How does a Straight B student Survive an Accelerated Nursing School World?

[sserrn, BSN]

I'm sure you'll do fine. I am in my third 'semester' (beginning of 4th month) of a 12-mo. A-BSN program. It is hell. On Earth. Prepare yourself. (I think it's worth it, though; ask me next September.) I was more of an 'A' student. Prior to last semester, my last 65 hours' GPA was a 4.0. Not anymore. You'll learn to get over it. (And the good news is, if you're already a B student, it won't take you as much time or heartache to get over it.) I echo what a few others have said, in that in nursing school, studying 12 hours vs. 4 hours for a test does not always guarantee a better outcome. YMMV, and it depends on the class and the professor. I agree that nursing school tests are crappy, crappy, crappy. The whole "item analysis" bit is a gag that nsg professors use so they don't have to admit up front that they wrote a really pathetic test. Sorry. My rant's over now. Long story short, you'll do fine. Just study a lot--but not too much. The most important thing is to study/do assignments EVERY DAY. Procrastination is your enemy in an accelerated program. (I am still working on this as a lifelong, professional procrastinator.) I hope you get in a great program and love it! Don't stress. There will be plenty to stress about once you're actually in.

[Pmusicinhamony]

Alot of hard work, hours of studying, and motivation. If its something you really want than you can do it.

[2ndyearstudent, CNA]

The curriculum is designed so everyone has trouble with it. Everyone has to work hard just to get a C (which is a perfectly fine grade in nursing school.)

The good news for you is that it ends up being a bit of an equalizer. Many of those straight A students become B students in nursing school. The Straight B students still end up with straight Bs - only they are at the bottom of the B scale instead of the top.

The somewhat paradoxical result of the curriculum design is that more and harder work does NOT pay off in higher grades. Many students would get the same grade whether they study 8 hours a week or 28 because many of the exam questions are so confusing. Remember - more and harder work is its own reward.

Focus on learning the material and not so much on the exam results and you'll probably end up remaining a Straight B student.

[KittyinNj]

actually it is well known that the exams are confused. However, the exams are supposedly harder then the NCLEX questions, in order to prepare us for the NCLEX. Certain classes ask crazy ? that youll never see on the nCLEX and this is coming from my DNP professors who teach in my acccelerated program.

Dont focus on the grades, focus on just passing and understanding the material. A, B, grades dont matter, in the end what matters is that you pass the NCLEX,

also for people who are STUCK on this whole gpa thing in nursing school, DRs that i know and DNP that interview new grads dont look at gpas, they look at the school past work history and the fact that you passed your boards.

[RunawayN]

Interesting but is the main lesson to learn as much as you can and survive? But if that's the case, where does a nursing school GPA play later on in life? Does master programs or other advance education require a high nursing GPA?

[wetzoo]

I actually get better grades in NS.

Being a B student is not something to scoff at. When did a B become the new D?

NS is based on critical thinking. It's not like pre-reqs where people have to simply memorize facts and figures. While there is still memorization involved, it's a whole new dynamic.

[2ndyearstudent, CNA]

Interesting but is the main lesson to learn as much as you can and survive? But if that's the case, where does a nursing school GPA play later on in life? Does master programs or other advance education require a high nursing GPA?

Yes, do the very best you can.

High Nursing program GPAs can pay off in the following ways:

1. You get access to internships that others don't.

2. You get assigned preceptorships that lower GPAs don't get.

3. All other things being equal, you *might* get your resume bumped up the pile a bit when applying for your first job. Especially in a tight job market. (In a good job market, you just need a license and a pulse - pulse optional).

Your GPA does not need to be stellar to get into higher ed programs. It can't stink but anything in the 3.0 range will do fine.

After your first job, your GPA is almost never looked at - especially in comparison to your experience. But remember, a high GPA upon graduation may have an impact on getting you that experience. In observing the classes graduating before me, the lower GPAs are working nights in nursing homes and the higher GPAs are on hospital floors.

This is not only due to high GPA. Those better acheiving students usually did more to prepare themselves for the job market prior to graduation.

[anurseatlast]

2ndyearstudent said:

The curriculum is designed so everyone has trouble with it. Everyone has to work hard just to get a C (which is a perfectly fine grade in nursing school.)

I do not think the curriculum is designed to be difficult; it is designed to prepare you for NCLEX and for real life nursing. It is true that it is difficult for many students. Mostly this is because the exams are written differently than any tests most students have taken before. It takes students a while to figure out how to study for nursing exams. You cannot just memorize facts and do well on a nursing test; you must study for understanding.

The somewhat paradoxical result of the cirriculum design is that more and harder work does NOT pay off in higher grades. Many students would get the same grade whether they study 8 hours a week or 28 because many of the exam questions are so confusing.

Though there is no guarantee that studying more will get you higher grades, I think that it is important that you study enough to have understanding the information. This will not happen without investing time in studying. You need to study enough to "have the light bulb go on" so you see how the new information fits in with what you have previously learned. This generally will require some very focused study time. Nursing tests are "so confusing" because that is what they are testing. Not do you just know the information but can you apply it to situations. In order to know how to answer, you have to understand a lot of background information - if my patient has X, what else should I be concerned about; if his condition changes in this way, what should I do; if his lab results are.., what do I do, etc. Without in depth understanding, you will not be able to use critical thinking skills to figure out the right answer.

