First Semester Jitters

direw0lf, BSN · May 23, 2017

Hello everyone! I am going into my first semester of nursing this fall, it is an associates program and I am a bit nervous. I have a few questions that I hope you can answer so I can calm myself down.

Hi I remember how I felt when I was first starting nursing school! I'll be going into my senior year in the fall for BSN now, and it's been so far an AWESOME ride with lots of anxiety but lots of character building and learning, lifelong friendships made, unforgettable memories with patients, and building networks for future work!

1. Do you believe it is useful to bring your laptop to class? I like taking notes on paper and reading from an actual book, however my school also requires us to by the online version of the book that includes practice NCLEX questions. Should I ask my professor what they believe would be best or is just a matter of personal preference?

A lot of my classmates bring their laptops every day. Sometimes exams are required to be taken on laptops (although if a student doesn't own one, the school will provide it for the exam). You'll find in nursing school that lectures are FAST and the good teachers will teach for the exam and also for real life. If you don't want to type your notes, then I'd at least recommend a tape recorder so that you don't miss anything.

2. I rented the Kaplan NCLEX 2017 review as well as the Saunders NCLEX 7th edition from my library. Should I review these books to see how NCLEX questions are asked, or do you believe it is better for me to see how my professors explain how to answer them? I don't want to be caught off guard on my first test!

I reviewed the Illustrated Guide to the Nclex before nursing school, and was glad that I did. I couldn't answer those NCLEX questions well but I refreshed my A&P foundation and I felt more confident with knowing a little of what to expect. Saunders is a good book to use throughout your nursing school but I wouldn't overwhelm yourself with it before. To brush up on your weak areas though, won't hurt. For ex, if you struggle with math, read a little about med math. If you don't remember the bones or muscles well, look over that. Don't go too intense in the nursing stuff yet, IMO. An easy NCLEX book for before you start might be "NCLEX made incredibly easy." That book is TOO EASY to use after school and you can buy it for like $5 on amazon used.

3. What is the best advice you could recommend for new nursing students? I don't have any experience in the medical field so I believe this might put me at a slight disadvantage than my peers. Also best study tips?

You'll find what works for you. Everyone is different..that's my advice! You'll have diff strengths and weaknesses than your peers. BTW don't get caught up in any cohort gossip, it's not worth it, stay neutral, stay friendly! Just because one classmate might have a year or two of EMT or PCA experience, doesn't mean you are less capable than them in nursing school either. Get experience as soon maybe over winter break, even as as patient observer or home health aid.

My way of studying is to write or type all the ppt notes over but I organize it how it makes more sense to me. Then I print that out and I highlight, and as I read I look up more things from other resources (google) and write that in the margins. I add info even though it won't necessarily be on the class exam but it helps you understand the class material better plus important for real life.

4. Do you have any healthy tips for reducing stress? I'm trying to incorporate some over the summer so I don't go crazy in the fall!

Exercise..as light or heavy as you like but keep it up through school!

5. Do you believe volunteering at a hospital would be beneficial in the future - career wise? Even if it isn't I would still like to do some good.

Well it's always good, but IMO try to shadow a nurse, you'll learn more.

There's a lot of ways to volunteer, you can organize volunteer efforts with people in your class even. Some classes have gone to nursing homes and decorated it for the holidays or put on dances for the residents.

Good luck in school!

MotoMonkey, BSN, RN · May 23, 2017

First off, congratulations on getting into nursing school. Everyone has some jitters before the first term and from time to time throughout their program.

1. Unless their is a program specific rule for or against laptop use, it comes down to personal preference. I bring mine each day but rarely use it. We have access to the power point each day, I find it useful to print that out and take notes directly on the slides.

2. My personal thought is not to review before starting fall classes. I would enjoy yourself and go into fall term with an fresh and open mind. If it is anything like my program, each instructor tests slightly different though all in the NCLEX style. That being said I do not think that studying or review beforehand would be helpful.

