How is nursing competitive exactly?

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I've had a conversation with a girl who is in year 2 of nursing. I asked her if nursing is as competitive as its reputation says it is. She agreed that it was competitive, but said that it was mostly the amount of work and not how challenging the work was.

I'm just confused by that. How is a heavy course load inherently competitive?

I just wanted to clarify what exactly the "competitive" nature of nursing entails exactly. Do your peers try to ambush you? Do your professors neglect you if you are behind your peers? Are your classes large and you have to fight to get needed attention from your teacher? How much is a "lot" of coursework?

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Specializes in Neuro, Telemetry.

Competitive is referring to getting accepted and getting jobs. As in, GPA, essays, volunteer work if required, and all that. Students want the highest scores to have a competitive chance at entry. Then the workforce is oversaturated in most places so getting a job is competituive, If yur friend was referring to something else I have no idea what it is.

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Did you have a long waiting list for getting into the nursing program itself?

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Specializes in Acute Care, Rehab, Palliative.

Nursing school can be very challenging. The amount of information you have to assimilate all at once is massive and you need to keep your grades up to pass the program.Lots of people also to adjust to the fact that this is not high school.The information will not be spoon fed to you and you are expected to function as an adult. Lots of people chafe at having to follow the rules and learn independently. Nursing school is like nothing you have ever done. It's not just learning the information but learning to apply what you have learned to answer the questions. Memorization is not enough.

It's tough but school is well worth it.

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Specializes in Neonatal Nurse Practitioner.
Did you have a long waiting list for getting into the nursing program itself?

There's no wait list at my school or any of the other schools around me. Entry is competitive: based on grades and test scores.

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Did you have a long waiting list for getting into the nursing program itself?

The schools in my area have hundreds applying for 20-100 spots or a 2-5 year wait list. It may not be like trying to get into Harvard but it is competitive!

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So would it be very unrealistic to work while in school?

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Oh my god. 2-5 years! That is insane! :/

Did you have to wait that long?

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Specializes in Neonatal Nurse Practitioner.
So would it be very unrealistic to work while in school?

I wouldn't say that. Most of my class has some sort of job ranging from once a week or less to full time. I'm in the full time category.

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I asked my school if they offer part time, and I was told that this "doesn't exist" because "nobody would ever finish the course". So I've been under the impression that less than full time didn't exist.

My friend i mentioned in my OP is my co-worker, but she rarely comes into work. She's been off of work for two weeks recently.

I live in Ontario, so I'm not sure if that is relevant. It may be different elsewhere.

To be honest the huge hype about the competitiveness is really scaring me away. Not because I'm not an academic, but because I'm not financially stable and I can't risk going thousands in debt and NOT getting a degree. I'm trying my hardest to be a sponge and absorb all the info/tips I can about this.

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It sounds like you are just sort of sniffing around the idea of becoming a nurse, with little or no commitment. There isn't anything wrong with that, but it probably means you should stay away. If becoming a nurse isn't something you want with all you heart, then you will never make it through nursing school. If you managed to defy the odds and did somehow make it through, you wouldn't last long at all in the actual field of nursing. I've seen it many times before where people just kind of squeak through because they don't know what else to do with their life and nursing seems like a cool job to have...they last days or weeks on the floor, and rarely months, and never a full year. I'm entering my last semester and can tell you it's like nothing else you'll ever do, and it requires 100% commitment.

If on the other hand you suddenly have a calling and are drawn to nursing as if you have no choice at all yourself in the matter, then welcome to the club. :-)

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I live in Atlanta, Ga. Here it is highly competitive because of the areas you can work. Children's Hospital, Emory Adventist Hospital, etc. These are all huge names and anyone would be blessed to get the position even with years of experience. At my school, Gwinnett Technical College, it is becoming more and more competitive. Especially, for traditional students. This year is the last year they are accepting 65 students out of the avg 200-300 applicants they get. Next year, they'll be starting a Paramedic to RN bridge that will narrow the spots for traditional students down to only 40. They only accept students into their program each Fall. So it is a lot to ride on if you have all of your eggs in one basket like I do. If I do decent on the entrance exam, I know I'll get accepted because I did what I needed to keep a 4.0 to have the highest chance. Most people who get accepted have either a 4.0 or close to it. Very difficult to get in. If I don't get accepted, I'll be pursuing an LPN program to get my experience will I bridge to my RN. Many people are doing that because new grads can't find employment without 1-2 years experience in Med/Surg. Good luck, but do your best. Don't get let down. If you want it, no one can stop you but you. Our avg acceptance GPA was a 3.6 so not everyone who has a good GPA does well on the exam to get in.

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