practice times. Reading the steps and thinking about how to do something is not enough.

Get to know your teachers. Most really do care about your education and want you to succeed. Never be afraid to see them during office hours to ask for clarification, review a test, or just ask for suggestions on how to study something. They can be very helpful through out your nursing education.

I hope this helps someone out there!

[Nurse2b7337]

These are all amazing tips. Please lee them coming!!! :)

Sent from my iPhone using allnurses.com

[Nurse2b7337]

These are all amazing tips. Please keep

them coming!!! :)

Sent from my iPhone using allnurses.com

Sent from my iPhone using allnurses.com

[Nurse2b7337]

These are all amazing tips. Please lee them coming!!! :)

Sent from my iPhone using allnurses.com

^keep!!!

Sent from my iPhone using allnurses.com

[NurseS2014]

AWESOME!! and TRUE!!

[Kittythestudentnurse]

Awesome tips, I have two to add:

1.Make friends! I went into school with the intention of going it alone, but I made a lot of friends and it helped for many reasons:

a. Studying together paid off big time for tests (make sure you have friends that study on their own like you do before meeting up )

b. When you're halfway through the term, bombarded with work, pulling your hair out, crying and asking yourself what you were thinking going to nursing school, it's great to know that you're not crazy and your friends know what you're talking about (although you're sad to picture them crying, holding fistfuls of their own hair)

c. Nobody else understands what you're going through better than fellow nursing students...not family, not friends, no matter how supportive they are.

2. If your school has counsellors (therapists, etc), take advantage of them if you feel stressed and overwhelmed...I did. I felt like I couldn't think clearly, I didn't know how I was going to write my nursing theory test because I was so stressed out and I had struggled with studying and absorbing any info...I talked to a counsellor, she put things in perspective and it cleared my head and eliminated a lot of stress, so much that I ended up getting 99% on that test!

[ArrowRN, BSN, RN]

I notice lots more people getting acceptance letters so I'm bumping up this thread. If you have not read it already it may help you out with planning for the 1st semester of nursing school. My second semester is winding down. For me, Fall (semester 3) begins with maternity, and med-surg feel free to ask me any questions and thanks for liking this article. I also got some great tips from those who responded...thanks guys and gals!

[DalekRN]

I start in the fall and am really terrified. I have a husband a 4 year old, and I'm pregnant. Due a month after school starts so luckily my classes are online but I have to go to clinicals. This is really good information, thanks so much. Will do them all.[/quote']

You should maybe consider putting off starting until the winter.... First semester is killer, content heavy and you gotta be there physically for those clinicals. It was all consuming for me.