Fear of failing? reason to not enter nursing program?

nlitened · Mar 9, 2015

No you shouldn't let fear stop you...it should motivate you. No it is not a sign that you should not apply. And yes, the fear of failing is normal.

I have never failed a class in my life, but had this overwhelming fear of failing the nursing program when I was applying. Once I started the program and became comfortable with my professors, classmates, and my classes that feeling quickly subsided.

Nursing school is something foreign to you, and new experiences are scary. Go ahead and have your freak out moment and move on to applying. You will never know if you will succeed if you don't try.

Infofreak411 · Mar 9, 2015

No you shouldn't let fear stop you...it should motivate you. No it is not a sign that you should not apply. And yes, the fear of failing is normal.
I have never failed a class in my life, but had this overwhelming fear of failing the nursing program when I was applying. Once I started the program and became comfortable with my professors, classmates, and my classes that feeling quickly subsided.
Nursing school is something foreign to you, and new experiences are scary. Go ahead and have your freak out moment and move on to applying. You will never know if you will succeed if you don't try.

Thank you for the insight! And if I do not succeed, does it make me stupid or a failure?

roser13, ASN, RN · Mar 9, 2015

Thank you for the insight! And if I do not succeed, does it make me stupid or a failure?

Perhaps go to counseling before attempting nursing school?

Central BSN, RN · Mar 9, 2015

You can never achieve anything worthwhile with out risk and hard work. As a much wiser man than I once said "All we have to fear, is fear itself".

Infofreak411 · Mar 9, 2015

Perhaps go to counseling before attempting nursing school?

Maybe that's a good idea, what makes you suggest this?

Libby1987 · Mar 9, 2015

Why do you think you will fail? Do you have a learning disability or problems with something related to learning and/or completing tough assignments?

ThePrincessBride, MSN, RN, NP · Mar 9, 2015

In the words of my idol, J.K. Rowling: "It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all-in which case, you fail by default."

I did not pass my first try at nursing school. And guess what? Life went on. I didn't die. It wasn't the end of the world. I picked myself back up, swallowed my pride, and went at it again and made it.

Infofreak411 · Mar 9, 2015

Why do you think you will fail? Do you have a learning disability or problems with something related to learning and/or completing tough assignments?

Because I know you practically have to be borderline a genious to pass the nursing programs and I dont think of myself as an overly brilliant individual. Plus I hear of the failure rates of the programs and it alarms me.

And yes I have some trouble in school, I was always that student that would create more work for myself because Iwould dissect every little thing and look so for into things that i would miss the main point and consequently would take longer to do assignments.

Also i was never good at being creative or theory, i was only ever good at memorizing things. I was in a teacher education program to be a teacher and almost failed because i had so much trouble with creating lesson plans that were creative enough to "engage students", but give me a book and tell me to memorize lists of facts figures and information and I can spit it back like a computer.

RNsRWe, ASN, RN · Mar 9, 2015

Maybe that's a good idea, what makes you suggest this?

Most likely because of your stated fear of failure, your first post on this thread that asked if you should or should not attempt nursing school because of said fear, and then this post of yours:

Thank you for the insight! And if I do not succeed, does it make me stupid or a failure?

You have just asked an anonymous group of people whether you should or should not make a life-altering change; we cannot possibly know if this is the correct path for you. You have, at this point, spent enough time posting on this forum to know much about how nursing school is, what to expect, etc, so you should have a decent idea of what you might need to do. Since no one here knows you personally....we cannot tell you what to do, that's really a very personal choice.

Being overly fixated on failure is really just creating a self-fulfilling prophecy: if you believe you will probably fail, you will most LIKELY fail. If you believe you will probably succeed....you will LIKELY succeed. Outlook affects outcome, no doubt.

Your last post does say something important about your chances, though: Nursing school (and ultimately, passing the NCLEX) does not require brilliance by any stretch, but it DOES require you to use critical thinking skills. You CANNOT pass school or the licensing exam by "spitting back" facts and figures. You must be able to demonstrate the ability to APPLY the knowledge learned. Rote memorization will NOT allow you to pass school, nor the NCLEX. This is one of the fundamentals that must be understood before embarking on any nursing program. You must be able to analyze the situation, and USING the facts/figures you've memorized, make a determination as to what to do. The ability to spout facts and figures like a computer is only of limited use; whether you know how to translate that into a course of action will determine your success in school.

As for the expectation that anyone passing nursing school courses be a "borderline genius", hooboy I have to laugh; I WISH that all nurses were so very brilliant (including myself!). That said, there is enough evidence on this forum alone that there are plenty of "less than brilliant" nurses Sometimes I even think "how did this person get a license?!" but there you have it :)

Take a look at programs in your area, see what is required to successfully get into one, and complete one. Then take a look at yourself and decide if you have what it takes. Then proceed from there. :)

Good luck!

hope3456, ASN, RN · Mar 9, 2015

0P you are correct in that there are high dropout rates from nursing school programs. Especially community college programs. Some people really are not academically prepared, they find they do not have the time or ability to complete the program or they find they do not like nursing. Many programs arguably try to weed people out. Some programs just out right suck. Nursing school is difficult but nursing jobs aren't any easier.

Only you can decide if you have the academic ability, the time and physical aptitude for nursing. Your ability to memorize will definitely benefit you.

Bbett, MSN, NP · Mar 9, 2015

Let me just chime in by saying you do not have to be "borderline genius" to pass the nursing program. It is harder to get accepted than the actual program will be. If you can get A's in the biology courses required to be admitted into nursing school then you will be JUST FINE in the program. The material isn't HARD it is just the time constraints that make it difficult to accomplish. If you can get in, you will pass. Even if it takes you a second try, you will be a nurse just like everyone else at the end of it. Just keep trying.