Greetings from a newcomer! Please advice!!!

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Hi Everyone,

My name is Chloe and I am currently residing in Florida. I am 38 years old.

A nursing student. Just started this fall semester. And after reading some letters on the forum, I realized that I am not alone feeling confused and wanting to give up on nursing school.

Fundamentals of Nursing is the one where most of us in the class are having a difficult time studying because there are so many chapters to read and remember.

On our first test, I passed, but only with a C grade (78%). Then on our second test, like the majority of the class, I failed and only got 64%. I was crying in tears at school afterwards because I was so frustated of myself.

Is there anyone out there who can tell me what am I doing wrong? I have been studying day and night. And to score worse on the second test just really bringing me down. I am so worried now and afraid that I am not even going to pass my first year of nursing. We only have one more test to go and plus the finals. (tests are 20% each and finals is 25%) I need to pass. I don't want to quit, I can't. I really want to be a nurse. I know I will be good at it. Please advice!!!:(

Sincerely,

Chloe

suebird3

4,007 Posts

Welcome, Chloe. I moved your post to the General Nursing Student Discussion Forum, where others will be able to better help you.

Good luck.

Suebird :)

Imafloat, BSN, RN

1 Article; 1,289 Posts

Chloe,

Welcome to allnurses. The first couple of classes are difficult, it is hard to get used to the type of test questions used in most nursing schools. You will get the hang of it!

Daytonite, BSN, RN

1 Article; 14,603 Posts

Specializes in med/surg, telemetry, IV therapy, mgmt.

hi, chloe!

i'm sorry to hear that you are having a rough go at nursing school. the tests are different from anything you've ever encountered before. they are often of the type that are called application questions. this means that you are generally given a situation to assess and you need to apply knowledge or principles in order to chose the correct answer. these are questions that require critical thinking. they are preparing you to prioritize. they are also preparing you for the nclex exam, the licensing exam you will take after you finish nursing school. i would probably think that you are learning the facts. what is happening is that you're having problems with the prioritizing and critical thinking parts. i recommend two things. you need to find out why you chose the wrong answers on your tests, so get an appointment with an instructor in their office and discuss each wrong question one by one. do a bit of de-briefing. get a nclex review book and start learning how these questions are set up and how they are answered. read the threads on the forums. students have many opinions as to which nclex review books are the best. i am giving you two links. one is to some information on studying and test taking in nursing school. the other is a site where you can get a free nclex-type question every week for practice. i recommend that students visit the site each week and copy and paste the question and it's answer into a notebook so they have it for reference.

http://go.dbcc.edu/hhps/nursing/study_skills.html - study skills for the nursing student from daytona beach community college nursing department with some good advice.

http://go.dbcc.edu/hhps/nursing/test_taking_skills.html - test taking skills also from daytona beach community college nursing department. a couple of sample questions and how to chose the correct answer for these application type questions.

http://www.learningext.com/students/qofweek.asp - question of the week. every monday a question from the online nclex-rn examination course from ncsbn and it's answer is posted here on this page. this is from the organization that writes the nclex exam.

please join the other students on the nursing student forums here on allnurses:

https://allnurses.com/forums/f205/ - nursing student assistance forums

https://allnurses.com/forums/f50/ - the general nursing student discussion forum

this is the hardest term of nursing school in that you get hit with these questions for the first time and need to learn how to get to the correct answers. best of luck to you. see you on the forums. wellcome to allnurses! :welcome:

BeccaznRN, RN

758 Posts

Specializes in NICU, High-Risk L&D, IBCLC.

Great advice from Daytonite! The questions will involve critical thinking, which is way different from memorizing and regurgitating information. You'll not only have to know the material, but you'll have to look at the question and figure out what it's asking and what's going on with your patient. The best things you can remember are the ABC's, Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, and the nursing process. Using these principles will help you answer the critical thinking questions correctly, or at the very minimum help you narrow your multiple choice questions down to a few answers. You still have to learn the material of course, but it's all about critical thinking.

I would HIGHLY suggest that you speak with your instructors, meet with tutors, whatever you need to do to get you over this hurdle. Trust me when I say you're not the first nursing student to struggle, and you certainly won't be the last. But you have the right attitude to be successful in nursing school. It's tough when you're first starting out, but it does get easier after you have a few semesters under your belt.

Keep us posted on your progress - good luck!

ylbourda

19 Posts

Hi there. I'm 34 and I, too, felt completely overwhelmed last year when I started nursing classes. I'm now in the fourth semester of a five semester ADN program. I'll tell you what helped me, but it is going to come down to what works best for YOU. First, if possible, print your powerpoint presentation before the lecture so you can follow along and highlight on it along with jotting your notes here. It is so much easier to follow lecture when you have it in front of you and not have to write everything down as it is being said. If it helps you to write everything down to remember it, rewrite all of it later. Make flash cards for all major new terms that you come to. Take time to breathe and relax. I study much easier on my own than with a study group, but study groups do help many people. Another thing that really helped me was the pocket sized Mosby's notecard books. They have them on may subjects. Also the pocketsized "LPN Facts made Incredibly Quick" is a lifesaver!! I have found that I am satisfied to do okay and not try to kill myself for that mighty "A" because time passes much too quickly, especailly when you have children (I have a four year old) that need you as much, if not more thaan you need to study. Prioritize right from the start and you'll do fine! Good luck! :clown:

Chloe,

First off, let me assure you, like you noticed you are definitely NOT the only one that has felt like this. I would say you would be in the minority if you DIDN'T feel that way!

I am in my second to last semester (4 of 5) and it is finally downhill from here (or so I've heard!). I have been right on the "cusp" of passing for the last two semesters, and boy, can I tell you! That was very, very stressful.

As far as advice for your testing goes... fundamentals is very hard, because you're learning a new way to think... LIKE A NURSE. Truly begin to get into that mindset. It is not like a normal test assessing for your knowledge. It is trying to assess how you apply your knowledge to situations. So simply memorizing or reading won't do the trick. When you are reading, and the book say something, apply it to how it would apply to your job.

Think about what your responsibility as the nurse would be, and really think about what the information means.

I know this isn't really an "easy" step by step process, but I assure you, it should get better if you are using you resources (such as, go to your instructors and let them help you go through the test and they usually can see where you "went wrong" and they will help you , tip wise, to study for the future tests).

Good luck, let us know how it goes!

Hi Everyone,

Thank you all very, very much for your advice. I appreciate them all a lot. After reading all of your responses, you made me feel like I am not alone in this. You see, I am a newcomer not only in school here but to the state of Florida too. I came from California. But with the cost of living in California, my husband decided that we should move here. Which is not so bad because I got accepted in a Nursing Program so fast here. I just hope I could make it. My goal is to graduate.

I have already had a meeting with my instructor regarding my tests. I was crying on her from so much frustration.

I will put to work all of your advices and I will definitely keep posted on allnurses.com.

Thanks a lot for making me feel better.

Chloe

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