Are we a dime a dozen?

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

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Specializes in Med-Surg, NICU.

Ok, so I am enrolled at a 4 year college, but I am currently taking a couple of prerequisites for the BSN program at my local community college. It seems as though EVERYONE wants to be a nurse, many of the students are in their late 20s and some already have a bachelor's degree. I can't help but feel exasperated. I feel as though I am competing with EVERYONE, and I feel that I am at a disadvantage because some of the older students already have a bachelor's degree.

I keep hearing how there is a nursing shortage, and I can't help but feel that this information is inaccurate. EVERYONE wants to be a nurse. Nursing schools are facing gluts of applicants, many of them are there just to get a job. I feel like it isn't fair for an 18 year old to have to compete with both her generation AND older people who already have college degrees and years of work experience on their resume.

Does anyone else feel this way?

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Don't get discouraged!! Nursing is a extremely hard major and the pre-reqs themselves will weed many people out.

I wouldn't look at it to your disadvantage to competing with 25+ year olds, you have the advantage. Many of these people have kids, significant others, full time jobs, ect thrown into the mix so being 18 (assuming here) and having nothing to care for other than yourself and your studies is such an asset.

I'd been told by a nurse manager once that the nursing major is second in difficulty only to the MD. So don't let the overload of people worry you

Best of luck from one incoming freshman to another! (once again assuming!)

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Welcome to the world of grown-ups. The older students don't particularly care to be competing with the 18 year olds either, so it all balances. And wait until you get to the world of work, where it is truly dog eat dog, no matter how old you are. You have to develop a thick skin and learn to deal with things without letting them upset your mental peace. Good luck.

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Specializes in School Nursing.

I really don't think your age puts you at a disadvantage at all. There are some separate programs for second degree candidates.. but you getting your prerequisites done will put you in the same boat as everyone else from 18 to 88.;)

A lot of us "older" nurse wannabes don't have BS/BA degrees. I have an AA, but I don't think that will be of any help to me other than I completed all of my general education credits for it.

Do well and you will be fine. :)

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Specializes in Med-Surg, NICU.

Hey all,

From what I've heard, older candidates are actually preferred due to their life experience and perceived maturity. Nursing is the ONLY particular field in which being younger is a disadvantage. There is a thread entitled "nurses eat their young!" Lots of young nurses are having a harder time even getting into school because of the large amount of older women and single mothers wanting to get into nursing, mostly for monetary gain and job stability.

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It is not the people that you see that you are in competition with, it is the people that you dont see. Honestly you should look to your classmates as people to work with, not against. Those older students are there to help you if you ask them, and not just with school.

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Specializes in School Nursing.

Well, I'll argue that 'older' students generally have more than just a perceived maturity. Maturity comes with age and experience. There is no substitute for time. :)

However, I don't think that necessarily gives us an advantage. Some would argue that ageism goes the other way around.. and that the older applicants are turned away because they are perceived as being harder to shape into the ideal youthful nurse.

IF older students have any advantage over teenagers and very young adults, it is because older people generally have a better idea of what they want in life and might be more dedicated than their younger counterparts.

Is it fair? There are good arguments for both sides. One of those things you learn with age is that life simply isn't fair.

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Specializes in Med-Surg, NICU.

When you have several hundred applicants and less than 200 spots open per year, it is going to be hard not to look at others as competition when they are. I am not saying this to be cold hearted or anything, but it would suck to be turned down because everyone else was older and had more life experience than you.

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Specializes in School Nursing.

Ahhh Texas, we agree on something. ;)

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Specializes in Labor and Delivery.

Believe it or not I agree with you to some exent. Where I live there are seperate programs for second degree students so the rest of us are on an even playing field. I do feel that it is frustrating because one school I was at pooled all the students and some other parts of it were not really fair. I do think we are a dime a dozen right now and they have the upper hand. Just a few years back when I first decided I wanted to be a nurse they literally accpeted everyone who just filled the minimum requirements, the school I was at even took people that even finished their pre-req's yet and now they won't even let you apply that way. Since I took a few years off and had my two sons everything has changed. The economy has forced many people out of their jobs and many businesses have went under. I know from experience I worked as a mortgage broker and had several people in their 40's and 50's come in wanted to take a 2nd mortgage in their home to start a new business which we had to turn down and it was very sad. Nursing is also one of the fastest degrees you can get and make decent wages as well as many people feel its a secure career that cannot be effected by the economy. Thus, it has become so competitive. At my school your admission decision is based solely on your GPA, TEAS score, and a required essay that you submit which is your application and thats it-no volunteer work or experience is counted.

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Specializes in Ambulatory.

I think older students tend to know exactly what their goals are & what it takes to get there. Perhaps due to age, older students tend to be more dedicated because time is " running out". Nursing is a popular major now-a-days & it's no surprise that one can feel they're constantly competing against other students. I came across a few classmates in prerequisite classes that "plotted" against other students in order to make themselves stand out. But in the end it merely exposed their true character & was totally unnecessary. I totally agree with texas, that it's those you can't see that's competing against you. Many of my former classmates ended up getting into different nursing schools, including myself. So ultimately, we were not competing against each other for school acceptance. You might feel like those that already have a bachelor degree are "ahead" of you. But if you're willing to do whatever it takes, anything is possible. I was in a prerequisite class with another student that graduated from UC Berkeley. But it was me, who never obtained a college degree, that always score the highest on exams. I'm stating this not to show off, but to prove the point that anything is possible as long as you're willing to do what it takes.

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I know some programs do use interviews and/or essays as a part of the application process, but I'm glad that the community college I am attending doesn't. I went to a "pre-nursing advisement session" and the director of the nursing school said that they do not consider past experience (medical or other). They don't care about volunteer work or if you're a CNA that's been in the field for ages. They don't use letters of reference. They go solely on a points system based on prerequisite grades and the TEAS score. Even though there were over 300 applicants last year with only 74 openings, I feel a little less intimidated by the competitiveness because I know that all the applicants are on a completely level playing field. If a person gets A's in their prereqs and scores well on the TEAS, then that's all that matters, regardless of age. You might want to look into what your program requirements are - you may be worrying about ageism for no reason if your school is similar to mine. Also, the people who already hold a degree are probably not in direct competition with you because it seems like most 4-year colleges have a fast track program that they would be applying for separately.

Also, I will echo what another post said about being thankful for being a young student. You have a very BIG advantage over the non-traditional students when it comes to time to study. I can only get my studying and homework done when my 3-year-old is napping, or when we blow our meager budget on a couple days of childcare just so I can get a paper written. I remember 15 credit hours feeling like a manageable load when I was fresh out of highschool, working part-time and living in the dorm. Now? 10 credit hours feels like a lead ball and chain and I have to struggle to stay afloat. What I wouldn't give to have a few uninterrupted hours of study time each evening!

Good luck to you! Just focus on trying to make A's in all your prereqs for now and let everything else come together. ;)

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