Honors Classes?

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Hello! I am a pre nursing student, but I am posting this topic here in hopes of getting experienced answers :)

I am a 23 year old mother of two with a husband and I am starting college this fall. I received an email from the school about their honors program last week and got really interested. So here is my question. For those of you who have taken honors classes, is the extra time and dedication worth it? I know I will already be pressed for time with school in general, and I will already be sacrificing time with my family. My concern is that I just won't have enough time for nursing school plus honors classes, and my family, and I also have a job right now, as well. Any thoughts or advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks for your time!

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Specializes in NICU, Trauma, Oncology.

I imagine the honors classes would be part of the pre-nursing classes (i.e. general education core and pre-reqs) so it wouldn't be a terrible idea. You can always start in the honors classes and then after a semester or two decide that you no longer wish to take them.

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Are these honor classes pertaining to general ed courses? I don't know about your particular school, but at our school, the honors classes were regarded as extra course work and rigorous lectures. However, it really depends on the school. Some schools offer great honor programs that allow a lot of opportunities outside the classroom and hands-on experience that you wouldn't receive in most classes, whereas others, like my school, can be extra work and your GPA suffers for it. If you have the access, you should speak with some current students in the honors program and ask them about their experience.

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Specializes in public health, women's health, reproductive health.

I was in the honors program during undergrad (not nursing related). It was A LOT of work. Lots of paper writing with high expectations on quality. I think a paper was due nearly every single day. I was in it for personal satisfaction and for interaction with the other students. I don't think it has helped me in my current nursing program, except maybe it prepared me for critical thinking. When I started doing science/nursing school pre-reqs there was not an honors option at the school I was attending. If there had been, I would not have done it. I just wouldn't have seen the necessity, either for getting into the nursing program or doing well in the program. I was focused on getting an A and, seeing as I was uncertain in how I might do in classes like A&P, I can't imagine I would have added more stress on to the pile. YMMV, of course. Like I said, being in the honors program brought a lot of personal satisfaction to me. But I was not married with a child at the time, either. So it really depends on what you want to get out of it as to whether it is worth it or not. Expect honors classes to be work heavy. Expect nursing school to be demanding. Not trying to discourage you at all. This is just my experience.

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Specializes in Hospitalist Medicine.

It's a LOT of extra work! And you don't get any sort of boost to your GPA for taking honors classes. They still transfer as regular credits. I was an honors student and it really wasn't worth the time. Looks nice on a transcript for grad school, that's about it. I'd only do it if you have the time to devote to paper writing.

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This is the explanation of our honors program:

To complete the OTC Honors Program, students must successfully complete a minimum of 5 Honors designated courses, dedicate a minimum of 25 hours of service with a single non-profit entity and write a minimum 3 page paper on the experience to be presented at an OTC Honors Orientation Session. In addition, students must complete a minimum of 5 hours of campus service per semester (Fall/Spring) with student organizations or at volunteer events of their choice), and maintain a 3.5 cumulative GPA.

I feel like it may not quite be worth my time and I would be better off focusing more time on my required classes. They have 5 honors classes available this fall and none of them really meet my program specifications. Thanks so much for the input!!!

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[COLOR=#444444]This is the explanation of our honors program:

[COLOR=#444444]To complete the OTC Honors Program, students must successfully complete a minimum of 5 Honors designated courses, dedicate a minimum of 25 hours of service with a single non-profit entity and write a minimum 3 page paper on the experience to be presented at an OTC Honors Orientation Session. In addition, students must complete a minimum of 5 hours of campus service per semester (Fall/Spring) with student organizations or at volunteer events of their choice), and maintain a 3.5 cumulative GPA.

I feel like it may not quite be worth my time and I would be better off focusing more time on my required classes. They have 5 honors classes available this fall and none of them really meet my program specifications. Thanks so much for the input!!!

I think that is a wise decision. Just focus on those prerequisite classes, and you should be golden. :) Good luck!
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I don't know what happened with my last post haha! I fixed it ;P

But thanks so much! I appreciate your suggestions and support!!

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