I want to do well in nursing school...any advice

calivianya, BSN, RN · May 20, 2013

Nursing school is easier than you think it is.
Spoken like someone who has never been. Guarantee this troll isn't licensed for anything. Nursing school is easy, tell that to the 26 people in my freshman class that didn't make it. You're quite obviously a non-healthcare worker, or someone who went through a nurse-mill, and can't pass boards.
I don't want to sound overly condescending, but I'm a nurse, and I know A LOT of nurses, none of which has ever said nursing school was easy. It's not easy, at all. Even if mommy and daddy are footing the bill while you're off having the time of your life at college. I worked full-time as a CNA when I went to nursing school, also full-time, it's no picnic.

Nursing school isn't that difficult for everyone. Just because that person had an easier (easier, not easy - not the same thing) time than you or your freshman class doesn't mean that their nursing school is subpar. Some people learn faster than others, some test better than others, and some are naturally more confident than others - all factors which will affect how difficult nursing school is for them. Also, some nursing schools have difficult material but instructors who WANT you to succeed and will help you, and others have instructors who eat their young. If you really lost that many people, it sounds like you went to one of the latter.

I know nursing school was easier than I thought it was going to be. It was challenging, but it certainly wasn't impossibly difficult.

BrandonB779 · May 20, 2013

I graduated 2 years ago from Nursing School, and much like the first reply you saw, yea its a completely different unfair world lol. The GPA hit, happened, the stress, happened. Best advice I can say, ask questions, get rationals, don't think too much into the questions when it comes to test time. There are usually the 2 great answers, then the 2 that make absolutely no sense. Don't read into much of anything, accept it for what it is, and be mindful of your clinical experience as well. In the program I was in, if you had a mistake on the floor (the instructors checked everything from day 1 before you administered it) and it was a serious offense, you were gone.....and never allowed to re-apply. Make friends and study, it will honestly keep you afloat, and designate your time. Don't try to work like I did (it sucked) it's not recommended to try to balance a work load and classes. Best of luck!

osamejrn · May 20, 2013

Nursing school is grueling and I can't even think of anything to equate it to. The instructors are supposed to be "rude" because if you can't cut it in school, you are definitely not going to cut it as a nurse.

My advice is to study, make note cards/flash cards. Watch YouTube videos to help reinforce or add a new twist to things. There are also websites with mnemonics to help you memorize things like the 12 cranial nerves or the 10,004 signs and symptoms you're being tested on in two weeks!. If this hasn't scared the "you know what" out of you yet you'll need to give up a huge part, if not all, of your social life too (that is if you don't have a photographic memory).......sorry! You'll also need to learn how to prioritize everything from practicing skills check-offs to blowing your nose!

I purchased a NCLEX review book and an app to practice questions (while waiting in line at the grocery store to waiting for a doctor appointment) from a relevant section before an exam. They helped me learn but also helped me to get used to answering the questions they ask on the exams.

Good luck! It can be done! I did it while raising 2 kids and working (part-time).

chelseafm · May 20, 2013

I did an ABSN program too and it was brutal, but I love a challenge. They say it's like trying to drink from a fire hose. :laugh: The syllabus was almost a joke, no one was able to get through all the reading we were assigned, especially in Summer semesters when we had 14 units. So don't freak out! Just do what you can and know that you probably won't have much of a social life. Good luck!

DizzyLizzyNurse · May 20, 2013

Take it very seriously. In both my LPN class and RN class fully 2/3 failed and had to repeat/graduate with a later class, quit, failed out completely.....You will quickly learn how badly you want it. A friend of mine went into school to be a nurse because it was "easy and you make good money." She thought we were just med givers and occasionally butt wipers. She told me I was making it sound harder than it actually was (right how would I know? I only went to nursing school for 2 different licenses.) She dropped out after failing 2 prerequisites. So my 2/3 failure/drop out rate doesn't even include those who quit or failed out during the prereq's part.

mc3, ASN, RN · May 21, 2013

1. Stay away from the drama!!!!! Can't emphasize that enough................

2. Even though your instructors may be the rudest people you've ever met, show them respect and do not, repeat do not, argue with them. You'll always lose.

Good luck!!!

mc3:nurse:

Nurse_RaRa · May 21, 2013

D. All of the above = great advice. Don't fear the NCLEX. It is full of common sense questions. Just study critical thinking questions (I found a bunch on a keyring for sale at a Hastings once). Us "front row gals" tape recorded the lecture, made perfect notes from that and fashioned quizzes for each other. Forget social life. buckle down and learn the stuff. Party when you graduate.

Yes it can be tough but when every thing you do can either save or kill someone - you need to know the facts. I now understand why my instructors said to do Med-Surg for a couple years and then find what you love and specialize, however....you see every nasty thing in Med-surg except Labor & Delivery, Operations, Chemo admin, only some wound care depending on where you end up working.

I graduated in 2005 (ASN) (BS in something else) and have worked in almost every area of Nursing since then. I'm going back to school to get my RN-MSN and maybe PhD. i'm an older student but I encourage everyone to get their BSN and keep going to MSN. You can then branch out to managing or educating and YES - you do get paid more for the more education and also experience you have.

MotherRN · May 21, 2013

Learn to connect your assessment to your documentation. At some point in your career, you may have to chart narratively (i.e. you will be staring at a blank sheet of paper and be expected to know what to write down). As you do procedures, learn what important points to include in your charting, realize these are the same things you asssess the patient for. There is a really good book on making charting incredibly easy or visual, I forget.

Also, learn to connect the medications your patient is on to his diagnosis. Do the same with the labs. And both of these relate to what you assess in the patient for (i. e. therapeutic response to medication- if a patient was on a medication meant to improve his disease process, then know the disease process and what to assess to know if his meds are effective or detrimental. Medication therapy can be 'too much of a good thing'- it can work too well and cause opposite problems.)

So, know a basic set of lab values. Learn you disease processes. Know the steps and things to document about procedures.

Find somewhere to practice taking vitals.

My advice is mostly meant to help you get the most out of your studies in a way that will benefit you once you are on the job. I would like doing these things would also help you turn out some insightful clinical worksheets!

Best of luck! Your going into battle so get ready to hang tough!

MotherRN · May 21, 2013

Sorry for the bad spelling, grammar, typos...I'm on information overload due to stress and being in orientation for a new job.

kalevra, BSN, RN · May 21, 2013

Nursing school is easier than you think it is.
Spoken like someone who has never been. Guarantee this troll isn't licensed for anything. Nursing school is easy, tell that to the 26 people in my freshman class that didn't make it. You're quite obviously a non-healthcare worker, or someone who went through a nurse-mill, and can't pass boards.
I don't want to sound overly condescending, but I'm a nurse, and I know A LOT of nurses, none of which has ever said nursing school was easy. It's not easy, at all. Even if mommy and daddy are footing the bill while you're off having the time of your life at college. I worked full-time as a CNA when I went to nursing school, also full-time, it's no picnic.

Seriously RN school is not as difficult as many say it is.

The 26 people in your freshman class were not prepared/didn't take it seriously etc. I mean really now, lets be realistic. University freshman straight out of high school are not known for their single minded motivation.

I know of single moms with 4 kids working 20-30 hours a week pass nursing school. If they can do it, so can anyone else with enough drive.

By pass I mean first time go. My school average is 91% first time NCLEX pass. It all comes down to motivation.

How bad do you want this? How hard are you willing to work? Are you willing to do whatever it takes to meet the standard?

cheezyguy · May 21, 2013

Hello everyone. I will be starting ABSN in about a week, I still have not ordered any of my books but I have been trying to research articles that will help me do well in nursing school. I am terrified as it is a hard career and I hear horror stories all the time. I would like advice on how to excel in nursing school, what you guys did to do well, study tips etc..

Also I want to add that if your currently working, try to cut down your work hours so that you can concentrate on studying. I almost failed in my 1st half of my 1st semester from nursing school because I was working fulltime and the nursing program is a fulltime program! I had no other choice after my 1st exam but to change my work status from fulltime to parttime. The aftereffect was I lost my health benefits. Nowadays having a health insurance is a must...

I agree with Meriwhen on answering nursing school test questions.. Its not what you used to from your other college classes. The best way to prepare this is to purchase or borrow ANY current NCLEX-RN review book (Saunders is probably the BEST you can get one out there). Wish I would have done this before.. Try to answer some of the NCLEX-style questions from the CD-ROM or from the book. You will soon realize that the questions were written VERY differently. For each answer, read the RATIONALES for every choice answers. As you progress through the program, do the same thing. Practice NCLEX questions during your break or while studying and READ every single RATIONALE to every answer choices.

When answering NCLEX questions (either practice test or from your class exams), focus on the question itself. Ask yourself.. what is the question trying to accomplish? DON'T make it a habit to ask "What if"?... That's a BAD habit that I have to break during my 1st year at nursing school. I always tend to go deep and read too much into the question. Kaplan is a good source for you regarding test-taking strategy, so as Saunders...

Regarding textbooks... yup u have to take the reading assignments seriously. Most nursing instructors just give you modules and reading assignments. The nursing instructors and the school give u the tools that u need, but its up to you to utilize those resources. If your school offers tutoring or some sort of help if u get confused to a specific nursing content, such as drug calculations etc, take advantage of it.. Also it would be a GREAT idea to join or create a study group. Depending on your learning style, it could be beneficial to you or just a distraction. I personally believe that joining or forming a study group really helped me with my studies (after my 1st semester of almost failing my Fundamentals and MedSurg1). Most modules and reading assignments tend to have TONS of pages to read.. As you progress through the program you'll discover that you'd be reading a LOT more with so LITTLE time.. My tip? skim the content first and write down any terms that you're having trouble with or unfamiliar with, then look back at your module. If the module includes a study guide, use the study guide. Re-read again and focus on the specifics (e.g. core content of what the module is). I also find it helpful to utilize some nursing textbooks' additional resources (audio and video content related to specific topic or chapter). If the content still confuses you, do some research. Most of my nursing instructors include YouTube videos in my nursing lectures, and most of the time it helps.

Hope this helps. Good luck with nursing school!

bsyrn, ASN, RN · May 21, 2013

Come to school on time, properly dressed and prepared to learn. Keep up with your reading and study every day. Take responsibility for yourself and please don't blame your instructors for everything that goes wrong. They are there to teach you, not be your friend, your peer or your parent. Instructors want you to succeed but aren't going to pass a student who is unsafe. People will fail out, nursing school is a lot of hard work but if you truly want it, you will do great. Best of luck :nurse: