Horrified to start nursing school in Jan

warmspirit · Dec 23, 2009

I think that everyone is different and that you will be fine. Keep in mind a lot of people come into nursing school with a 4.0 gpa and leave with a "C" average. Not because they don't study hard but because for one, the grading scale is different (well at my school it is) an A is a B in nursing school and a B is a C so you find yourself working extremely hard. You know what kind of person you are and all I can say is continue to press hard, you will be fine.

littleone49 · Dec 23, 2009

I am a second semester student. I enjoyed the first semester. I don't have a lot to tell you for experience since I am just a second semester student, but many of the other students in my class where married and had families or were single parents. To me they seemed they really had their time organized and they did a very good job in class and clinical.

To the post before mine. The grading is the same at my school. A is B and so on.

kayty2339 · Dec 23, 2009

I am in the exact same situation as you and have been feeling the same way. I'm trying to stay positive though. I am really excited to start in January, but I also am very scared and nervous. I have 2 kids, married, and we both work full time jobs. We need my income to help pay the bills and I'm having to cut my hours for the first semester and then will quit for the remaining semesters...I'm going into loan debt just to help pay the bills. So I am terrified that it's possible that I may be putting my family in a risky situation with a bunch of debt and no degree and no job if something happens and I flunk out. I keep telling myself that I can do this and I don't have the option of failing. I have to do it no matter what. I've planned what my study schedule will be, gotten really organized at home, I've been studying up on dosage calc's and nursing test taking techniques. I'm doing anything I can to prepare myself and I know it will be really hard but if we put all the effort we can into it, it is possible and we will accomplish our goals. It will be SOOO worth it in the end! We can DO this!! Good luck to you in the program!

Nepenthe Sea · Dec 23, 2009

Here's my two cents:

I had a 4.0 in my pre-reqs, and everybody had me all freaked out about how hard it was going to be. Like you, I am super-organized and can figure out what to study within a short time. I am about to enter my third semester(out of five) and I can tell you that I still love it. It's not as hard as I thought it would be. It is VERY time-consuming, and there's alot of work involved. But if you study alot and can figure out the NCLEX-style testing , it's not too bad. The courses are so interesting to me that studying is not that bad. But I am a nerd . I am still doing well, grade-wise, although I just got my first 'B' since I started (in clinicals). I do not work during the school year (an advantage of living with my mom), but I am a single parent to 4-year old twins, so I do have things to do besides study. I get very little help with them. There are people in my classes that have kids AND work, and some that work but don't have kids, etc. I don't think I have it any harder than anyone else.

I really can't tell you about finding a job after graduation. I hear there are lots of jobs, and then I hear there aren't any. I don't know. I am hoping the economy will be better off when I graduate. I get freaked out sometimes thinking about doing all of this and then not being able to get a job (or getting one and then deciding I hate it a year later), but when I try to think of something else I might want to do, I just can't. I LOVE what I am learning, and the fact that I will have to keep on learning once I get out.

I was horrified too. I STILL get scared sometimes. But so far, it's not so bad...and it's just for a little while.

bouncer13 · Dec 23, 2009

I too had a 4.0 GPA going in to first semester....just finished with a 89 average UGH!!!! Anyway, I have 2 teens, a hubby and live about 45 miles from school and the Atlanta traffic is a full time job:)

You can do it! The hardest part for me wasn't the tests, you can learn how to study and how to think critically - frustrating at times....there isn't a right or wrong answer, but a process... The hardest part for me was lab - performing a certain task with someone watching your every move was quite intimidating - you got 3 tries and if you didn't perform perfectly - you were out of the program. One of my friends (former CNA) made it through the whole semester and failed at her third attempt putting in a foley.....4 days before the final!

Tweety, BSN, RN · Dec 23, 2009

Take another listen. Not everything and every single person is talking negative. Not everything about nursing school with kids and part-time job is going to be negative.

Negativity tends to be what you hear and that's because people tend to vent or speak of the things that are bothering them. Those that just trudge along, or actually enjoy it aren't really going to be very vocal.

I'm sure that you know what you're in for. You know it's going to tough, probably other than childbirth the toughest thing you've ever done and you have to really really want it. It's certainly not impossible, it's certainly not something that you can't enjoy. I actually enjoyed many aspects of nursing school, while at the same time it was an exhausting and trying experience.

Don't be "horrified" but stay in reality. You can do it, so don't let the negative folks tell you that you can't. If it was so horrible people people wouldn't wait for years on waiting lists to get in.

The job market may be tough right now but the long-term future for jobs for RNs remains bright.

Isitpossible, LPN, LVN · Dec 23, 2009

im just going into my second semester so i can only speak of my short experience...overall, i enjoy it...yes its time consuming, studying etc..(and i work full time and have a family) BUT i do enjoy learning about nursing, and about the body...i LOVED clinicals - working one on one with a patient was awesome...its really not all bad imho...

RNMeg · Dec 23, 2009

I'm entering my final semester this January. I've loved every clinical rotation, every clinical instructor, every moment of school. I had a 3.5 or 3.6 prereq GPA, and I'm set to graduate with a 3.9. It is possible to have a life with your family and hold down a job and excel in nursing school. Have hope! This is a time to be excited, not horrified :loveya:

happilymarried · Dec 23, 2009

Each person is different and will have a different experience while in ns. I started ns with a 3.94 GPA. I just completed my third of four semester and I now have a 3.90. I have made A's all the way through ns but I recieved my first B in third semester. I work full-time and have two kids. My husband works full-time as well and he started law school last August. We are incredibly busy and we work hard to get everything done everyday. I learned how to study differently for ns and that has helped me tons! Being open-minded toward school and being flexible in how you do things will only help you!

I remind myself often that the time is going to pass no matter if I sit on the couch eating Doritos and watching judge shows all day or if I work my tail off! The difference is, in May I will be able to put RN after my name.

I wish you the best! You sound very organized and on top of things. Nursing school is hard to get into and it is hard to complete but thousands of people have done it and you can too!

hikernurse · Dec 23, 2009

You'll make it through--even though there will be days you will wonder how :). I survived NS with several young children, a husband, and a part time job and a GPA that stayed intact :). Other than family and church, though, I sure didn't do anything else!

On the positive side, I made lifetime friends in NS (and most nurses I know feel the same way) and I have no regrets about becoming a nurse. But come Christmas morning when I am getting report at 0700 I might feel differently...

slacktime · Dec 24, 2009

Terrified Mandy,

I just finished an ADN program. It's not for the faint of heart, but neither is nursing. The pace is fast, the grading is unforgiving. There are a lot of lumps and bumps in nursing school and more of the same as a nurse, but the rewards are wonderful.

The negative postings do not represent a cross section of nursing students, so the horror stories are not what most nurses experience. Nursing school is challenging, probably most students have days or weeks here and there where they feel inadequate. I did, you probably will too.

If you have been accepted into a nursing program and earned A's in your prerequisites, you surely have the mental horsepower to successfully get through a nursing program. You likely will not get A's in nursing school, but you will be able to pass.

My observations of the difference between the students that washed out and the graduates was organization. I am quite sure all of the wash outs had the smarts to graduate. Most washed out because they had too much going on in life to dedicate adequate time to study. The graduates found or made time to study. The graduates also had a positive attitude. When they earned 85%, they were dismayed at the grade of C, but felt that at least they get to register for the next semester and continue.