Going for the A???

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i'm a grad student, who is very overwhelmed right now (i should be doing one of my 4 assignments right now!!!). i'm taking 2 classes, work per-diem (for the convenience and extra $$, but usually put in a ft week). i have a very high maintenance 4 yr old, who has no real concept of what 'college' is. i love school, but i just can't put 150% into my schoolwork. i feel like my colleagues (who also have these other commitments) are much more dedicated than i am. they all seemed to be satisfied with nothing less than an a. they nit-pick every tenth of a point!! i'm not an a student (i do get some a's, just not in all my classes). i don't see myself failing, but when you work in groups, it's hard to express that "i can't put in as much time as you can". i'm really not a slacker, but everyone's situation is different.

so the question i ask, is does everyone always shoot for an a? isn't a b or b+ okay? and when it's a hard class (or life gets in the way), isn't just passing enough?

I have always been a slacker I want to be in the top 25% of my class and that is good enough for me. If I am stuck into a group of type-A drones then I will step up to the plate and put out the same effort that they are for that project but that is because I am single. If I were married, they just have to suck it up, as life is not fair because my spouse will (I hope) still be with me in ten years while they will not. I know where to invest my time and energy. I am a little competitive and have done better while going to school this time because a twenty year old cocky little punk has challenged me to do better than I want to. He reminds me of me when I knew everything. Grades will help you on your first job a little bit and that is it. Do not destroy that which you are sacrificing so much for by forgetting your family in search of the perfect grade. Your classmates will get over it.

so the question i ask, is does everyone always shoot for an a? isn't a b or b+ okay? and when it's a hard class (or life gets in the way), isn't just passing enough?
okay here is our mantra....

c is for continue

b is always better

a is for awesome

trust me just passing is a major accomplishment and with current failing rates be proud that you are able to keep on going!!!! hope this helps.

Specializes in LTC, med-surg, critial care.

it all depends on everyone's personal situations. only one person in our class has managed to maintain a 4.0 in two semesters of nursing school. she's kicking butt and taking names but even she'll admit that she doesn't have much of a social life outside her boyfriend.

i, on the other hand, have a's and only two b's, i'm perfectly content. i work part-time in a ltc as a cna and i make an effort to spend one weekend with my friends (not getting crazy drunk in some bar, just hanging out). i could spend more time with my head buried in a book but i'm 24, single and i have no children. i make the most of my life and understand that life (for me at least) isn't all about grades. i refuse to let nursing school damage the precious relationships i have with my friends and family.

do i get uptight when i realize i'm not gonna get that a? yes, but it lasts about five minutes when i realize that the time i spent playing with my best friend's three year old, who screams my name and hugs my legs everytime i see her, was much more gratifying than getting that a.

Specializes in LTC.

I have heard many people in my class say that they will be just happy to pass. That doesn't work for me. I have to have an A no two ways about it. I think in terms of if I had to have a nurse, would I want one that just hoped to pass or one that tried her best to get an A. Don't get me wrong, I am not condeming you for not wanting to get an A. I just think we should try our very best, and sometimes for some people that will not be an A. I just don't think we should go at our studies half hearted if you know what I mean. Good luck with school.

Specializes in Med-Surg, Trauma, Ortho, Neuro, Cardiac.

Just do your best and don't compare yourself with others. Focus on your goals and whats really important. Good luck!

Specializes in LDRP.

i almost feel like some there think that you can get A's if you just try harder.

when you have a class of 60 students and only 1 of them has an A, i seriously doubt that 59 students aren't trying/studying hard enough. our program is hard. LPN transfer students, who have been out there as nurses for years (one of them for 30 years) and now want to be RN's...failing. when the other nursing school in our city, we hear that students drop out of our school with failing grades and go to their school and get an A? our school is hard.

moral of the story-don't think that because someone doesn't have an A, it means that they aren't studying enough, they aren't trying enough, or that their priorities are in the wrong place, or that they aren't that smart. school is hard, and ours has a reputation for being very hard. but, we do have a 99-100% nclex pass rate.

love, rose

Specializes in Med-Surg, Trauma, Ortho, Neuro, Cardiac.
I have heard many people in my class say that they will be just happy to pass. That doesn't work for me. I have to have an A no two ways about it. I think in terms of if I had to have a nurse would I want one that just hoped to pass or one that tried her best to get an A. Don't get me wrong, I am not condeming you for not wanting to get an A. I just think we should try our very best, and sometimes for some people that will not be an A. I just don't think we should go at our studies half hearted if you know what I mean. Good luck with school.[/quote']

My perspective is that I want to make an A, I strive to make an A, but I don't sit in class and want to cry because I made a 90. And I absolutely refuse to kill myself to get an A.

