DID HORRIBLE IN A CLASS - should I say goodbye to my dreams?

caliotter3 · Jul 10, 2009

You said the class is unrelated to your nursing prerequisites. I would stop worrying about something that you can not change. If you want to remedy the situation, then retake the class, otherwise get ready for next term and try to figure out what happened so you can prevent it happening in a class that really counts.

8jimi8ICURN · Jul 10, 2009

When is your program starting?

Do you have time to take the class again? Does retaking a class hurt your GPA? What was your grade going into the final?

Are there other schools that you can apply to? One class is not the end of the world...

believe me, I went into nursing school with a 4.0... my gpa after nursing school... 3.3. It's hard to get a grade that you don't like. But you have to consider this: Grades don't mean anything in the real world. What matters is that you learn your lesson about studying with plenty of time and getting a good nights rest before the test. Learn it before it all comes down to the wire and then you won't end up exhausted in the middle of the test!

My GPA slipped once I got into nursing school because I realized that my quality of life was more important to me than getting straight A's.

My manager never once asked me about my GPA, or asked me for transcripts from school before, or after she hired me. Is your only dream to go to this one school? It is a possibility that you may not achieve that dream due to their stringent expectations. But that isn't your only dream is it?

Count your blessings, pick yourself up, hold your head up high and take a deep breath. Its good to be alive and you aren't going to give up now, are you?

curiousstudent5 · Jul 10, 2009

That's why I'm so worried - the college office where I could get the answers to the grading policy questions was already closed after I was done with the final, and the whole college is closed until Monday. :crying2:

I guess you're right... What's done is done, and I should apply to a couple of programs instead of putting all my eggs in one basket. I have one year worth of credits left to show improvement, and this horrible setback should give me the incentive to do it, not a reason to give up.........

8jimi8ICURN · Jul 10, 2009

At one of the colleges that I went to, if you retake a class, it erases the other class during GPA calculations. That may not be true for every school, but it should be!

berkeleycrammer · Jul 10, 2009

Heads-up. First, go talk to your prof. You really made a critical learning error by studying 10 hours directly into your exam. Our brains need a break to actually move information into long term processing.

Since this is so clearly not indicative of your abilities go have an honest talk. At worst case scenario you might learn something about how to study, how to negotiate with professors, and perhaps s/he may even have an insight into you or the way you approach academics that you have yet to learn about yourself.

Show up with options and solutions - including a few extremes. Offer to write a comprehensive paper, see if s/he will hold the grade into next semester and let you audit and re-sit the final exam. Be gracious, willing and contrite. Presume the best, be open and honest, and accept where it goes. More good advice above - but at a minimum, if you can not undo this, try to learn from it.

Unique87 · Jul 10, 2009

I don't think it will hurt your chance to get into the nursing program. Can you retake the class? How bad will it affect your gpa? I had two semsters where I didn't do so good in a class or two yet I still got accepted into my school's nursing program. I also retook the class I didn't do well in. Also don't try to study that much the night before the exam you end up blanking out. Just try to relax as hard as it may be and do a one hour review then try to put it out of your mind.

1john4:10 · Jul 13, 2009

Definitely don't give up. Before I applied to my school, my gpa was average and not as high as most of the people accepted. If schools see you're a well rounded person or gifted in other areas that will count.

curiousstudent5 · Jul 14, 2009

I got a D in the class. I looked at my graded final, and was amazed at how easy were the questions that I didn't even answer. Even though I don't need this class for nursing, I think I'm going to retake it. Who knows? In the future I might need a good GPA for some program, and I'll at least be able to point out that I had the determination to learn from my mistake and fix it as much as I could, instead of giving up.

lightsnoise · Jul 14, 2009

If its not a nursing pre-req then I wouldn't freak out about it since schools look at your nursing pre-reqs.

daisyt83 · Jul 21, 2009

I got a D the first time I took A&P II. It made me so sad. I even thought about giving up on being a nurse. Then I re-took it and made a B.

If you really want something, don't give up!

DoGoodThenGo · Jul 21, 2009

Does the program you wish to enter look at your entire GPA or only your GPA made up of pre-nursing classes? If the later and the course is not required, I shouldn't worry about it too much,indeed at all.

Back in my day, what some pre and nursing students would do when their final grade in a non-nursing class wasn't up to par and or could seriously harm them was to request a meeting with the professor and explain the situation. Usually what was offered was that the professor would give a grade of "Incomplete" and assign the student some sort of extra work like a paper or project. An A or B grade on that would help bring their final grade up to a decent level.

As another poster stated, your GPA matters mainly for entering and staying in the nursing program. Have never heard of any employer past or present asking a new grad or a RN her GPA, nor is there a minimal cut off level for the boards. The only thing your GPA may come into play post grad is if you decide to return to school for another degree (BSN, MSN, etc). There are some great nurses out there who barely eeked out a 2.7 or whatever minimum was required for graduation from their program. OTHO there are just as many horrible nurses who came out of school with 4.0.

Good luck!