3. My best advice is to just go into nursing school with an open mind ready to learn. Nursing schools do not teach expecting students to have a huge amount of background and previous knowledge. Your experience and previous coursework put you exactly where they expect you to be on day one. Actually I guess my best advice is to not compare yourself to those around you. By that I mean dont compare scores or grades, dont think that because someone got a better score or has more experience that you are not good enough.

4. Self care is very important in nursing school, however it is very individual. Stress relief can come in many forms, working out, running, listening to music, being around friends ect... In addition to finding something that helps you relax, I highly recommend you think about eating healthy and participating in some kind of exercise.

5. It certainly would not hurt. Just ensure you are not going to spread yourself too thin. It can be easy to take on too many volunteer or leadership opportunities and overload yourself.

BubbyBoogs · May 23, 2017

Thank you for posting this. I am starting nursing school in the fall as well. I took the summer semester off thinking that I would enjoy the break but I have found that I am just bored and anxious to get started. Good luck to you!

DotFlower · May 23, 2017

direw0lf, thank you for your tips like shadowing a nurse, getting "NCLEX made incredibly easy", and having a tape recorder for lecture. I will definitely try to use them. And congratulations on going into your last year for your BSN!! That is a great accomplishment!

kkbb, MSN, RN · May 24, 2017

I just graduated last month and took (and passed) the NCLEX this week. So while I am no longer a student, I am not that long out of school.

1. We were required to have lap tops during our simulation days. I always had mine with me for class...sometimes it came in handy, other times not so much.

2. NCLEX style questions just means that critical thinking is needed and the questions are application based (meaning you don't just memorize facts, but you have to be able to apply them to situations) and there are usually a couple of choices that are correct, but one is MORE correct.

3. It is okay to feel frightened or unsure, we all feel that way. But, don't let that fear prevent you from participating. Also, the Saunders Comprehensive Review book is a great investment. I used that a lot when studying because it is a lot more to the point than some of my texts were. Study groups can be good, if you get a group that works well together and actually studies.

4. How do you deal with stress now? Have a hobby outside of nursing school. There will be times you can't get to it, but you can (and should) have a life outside of nursing school.

5. The problem with volunteering is that you have no control over your schedule while in nursing school, so you need to find someplace that is willing to work with you. Or, try to volunteer for vaccination clinics, fun run services, or blood pressure monitoring events. We did a lot of these things during our Community Health class. Maybe check with your school to see if they have events like that. Volunteering does look great on your resume, and some employers specifically look for it. Or volunteer for things at school.

Good luck. I am very glad that it is all done, but I am also very glad I did it.

DotFlower · May 24, 2017

MotoMonkey, thanks for your advice! I know I will have to continue to not compare myself and my grades to others. Trying to focus on doing better than I did in the past is what I'm striving for.

DotFlower · May 24, 2017

kkbb, BSN, RN, thanks for the solid advice and a huge congrats on graduating and passing the NCLEX! I don't have great stress coping strategies so I just wanted to get a feel of what works for others; I think going for walks might be what I choose to do. And I will definitely look into volunteer events at school instead of making a commitment I'm not sure I can keep.

NurslingNicole · May 25, 2017

Hey there! I am graduating from an ADN program in about 2 weeks, so I will attempt to answer your questions the best that I can and hopefully be of some use to you!

1. Do you believe it is useful to bring your laptop to class? I never once brought a laptop or tablet to class. Our theory lectures came with PowerPoint slides that we had to print out and bring to class. I find that writing notes while listening worked best for me, which sounds like you also prefer. However, try it out and see what works best for you. It's probably just a matter of preference, unless your instructors specifically state one way or the other.

