I am DISSAPOINTED in myself...

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Okay, guys I need some encouragement. Since I started nursing school I have been passing just to pass; looking for questions online and then memorizing them. This has made me pass. But I don't understand the material when someone asks me out of the blue. I would not know. Same goes with skills. I get nervous to do vital signs, and most times I do them wrong. I feel very discouraged. I haven't had anyone to help me in my school... And I feel like really bad. I don't want to go to work with no skills...But I want to pass!! I am in a private school (new school) not even accredited! I cannot even read/make proper nursing notes. My skills suck, and I especially suck at cardiac... Anything to do with it... I have hope that I when I get a job I will learn through orientation, but some of my classmates have told me that they do not teach you there... I am in my last semester. Should I just quit and start over? Help me out please?

If you are really as you describe, you won't need to worry about orientation in your first job. You won't pass NCLEX.

Harsh? You bet. There's a reason for that. You MUST know all that, and more. You have a glimpse of what you need to know, and you appear to be in a for-profit, nonaccredited school that doesn't really give a damn whether you do or not, as evidenced by the fact that you're in your last semester, when you should be putting it all together, you don't understand the basics of physiology, you can't take vital signs accurately, and they haven't picked that up and put you on an improvement plan. Or flunked you out a year ago.

A cautionary tale to those who don't investigate their options before choosing a school and don't learn how serious nursing is about knowing science and critical thinking skills. As my sweet old grandmother used to say, some of us are put on this earth to be examples to others, one way or another.

As to what to do about it ... transfer to another school. If you really want to be an RN, go to a real school. Recognize that you have, in fact, wasted a lot of time and money at this one, as many of your credits will not transfer (as I am sure you can understand they won't). You may have to start from the beginning in a program that really cares about the quality of its graduates as much as they do about getting their tuition money. I'm sorry, but I don't see any way around this if you want to be a real nurse, if you are as you describe.

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Specializes in ED MS.

What makes you think i am using a test bank? I am reading the powerpoints and all but most times i do questions online. When we are doing for ex, hiatal hernias, i WOULD GO online and type hiatal hernias NCLEX style questions and then even when these questions are NOT the same as the ones we get on our tests, they have the same concept. My problem is only in med surg 1 & 2. Pharm I passed w/o doing this but I barely made it. Same with funds. Maternity I will be getting an A on because I am really good on it, but MED SURG kills me, and therefore I need to that.

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Specializes in ED MS.

They have told us that we can sit for the NCLEX @ my school. But if I would like to go on and do my BSN my classes would not be transferred.

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You said you were memorizing questions online, enabling you to pass, making it sound like you were using test bank questions... I'm a little confused that you originally start by describing yourself as a student not nearly ready to be a nurse. Once you get advice you are trying to say you only have problems in MS, but you barely passed pharm and fundamentals, have minimal skills, and you have little understanding of MS. You cant call another nurse when your maternity patient has a MS based problem, they over lap. You are not ready to be a nurse! The reality is you cheated yourself by trying to fake your way through school, and I definitely don't want that kind of nurse for my family. On the small chance you pass your boards, you are going to be a danger to your patients. Plus, you will make a mistake that can lead to legal consequences. The best advice at this point is to go through another program. You may be able to look into nurse refresher courses, but I don't know if they will take you. It will be really difficult to pull out the books and try to learn nursing on your own.

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Sounds like you are a normal nervous nursing student. You aren't going to know everything. If you're passing your tests then that's a good sign. I felt like I knew everything in nursing school then graduated and realized I knew nothing. You will learn more than you could ever imagine with experience. No one at your job is going to sit you down and give you a tutorial, but you'll see things and experience patient care and eventually you will become comfortable.

And I agree with other posters, it couldn't hurt to get a CNA job. And stop letting your nerves get the best of you. I think you DO know how to do vital signs!

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Hello 2bnursekis and everyone else....I understand what you are saying. You are saying that you do questions about a topic and read rationales and learn the material like that. Well that's good you practice questions. However, you will do way better and understand the material if you read you textbook. Seriously, I mean I know nursing school is really tough and its freaking a lot of work but you will definitely understand the material and learn so much. I always read my textbook and then I would practice questions after to see how I am doing. I would score anywhere from 80's to 90's on tests. Please read and understand because if you really want to be a nurse you really need to know your stuff and critically think. I am studying for my nclex and honestly it's no joke....you definitely need to brush up on material if you wanna make it. Not being mean in any way. Good luck!!!!!!!

