Got kicked out/ failed out

RNcpac · Jun 2, 2010

Don't feel bad. Nursing school is the most frustrating, and in many schools unfair school. Failing by less than one point is so ridiculous and it shows the schools don't care about students. They only care about keeping their test score statistics up to get more tuition from future students.

As for you, nursing is one of the most stressful and underpaid jobs, if you can even find a job. Right now in California 42% of LAST years grads can't find a job, and this is the same all around the country. If you finished your degree program without failing, you may not have even found a job and you would have had all that debt.

Maybe God is intervening in your life and saving you all the trouble of nursing school and future job problems that many of us are going through right now.

You say you don't want to do anything in the medical field, if that's true then think of it like this, it's good to find that out now, rather than after all those semesters of nursing tests and clinicals, all that tuition money wasted, and all the stress of NCLEX.

I can tell you, I'm a nurse now... but if I had known about some other hospital careers I would have quit nursing school back then. I almost wish I would have failed, which I was close to doing in many of my nurse classes. Even though it would have made me upset and depressed at the time, in the long run it would have allowed me to find a different career that I would be happier with.

I wish I would have done Radiologic Tech. It is a 2 year degree and pays as much as an RN usually. It's a much different job than nursing and I found that it's my calling. But I already finished college, and now I don't know if I can ever go back to school and get that career that I wish I had.

You have that option.

There is a lot of hope for you and you're now free to find out what you really want to do. Take some time to find out about different jobs and look for one that would really make you succeed in life.

caliotter3 · Jun 2, 2010

Deal with your attitude because if you remain in a funk, it will show, no matter what you attempt to do. The best thing is to reevaluate your goal to become a nurse, and then the reason why you couldn't maintain a passing grade during the semester. Unless you deal with your study habits, or whatever held you back, it may happen again. Good luck on the long road ahead of you.

muka919 · Jun 2, 2010

Thanks RNcpac, I know I have a lot of decision making to do at this moment, it just sucks so much, of all the hard work I have done just to have everything taken from me, because of a three-tenth of a point.

Also, caliotter I am aware of my attitude and I was able to maintain a passing grade through the semester, of course it was not the highest, but I was passing. I went to tutoring and spent extra time studying but at the end my final score just tanked and ended up failing the class, like I mentioned before by three-tenths of a point.

Anyways I'm just frustrated because, now I have to figure out what to do with my life. Since it is so difficult to find a nursing program that I can apply to, and I cannot reapply back to my schools nursing program until 5 years from now.

I just don't want to waste all the time and hours I have spent/earned at school and not finish.

Nursesomeday0211 · Jun 2, 2010

I was in a similar situation and I decided to finish my degree with a BS in Health Promotion. Its a growing field, easy to find a job and you can still work in the medical field. Hope this helps!

happy456 · Jun 3, 2010

DOn,t give up on school, major in something else. I failed out to, but I'm going to continue on my path of earning a degree, even if its another major. Nursing is not what i thought it would be. it seems all they care about is their scores, not the fact that a person it trying to be sucessful.

Trauma Columnist · Jun 3, 2010

While I didn't fail out of nursing school the first time, I quit, didn't drop the classes and ended up with a 0.7 gpa!

I think that you need to take some time off from school, get some career counseling/discuss with people you trust and who know you well and then attack school again...maybe in nursing, maybe not.

This isn't the end of the world, though I know it can feel that way. I'm sorry.

muka919 · Jun 4, 2010

Thanks Nurse, Happy, and Trauma for your advice and for sharing your experiences. I am going to continue to earn a degree in something else, just not nursing for the time. I wish I could take a semester off but I really want to be done with school, at least my bachelor's before I am 25. Not only that but I will be dropped off my father's health insurance if I am not a full-time student and right now I don't want to risk being sick and not having a good job.

I agree with you Happy nursing really wasn't what I thought it would be. I mean I feel as if I do have some passion for it but when I was at my clinical all I saw the nurses do was pass out meds and chart.

As far as the school goes, I really felt abandoned. When I started the program at orientation and on the first day of class all the teachers were so excited and inspiring that they were going to help us become nurses one day, but once I failed the teachers seemed to not really care about my goals in life. The only thing they saw was the grade and not me.

nik77natural · Jun 4, 2010

Big Hug:redpinkhe Resp Therapy, physical therapy, Ultrasonographer, radiation tech, etc. There are tons of other career options out there for you that can utilize some of your prerequisites, and quite frankly allow you the less physical labor of wiping poo and dealing with irrate, ungreatful, demanding patients. Have you ever heard of any of these other healthcare professionals dealing with some of the crap that dear Nurse Betty:nurse: has to deal with? I want to be a nurse for the options of it all. I pray that it works out for me but you and myself HAVE to keep a positive mind if we want to be successful. I know you will be!~ You seem pretty driven, otherwise you wouldn't care. Go to a career assessment website, look at your options, and talk to your school counselor. Maybe they can give you some advise. Also, do they allow you to get your CNA or shift you to LPN after your first semester?

Good Luck Hun!~

epinephRN · Jun 5, 2010

When I started the program at orientation and on the first day of class all the teachers were so excited and inspiring that they were going to help us become nurses one day, but once I failed the teachers seemed to not really care about my goals in life. The only thing they saw was the grade and not me.

This may/may not apply to your situation, but I am a nursing instructor and it is painful when a student fails. It is difficulty to see someone's dreams shattered. Your instructor may seem distant because it is very painful to tell someone "I'm sorry, but you didn't pass."

I can't speak for your instructor of course, but we have to set a standard somewhere. If we keep saying "Well, I will just lower the passing standard by a point," then what about those who fail by two points? Our syllabi are contracts, and it is important to stand by them. It would not be fair to make an exception for some students and not others.

I wish you the best in your future career, whatever you may choose. Just wanted to present the information that most instructors really aren't sitting there rubbing their hands in glee when a student fails. The majority enter the field because they care about students and giving back to a future generation of nurses. Of course, there are always exceptions to any rule.

Perhaps you could job shadow a few other possible positions in addition to nursing. Many hospitals offer this. It might be a great way to see if another area of nursing or another field entirely will spark your interest.