How many A's in the actual nursing courses?

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jemommyRN

587 Posts

Specializes in ICU.

I completely agree Mitchsmom. That's why I was saying I would like to make A's. Graduate school will definitely ask about the GPA. That's a major thing that can automatically disqualify you. I know that C=RN and I wish I didn't have to be so anal about grades but I do if I ever intend to further my education.

"She didn't even ask me clinical scenario questions... just stuff like " tell me why I should hire you instead of the other 50 people who've applied for these 5 slots". Which is the type of question I absolutely detest because it requires that I either slam my nursing sisters/brothers or become an egotist. "

With questions like these, the interviewers are more interested in HOW you answer the question, rather than the content of the question. I used to be in sales, and so when I went to my scholarship interview, I got a lot of questions like these (not this one in particular, but stuff like, "I think you'll be bored in nursing--what do you think?")

They probably want to see if you can think on your feet, and not just be a book-learner. I don't agree with this approach, but unfortunately, I encounter it a lot. It's like a job interview.

You could come up with some answer such as, "You can see from my grades that I am a very dedicated, life-long learner. With the rate of change in nursing, I see that as a positive quality. However, I feel that I integrate that with my skills in (fill in the blank), so that I have both the knowlege base as well as the blah blah blah..."

Anyway, you get my drift. You don't have to knock your brothers and sisters in nursing, you just want to sell yourself and how wonderful you are. (Can you tell I was in sales??)

Another tip that I got from a friend who is an outplacement counselor (she counsels people who are out of work on how to get jobs--resume, interview, etc). is to have a story (true) to tell about yourself which demonstrates your best qualities. She helped my daughter develop her interview story, which was about a time she helped get a ramp built for her sorority house the day that sorority rush started, so that a disabled girl could come through the house. The incident was true, but she had never thought of using it as an example of her effectiveness/compassion/leadership skills. It worked great.

Anyway, good luck!

Oldiebutgoodie

AmiK25

240 Posts

I just wanted to say that it can be done because I made an A+ in every single nursing class except two and I made A's in those. I am not bragging at all....just trying to say that it definitely is possible to have a 4.0 in nursing school! There were two other girls (out of 110) in my class that also made A's in all their nursing classes.

ksrnstudent

74 Posts

It is possible to get A's in nursing, but you have to work very hard at it. I'm in my second semester in an ADN program in Kansas and I have successfully been able to maintain a 4.0 GPA. There are 45 students in my class. First semester 9 students came out of the class with A's. This semester there are only 4. My advice is to pick up a couple of good NCLEX-RN books and a test-taking book for nursing students to supplement the material you get in lecture. If you already have good study skills, that will help, too.

RNKITTY04

353 Posts

Specializes in Rehab, Step-down,Tele,Hospice.

I entered nursing with a 3.9 and have made very very few A's. I recently made an A in Adult Health II /Cardiovascular assessement, but must admit I spent 20 plus hours studying for that particular test. The A's are few and far between but they are do-able if you can commit the time needed to earn one. I mostly make B's with an occassional C (espescially in Peds, which I detest)

JenRN_2B

33 Posts

When I first got into the nursing program, my goal was to get all A's. Now I just want to pass. As far as I know, a couple (and I do mean a COUPLE) of people have had all A's.

joey442000

58 Posts

I also want to go to graduate school but no matter how hard i study i cant get the grades i want. I guess my question is is there any hope of getting into graduate school if your gradesd arnt perfect and there are a few c's mixed in with your a's and b's. Or should i just give my up my dream cause i dont think im going to pull all a's

Kudra

160 Posts

as the saying goes: "What do they call a medical student who is at the bottom of his class? A Doctor." :p

same goes for nursing... yes, it would be nice to get all A's, but in the end if you finish your course and pass your registration/NCLEX exam, you're a nurse... regardless of whether or not you got all A's or all C's...

i did make it through both my RPN and RN courses with all A's and i worked my butt off to get them... but i also had the luxery of not having to work while i was in school, nor do i have any children to care for... it makes things a lot easier when you can focus on studying without those kinds of distractions/worries...

beth :p

orrnlori, RN

549 Posts

Re: Graduate School

It depends on the program you want to get into. If it's CRNA, you might have some problems because the programs are small and very scattered. If it's a masters in family practice, rural medicine, nurse educator, and some of the others you may be okay as long as you can keep your GPA at 3.00-3.50. Remember you may also need the GRE, statement of goals, and letters of recommendation and have to jump through other hoops like the good old interview. Graduate schools are looking for the BEST candidates, that doesn't always mean only perfect A students. I think everyone knows the A student who can't "critically think' their way out of a paperbag in real life. I was accepted into graduate school the first time with a 3.7. I didn't complete the program when my mother became ill and soley dependent on me and now I'm back to the application stage with a different program.

If you are really interested in graduate school then do some searching now and see what their requirements to get in are. Don't just listen to everyone that you MUST be a perfect A student. That's not realistic and it's not true.

mitchsmom

1,907 Posts

Specializes in OB, lactation.

Regarding graduate school, as Lori wrote above, it depends on the school and their requirements and how competitive they are. Most of the schools I've looked at for CNM-MSN require the GRE, recommendations, a year of full-time work experience in L&D, and a B average as the minimum. In this case, if you had mostly A's and B's and a few C's you'd still average out ok. If I were you I certainly wouldn't give up any dreams, just be prepared to do what you have to do. You usually have to make B's to pass grad school classes anyway, so might as well get into these kind of study habits if this is your plan.

Ok, now *I* should go study!!!

jemommyRN

587 Posts

Specializes in ICU.

Thank you guys for all of your responses. I have to check on some graduate school requirements also because I "heard" that some schools only look at the grades from the BSN. I'm going for CRNA. If I decide to go to a school where I won't need to get my BSN (I already have a BS in chemistry) then I'll have to focus on keeping my grades at B or above. I know that there is alot of competition out there for these program and I really didn't want my grades to be the one to automatically throw me out. I'm getting my ADN first and that's the degree that I was asking you all about. Well, thank you for letting me know that its possible. I am going to see what I can do with a lot of studying and even more praying. I love this board!

Catma63

303 Posts

I'm a bit envious that your school's passing grade is a 77. We have to have an 80 to continue.

What I find non-uplifting is learning that there are second year students in our program who are failing....only weeks to go with a 74 average. I'd hate to get that close to graduating only to have to wait out a semester (Fall) and try again. Could happen though.

Sometimes nursing school is all about take and re-take, isn't it?

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