How hard is nursing school for a student who is average or below in math & science?

[kelkel587]

I am average or below average at math and science. I recently stopped completing my nursing prerequisite courses because I did not do well in anatomy and physiology. I have to try really, really hard and work really hard at math and science. How hard is nursing school for a student that is not gifted at math and science?

[GivingLove]

Please do not feel bad. I had to redo chemistry. Im on my 3rd time which now it is making sense to me. Maybe it is your studying habits. I did not try so hard my first 2 times at chem and now, on my 3rd time, I study, read the text, rework tests and quizzes until I understand, email the professor, am in her office asking question and most importantly, I have got to know God! I pray all the time for knowledge because I know in my heart my calling is nursing. Really read the text. It has helped me tremendously! Maybe look at what you arent doing. Take advantage of tutoring.

[FutureNeoNursing]

KelKel don't feel bad, I'm really not good in math or science either,but I was able to pass my A &P I and II w/ a B average, and it was no walk in the park! lol I'm currently taking fundamentals of mathematics so that I can see what my weakness is before diving into college algebra next semester. It's best to find out what you already know how to do and what you don't and go from there. You may need to refresh your memory of 8th grade and high school math so it doesn't seem foreign to you when college algebra comes along...I can honestly say that I have family members who are nurses(lpn and rn) that did not like neither subject, but was able to conquer their fears head on and be successful in their careers! Online is a multitude of math and science videos especially anatomy and algebra that can you review and study. Practice makes perfect,so everyday you should do some problems and maybe go over some parts of the body and use flash cards, those are my lifesavers! lol it really does help, along with the memory notebook of nursing and anatomy for dummies and math for dummies. Most of us don't really care for either subject, but it does provide a solid foundation for the rest of our nursing education....

[thenameismac]

I failed A&P I, retook it, got a C, and failed A&PII twice. I know where I went wrong. Because I was taking other classes, I underestimated how long I needed to study for A&P and overestimated how much time I needed for other classes. I am not good in science AT ALL. When I did manage to pass an exam I realized what I did right to get a decent grade. I started out by reading the textbook. I read 6-10 pages a night (that's what the average was to keep up). I would then go back and take notes on what I read. This required a reread. I would write word for word a few sentences out of each section that I felt were important. I would spend as much as 15 minutes on one page. Then I would go back to my notes and highlight some of things that were even MORE important than all of what I written. I would then reread this material. I realized the reason I was able to memorize this information was because it was pure repetition. I only remember what I write not read. Also, sometimes I wouldn't understand something I read. If I wrote it down or rewrote then somehow it would click. Also with the more anatomy stuff, I would go online to the textbook website or youtube (like someone else mentioned) and you would be surprised how clear other people make things. With Math, like someone else said, Practice makes perfect. Again, the internet helps. The only reason I was so good at math in high school was because I did problems for fun. I was search the internet for problems similar to the ones in school and would just work them over and over again. It feels good when you finally "figure it out". Also, ask people on here (allnurses.com) if you are having problems with something. There are people who are more than willing to help you if you are stuck. They won't give you answers but give you guidelines or point you in the right direction. Hope this helps.

[vicRNtoria]

I am currently a nursing student and it is ALL science. You must do well in chemistry, biology, A&P I and II to understand all of the material in nursing school. Its all pathophysiology of disease processes and you MUST be really good at math for calculating meds. ONE WRONG MOVE CAN KILL YOUR PATIENT.

My nursing school has a really competitive application process and if you do not do well in science or math, you will NOT be accepted.

I am not trying to discourage you, I just want you to know what you are getting yourself into!