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Discussion

Failed prerequisite, what options do I have

Hello all! I'm desperate for some serious help. I'm feeling pretty lost and hopeless right now. Here's some background: I'm a sophomore in college and my dream has always been nursing. My home life is and never has been easy; if I could go back I would have moved out and gotten a dorm. With that said, freshmen year first semester I took::

A&P 1- failed due to being kicked out for 3 months with no car/no other family/no rides to school. tried to make it work but couldn't.

Psychology- teacher worked with me and was able to get a 4.0

English 1- 4.0 (teachers also worked with me)

LPN class- 0.5 missed final exam

Sophomore year:moved back im with family things were looking up

sociology-3.0

english 2- 3.5

micro-1.5

A&P 1- 2.5

STATS- 1.5

humanities-2.5

took A&P again and failed because I couldn't attend anymore

retook LPN-2.0

LONG STORY SHORT- I now have my own car and I'm moving out. Being home isn't an environment I can be successful in. I have always DREAMED of becoming a nurse and I know I can ace my pre-rec classes and be top in nursing school if given the chance. My past sucks and no one wants a complainer so what I'm asking here is for advice!! What are my options? Are my chances ruined?

1. Could I move schools and transfer only the passed and good grades and re-start the classes I failed? Is that a thing?

2. I talked to head of nursing and my small community college in the middle of no where only offered one retake and she told me it would basically be impossible to get in even if I retook it and got a 4.0

3. Has anyone ever been in a predicament sort of like this? All I've ever wanted was to be a nurse and i know I can do it.

Please give any advice/opinions you may have. I don't really have anyone to run to and I need some guidance! Counseling offered at my college is awful and not helpful.

Thank you in advance!

Featured Replies

1. Could I move schools and transfer only the passed and good grades and re-start the classes I failed? Is that a thing?

2. I talked to head of nursing and my small community college in the middle of no where only offered one retake and she told me it would basically be impossible to get in even if I retook it and got a 4.0

3. Has anyone ever been in a predicament sort of like this? All I've ever wanted was to be a nurse and i know I can do it.

I'm cutting out all the backstory because in the end no one who makes these decisions is really going to care why you failed or why you didn't do well. The story won't matter, the grades will.

1. When you apply to any school they ask you for the names of all the schools you attended and they want transcripts from all the schools. It isn't a thing to omit what you don't like. Lay it out honestly so you don't get bitten in the butt later.

2. some nursing programs will only allow one retake, some two, you don't know until you investigate the nursing school you want and find out their requirements. depends on how much of a waiting list they have as to how picky they want to be.

3. yes people have been in this predicament before you but the end result depends on the individual nursing school and the individual student. Some schools will allow only one retake and their standard for admission is going to be a minimum of 3.8. Others will allow two retakes and their standard for admission might be lower but it's all dependent upon the competition at the time you are applying. The best students will get in first.

I think you should look at nursingprograms in your area or wherever you might want to move to for school and see what they will expect for admission.

  • Expert

Moved to the Pre-Nursing Student forum for more responses.

  • Author

I've looked into other schools, my A&P doesn't transfer to most other schools because it's only the first part out of two. Do my retakes here count at other schools?

Thanks for you input! I know people don't want to hear the background but I didn't want people just commenting that I couldn't handle the studying or workflow.

Thanks again!

The first A&P is still considered as a prerequisite and would be taken into account; not just the entire series. It's tough to say since you've failed the same class twice, and that being the most important prerequisite of nursing. It will be difficult, but, I am sure you can do it.

So are you an LPN now? If I were out on my own I would do an LPN program so you can make more money and therefore have to work less while doing an RN program.

kayashley you also said you failed an LPN class. were you in an LPN program and taking courses to apply to an RN program? Did you fail an LPN program already? If you still have the option of getting into an LPN program and you succeed, you can then apply to an RN program once you have an LPN license. It's a possible way around having awful prerequisite grade for an RN program if you come to them already as a licensed LPN.

  • Author

Nope! I just finished that sophomore year; I'm 20. Trying to figure out what to do!! How does the LPN program work? Is it longer?

LPN programs are shorter. I live in Canada and LPN programs are generally two years, usually 4/5 semesters.

  • Author

So are you doing RN now that you've done LPN?

  • Author

Is LPN easier to get into?

kay you really should use the quote button feature so we know whose post you are responding too because otherwise it's just a random question and don't know who you are asking.

LPNs have a different scope of practice and although they are licensed nurses they aren't used in all healthcare settings. a lot will depend on where you live as to whether you would find a job as an LPN that you want. sometimes it's a perfect fit based on what kind of nursing you want to do and sometimes it's a bad fit because you'd need an RN license to do what you want to do. you'll have to figure that out on your own in the area you live and by comparing the scope of practice in the state you are in.

I don't think you should be thinking of an LPN program as easier to get into because it's not so much easy as it is just a shorter program that requires less prerequeisite courses. if you can successfully finish an lpn program and get licensed then you would probably have an easier time getting into an RN program if that's what you eventually want to do. As it stands now it's not likely you'd have much success in getting into an RN program without retaking a lot of stuff and maybe not even then, which is what I was talking about before.

There are some schools that offer "Academic Fresh Start," you can google to find some of them. It wipes out your old GPA but you are re-starting at square one; none of your old credits will be counted. However, typically this is only allowed if you have had an extended break (talking years, not months typically). The other drawback is your hours you took originally will count towards financial aid; so you will run out of undergrad loans before you graduate. Texas public colleges offer this option (for state residents) and other schools do here and there, but it is up to the individual college. Looking at your grades, I imagine your overall GPA is pretty low. If you are really serious about nursing and you have run out of other options then I would get a good solid job (possibly in another healthcare field) save money, and establish a good solid work history.

The first time I went to college, I totally screwed around and ended up joining the Army in my junior year with a 2.0 (on the nose). While in, I took many classes (talking over 100 semester hours) and had a 4.0 on all subsequent work When I got out; I started knocking out pre-requisites and am starting nursing school next week. BTW, I did not use academic fresh start. I was able to get in because I finished my Bachelors in another field and now have a 3.3 GPA. However, my pre-requisite GPA was 4.0. So it is possible; you may just find that it is a long term goal. The other nice thing is that I am using the GI Bill to pay for school; a really sweet deal.

So, maybe going into the military would be a good option for you You wouldn't have to join active duty, you could join the reserves and even get into a healthcare field. You would be able to use tuition assistance to take classes while you were in. National Guard has even more educational benefits because they qualify for state educational benefits. Just an option to ponder.

I would recommend that you get your act together before you take any more classes. The more classes you take and are just sliding by, the harder it will be to raise your GPA. Believe me, with the number of hours I had it took many many credits to raise my GPA up to a 3.3. You need to be making all A's or you are really going to dig a hole for your self, in regards to your GPA.

Good luck.

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