How Hard is Nursing School?

tokyoROSE, BSN, RN · Feb 13, 2010

Nursing school is difficult in a different way than A&P, pathophysiology, microbiology. . . 90% it is not just memorization. Test questions are that ALL the answers are right but you have to pick the best one. Go look at NCLEX-style questions and you can see what I'm talking about. They bombard you with school work all day, every day. I don't recall a day where I sat down and said, gee I'm caught up with everything. Because really that doesn't happen. No matter what, there is always something to do. Lots and lots of reading.

Can you work full time in nursing school? Yes. Will it be hard? Yes. Will you have a life outside of work/school? Doubt it. I work about 25-30 hours a week and I think this load is perfect for me. I carry around my planner everywhere I go and am constantly making sure I'm on track with all my work. I keep my grades up because I am going to grad school and thats the only way to do it. Other than that, nursing school is great, you are immersed into the subject, and you learn so much.

elkpark · Feb 13, 2010

I went to grad school as a traditional (experienced RN) student at a school that also had a direct entry program, so I had direct entry students in all my classes and heard alot about their experience in the first year (of their program, that is, not mine :)). According to them, it was basically 15-16 hour days, six days a week (when you include the studying), for the entire year (including the summer). At my school, there were only a few of us who worked at all (I and one other student I knew of worked prn at the university medical center) -- I worked two 8-hour shifts on the weekends (and a lot more during the school breaks), and made enough doing that to pay my living expenses. If I had worked more than that, it would have been v. difficult to keep my grades up. I heard from my friends that many of the other students were just barely squeaking by on their grades (the direct-entry students, who weren't working at all; at least, none that I knew of). I went to a particularly rigorous and demanding program, though, so I have no idea how representative their experience was.

missy--kay · Feb 13, 2010

There has been so many posts about "how hard nursing school is". The word "hard" is so subjective, and impossible for anyone else to determine that for you. I have struggled through several parts of the program, while others have said that it was sooo simple. I know that it is very different from prenursing classes. Either way, I hope you do great and congrats for starting this journey!!!

MiahMSN, MSN, RN · Feb 13, 2010

Thanks everyone for your input. Yes, hard/difficult is subjective. I'm coming from a marketing/communications background, so this is a complete 180 for me. I have a masters in my field that I completed while working fulltime, but I know nursing school is a completely different beast, so I won't even try to compare it to my other academic experiences. But I know it's doable, as all of you are testiments to that. I believe regardless if one finds the material difficult or easy to grasp, it will definitely take discipline, time management and dedication. I definitely want to do well, as I want to go on to get a post-masters certificate in NNP - so I need for my grades to shine and not just 'get by'.

I know everyone is different, but luckily for the direct-entry program I have my heart set on, they have an excellent NCLEX pass rate and majority of the graduates are accepted into pretty competitive new grad rn programs, so I think that says a lot about the program and the caliber of students they admit- although they do tell you NOT to work during the program, I'm going to try.

RhodyGirl, RN · Feb 13, 2010

While I think some of the concepts in nursing school are difficult, it's mostly the sheer volume of information that you're responsible for that gets to be tough. Balancing exams, clinicals, papers, presentations, etc. is a challenge. Also, learning to critically think "like a nurse" and answer NCLEX style questions takes some getting used to.

I personally could never work full time and be able to do well in my classes, but that's an individual thing. Good luck!

greenykilt · Feb 13, 2010

I have another masters (MBA) and find nursing school easier. What some of my classmates are lacking is time mangement skills. Or overstudying. Especially spending say 7 hours on a saturday on something very small in scale of subject. This time could be better spent making sure they are more well rounded vs allowing themselves to get sucked into some tiny detail. My observation is that keep a healthy balance during nursing school, including eating , excercising and sleeping well and taking a macro approach to learning is the key. I dont view NS as life of death to pass which surely allows me to be more relaxed and laid back which then allows me to get great grades, its a catch 22 for the reverse I know! some students are hanging their entire livlihood/family finances and etc on passing, so its adds an element of anxiety and stress. Anyway, what is meant to be- is.

latonyad34 · Feb 14, 2010

I am going into week 5 of my first semester of nursing school. My early assessment of NS is that the concepts of nursing are not that hard to grasp for some. It is the management of time that is difficult for most. There is so so much info coming each day, in addition to new skills, and a new way of thinking. IMO it isn't as hard as it is information overload. Once you get in your mind that he or she who can come in to disorganized chaos and be able to bring it together and do well on tests, will succeed as a nurse. And tell yourself you can do this.

