I'm posting this because I am alarmed to see this attitude so often in nursing school.
I don't think people realize that they are limiting their future options, often permanently.
I fully acknowledge that nursing school is VERY difficult, that the grading scale is jacked up and it is very difficult or sometimes impossible to get a high grade. I also realize that everyone has tough semesters ( nursing school is very taxing on all aspects of our lives) and sometimes just passing is the best anyone can do.
But this does not mean we shouldn't strive for higher grades.
Unless you are 100% that you never want to go on to be an NP or get a masters in nursing, Grades DO matter very much. Every MSN program I have ever looked in has GPA requirements of usually 3.0- one I looked at will not even consider you unless you have at least a B- in every nursing class.
Additionally, in very competitive job markets, such as here in Minneapolis/St Paul, employers are starting to ask about GPA- I have filled out two applications that have requested my GPA.
We all know a high GPA doesn't automatically equal a superior nurse, but frankly with such a glut of new nurses every year in many job markets this trend is not likely to go away but increase- and yes, you may believe there is a zero percent chance you ever want to got back to school for a higher degree, but can anyone really say 100% how they will feel about their career 10 or 20 years down the road?
SO please, I'm not trying to stress out those of you still in school, but I'm pleading that you try for the higher grades if you can. DO the extra reading and extra time in lab, stay on top of your assignments, never miss class/clinical, and so on.........
I have certainly fallen into this catagory the past two semesters. I am entering my 2nd Nursing semester in September and doing it the right way again.
My reasoning was I am a mom first. I am not the type of mom who plants her kids in front of the tv and goes off to another room and does her work all day. I am a stay at home mom, so my kids entertainment and education falls directly on me. Taking care of three kids under five is exhausting, and very time consuming--not to mention taking care of my husband and myself. When I started back to school, my second child was six months old, and we had a definate game plan. Well, that was all thrown out the window when I had a surprise 3rd baby, and my sole babysitter moved away. It became survival mode. I dropped to B's (and a C+ in A&P1 because I was pregnant, and throwing up more than I wasn't) but I could have ignored my kids and pushed for those A's.
We are lucky that my husbands job lets him switch his days off to match my class and clinical days. I load up on study time on those days, and try and wake up at 5 to study before everyone else gets up, but i often slept through the alarm all together. I could have done more, but I wasn't comfortable with doing it at the expense of my kids.
Sorry! I know it annoyed people in my class, and overheard MANY snide comments about how they didn't believe I only studied essentially 2 days a week, and got the same grades as those who studied 20 hours a day 7 days a week. I don't think that is a great idea either, to be honest. You need "off" time.
I am still over a 3.0, and I am thankful for that. I am spending this summer "prepping" for next semester reading everything I will need for Fall. I was able to budget and hire a mommys helper to play with the kids while I study. And a friend has joined in with me and we study together while my mommys helper watches her kids as well.
I am glad I am back on the "Good Student Express" and hope I can keep it up. My oldest goes to school next year, so hopefully that will free up some study time.
"""So to all nursing and wannabe nursing students: don't work with unmotivated, lazy people because in the end, you will suffer as well as your grades"""
I do agree with the above statement.......BUT a wise instructor once told our class.....high GPA do not make the nurse.....you can be an A student and not have any common sense or compassion...or you can be an average C student and be the most wonderful nurse ever.....I tend to agree.....look into yourselves not the grades..
Don't think that grades will make life easier in getting a job
But as I stated in my original post, not only does it make it easier in some competitive markets, such as the twin cities, but certain jobs require a high GPA to get that position now.
One of my former instructors is approached often for letters of recommendation. He gives out his talk about this subject every semester. He says if you earn a C in his class you really should not be asking him for a letter of recommendation and do not expect to get an extremely complimentary letter because that was not the result you earned.
Just a small rant, I get good grades, I study hard, I pay attention in class and I have never missed a class since I started school. Now this fall I start nursing classes, and I pray to god that I dont have to deal with students who whine about being in class, I payed for 4 credit hours I expect 4 credit hours of learning. Those students who whine about having to stay for the whole class or ask to get out early, make me wonder what kind of Nurses will they be, will they try to leave work early, will they come in late for their shift... Then to top the whole whining thing off they then have the nerve to complain that their grades suck, oh boo hoo because they didnt pass the test... Well DUH I wonder why, So I say to God Please let my class mates be as diligent as I want to be so we have very productive classes.
Just a small rant, I get good grades, I study hard, I pay attention in class and I have never missed a class since I started school. Now this fall I start nursing classes, and I pray to god that I dont have to deal with students who whine about being in class, I payed for 4 credit hours I expect 4 credit hours of learning. Those students who whine about having to stay for the whole class or ask to get out early, make me wonder what kind of Nurses will they be, will they try to leave work early, will they come in late for their shift... Then to top the whole whining thing off they then have the nerve to complain that their grades suck, oh boo hoo because they didnt pass the test... Well DUH I wonder why, So I say to God Please let my class mates be as diligent as I want to be so we have very productive classes.
