How long did it take you to complete your prereqs?

[tmarie]

Just curious...

How long did it take you (or is it currently taking you) to finish all of your prereqs? I am so tempted to want to cram all of my prereqs into 3 semesters so I can apply for Fall 2011, but the 10 credit hours I'm taking right now during the 8 week Summer session is kicking my rear!!! I am starting to have second thoughts about taking 10 credits this Fall. :uhoh21:

Albeit, the 16 week Fall semester won't be quite as rushed and intense as what I'm doing right now, but I still wonder if 10 hours might be too much. I am just taking College Algebra, English Comp I, and Intro to Computer Info Systems right now and I am up until 2AM every night doing homework. :zzzzz This Fall, I am signed up for A&P I, Human Growth & Development, and English Comp II. I was planning on finishing everything up in the Spring with Micro and A&P II. That's 10 credits this Fall and 7 credits in the Spring to get all my prereqs done in time to apply for my CC's Nursing program Fall 2011. (I have a few credits that transfer from when I was in college 10 yrs ago, so this is what I have left)

If I try to spread it out any more, I will miss the deadline and will have to wait for the Spring of 2012 to apply for Fall 2012. Please someone, give me a big fat dose of patience and tell me to take it slow.....or tell me to go for it and chug full steam ahead through these classes.

[lifelearningrn, BSN, RN]

Pottery counts as your art credit? Cool! I took Intro to Motion Pictures for my art credit and it was fun watching movies and writing a critique on them. :) Pottery in my school is a 'personal enrichment' course and doesn't carry college credit, unfortunately.

[Justanotherday]

Well, Pottery 1 does at my school. They incorporate some history into the class and there is a required research project so we have to do presentations the last day of class. Not all the art classes qualify.

[CrunchyMama, ASN, RN]

It took me 3 1/2 semesters. I say 1/2 because I took chemistry during the summer. :) It's a long wait but worth it....good luck!

[lifelearningrn, BSN, RN]

I think Pottery would be fun, but I don't think I'd be very good at it either. lol It does sound like a work intensive class- Art requirements are supposed to be 'blow off'- I think some teachers make them hard on purpose to disillusion the student expecting a blowoff!

[tmarie]

I started this summer with 3 classes and had to drop one. I was planning on having my prereqs done in two years, by taking 2-3 classes each semester. I was overwhelmed in the beginning of the summer session when it turned out my pottery class (need art credit) required about 6 hours of my time outside the classroom (8 hours of class) each week. I am praying I don't have to retake it. Entrance to nursing school at my community college is solely based on GPA, so I really can't afford a B. And I'm really bad at pottery.

I bet you will find the fall semester much less stressful since it is more spread out. Accelerated classes can really take over your life!

I can really relate. I probably would have dropped one of these Summer classes if I could have. It didn't start feeling super overwhelming to me until just a couple days after the deadline for dropping. I'm at the halfway point and so far I am getting high A's in 2 of my classes, but my Algebra class is the one I struggle with. I am getting an 83% so far, but like you, I cannot afford to get B's....and definitely not C's. I have to bring this grade up in the next 4 weeks!

I took 15-16 hrs per semester when I went to college my first time around (over a decade ago) and it didn't feel like a huge load. But then again, I was single with no family and worked part time at JC Penney. Now? I have a husband, a 3 year old, and not much of a support system when it comes to family who is willing to watch my daughter.

The more I think about it, the more I am leaning towards clicking that "drop" button beside one of my classes on my Fall schedule. I neeeeeeeeeeed all A's and I really want to do well in A&P.

Thanks for all the input, everyone! :redbeathe

[Sand_Dollar, BSN]

I'm going for my BSN, and my A.S. (which gives me all* of my pre-reqs plus gen eds) took me 2 years. I started light with one science a semester, to ensure I got a good GPA in those important classes. I took my last 2 sciences in the summer, then the last fall and spring it was just social sciences and such, so I piled them on. I graduated summa cum laude (4.0). Here's what my load looked like:

Fall - 7 cr

Spring - 12 cr

Summer - 11 cr

Fall - 16 cr

Spring - 18 cr

*I was denied by the first school I applied to, so I am going to apply to another. It has additional pre-reqs (patho, pharm, etc)... so I will have another year of classes, but only part time, so its going to feel like a break!

Good luck!

~SD

[Mommaof3]

Not to go against the grain here...and things may be different in my area...but if you are so terrified of 10 credit hours in the fall and the ability to do well, how do you plan on successfully completing nursing school? Just the core nursing classes here are 9 credit hours, plus clinicals. I guess what I'm saying is, maybe you should *try* your 10 credit hour fall courses and try to tweak your time management skills (if needed) in preparation for the much more intense nursing school demands? JMHO, but I wish you the best of luck in whichever path you choose just offering a different prospective from pp! GL.

[Divalish918]

Ok well you asked, here goes.... I began in fall of 2006 as a 22 yr old. It is now summer of 2010 and here I still stand with hopes to get in NS by Jan '11 or Sept '11....during the years I've taken classes while working full time as CNA while a reservist in the Army. In '07 I had a baby, had to go part time for a while but wasn't completely focused due to a seperation and later on custody and child support issues, all while being a reservist, raising a child and working full time. Now I am done with my army contract and ready to give my 100% to my studies. So on total I will be working on my prereq's for a total of 5 yrs. I have some classes to repeat so hopefully this wont be a hindrance to me getting into NS

[jennafezz]

You know your own limits. I chose to "go for it" and pushed myself hard - and I am glad I did. I finished my prerequisites in four semesters, while working full-time.. it was difficult, but not unbearable. If my grades had been in danger, I would have slowed down, but I was able to still get A's and a couple of B's. I was accepted to my first choice program and I start in September, and I am SO happy about that, and so happy to not face another semester or two of prerequisites.

Really, your decision is based on a balance of how much of a hurry you are in, and how much you can push yourself to get good grades.

[samantha0890]

I took mine in 2 semesters. I had different classes to begin with and changed career path and chose nursing. So my fall semester i took 1 of the prereqs (A&P1) And then a few others towards a BSN if I'm interested. Then that Spring semester I took the remaining 4 (A&P2, Micro, Psych, & Nutrition). It's definitley doable though, I ended up with a 3.8, study study study and you can do it! If I can, anyone can...I had to do it with a 2 year old and being 18 at the time! It would be a lot harder to fit in classes in the summer since you're in there a shorter amount of time. But Best Of Luck! You can Do it!

[luckyRN112]

3 years for an ABSN RN program. I was able to pull off a very high GPA since I took it slow while gaining nursing experience part-time. Make sure you gain experience too, esp where you want to end up working, because when you start to apply for a job, employers like to see that.

[Kelly2010]

It took me two years to do all of my prerequisite courses for a BSN program. I did it in four regular semesters, with no mini or summer courses. I worked the full time while taking them, too. It was hard, but well worth it. I start my nursing program in August!