Going to Nursing School at an Older Age

SENSUALBLISSINFL, BSN, RN · Aug 7, 2010

Would love to find out how my school fares with students passing the NCLEX on the first try. Over and over we are told that Miami-Dade College is the largest nursing school in the nation and how the ATI is tougher than the NCLEX so we will be better prepared to pass when the time come for boards. I think they tell us that so that we can be proud of the education we are receiving and that it is very comparable with universities here. But would love to find out if it is the truth. Anyone has any ideas where to get this information? It is merely curiosity.

moma8gma1 · Aug 7, 2010

This is a very encouraging thread for us olders, who have had to contend w/ our own insecurities as we've ventured back into the realm of school -- which many of us thought we'd left behind years ago for good! Boosting each other up, and realizing our age has an advantage helps us quiet those discouraging "you're too old" thoughts that creep in when we struggle with our pre-reqs. (Nobody is here to bash younger pre-nursing students, but merely to encourage the olders.)

SENSUALBLISSINFL, BSN, RN · Aug 7, 2010

"i fail to see why a lowly lpn has to precept me, i probably have more experience than you!" i kept my mouth shut, and did my job. we entered the pts room, and this "know it all" proceeded to open the sterile packet before washing her hands, cleaning the table off and assuring pt privacy...
... this nurse was a straight "a" student, but even after passing her 4th year of nursing school, passing her boards, and getting her title of "bs" nurse, she still didn't have the hands on abilities to do the bedside nursing proceedures...
...so, my advice to older people wanting to go to or go back to school for rn, is go for it! don't let the fact that you may not be an "a" student stop you. even though academics are important, and you have to make a minimum grade to pass, it doesn't mean one is any less a nurse than the one who got straight "a" all threw the class. life experiences, common sense, and maturity ultimatly are what most employers are looking for.

long post, but great read. i am in my second year (part time), and would never dismiss the experience that an lpn or even cna has over me, if anything we rn students and new grads, can learn so much from the hands on they have that we will acquire with time and our own experiences. my med-surge professor always tell us "patients are not texbooks". i am 46 and have encountered many lpns and cnas that for whatever reasons are not rns, i find it ignorant for an rn student, recent grad or rn to think they are higher than thou attitude and dismiss the opportunity to learn and colaborate with them. i am struggling, thought i was passing with a b in med-surge and the mid term put me down to a c (a high c, but nevertheless a c). i know the material well, but some of us do not test as well as others. am i to quit because my average is a c and assume i will not be a good nurse because of it? of course not! i am hoping when interviewed, that they will see my maturity that comes with age, and the fact that i have been in the same field at the same place for 24 years now, that i am dependable and knowledgeable and that if i passed the nclex that it means that among many other things, that i am more than ready and willing to be the best i can be (sounds like the army slogan....lol). it is harder at my age, but like someone here said, is doable and attainable.

i want to be a nurse, i have the vocation for it. i did not have the opportunity or rather did not see it while i was younger. i am now working full time and paying my way 100% without loans, sacrificing not putting money in savings but not getting into debt, and pursing a profession that in the long road is going to pay off and that in my heart i really really want. i hope this make me quality material and hope an employer will see my committment in pursing this career later in life and see pass my age.

i do have to confess, i probably would be the kind of nurse who is ready to try to do anything and get excited to get hands on experience...lol...too much eagerness is perhaps not so great, i would not want to hurt a patient and i know that passing skill procedures in school is not really the same as to actually do it on a patient, so watching first someone with more experience do it, would be a good idea. i pray that my preceptor is patient and one that does not mind being a preceptor to a new grad like me; who is older than probably she will be. but in the meantime, my priority prayer is that i pass nursing school and then the nclex :nurse:

Stcroix, ASN, PhD, RN · Aug 7, 2010

would love to find out how my school fares with students passing the nclex on the first try. over and over we are told that miami-dade college is the largest nursing school in the nation and how the ati is tougher than the nclex so we will be better prepared to pass when the time come for boards. i think they tell us that so that we can be proud of the education we are receiving and that it is very comparable with universities here. but would love to find out if it is the truth. anyone has any ideas where to get this information? it is merely curiosity.

