Any older students?

futureLVN40 · Dec 11, 2014

I would like to follow this post as I am an older student also. I am barely starting on my prerequisites and I'm 36 years old. I have a really hard time focusing but I don't think that's due to my age it's just me. I also have 6 kids to worry about. I am so nervous and anxious to see if I can do this. :down:

TC_2014 · Dec 11, 2014

I am a 41 year old mother of 2. I work full time and finishing up my pre-reqs this semester. I am applying to a nursing program for fall 2015. I feel my age has been an asset since I am more organized and focused than I was in my 20's.

You need to figure out time when you can study and schedule it just like other things in your life. I make a weekly schedule that includes my entire family's activities and block out time for me.

Red Kryptonite · Dec 11, 2014

I'm a 39 year old married mother of 5, HS senior down to 2nd grader, and I start a CC LPN program this January. I too am worried about juggling. I'll let you know.

Dodie_A · Dec 11, 2014

TC has is right. I realized that this semester. Before now, no matter how many classes I had, I could just go with the flow and study whenever. A&P I kicked my butt this semester and I absolutely have to start scheduling. I think that will help my focus and memory too.

SopranoKris, MSN, RN, NP · Dec 11, 2014

I'm 45 and will be finishing my nursing program in May. It definitely can be done!!! I find I need to use a planner to keep track of everything that needs to be done (school work, kid's sports, house cleaning, etc.) It's the only way I can stay on top of everything. As far as memory goes, take a learning style quiz and see how you best learn. For example, are you a visual learner? Auditory? Kinesthetic? Once you know how you learn best, you can then use the tools that enable you to get the most out of studying. For example, I'm an auditory learner, so recording & listening to lectures really helps me. Also, if I talk to other students in my study group, I learn more by trying to teach the material. We take turns "teaching" each other different topics. It has really helped improve information retention and understanding of the material. Again, use the techniques that are best suited for you :)

Good luck! It feels like a long journey at the beginning, but you'll be surprised at how quickly it actually goes once you're in the program

Rexjackiec · Dec 11, 2014

I am 35 and a mother of 3 and will be starting my first semester of Nursing school in January! The biggest thing that helped me with my prerequisites was scheduling some down time at school between my classes.. or if I was home I would utilize my older kids to help with the younger one....take an hour put head phones on and go to a room or send them to their room and tell them to only call you for emergencies!! Lol

Dodie_A · Dec 12, 2014

Soprano, that's some good advice. Learning style.... For me, it depends on the subject and material. I did really well with a couple of classes just by making flash cards and reading them every night. However, for biology-based material, I have to take several approaches and each depends on the material. For example: the Calvin cycle - I have to watch a few videos/animations on you tube, take notes as I pause them, and make flash cards for the orders of the steps.

One of the problems I have is this snap-shot style of learning we're doing. I don't know if all schools are like this. When we're learning new material, we often start and stop ONLY within the parameters of that specific 'thing.' A pretty good example is meiosis- b/c there wasn't much discussion about where the cells came from and where they were headed, it was too easy to mix the process up with mitosis and be lost. Same with action potentials in the NS; we started in the middle and not at the beginning. Made it much harder to put the processes together and to later link them with previously learned material.

I am definitely going to look into scheduling my time for next semester. This semester was tough. I ended up with only ONE class, A&P I, and barely made a B; I dropped Stats as there was just no way for me to pass it. I feel like the dumbest person alive right now! So many people make A's with a full schedule and full adult responsibilities. Honestly, I'm tempted to add one more class because I actually did better when I had four classes at a time- 3 A's and a B with the B in Bio120, A's were BioL120, Art, and Psych201. Maybe it's something to do with the pressure. This semester, I never slept more than 4 hours at a time and often only 3 hours. It's like I was always chasing sleep while sloppily juggling everything else...

Mami.RN, MSN, RN · Dec 12, 2014

Im 30 with 2 kids and half way through my pre-requisites. So far I have A&B s so it can be done.

You got this. Schedule everything. Planner has been my best friend.

Dodie_A · Dec 12, 2014

I may try a planner or actually utilizing my phone's calendar feature.

Im in no danger of bad grades. A's & B's all the way. However, I'm not very comfortable applying with a 3.4. It's just too low.

Ks mommy nurse · Dec 12, 2014

Hello. I guess I'll admit my age.....I'm, I'm, 39 (gulp)! There I said it lol! I'm married and have a 19 year old daughter who has caught up to me and is now attending cc with me lol!!

I'm finishing up my BSN pre-req's by the Spring. I never looked at my age as a disadvantage. If anything, I have taken school more seriously than the youngsters. Because of my 55+ hour per week work schedule, I have only been able to take 1-2 classes per semester. While my classmates struggle with 3-5 classes. One even repeated the science classes a few times for a higher grade.

Yeah, maybe my memory holds me back a bit, but I push harder, focus in class more, take great notes, study efficiently and manage to do well.

Good luck!

Red Kryptonite · Dec 12, 2014

I may try a planner or actually utilizing my phone's calendar feature.

Right?! LOL I use mine but not as much as I could.