Having been a B student in the past is not necessarily a bad thing. Soemtimes students who have always gotten an A have never had to study. When they get into nursing school, they do not know HOW to study and they struggle. You have had to study so you have likely figured out what works for you.

What can you do to be successful in an accelerated program:

• realize that you are committing to this period of time to make school your priority. Figure out before you start how you can simplify your life - you do still have to eat, clean house, etc. Are there people in your life that you can depend on for help with something? Enlist their support and tell them specifically how they can help you. Try to limit the amount of time you work while in the program. (The program I attended really discouraged work but some of us had to and we made it through. It would have been less stressful not to work and I would have if it was possible)
• go to class every day. Seems obvious but many students were able to skip before and do well. It does not work in an accelerated program. Pay attention in class. Take notes, ask questions, etc.
• set aside time to study and be committed to it. Be serious when studying - go beyond the power points. Get out your A&P, patho, etc to use as resources until you understand
• you may find it helpful to have a study partner, but make sure he/she is truly committed to studying and that you work well together. It often helps to have someone to talk through the things you don't understand
• if you are having problems understanding something, go to your instructor for help (earlier rather than later and be prepared with questions). They want you to be successful but will expect you to be responsible for your own learning

It is good that you are taking this seriously and planning ahead. You can do it. In a short time, you will be a nurse. So all the hard work seems worthwhile

[2ndyearstudent, CNA]

anurseatlast said:

I do not think the curriculum is designed to be difficult; it is designed to prepare you for NCLEX and for real life nursing.

I think your description is the stated goal but that many programs fail miserably at it.

I strongly suspect some lazy or unskilled instructors have leaned on creating deceptive questions rather than NCLEX preparation questions. These types of exams do absolutely nothing to prepare you for real life nursing and when done improperly, don't do much to prepare you for the NCLEX. Many other nursing school activities do help.

I practice with NCLEX study guides and questions each time I study. THOSE are good questions - when I get one wrong, there is a clear rationale, that a student has to know, to get the correct answer. This is not the case in many nursing schools - especially community colleges. I understand that this is an effort to weed out students who might fail the NCLEX, but it doesn't do that. It ends up weeding out students who can't flip coins very well.

I'm a straight A student, I'll take the Kaplan course and do fine on the NCLEX and in practice. But it won't be thanks to many of these bullcrap exams. The studying I do, the clinical experiences, lab, and the on-the-job healthcare experience I have does help a lot.

As I stated in my response, the end result is simply grade depression and it does act as an equalizer for the "Straight B" students.

[hiddencatRN, BSN, RN]

Ok, I know this is ambiguous and I'm going to get a lot of responses as to how it depends on the person but I wouldn't mind people sharing their experiences.

I just applied to a couple of accelerated 1 year nursing programs and I'm confident I'll get accepted into at least one but I tend to worry on how I'll do in nursing school. I keep going to these boards and reading about how A-students are having so much difficulty in nursing school and I just wonder how I will do? I'm mostly a straight B student with a couple of A's. No C's at least but I feel like for the amount of work I do to get that B, I feel like I should get an A. If straight A students are having problems, then, how will a Straight B student survive?

My sense of it is that A students get to nursing school, no longer are A students, and freak out about it. It can be really hard to adjust to a new conception of yourself if your identity is so strongly build around having As in another program.

Study, surround yourself with positive people, and consider new methods of learning information. Find a way to enjoy what you are learning, and make use of any extra help or tutoring your school offers if you feel like you are struggling.

[jjjoy, LPN]

The somewhat paradoxical result of the cirriculum design is that more and harder work does NOT pay off in higher grades. Many students would get the same grade whether they study 8 hours a week or 28 because many of the exam questions are so confusing. Remember - more and harder work is its own reward.

That's how it seemed to me at my BSN program. I can't say that's everyone's experience and I'm sure some schools/instructors do a better (or worse) job than others.

The good news for you is that it ends up being a bit of an equalizer. Many of those straight A students become B students in nursing school. The Straight B students still end up with straight Bs

That would be my message to the OP as well. In my limited experience, solid B students tend to experience less of an overall dip in GPA than straight A students in nursing classes. With the narrow range for grades (eg

[pitaya]

Ok, I know this is ambiguous and I'm going to get a lot of responses as to how it depends on the person but I wouldn't mind people sharing their experiences.

I just applied to a couple of accelerated 1 year nursing programs and I'm confident I'll get accepted into at least one but I tend to worry on how I'll do in nursing school. I keep going to these boards and reading about how A-students are having so much difficulty in nursing school and I just wonder how I will do? I'm mostly a straight B student with a couple of A's. No C's at least but I feel like for the amount of work I do to get that B, I feel like I should get an A. If straight A students are having problems, then, how will a Straight B student survive?

It doesn't matter what you were before nursing school...what matters is how you study in nursing school and handle the stress that will determine what type of student you become. I was one of the last to be accepted into my program (we're ranked by GPAs), so according to your theory, I would be struggling pretty hard. But I'm not. I've worked hard in nursing school (accelerated BSN) and I have a 4.0 so far. I'm not worried about passing, although I do worry about keeping my A's. So don't think that only the straight A students prior to nursing school are the ones who will make it, because that's just not true! We all start over, it doesn't matter who you were in your previous life! Nursing school is your new life now and you can define yourself again.