Also there are some days when the priorities have to shift. Work, sleep, and family obligations might have to take center stage in order not to kill myself to make an A.

Most of the time my best is an A. I graduated with a 3.85. Did I cry at not getting a 4.0 no. I don't know any other way than to work hard, strive for the best and do my best. If my best at that moment is a B or a C, then so be it. Some days, like your classmates I say "I'm just happy to pass".

(Actually, I'm out of school right now and starting in January, pysching myself up to go ADN to BSN)

My spouse just got his Masters with straight As (they actually had an A minus system so his GPA was 3.9). He's interviewing for jobs and they are so impressed he has his masters. Not one of them asked for his GPA.

Not one of my patients has yet to ask me my GPA either.

So I try to keep things in perspective.

End of lecture. :rotfl: :rotfl: (sorry)

Specializes in Critical Care / Psychiatry.

I go for A's in non-nursing classes.

I go for passing in nursing classes.

That all suits me just fine. ;)

Shel

Specializes in Pediatrics.
personally, if i was 'just passing' i would adjust something in my life because i'd know something wasn't right. i know i am capable of learning a lot & getting good grades and i have a definite long-term goal that i need good grades to acheive so that's what i expect from myself. plus, i know that i suck at the gre so i want my grades to be as good as possible to offset that come grad school time! if i were in a different situation, like a single mom trying to get food on the table and hurrying to get into a decent paying job, then i would probably have to lower my standards. you gotta do what ya gotta do.

well, since i'm not just passing, not a single mom, and am already in grad school (and got in without straight a's!!!), i guess you're not trying to insult me. i too, am capable of learning a lot and getting good grades.

by the way, don't forget about mitch in your quest for perfection. i certainly put my child before school.

Specializes in Pediatrics.

So, yes, I always strive for 100%. I feel like a failure when I get anything less - truly. I know that's not a healthy attitude, but it's done well for me for the past couple of years, and has worked so far in nursing school

You're absolutely right, about it being unhealthy. That's kind of my point. I refuse to get neurotic over it. I see too many people that are neurotic and perfectionists, and it kills me. We all get the same degree and license in the end.

And it's not that I'm not trying. And I'm not using the "I have a kid and a job" as an excuse. As an undergrad (ADN) I was 18, lived with Mommy and Daddy, rent free, no job, and I still didn't get As. But I've never failed a class yet. And if I felt I was in danger I would do something, (as I did during BSN- I was going through a rough time and I dropped before the deadline).

I'm glad to see a few of you agree with me (I think some of you do).

I guess I am what you would call "flexible" In the beginning of my LPN-BSN program at Alderson - Broaddus College ...(WV) I was very driven and had to have the "A" , well, now a days I am just happy to spell my name correctly. I still get "A''s and an occasional "B" ... I don't care anymore about the letter grade. I just do the absolute best I can and I try to maintain my relationships..2 girls, hubby, extended family. I am lucky to have a great support system.... My best friend who is in the program with me teases me to this day about the "A" thing....she doesn't realize that now that I have senioritis....WE graduate MAY13,2005....I truly do not careas long as I do my personal best.

Specializes in Emergency Dept, M/S.
You're absolutely right, about it being unhealthy. That's kind of my point. I refuse to get neurotic over it. I see too many people that are neurotic and perfectionists, and it kills me. We all get the same degree and license in the end.

And it's not that I'm not trying. And I'm not using the "I have a kid and a job" as an excuse. As an undergrad (ADN) I was 18, lived with Mommy and Daddy, rent free, no job, and I still didn't get As. But I've never failed a class yet. And if I felt I was in danger I would do something, (as I did during BSN- I was going through a rough time and I dropped before the deadline).

I'm glad to see a few of you agree with me (I think some of you do).

It may be unhealthy, of which I admit, but that's how I am and I refuse to apologize for it. I get A's, which is important to me when I'm spending $20K a year for my education as a soon-to-be-divorced mom with 4 children.

And for those that don't think we moms think of our kids when we're getting A's and studying hard, nothing could be further from the truth. I was a SAHM for 10 years, devoting all of my time to my children. Now that they are old enough to home without me for a few hours, I'm taking the time to better my life so I can better theirs. Getting A's is in no way sacrificing my children, and I resent the implication that I'm putting grades before my kids.

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