click this and follow the lead:

http://www.doh.state.fl.us/mqa/nursi..._edu_info.html

you will find all the info about all fl schools

Moogie · Aug 7, 2010

I believe I told this experience before, but when I was a young nurse, just got my license for LPN had it about a month, I was assigned to orient a new nurse, she was a 4th year RN student, and being such, automaticaly qualified her as an LPN. We had an assignment to insert a foley catheter in a female pt. this orientee said: "Oh! I can do that no problem! I've read the book on this proceedure and got an "A" on the exam for foley catheter insertion." The charge nurse, being an older and wiser nurse, saw a red flag that she was overly excited about performing this proceedure, and told me to stop her immediatly if I felt she wasn't doing anything correctly. And by "anything" it meant just that, from A to Z. We gathered our supplies, double checked the DR order, and proceeded down the hall to the pts room, on the way down the hall, this BS student, who was working as a LPN, told me "I fail to see why a lowly LPN has to precept me, I probably have more experience than you!" I kept my mouth shut, and did my job. We entered the pts room, and this "know it all" proceeded to open the sterile packet before washing her hands, cleaning the table off and assuring pt privacy. I did as I was told to do, and stoped her before she went any further, she stormed out of the room, I had an extra kit with me, so I did the proceedure, and met up with her a few minutes later at the nurses station where she was fuming to the charge nurse, who sat there quietly listening to her, about how she didn't think a lowly LPN should be orienting her, and how she failed to see what she did wrong for this lowly LPN to stop her. The charge nurse asked my version of what took place, I told her. The charge nurse didn't make any comment yet, went to the pt, and asked her what took place in the room. This pt was also a retired nurse, neither of us knew that, except the charge nurse. Upon returning to the nurses station, the charge nurse complemented me on my professionalism, and took the other nurse into a private office for a conference.

Wow. That attitude is really offensive. "Lowly" LPN, indeed. You definitely handled the matter with professionalism and grace and I admire your restraint.

I would also have felt unnerved because the nurse was overly anxious to do the procedure and seemed to think she was an expert because she got an "A" on her catheter exam. :eek:

Moogie · Aug 7, 2010

FYI, y'all: there is an article in my local paper today about a UC San Diego study confirming that the elderly really are wiser than younger people. http://www.sacbee.com/2010/08/03/2931676/seniors-prove-that-wisdom-of-the.html#

Thanks for the link! I hope that's right---wisdom would be a nice trade-off for wrinkles and grey hair!

Streamline2010 · Aug 8, 2010

I have been planning to go to nursing school (direct entry MSN) & have been progressing in that direction. The other day I was having a conversation with a coworker (a non-practicing nurse!) and she said, now at your age (I am in my 40s) you have 10, maybe 20 years of nursing, but if a younger candidate gets your seat they can practice nursing for like 40 years, so why should you get a seat? It's more beneficial to train a younger nurse. I was rather tacken aback by the question & said something to the effect the more nurses the better and it is illegal to discriminate based on age, and she said the nursing shortage is a myth and age discrimination happens, no matter what! While I always believe education is throughout one's life and one should pursue one's aspirations, it got me thinking. (In some countries where their are no age discrimination laws this does happen). Is it really socially more desirable to prefer younger candidates? And does this factor into admissions decisions?

I get hostile everytime I hear that ageism uttered.

1. In this latest recession, and this is nothing new, many people in manufacturing or the related occupations like IH, safety, facilities management, maintenance, engineering and design, etc., have seen not only their jobs but their employers and workplaces totally disappear. Now, there people are intelligent, highly trained, highly skilled, in better than average health, and they planned to work until at least age 70. So, what are we people like this supposed to do, just sit around, go broke, and leave our minds go to waste. Get outta that chair, kid, that's MY seat in that nursing class!

2. "It's more beneficial to train a younger nurse." Can practice nursing for 40 years vs. only 20 -- Yeah, so what. To most employers, the short-term is of immediate concern. A long-term plan is only the next 5 years. If an employee is good for 2-5 years service, that ought to be good enough. There is such a thing as normal attrition, too. I am sure there are young RNs and LPNs who either never worked in their field or they quit when they had children or found a profession that they liked more and they never went back. I even know a masters degree physical therapist who quit and became a financial planner.

Yes, a certain amount of building for the future must be done. But people are living and working longer, too, and not everyone is physically and mentally kaput at age 60 or 65 anymore, either. The real advantage to training young nurses, is that they are more compliant, less educated, less intimidating, and have less life experience than the mature 2nd-career students. The educators and administrators may feel more comfortable training and supervising younger and less educated employees. Think about it: The head of the nursing school is very well trained in nursing, but that is the only field that she (most likely a she) is actually trained and experienced in. An adult, coming into that school as a second-degree or career-change student, may have an IQ of 130-145, may have one or more college degrees, may have an extremely strong science and tech background, may have HR or employee relations / business law training, may problem-solving skills and have lots more life and career experience and technological strength and money in the bank than the nursing instructor. Just because an older student has not been previously trained in nursing does not mean that her or she is not capable of getting up to speed and running laps around a not-as-bright instructor in a few years and vying for his/her job. Some of those "older" students that apply to nursing schools are intimidating, because they come from backgrounds other than nursing and motherhood.

MAmom81 · Aug 8, 2010

i agree with the others dont let anyone talk you out of becoming a nurse i say go for it. i am 34 have two kids and i am starting my rn pre-reques this fall and i cannot wait until i start nursing school i am not going to let anyone tell me i cant achieve my dream becoming a nurse. :nurse: :yeah: i wish you lots of luck and i hope everything works out for you:o:d:clown:

MAmom81 · Aug 8, 2010

to the OP: AmaurosisFugax, and anyone else wondering...
I am immediately suspicious of the motives and attitude of the person who made that comment to you. I've just passed the NCLEX (YAY!) at 40, 2 years earlier than my mother did. Before I went to nursing school, I had some HR experience, so I took a job in hospital HR for 18 months while I did my pre-reqs. Nurse Directors are the ones that hire nurses. The dozen+ nurse directors that I met during my time there all wanted experienced nurses, of course, and that makes sense. However, it was my understanding from all of them (ALL) that among new grad candidates, at least having some "Life Experience" is preferable.
Hospitals know they're making an investment in your real training to competency, but none are so foolish these days to assume you'll stick around for your 30-year career. For the time they have you, they want someone who is quick to learn, understands policy, understands policy doesn't cover everything, has good judgment, knows how to deal with difficult people, understands chain of command, and as another poster mentioned, doesn't bring drama and loads of family obligations to the job. If you've already raised your kids (mostly), figured out who you are, suffered personal losses, honored commitments, worked with others, etc, then you have experience that the kids just don't have, making you just as appealing, if not more so. The trick as an older worker is to make a point to appear energetic, and always interested to learn the latest technique/equipment/evidence-based-practice - avoid appearing stale or tired.
About grades - Figure it like this: when you're a kid, your brain works faster to retain things because there's less stuff in there. Now that you're older, you have more clutter in there; you have to discipline your mind a little more,and put more effort into retaining the info for recall & use. If you were an A student the last time you were in school, you will find it a little harder to get that A with the same amount of work. This is true no matter what kind of student you were, you will have to put out a little more effort to get the same result when getting started. HOWEVER - aren't you so much more sure this is what you want than you were at 20? Now that you're grown & setting this goal for yourself, your studies will be more meaningful, and you will WANT the info more than you did as a kid. I went to a CC program, finished in 18 months. Some of the A students were the kids, some were in their 30's, some were in their 40's, and my FAVORITE study partner and the safest student practitioner I know, is 53.
Consider - you walk into the patient's room, a 50 YO man with bladder irrigation after a prostate procedure (penile traction!). No matter how sophisticated your 20 YO classmates are, they will still be intimidated, and there will be awkwardness for them and for the patient. But when you walk in at 40, the patient assumes you've been a nurse for years (even though you're wearing a student uniform, uniforms vary so much these days, patients have trouble figuring it out). Your patient is less uncomfortable, so you can be more relaxed while you perform care. Think about it: most patients in hospital are older, and most older people feel they've learned a lot since 20, gained much and lost little. Therefore, patients will be more comfortable with an older nurse, leading to better outcomes.
Truly, it is a tradeoff, but if there is an imbalance, it is probably slightly in your favor. Go forward with confidence!
Yours in service,
Mango!-a-gogo

exactly you said it perfectly as an older student I know what I really want and my studies are so much more meaningful. I never really applied myself when I first started CC way back LOL:lol2: when I graduated from HS but now that I am older and more mature I have done better in school and on tests(which I used to struggle with) I know what I want and I am going for and I cannot wait until I start my rn pre-reques:yeah: thanks again for your post it is an inspiration:saint::balloons::w00t:

AnneS · Aug 9, 2010

What a load of crock. I'm 18 and am taking my pre-reqs. I have met some VERY immature older people who complained about how hard the work load was, skipping lectures, and just can't pass the class. How dare you disrespect the younger lot like that!
I may be younger than you, but I bet can handle nursing school JUST as well as you or any other person. So don't pull the age card on me!

I think the nic says it all

joanna73, BSN, RN · Aug 9, 2010

It's clear that whoever that 18 year old is....needs to mature and grow up. Also, that comment shows a lack of respect for other nurses and this forum in general. To the 18 year old....good luck getting through school with that attitude. You won't hold favour with students or other nurses, that's for sure.

Also, for anyone considering nursing, go for it. Age is more of a benefit than a hinderance. Overall, the best candidates are hired. Age is not always a factor either way. It is how you present yourself to the employer. It's amazing how negative some people can be. Aren't we supposed to have compassion for each other??

DolceVita, ADN, BSN, RN · Aug 9, 2010

I just came it to warm my hands with the flames:clown: