What should I expect?

[annanicole.]

Hi everyone!

I am currently a senior in high school and have been accepted to East Carolina University, so that's where I plan to go to college starting in the fall. My overall plan is to major in nursing and then continue in grad school where I'll get my Master's in Psychiatric Nursing and becoming a PMHNP (psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioner). But that's the big picture.

I've been told that ECU's nursing program is pretty challenging, and I'll need to hold a 3.5 by the end of sophomore year in order to be accepted into nursing. But I really just want to know what I should expect in nursing school. I know it'll be stressful, but I'd just like some insight on what classes I'll be taking and some advice on how to manage everything.

Thanks!

[Rose_Queen, BSN, MSN, RN]

One of the best resources you can use to find this information is the school's college catalog, which will list all required courses for the major and the general education requirements. Each college must meet BON requirements, but how they do that is up to them- what nursing courses will include what information is going to vary from school to school. The college catalog will clearly explain what each course is about, what courses are required to be completed before you can sign up for another, and so on. The advisor that will be assigned to you is also a valuable resource to take advantage of.

[chanperrybsn]

I graduated from ECU's nursing program in May 2012. It is an extremely challenging program, but well worth it. By the end of your sophomore year, you need to have a higher GPA than a 3.5. Applying for fall admission to the program is much more competitive. A 3.5 might get you into a spring semester which usually has less applicants. Unless things have changed, they used to base admissions on a point system. If this is still the case, your GPA is the most important component. I believe the lowest GPA in my class was a 3.6. Nursing school is extremely stressful, the tests are much different than other college courses. Nursing tests contain all correct answer choices and you are to decide which one is "most correct" which is based on your professor's personal nursing practice. Also, clinicals are not as important toward your GPA as the actual lecture courses. Pharmacology and Pathophysiology will be your easiest classes since they're more straight forward. You'll have some "filler" classes like nursing leadership, professional nursing, and nursing research. The lecture instructors are not nuturing, so expect them to beat you down mentally as soon as you start. Some are really nice, but most are bulldogs. Most of the clinical instructors are great and very helpful. The mental health clinicals are awesome at ECU. We attended several inpatient psych floors, Walter B. Jones, and Cherry Hospital. Overall, yes it will be hard, but you'll receive a great education.

As a pirate psych nurse myself, I wish you the best of luck. I just began applying for graduate programs to become a PMHNP also.