Did a low test grade discourage you?

cmj806 · Feb 7, 2016

I have had a very similar experience. I usually range from 84 to mid 90's. First test of the new semester I get a 74. I feel so discouraged right now.

CSTtoRN · Feb 7, 2016

Is this semester Med-Surg 1 for you? Most of my classmates struggled a lot during our 2nd semester, which was Med-Surg. My worst test grade was that semester and I was down at first but I turned that in to motivation to work harder and smarter. Good luck to you!

SC APRN, DNP, APRN, NP · Feb 7, 2016

I missed passing my first OB test by one point, I was working on OB at the time so I was very discouraged. It just made me try harder but everybody in my class thought I was going to get 100%.

NurseGirl525, ASN, RN · Feb 7, 2016

You will get over it and learn how to do better for the next one. I always do awful on the first test of each semester. Then I learn how my instructor tests and I do much better the rest of the semester. It's hard.

AZMama86 · Feb 7, 2016

If you're in med-surg, this is totally normal. I rocked Block 1 and Block 2 (med-surg) hit me like a semi truck. It's completely different than fundamentals in Block 1 and EVERYONE struggled with it. I started off Block 2 really rocky and it took me until close to the end of the semester to get back to passing. I finally began to understand it after the second major test. It's HARD. Just stick with it! You will get it!

Mami.RN, MSN, RN · Feb 8, 2016

My first nursing test I got 64 and I didn't let it discourage me. I just studied harder and ace the next.

Oleacronon, BSN, RN · Feb 8, 2016

Absolutely YES! But don't let a bad grade discourage you. Focus on the next exam and try to figure out how to improve your score

Tumbler · Feb 8, 2016

All. The. Time. In fact, I can't remember a single semester where I didn't have at least one test where I thought maybe I should just pack it in.

AceOfHearts<3 · Feb 8, 2016

You learn from it and move on. I technically didn't pass my first exam in med surg 1 after breezing through my previous courses. I learned what I needed to do (read the book and ignore lecture). My grade went up and up and up until I had an A by the end of the course and actually scored a 99.99% on the HESI for that class. I like to tell this story to motivate others and show 1 bad grade doesn't necessarily mean you are going to fail. The key is finding out what you need to do differently and then following through.

RunBabyRN · Feb 9, 2016

Oh yes. I had one test in critical care I had studied like CRAZY for, but I woke up that morning with an AWFUL URI. I sped through the exam which meant not reading the questions thoroughly, so I did things like choose the wrong answers instead of SATA. You could see from my responses that I knew the material, but I didn't take the time to answer them correctly, and my instructor did ask what was up, because she could see I knew my stuff. She offered me some extra credit, but I didn't have the time to do additional work, and my overall grade took a hit. It was the only B I received in nursing school. Thankfully, almost 2 years out of school and working at my dream job, it's barely a blip on my radar anymore. Try not to let it get you down. Also know that we ALL have those moments where we question whether or not we belong in nursing school.

dominiquejade · Feb 9, 2016

Wow, I'm glad I'm not the only one! Yes, my first semester was fundamentals, and I'm now in Med Surg 1. TBH i didn't really have to do extensive studying in fundamentals, but I guess I'll be studying my butt off for the next test! It's hard because test grades are pretty much our only grades, so if you bomb one, it kinda stays with you all semester and you really have to claw your way out of that hole.