can a non-native speaker do well in nursing school?

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

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I am a pre-nursing student, actually I am taking my prerequisites classes at a community college. Meanwhile, I am working as a part time French teacher in a private school. I have to confess that being a mom of a 13 months baby, working and being a wife is not easy when you are at school. In addition, English is my 4th language. I have a strong desire to become a nurse, and I am studying so hard for it. I am aiming to get only As:) I compare myself a lot to native speakers, and I am very jealous when it come to studies:). There are sometimes when I feel like I will not be able to do it because of my English level, and other times I feel a huge motivation inside me. I do understand my classes, but I am still worried about the communication. Do you think that it is going to be ok to study in nursing with an English level lower than native speakers?

Thanks

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I know a woman whose second language was English. She had a very hard time with the NYCLEX, but passed. Now our facility is requiring BSN ONLY, and she's terrified to even try. We have all urged her to start, just with one class and see how it goes. If you worked there as an associates degree nurse for 5 yrs or more, you were grandfathered in. She only has 3 years. You say you speak 4 languages. So concentrate only on English as you prepare for your classes. Speak it, read it, write it! You'll do fine!

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Specializes in Pedi.

I have worked with many nurses who spoke languages other than English as their first language. Your written English seems proficient, better than many native English speakers.

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I had two non-native English speakers in my cohort who were both successful with our accelerated BSN program and passing NCLEX. Like you, one of them spoke 4 languages. I think they had to work a little harder to decipher the meaning of some of the content, but both would ask for clarification when necessary.

You very effectively communicated your question/concern in English in your post, and I suspect you will not have to worry about language as being an obstacle to your success. Best wishes!

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Thanks for the response:) I need to be more confident, and believe in my abilities:)

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Thanks;)

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Specializes in ICU, LTACH, Internal Medicine.

Studies aside, not all schools are looking favorably on students from other cultures and other languages.

If you work in a place like ER in a big metropolitan city with many tourists/large immigrant communuties, your multi-linguality may be a gift for the unit. In remote areas, accent-speaking students and nurses are openly discriminated against and not protected under EEOC.

You definitely can succeed as a student and nurse, but you need to choose school and especially first work place really carefully.

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Hi KatieMI,

I live in a metropolitan city( Atlanta, ga). the scholl I want to get in has stduents from different cultures.

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Specializes in Trauma, Teaching.

Plenty of ESL students in nursing schools, one of the bigger problems is lack of medical vocabulary. Conversational English is fine but you need the technical and professional ease. Which is totally doable if you are motivated and I have had many students pass just fine who were ESL.

However, all A's is a great goal but many students find that their GPAs drop, whether English is their heart language or not, as nursing "think" and tests are very different from many other courses of study. Go for it! but don't be discouraged if suddenly your grades are not what you expected.

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.

Some non-native English speakers outperform their classmates. Others do not. It all depends on the non-native English speaker's level of mastery of the English language. Good luck to you!

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Specializes in Dialysis.

Nursing school can be hard for anyone who speaks any language. But really hone your medical English skills. As far as I know, NCLEX is only offered in English, and most state BoNs require proficiency in English. Your written is very good. Best of luck to you

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Specializes in ICU, LTACH, Internal Medicine.
Hi KatieMI,

I live in a metropolitan city( Atlanta, ga). the scholl I want to get in has stduents from different cultures.

That hopefully make things easier:yes:

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