Currently Lost in Pursuing Nursing

[OptimisticAraceli]

Hi everyone! Well, I am new to this site and this is my first post on here.

Well, I am 21 and will be a senior in my university this upcoming fall but... I am currently lost in life and what to do.

To keep my life story short, I am a first generation college student therefore I feel a lot of pressure to fulfill my parents' wishes of me being the first one in my family to earn a higher education bachelor's degree.

With that being said, I am stuck.

From my freshman year till this past spring semester, I have been a Pre-Nursing Major. I took most of the Pre-requisites like Microbiology, Chemistry, Sociology, Physiology, Biology, Human Anatomy, and Statistics.

But my GPA of 2.32 discouraged me and I felt like a failure to my parents and to myself (and I still do). I talked and cried to my mom, and in the end she told me "It does not matter how long it takes, as long as you get that degree." With those words, I felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders...or so I thought.

After my meltdown, I decided to change my major to Health and Human Physiology. The reason for this is that I want to use this degree to get my GPA up and to apply to nursing schools but I don't know what route to take anymore.

I was thinking of becoming a CNA while also re-taking the Nursing Pre-requisites but now, I just feel like I am slowly losing my motivation and time.

I have intelligent friends who are the ones who motivate me to not give up, who I look up to, based on their achievements, who are also pursuing professions in the medical field. My dream is to become a NICU Nurse and I haven't given up on that dream just yet, but I just am terribly lost on what to do.

I am sorry for my little emotional rant but thank you for listening. Please feel free to share some advice or if you had/or are going through the same experience that I am currently!

[Sour Lemon]

You really need to check with specific programs to see what they base their admission criteria on. My program looked at the hard science GPA, only. Taking other classes to bring up overall GPA would have been a waste of time and money.

Good luck to you. You're going to be fighting an uphill battle, but you're young and have plenty of time to do it.

[EmDash]

I agree. First, you have to figure out what programs you would like to apply to, particularly if you can't relocate or if you want to stay in-state for cost purposes. Then, I would probably take those program requirements to an appointment with an academic advisor. That way, you can come up with a plan with him or her on how to improve your chances of getting into the programs.

Most of the programs I looked at ranked candidates per prereq GPA, but did have a minimum requirement for an overall GPA that you had to reach to even be ranked. However, there are obviously some programs that don't look at the overall GPA at all.

[Tprofitt, BSN]

In my particular case, I had a lower GPA and I actually had to end up retaking 2 classes to be able to compete with the other students. Afterwards, I was accepted into a program, so anythings possible. I would change my major back to nursing and just focus. You can do better than a 2.3 and change it to a 3.2.

[direw0lf, BSN]

I would re-take whatever classes that you can if it would erase the first grade. You need to have a good foundation in A&P especially for nursing anyway. It will make your future nursing classes easier on you. You feel like a failure, but everyone learns different and transitions to college different. Look at how you studied your college classes in the past, and see what needs to change for you to do better in them. Did you commit enough time? Were there a lot of distractions around you? Maybe you need to take better notes? Figure that out before you do anything else. I hope things will work out for you.

[caliotter3]

I highly recommend that you speak to a nursing advisor at your school if you intend to pursue nursing.

[Workitinurfava, BSN, RN]

Please do not do it unless you want to. Your parents understandably want a stable and good paying job for you, but they will not be going to work as a nurse.

[SpycyRN, MSN, RN]

Speaking as a "seasoned" person, relax and take a hard look on what YOU want to pursue in life. Many of my friends were the first in their families to earn college degrees, that is fantastic that you are even attending college...good for you!!! In the end, though, make sure you pursue something that has meaning for YOU. It sounds like your mom wants you to be both happy and successful, what a kind woman. It sounds like she will support you in your endeavors. Like a previous person said, you are young and have time. If nursing is what you see for your future, then find out which programs might be best for you, find out specifically what they require, and do what you need to do to apply for and complete a program. Changing your major may or may not be helpful, it depends on what type of career you truly see yourself pursuing. Hang in there, you've got this!

[direw0lf, BSN]

The OP said her dream is to be a NICU nurse. She just doesn't know how to get there with the current GPA. I can relate, I was a terrible high school student until my senior year when I "woke up". Sometimes we just have to realize this is our chance and have to seize it, the OP will have to work extra hard now but it's not impossible.

[Workitinurfava, BSN, RN]

......

[Workitinurfava, BSN, RN]

Her post says, "I am currently lost in life and what to do.

To keep my life story short, I am a first generation college student therefore I feel a lot of pressure to fulfill my parents' wishes of me being the first one in my family to earn a higher education bachelor's degree. With that being said, I am stuck. My dream is to become a NICU Nurse and I haven't given up on that dream just yet, but I just am terribly lost on what to do".

She is sending mixed messages. She needs to figure out what she wants. After that things may go smoother.

[Neo Soldier, BSN, RN]

Please do not change your major if nursing is what you ultimately want: you will just be putting yourself in debt.

If you want to get your nursing degree in your school, figure out what their requirements are if you haven't already; do they only factor in your GPA or are there other requirements?

I do recommend you take a CNA course so you can get into the field and have an idea of what nurses do. If you do decide on a CNA school, pick one you can do over the summer for 4-6 weeks at most.

If you're planning on retaking, consider a community college to cut costs (unless money is not a problem)

It's easy to get discouraged when your grades are not as high as you want, but please don't stay in school just to get a degree to make your parents happy (not a bad idea but education should be about you).