I feel your pain. My micro course this quarter is supposed to be 2x a week from 6-9:50. We have gotten out beteween 7:45 and 8:15 all except 1 day (which went to 9). I seriously would prefer our professor to go into more information and better prepare us and take us all the way to the almost 10 p.m. that we paid for
A lot of job applications now want you to list your GPA for any given degree. I'm not sure what weight they give to it though. Especially government job applications.
Personally, as a 36 yr old, mother of 3 children with health issues, and a husband who is OTR driver, with no family nearby, I am thrilled with making a passing grade. Every qtr of NS I earned a high B, until my next to last qtr. Due to family issues (death, illness, etc), I didnt make high enough on my final exam to pass. Guess what.....I return in a few months to retake that qtr. I busted my butt that qtr, but it didnt matter. This attitude of "only the partiers are the ones that dont make A's" really chaps my hide. The reality is, sometimes, no matter how hard you work, you just dont make the grade. Everything happens for a reason, and as my NS director told me, " those that have to work the hardest to achieve their goals turn out to be the best at what they achieve."
My goal is to have earned my MSN and NP within 5 yrs, and I will do it. Best of luck to all the future nurses out there.
Personally, as a 36 yr old, mother of 3 children with health issues, and a husband who is OTR driver, with no family nearby, I am thrilled with making a passing grade. Every qtr of NS I earned a high B, until my next to last qtr. Due to family issues (death, illness, etc), I didnt make high enough on my final exam to pass. Guess what.....I return in a few months to retake that qtr. I busted my butt that qtr, but it didnt matter. This attitude of "only the partiers are the ones that dont make A's" really chaps my hide. The reality is, sometimes, no matter how hard you work, you just dont make the grade. Everything happens for a reason, and as my NS director told me, " those that have to work the hardest to achieve their goals turn out to be the best at what they achieve."
My goal is to have earned my MSN and NP within 5 yrs, and I will do it. Best of luck to all the future nurses out there.
I hope you reach your goals, Having a plan is half the battle! I think when we talk about the people with low grades we are talking about the people who think "thats good enough" People who work and did their best are not who we are complaining about. I get A's and B's and if by chance I get C's I can live with it, if I truly did my very best and didnt just settle for that grade to make my life easier.
"Plus, how can you say grades don't matter when you have lives in your hand? That information you never learned could save someone's life."
Just because someone knows how to cram for a test does not mean they will be good at their job. Do you know what they call the person who graduates dead last in their medical class? DOCTOR. And tomorrow, someone has an appointment to see that doctor.
Not everyone who gets As just crams for tests.
I wouldn't want that doctor taking care of me. And I wouldn't want the "C" nurse either.
I wouldn't want that doctor taking care of me. And I wouldn't want the "C" nurse either.[/quote
I agree, I got A and mostly B grades, but I worked REALLY hard- I easily put in 30 hours a week or more of just studying- and there really is no cramming for nursing tests- the way the questions are asked, they require a thorough understanding of the material 1st and then the ability to prioritize, etc.
I agree, I got A and mostly B grades, but I worked REALLY hard- I easily put in 30 hours a week or more of just studying- and there really is no cramming for nursing tests- the way the questions are asked, they require a thorough understanding of the material 1st and then the ability to prioritize, etc.
mercuryrawks
73 Posts
I have certainly fallen into this catagory the past two semesters. I am entering my 2nd Nursing semester in September and doing it the right way again.
My reasoning was I am a mom first. I am not the type of mom who plants her kids in front of the tv and goes off to another room and does her work all day. I am a stay at home mom, so my kids entertainment and education falls directly on me. Taking care of three kids under five is exhausting, and very time consuming--not to mention taking care of my husband and myself. When I started back to school, my second child was six months old, and we had a definate game plan. Well, that was all thrown out the window when I had a surprise 3rd baby, and my sole babysitter moved away. It became survival mode. I dropped to B's (and a C+ in A&P1 because I was pregnant, and throwing up more than I wasn't) but I could have ignored my kids and pushed for those A's.
We are lucky that my husbands job lets him switch his days off to match my class and clinical days. I load up on study time on those days, and try and wake up at 5 to study before everyone else gets up, but i often slept through the alarm all together. I could have done more, but I wasn't comfortable with doing it at the expense of my kids.
Sorry! I know it annoyed people in my class, and overheard MANY snide comments about how they didn't believe I only studied essentially 2 days a week, and got the same grades as those who studied 20 hours a day 7 days a week. I don't think that is a great idea either, to be honest. You need "off" time.
I am still over a 3.0, and I am thankful for that. I am spending this summer "prepping" for next semester reading everything I will need for Fall. I was able to budget and hire a mommys helper to play with the kids while I study. And a friend has joined in with me and we study together while my mommys helper watches her kids as well.
I am glad I am back on the "Good Student Express" and hope I can keep it up. My oldest goes to school next year, so hopefully that will free up some study time.
Good luck everyone!