Discouraged prenursing student :(

vintagemother, BSN, CNA, LVN, RN · Aug 6, 2011

Hi, I just want to encourage you not to give up on your dreams. As mothers with multiple demands on our time, we do sometimes feel pressure not to make things more difficult than they need to be. I, too have considered changing my major back to teaching, because the path would be easier...

But, as an older mom - I'm 32, with 3 kids ages 6,12 and 16, I truly believe that you should pursue your dreams.

The only suggestion that I have to you regarding not passing the entry level test is to seek out remediation/tutoring OUTSIDE of your college. There should be books, or tutors or some outside resource that would be more effective. It's probably not you, but the teaching style or the format of the test.

I do think that when you compare nursing to teaching, the schedule differences are huge. In my area, teachers get paid more if they earn a masters and have a few years of experience. The entry level pay is not the average pay. Nurse do make more, in my area. Can you live the lifestyle that you want on a teacher's salary? Can you work in a better paying school district?

To me, as a teacher, I'd never be able to volunteer in my kids classrooms, but there would be lots of other benefits.

To me, a nurse's schedule is a better choice because I can work weekends, overnights or have many days off in a row which will allow me to spend time with my kids. - I think. (-;

alishachilds85 · Aug 6, 2011

Hi, I think that you should follow your heart, and go after nursing. Regardless of how long it takes, I think you should. I am in the same situation like you; low gpa, had changed my major because I had gave up. But now, I am looking forward to starting school again in 3 weeks, and I am retaking my science class ( I made C's). And I am 25. So good luck to you and me...and dont give up your dreams.

Katalina · Aug 6, 2011

I posted this on another thread but, thought I would post it here too. Check out Khanacademy.com to get your math score up. I NEVER understood math either. No matter how many times things were explained to me. I found that site and it all makes sense now.

This site is free. He's got tons of videos on there. And practice exercises. The videos start with basic math and go all the way up to that stuff engineers have to learn. So watch the videos and then go do the practice exercises associated with the video. You will be a math whiz in no time. Good luck!

jennyjen87 · Aug 6, 2011

Wow thanks so much! Its great to get encouragement..I've always been very hard on myself! Which is really getting to be a problem especially trying to get into nursing. I was thinking I think I may have ADD. I have a hard time focusing and get easily frustrated. So maybe I should get tested because if I do have it i'm sure medication would do wonders for me. I will look into getting a tutor! Nursing is in my heart and there is nothing I can ever do to change that...I sure wish elementary ed was because its way easier lol but its not! I really needed this I thank the both of you from the bottom of my heart!

jennyjen87 · Aug 6, 2011

Thanks for the math website I need all the help I can get!

skim83 · Aug 6, 2011

This is so encouraging because honestly I'm 27 and trying to go back to nursing school, it seems to be the best thing right now in this economy. I hope we all have good luck and get into great nursing schools and become wonderful expert nurses in our fields!! go US!!! :)

tishluvnc · Aug 6, 2011

I'm sort of in the same boat I'm a mother of 3 who have been a cna for the longest. It has provided me flexibility going through school to get my BA in sociologyl. Looking back, I started this 4 years ago and I did not persue nursing then because of the competiveness. Well 4 years later, I ran into a student who graduated from my university a little over a year ago and she informed me that her first job was making 14 dollars an hour as a income case worker at social service.

Now I realize that I should have taken that 4 years and became an RN instead of wasting my 4 years getting a 3.8 degree in sociology.Oh and as far as the teas test, I have a friend who major is education and she has to take a three part practice test before she can even teach. I realize that every professional job make you take some kind of test to prove yourself, this is something you can't get away from.

I started to steer my career to human resources and realized that I missed studying human anatomy. The best classes I've taken was medical terminology, human biology, general biology, psychology, and coding . I have gone through half a medical office assistant program and a sociology degree program only to find my self still unfullfilled because I love health care. Money is never the main issue when you desire to care for people, however, money provides for your family! I would just say if you have this nagging feeling like your just not going to be happy unless your in health care, i would suggest you go slow and rededicate yourself. Im set up to take my psy developmental class in 2 weeks and i'm still not sure. good luck.

Exhaustipated, ADN, BSN · Aug 6, 2011

I second Katalina's recommendation of KhanAcademy.org. My father turned me on to that site when I was studying for my Compass exam, and I totally credit that site for my surprisingly good (to me, anyway) Algebra and Pre-Algebra scores on that test.