Chances of becoming a nurse...

[yoyoming1001]

I am real conflicted about posting this because I'm embarrassed and afraid of the answers that I'll get, but I figure that being honest with myself and my situation and it will be better for me in the long run, I hope. Here it is:

I attended a private college straight out of high school and was and average student in my first two years, earning around a 2.5 g.p.a. towards a liberal arts degree. However, in my third year of college I lost my focus and direction and failed all of my classes, all from not attending. I was clinically depressed at the time - I would sleep most of the day and rarely leave my apartment. I was subsequently suspended from school and went home. I didn't even know what depression was at the time(I was confused, sad, and alone but didn't know why) but I have come to understand it through talk and drug therapy, and I can cope with it now much more maturely than I did a number of years ago. I've been rebuilding my life slowly. While at home I started working in a group home for mentally handicapped individuals and found a calling in health care. A lot of my friends were encouraging me to become a nurse and I began to see that nursing fits my personality type perfectly.

My whole point is that since I failed all of my classes in my third year of college, bringing my overall gpa down to under a 2.00, It's been impossible to get my academic career back on track because most schools won't accept a gpa that low (and I don't blame them.) My circumstances are not really unique as there are many students who drop/fail out of school, and I understand that there is no good reason for a school to accept me since I haven't proven anything. I have taken classes since that time and have received A's in every class, but it's just not enough.

I have a real fear that I will never be able to live down my mistakes and pursue a career in nursing. I am determined to become a nurse, but I worry that it's just blind determination that isn't realistic and will cause a lot of disappointment when my goal doesn't work out. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Sorry for the length!

[Chaoticdreams33, MSN, RN]

Like others have said- retake the courses you failed and get good grades for them. I don't know if all schools do it this way- but at mine the F's were cancelled and the A's were in their place. That brought my GPA up real quick!

[Melina]

Have you checked into your school's policy for grade forgiveness? I was able appeal to have an entire semester of F's removed from my transcripts. It's called "academic forgiveness" at my school.

My GPA was the least of my problems, I had *all kinds* of obstacles, and I still managed to get into my first choice program on the first try. Schools look at more than just GPA. Community service, leadership, etc., are really important as well.

Talk to advisors form the nursing programs you're interested in. Most are really helpful, and they should be able to tell you what their program is looking for.

Hang in there. If you really want to be a nurse, you'll get a program.

~Mel'

[kukukajoo, LPN]

How about starting at a community college or taking classes before you matriculate? If I am correct, you dont need to submit prior courses taken until you apply for admissions in a program and you can take classes before that. If you start out small, and prove yourself, you will do just fine.

I had taken 2 classes a few years ago, one I dropped and it was not noted, school had no records that far so I could not even fight it, so I had a 2.0 to start. I began by taking a few classes then enrolled as a liberal arts major/ general studies. Took all the courses I needed for nursing and got A's. It can be done, even from someone like me who never even finished high school!

Go get that degree you so badly want and best to you!

[guest303305]

I am a uconn student, and will be a nurse this coming May. Please don't attack the other post about uconn... To be honesy, uconn is very harsh when it comes to nursing. I had depression on my 2nd and 3rd year of school but I still manage to pass my classes with hard works of course. Nurses work under stress all the time, I guest it is just a test from god to see if you really should be a nurse or not. for class of 2009 as freshmen: 750 applicants, they only accepted 110. to transfer into nursing from other major: 250 aplicants, they only accepted 4. I know one of the girl who gets 3.78 gpa and didn't get into the program. The minium gpa you need to get into an accerlated program (you had BS degree in another major and want to study to be a nurse) is 3.0; however, it is so competitive to the point that they are more likely looking at 3.4ish.

Nursing school is hard, I cried through my years at uconn... Sometimes I asked myself why did I choose uconn? May be there are school out there is less competitive... I've been in this country for only 8 years, my high school gpa is 3.7; looking at my grades now in college, I just want to cry again...

Remember, it doesn't matter what grade you have in high school... Students who gets in to School of Nursing at uconn are mostly honor students in high school to begin with. You are comparing yourself at a higher level and no longer with those kids in high school (those who are working at McDonald's or no points in their life). I learned that very quickly.....

Be nice in this forum... There is always a way out if you don't have a good beginnings. I wouldn't advise Uconn for nursing if you had a history of depression. Depression could kick in any times during your school year in the nursing program... Trust me, it is not fun....

[IHeartPeds87]

Im in the same boat as you....however i'm not giving up. There are two ADN programs that only look at the prerequisite courses gpa...of which I am retaking several of them at local community colleges to get into those programs. While I will have to submit transcripts from my college blunder years, it won't matter because they only look at prerequisite course gpa. Ofcourse, not all programs are like this...there are several progarms that i cannot even apply for because of my old college grades and the fact that you are only allowed a certain number of repeats. There are two programs in my state though that only look at prerequiste courses for calculating your gpa and don't care how many times you've taken the prerequisite courses. So i'm doing that and doing it well this time around!!

[aka640, BSN, RN]

I totally agree with you bunny. I don't want to bash nursing at UCONN either. I'm currently in my 4th semester at UCONN. I graduated high school with honors and I was in the National Honor Society and got into the School of Nursing. I was sooooo happy, but it's like when I look back now, my 1st semester at UCONN, I took 6 courses, 4 of them were sciences!!! I'm just looking back now and thinking, what the hell??? They just handed me my schedule and my advisor never helped with anything as many times as I talked to her. I ended up having a 2.0 gpa that semester. I didn't even learn about dropping classes until my soph year and that could have probably saved my gpa my 1st semester and I could have still be in the School of Nursing. Now I'm not trying to think too much of it but to just work hard to get into a BSN program when I graduate. I just wish they prepared students better who were coming into the School of Nursing because there are so many things I could have done different if I had much more advice. Would have saved me a whole lot of trouble =/

[CTRNTOBE]

Wow. First is that you do not have to inform a school of you current grades and you could start fresh with a 2.0 you probably want to do this anyway. Second is that you really have to be committed to survive in nursing school. You think that you will never survive the pre-reqs and the program is much harder then those.

Good luck.

[nkara, CNA]

I am so proud of you that you want to try again. DO IT. It won't hurt and you sound like with your background and passion you will be a great nurse. Go for it and just start from now on.. don't worry about the past school grades. Not everyone has success at the first try. :) Heck! I'm 40 and starting college again..