I hate nursing school:(

Sour Lemon · Feb 22, 2017

Hello all. I just joined today and need some old time advice. I am a 41yr old nursing student in my last semester and hopefully graduating this May, but my first two exams didn't go very well...I mean really really bad! Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love love love clinical, but the classroom exams are killing me! I've tried practice questions from every which way that you can and do well with them, but our actual school exams feel like they are fifty times harder. I'm reaching out for any advice you have. I do not want to take this semester over at all. I want to graduate this May, not May 2018. There are 4 exams left on leadership, respiratory, and then two on neuro with the instructor that I fail all of her exams with. I have lost my family and some friends because of how stressful this has become. Like I said...it's just the classroom and not clinical. I know my stuff, but exams are not my friend.
Thank you you for your input.

Too many nursing students focus on practice questions, powerpoints and notes while overlooking the big picture. Read and understand, then do the practice questions if you have time leftover. I always read the chapters initially, and then again on the day of the exam (I had night classes). And while I was reading, I stopped here and there to think about what I'd read and even "discuss" the material out loud with myself.

I also took maybe five to ten lines of notes in a two hour class ...things to clarify later, pretty much. I noticed many people writing ferociously all through lecture, but not actually listening. I guess my advice is to "do" less and "think" more.

Good luck to you!

FutureNurseInfo · Feb 23, 2017

So you just struggle with exams; I truly thought you actually hated nursing school. I thought of the same thing as the PP: listen during the lecture and try to understand. Take a few notes on something that is still unclear to you. Also, read up before the lecture so you know what to expect. Study groups may also help. Sometimes I bother my roommate to have academic conversations with me. Talking through material has really helped me.

Natasha A., CNA, LVN · Feb 23, 2017

I agree with Sour Lemon. Its "thinking about thinking" asking yourself questions and reflecting. You will be constantly reassessing and thinking, thinking, thinking ahead for signs of deterioration with your patient.

Diehardsabre · Feb 24, 2017

It's only one instructors exams I bomb on. It's like her answers are too difficult to understand. I read, take notes, and practice questions like I do with the other instructors and pass theirs with mid to high 80's. I honestly feel that this is the instructor that weeds out the poorer test takers because they don't want to ruin their high NCLEX pass rating. It's extremely frustrating because everyone has the same advice, but it's just one instructor that is making me hate the classroom part of nursing school.

meanmaryjean, DNP, RN · Feb 24, 2017

It's only one instructors exams I bomb on. It's like her answers are too difficult to understand. I read, take notes, and practice questions like I do with the other instructors and pass theirs with mid to high 80's. I honestly feel that this is the instructor that weeds out the poorer test takers because they don't want to ruin their high NCLEX pass rating. It's extremely frustrating because everyone has the same advice, but it's just one instructor that is making me hate the classroom part of nursing school.

Have you asked the instructor for help? Because it seems like that would be the place to start.

Sassyrose · Feb 28, 2017

Pursue every avenue of help. Ask what others students are doing (particularly the ones doing well if you know who they are). Try tutoring at the school (even if it doesn't help, them seeing you trying may end up working in your favor somehow). Hire a tutor.

I didn't even read most of my nursing texts, though some stuff I did. What helped me was giving up on the textbook and using Saunders comprehensive NCLEX review. It took a while, but was faster than reading the material assigned in the text... I would work through their outlines on the given section, very slowly. When my brain was saturated, I picked it up later. Then I'd do their questions and more and more questions.. of course, if something made no sense, I looked it up. I wrote down all the questions I got wrong in a notebook, but inluded questions I was not confident I would get right again. If your teacher actually pulls from the notes/slides, Id recommend reading over them every day. By the time the test comes, you will have read the beginning material many times. It's amazing what just reading them can do. Also, speak to the teacher and see if she has any suggestions. Do you find that you can get it down to 2 choices and then aren't sure? If so, then you really have to tease out what the question is asking for, until you kind of get the trick to the question. Hope this helps.

Cienega32 · Mar 4, 2017

Hello, i am also a 41 year old nursing student. 5th semester i have 4 1/2 months to go. Several of my instructors have been trying to help us with nclex style questions. It has started to help. Read the question and look for the stem of it. Try to answer it with each option do not try to go a b c d. Eliminayte the 2 wrong answers and then work with what is left. Go through each answer as if it was the only one and see if it is correct. Hope this helps.

jtboy29 · Mar 4, 2017

When doing practice questions just don't do them just to do them. Read the question and break it down and try to understand what the question is asking. I tried just doing practice questions without reading the rationales and when it comes to exams like the HESIs try to answer the question directly to what it's asking. Read up on test taking strategies and apply what you read when answering questions. Nursing Exam questions are tricky especially with Medical Surgical, Pediatrics, and Maternity. I've had trouble with this in my final term and I think that played a part in me having to repeat. I'm 1 1/2 week away from taking my Exit HESI and I took my Pediatrics HESI and got a 904 when the last time I got a 652. I fully believed that me doing less reading and actually trying to understand the basics of the disease and looking for strategic words is what helped me passed the Pediatrics HESI. When I did practice questions for my Pediatrics HESI i looked at each question word for word and looked for any key words that pertain to the subject in the question. I used the Nursing process then answered the question. I also read the rationales and wrote down what the rationale is and I reviewed specifically on that topic and fully attempted to understand why.