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Also not trying to be mean, but the NCLEX was NOT that hard. This is a test for first year nurses. I did about 500 practice questions in the two days leading up to my test and I was just fine. Don't let people scare you!

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Specializes in ED MS.

i just feel like going crazy!! I do ATI and i have been doing ok :) Thank you for your encouragement!

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Specializes in Oncology; medical specialty website.
They have told us that we can sit for the NCLEX @ my school. But if I would like to go on and do my BSN my classes would not be transferred.

You may not even get into a BSN program if you graduate from a non-accredited school. Every program I checked out required graduation from an accredited nursing school in order to be admitted to the BSN program.

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Specializes in hospice.

Dear sweet Jesus, you're in your last semester of nursing school and you can't even take vital signs correctly? I'm a CNA with less than two years' experience and I can do that.

Stop, do not pass GO, and do not collect $200!

I agree with others who say I wouldn't want you anywhere near someone I care about. Heck, I don't even want you being the nurse of someone I don't know!

If you wouldn't qualify to get into a BSN program with the RN you're earning at this school, that is a HUGE red flag. Your minimalist attitude toward school is alarming considering that you're studying for a profession where your mistakes can kill people, easily.

I don't know what to tell you, whether you should just buckle down and learn the material for real on your own or try to get into another school. But do something, please.

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Do you read the chapters first or just the power points? NCLEX questions are a great way to practice (it's part of my study method), but you can't use just questions. I compare power points and lecture notes to the chapters, making additional notes from the book as necessary. I make my own flow charts (ex: renin-angiotensin system) because it helps me remember the order of occurrences. Then, once I understand the concepts, I do practice questions. Maybe try an actual NCLEX book instead of googling questions (the Internet is pretty unreliable). I use NCLEX Made Incredibly Easy and Saunders Q&A NCLEX Review. Have you registered any of your text books online? The publishers have great added resources for the texts that you paid tons of money for! There are questions, answers to case studies that are in the chapters, etc. Don't give up, but something has to change. You have to be committed. I don't think getting a job as a CNA is the best idea right now. I think it's more important for you to triple (or quadruple) your study time.

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Specializes in ED, ICU, PSYCH, PP, CEN.

In order to be a good/safe nurse you have to first understand the human body, how it works, how the parts of the body connect and work in conjunction with each other. Also, nursing school requires an enormous time sacrifice to learn all this.

If you have a good understanding of the body and how it works, then you can critical think your way to correct test answers.

Also, med/surg is the basis for all other nursing. Med/surg (which can be very hard), in my opinion is the arena to learn and hone your basic nursing skills before you branch out to other areas of patient care.

I started in ER, was asked to go to a different department because I couldn't keep up. Some of it was my fault and some of it theirs. our unit director had a heart attack soon after I and 3 other new grads were recruited to the unit, and the staff nurses there did not share her views on new grads in the ER.

I went to med/surg at a different hospital and even though I didn't realize it at the time, the med/surg job taught me stuff that I use every day in nursing. So happy that happened.

I spent 1.5 years in med/surg and then transferred to the ER. I did so much better, and stayed there for about 5 years. Did some travel nursing and have now switched to CVICU. Every day I use what I learned in the 2 other departments. And there was a great added bonus. Since I started out in med/surg with 5-6 patients, then went to ER with typically 4 patients, and ended up in critical care with 2 patients, I feel like my job is a walk in the park with only 2 patients and 12 hours to work with them.

Since I am fairly new in ICUs I have to study daily to learn everything that goes with critical care, but I have a great foundation. When I come home from work and on days off, I have to go online and study. I google things like

1. animation of heart and blood flow

2. balloon pump

3. EKGs

4. meds

When i went to nursing school there was no such thing as computers. Now with the internet and youtube you can google and watch everything medical and surgical. Look up words you don't know etc.

The most important thing is to understand how the body works globally. Yes it takes some time and hard work. But it is the basis for all nursing.

Take heart. Some of the best nurses I know were originally told they just would not make it as nurses and all of them have gone on to great things.

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