2. I rented the Kaplan NCLEX 2017 review as well as the Saunders NCLEX 7th edition from my library. Should I review these books to see how NCLEX questions are asked, or do you believe it is better for me to see how my professors explain how to answer them? I don't want to be caught off guard on my first test! NCLEX style questions are a different beast than what you've encountered thus far. However, your instructors know this and are not going to throw you overly-challenging questions from the start. I say overly-challenging because you might think that any NCLEX-style question is challenging at first. But don't fret. Learning how to read an NCLEX-style question and figure out what it is asking you takes time and experience. This is because it's a different way of thinking than what you currently know. As you lay down your nursing knowledge foundation and then later expand and build on that knowledge, the questions will get more technical and difficult. Right now, it won't hurt anything to check them out to get an idea of what they look like and maybe even practice a few, but I wouldn't worry too much about trying to figure them out just yet. You will literally learn how to think differently once you start nursing school.

3. What is the best advice you could recommend for new nursing students? I don't have any experience in the medical field so I believe this might put me at a slight disadvantage than my peers. Also best study tips?

Don't worry that you don't have medical experience yet. I only had a few months working as a CNA before I went to nursing school, which I hardly count as experience. Even though it helped with basic patient care, being a CNA is not the same as being a nurse. You and your peers will all learn together. Starting second year, some students may be LPNs, but in my graduating class of 50, only 5-6 of my classmates either were already LPNs that joined us during the start of second year or had completed the summer LPN quarter prior to 2nd year. Nobody in my 1st year class had any more experience than a CNA or MA.

Study tips: Buy lots of highlighters and take good notes in class. Get yourself a planner or calendar to write down important dates, like skills labs, due dates for assignments, test dates, etc. Don't skip lecture unless absolutely necessary. Listen up when instructors tell you to pay attention to a specific topic. Skim the readings covering what you went through in class to further your understanding, paying close attention to tables, charts and boxes in the text. Study buddies can be helpful if you can stay on task and not get distracted, but they didn't work for me, so I opted to study by myself. Memorize lab values! Don't cram for a test - Study a little bit every day until you feel like you truly comprehend the material. Khan Academy has excellent YouTube videos for pathophysiology and body systems. Feel free to message me with questions or if you need other advice.

4. Do you have any healthy tips for reducing stress? I'm trying to incorporate some over the summer so I don't go crazy in the fall! Nursing school is stressful. Period. You can't do anything about that. It's even worse if you have kids, a job, or other priorities in your life that take away from dedicating 100% of your time to school. However, taking care of your physical and mental health is important. Take a walk. Drink a glass of wine. Get a massage. Have a night out with friends. Whatever it is you do to reduce stress in your life now, don't stop doing during school. It's so important to stay healthy during school so that you can take good care of your patients as well as yourself!

5. Do you believe volunteering at a hospital would be beneficial in the future - career wise? Even if it isn't I would still like to do some good. Part of being a nurse is giving of yourself to others. Volunteering to help the people in your community is never a bad idea, especially for a future nurse. Career-wise, yes, it could be a foot in the door in the hospital if that's where you're wanting to work. But, volunteering is also a way of serving the community which is what nurses do. Volunteering is a competency requirement of my ADN program (I'm willing to bet yours as well), so figuring out different volunteer opportunities now might be a good idea. For our program, we found opportunities for ourselves and then had to have them approved by faculty. If you already have opportunities in mind, all the better for you. Just make sure they are nursing related or are approved by your instructors. :)

Anyway, sorry this is long but I hope it's helpful! I remember being terrified my first day of school. My heart was racing and I nearly fell out of my chair... and we were only going over the syllabus! I was so worked up and had no idea what was about to happen but I knew the gravity of it and it was scary! HAHA! Looking back over my last 2 years, there have been ups and downs, stress galore and lots of juggling of schedules with kids and a husband working nights, but I made it! You can do this crazy nursing school thing too!!! Just remember, it's ok to not know everything. It's ok to ask questions. And it's also ok to admit your mistakes. But it is NOT ok to give up! Give it your best effort, try to figure things out for yourself (obviously keeping yourself and your patient's safety at the forefront of your mind at all times), show up and stay optimistic! Before you know it, you'll be looking at graduation and NCLEX dates coming up in your near future! Best of luck to you!!!!