HLP! B student starting from scratch..Should I?

Jules A, MSN · Oct 20, 2006

Hi Alexis,

I also had a life changing event that pushed me to consider nursing. I've found that my motivation as an adult in school is totally different than when I was younger so thats a good thing. I think the pre-reqs will give you a bit of preview for what you will encounter in nursing school and help you with your decision to apply. I say go for it! Jules

lisabeth · Oct 20, 2006

That was my experience also. My mom died last year and that is what led me to the nursing program. I had never considered being a nurse before that.

Jilaweez, BSN, MSN, RN · Oct 20, 2006

I think if this is something you really want you should go for it!! It sounds like now that you are in college you are doing well enough to be a competitive applicant. I was not the best HS student and I have done extremely well in college and got into a program on the first try. You can do it too!!

MB37 · Oct 21, 2006

I was always scared of hard science courses, and since I have a psych degree I didn't have to take any in college the first time. I decided I wanted to go to nursing school, but the prereqs sounded frightening. I signed up for two classes, chemistry and sociology, and figured if I passed chemistry I would try two more classes the next semester. I currently have a 4.0 in my prereqs and should be able to start an accelerated BSN program this summer. I was 25 when I went back. Take it one class or one semester at a time, and you might surprise yourself. I sure did! Good luck!

WDWpixieRN, RN · Oct 22, 2006

Lexystext:

I am 50 and just started my first semester of NS....I was a SAHM for many years just taking a class here and there while my children were younger...about 10 years ago I started seriously working toward a bachelor's while my children were in various levels of school....I obtained that degree in Information Systems in 2000 and got a good-paying job in a large corporation...in 2004, after surviving 2 layoffs, I decided I had had enough of M - F, 8-5, project work, documentation that took hours and no one ever took seriously (except if you DIDN'T do it) and supervisors who arbitrarily decided if you could flex or not depending on their mood (meaning some worked 5 days a week, some 4, and some 4.5)....I also HATED sitting in either a cube or a meeting that usually got nowhere fast....I gained 22 lbs. my first year in that job....

It took me 2 years of getting prereqs out of the way plus the wait to be accepted (it was a first-come, first-served list also; no weighted application process)....I had avoided sciences all my life....I didn't enjoy them, nor did I feel smart enough to do well in them....my GPA for the prereqs was probably about a 3.8....I am carrying about mid-range B so far this semester in NS. I spent the better part of these first 9 weeks being petrified of not being able to cut it....I still worry, but not to the point that I am losing 4 lbs. a week like I did the first 2 weeks!! :eek:

I tell you this because you are not too old....you are not NEAR too old....and if it takes you 5 years to do this, or more, you will be 5 years closer to doing work that right now you seem driven to do.....

If you think this is what you want, go for it....and be glad you're young and will have many, many years of options in this career.....

Also, in some programs, you can get kicked out...but I bet you have to really screw up or not try...we have lost about 15% of our class so far this semester by their choice....I understand that if you fail a semester, you have one chance to go back and make it up....my guess is that more often than not, if someone wants it bad enough, they pass the next time and move on...you can check in to this at the schools you are considering applying to. Maybe try to talk to students in the program if the opportunity presents itself....

Best wishes in this decision!!

Carebear77 · Oct 22, 2006

i definatley do not think you are to old. a few years ago i also had an awakening, i was selling cars, working 60-70 hours a week, completley stressed out, a new mom and going no where fast. i hated my job and was so miserable.

like you, i also was not the best in h.s. but when your younger sometimes you just don't care and are not thinking of future. but since i have started college i have been doing awesome.

if you have the heart to do nursing then do it. i'm glad im getting there now, wish i had done it sooner, but perhaps why we do things at certain ages just means it wasn't meant to be until now, or maybe we wouldn't have taken it seriously.

but don't think you are to old. i'll be 30 next year and just started to nursing program, so no age is ever to late.

i have a few women in my classes that are my mothers age 50-60, and they are going to make wonderful nurses. :)

good luck :)

BSNtobe2009 · Oct 23, 2006

Well, there are other aspects to think about regarding labor work. One of the biggest reasons I am getting my BSN after my ASN is in the event should I ever become disabled, there is still work available in teaching, working for insurance companies, etc. The rest of your life is a long time. When my parents retired, they will both tell you that the last 3 to 4 years were the most difficult in terms of physical demands of the job.

Nobody cares about the grades you earned in high school once you have so many college credits completed. My advice is to speak with current nursing students and see how they like the program or speak with the nursing school advisor.

Daytonite, BSN, RN · Oct 24, 2006

Well, Alexis, if you think you might be too old for taking a career path toward nursing at 24, I want to be around when you're my age (56) to hear your perspectives on aging at that time! I started nursing school at age 24 for the very same reasons--hated sitting at a desk. I was a bookkeeper and working in accounting. Never looked back or regretted the decision. I can watch people and see that some are just cut out to work with people. I'm betting that your family members saw it in you years ago.

We were all afraid going into these various classes and applying and going to nursing school. The unknown is always a source of fear. Keep this in mind though. . .thousands and thousands went before you with the same and/or similar thoughts and feelings and made it through. Chances are you will as well. A lot depends on how motivated you are and how you handle stress. Because school, any school where you are preparing for an important career like nursing, is going to have some stress about it. If you don't proceed with this, you'll never know if you were cut out for nursing. So, you might as well dig in, hunker down and see if you've got what it takes.

I wouldn't worry too much about being "smart enough" either. The fact that you are now doing well with college classes says a much different story about an older, more mature you. You've got to lose that high school thinking. You will find that common sense will be a great leveler when it comes to many things in life. Most of us have the brains we need. It's what we do with them that makes all the difference. You've obviously had an awakening where the use and handling of your intelligence is concerned. Keep up the good work. Hope to see you on the other side soon.