The key for me has been organizing my study skills. I've learned to stick completely to the objectives given by the instructors. It is easy to over-study because the text provides in depth information to the concepts and theories. Our first exam came entirely from the lectures and notes. I imagine each program and school is different. We are told classroom content FIRST, and then textbook.

Next, I take care of self and home. I'm not working and am a single mother. I have found a pretty good balance. My perception of this is not that it's something difficult in my life, but it's something carrying me to my destiny and career path. Honestly, I'm having a great time going to NS. I spent 13 years in the Navy for the most part unhappy and performing jobs I didn't care much about. Now, going to class and studying is my work and the information is interesting and it's exciting to think that I'll be putting it to use in a couple of weeks.

Idontknowbetter · Feb 14, 2010

It's not that hard. It's time consuming more than anything. It requires a lot of physical "here time." In other words, you have to show up to clinical, you have to show up to lecture... it all counts and is required to pass the class. Compare that to say, a philosphy major... you take exams and do your papers or whatever and that's your grade. Most professors don't require a physical presence... but in nursing, your attendance is everything. With that said, and I don't mean this with any insult, but the pool of applicants to a nursing school isn't exactly biochemical engineering majors either, so what's "hard" to them would most likely be easy to a well known challenging major. Compounding this factor with the fact that nursing professors are trained and intstructed to tell you how difficult nursing school is going to be, a lot of students/graduates will tell you that it was "hard". Nursing instructors are instructed to tell you how hard nursing school is because the more successful graduates said particular school churns out every semester, the better chance they have of securing their government funding (and boy oh boy, that is everything). So, here you are on your first day of school, and here is this instructor telling you how hard it's going to be and how lucky you will be if you last long enough to graduate. You respond with "No way! I'm here to stay! and you do everything with extra umph to make sure you make it, which in turns makes the school look better, which in turn secures that federal money that they need to survive.

So anyway, it is what you make it. Just do what you're told and you'll make it.

katieusa · Feb 14, 2010

It was just so much info, so fast. I kept thinking that if all this was so dang important, they should slow down a little bit! Very high pressure. Totally sucked. But what an accomplishment. You will be so glad when it is over - and proud of yourself. The aggravating part was all the busy work with papers and projects. Took time away from learning REALLY important things.

allnurses Guide · Feb 14, 2010

While I think some of the concepts in nursing school are difficult, it's mostly the sheer volume of information that you're responsible for that gets to be tough. Balancing exams, clinicals, papers, presentations, etc. is a challenge. Also, learning to critically think "like a nurse" and answer NCLEX style questions takes some getting used to.
I personally could never work full time and be able to do well in my classes, but that's an individual thing. Good luck!

This. No way could I work full time and be the kind of student I need to be for nursing school. Not everyone has the luxury though and have to get through however they can. So it CAN be done, but I would not recommend it if you have the choice not to work. The "hard" comes from mass quantities moreso than difficult subject matter. It is all understandable. Trick is that you have to relearn how to study.

Good luck whatever you do.

Nepenthe Sea · Feb 14, 2010

I am surprised that you aren't the least bit interested in micro, but that you love A&P. I loved ALL of those classes! I especially loved in micro when we learned about the different infectious diseases, and the way that the immune system works was also very interesting to me. I hope that you end up enjoying it just a little, because that will help you get through.

Anyway, it's hard to say how hard NS is. I was scared to death from all the stories I heard. I am glad, though, because it ended up being a pleasant surprise when it wasn't as bad as I expected. For me, the hardest parts have been trying to make time for everything that they give you to do. There is lots of busy work, and lots of studying, reading, practicing of skills, etc. to be done. Some of the things we learn are kind of complicated, but mostly it's just having to know alot of information. It's not so much about memorization as it is being able to apply all the info you learn in order to make clinical decisions. That is where NS is different from A&P.

Another hard thing about NS is the NCLEX-style testing. Just get a good NCLEX review book before you even start school and start trying to answer questions. Then read the rationales to see why the answer is wrong or right. As you go through the different subjects in NS, use the NCLEX review to help you study, and you will get used to it.

If you are working, that will make school harder, esp. if working full-time. But it can be done. I hear stories all the time about students that are married and have kids, and work full-time, and they still make it through school. You will just have to be super-organized and have good study skills so that you can take advantage of every minute you have.

Good luck!