Could use some good advice from you guys.......older wanna be here....

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Hello! My name is Lacy. I am a 37-year-old working mom of 2. I have been thinking about nursing for quite a while now. With the urging of my fabulous friend I am thinking that I want to go for it. :eek:

It's been a LONG time since I've been in school. I did well in HS and didn't apply myself in college but still completed my course work. My college course work was, however, not science related. My HS science/chem teachers was a football coach and honestly never bothered to teach us much of anything. His main concern was.....well, I'm not sure what it was but it wasn't teaching us.

More than likely I will probably start taking my pre-reqs in the fall. I don't want to be behind as soon as I start. To make things easier on me and to hopefully keep my sanity I want to start reading and learning NOW. The million dollar question is......where do I start and with what?? I've read on a thread here about how used book stores sometimes have a nursing section and that you can buy texts pretty cheap. I am wondering if it would be a good idea to buy biology books and read them? Or what would be a good route to take?

I know how hard this will be and want to give myself every advantage while I have "spare" time beforehand. Any advice that you have to give would be GREATLY appreciated.

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Hey there, I started in my mid to late 30's as well and just graduated with my BSN at 42. I think what was most helpful was taking Algebra. My prereqs were English, Critical thinking, Statistics, Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Microbiology, Biology, Anatomy, and Physiology. I thought Algebra was useful in Chemistry and later in dosage calculations. I don't know what I could have done to prepare for the other classes, but certainly it couldn't hurt to pick up the books for each class and start reading through them. I would try to see what books the classes actually use and try to get a used copy. I wish you the best of luck.

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Hi there! :) I'm 30 and have two young kiddos at home. It sounds like we had the same science teacher/coach, lol. I did okay, but didn't retain anything. I took A&P I last semester and applied myself and ended up getting an A in it (and all my other courses). You have to be able to devote the time to studying, but I don't think that not being in school for awhile is horrible, if you did well in school before. In fact, I think it might give us a bit of an edge - we're not burned out with it anymore. :)

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Specializes in Hospice & Palliative Care, Oncology, M/S.

Hi!

I'm currently 35 years old, and returned to college at 32. I thought the same as you, that I was so far removed from any classes that I wouldn't remember anything at all. I started with Intermediate Algebra and Biology (as well as a couple of other courses), and found that my brain "woke up" almost immediately. I began remembering more and more from high school.

As you progress into the more difficult pre-reqs, the fact that you already have a solid base from the first or second semester will definitely make things less scary. Anatomy and Organic Chemistry were my toughest courses, and I had to study quite a bit for those.

I think it would be great if you could review. Can you get some books from the library so you don't have to spend money on books you don't need to keep? Do you know anyone who might have their textbooks that you can borrow?

Congratulations on making the decision to come back to school. It's a tough road but I know you can do it! :)

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Specializes in Critical Care; Cardiac; Professional Development.

I am 39, started my pre-req's to apply for NS about three years ago. I am in my first semester of NS now.

Go to the college you are interested in attending and meet with an academic advisor there. They can go over your transcript with you, identify what you have, what you need and then direct you where to take the placement exam for math that you will likely have to take to determine what math course you belong in. Math and sciences age off after 5 years in most places if not all of them, so any you took before will have to be re-done. I started with a remedial algebra course and with biology, then went up from there. I have kids, so took one class at a time. Getting into nursing school is difficult and competitive, so doing it one course at a time ensured I made the As that I needed to be accepted.

You are FAR from too old to do this. The average age in my class is 35. We have mostly older students in fact. There are a few early 20s, but most of us are in our 30s and we have one lady who turned 50 this past week.

Good luck!

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The study guides for the CLEP test are a good place to start. Even if you don't intend to CLEP anything.

Libraries vary, but some have good selections of basics of algebra or what you need to know before you start algebra (or chemistry or biology). The titles vary, but you should be able to id them if your library has them or can get them.

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I am 42 and just started college this month. A good place for you to start would be a placement test at your local community college, if there is one near you. I am taking Algebra II this semester, which I am nervous about, but also very motivated. If you are motivated, you will study harder. My college offers classes all summer long so I am going to be going to school year-round. I have 14 classes to take before I can apply to their nursing program.

If you do some searching on this site, there are sites posted that help with math and other subjects, too.

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