If you could "do over" one thing about nursing school, what would it be?

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Hello everyone,

I'm a 33 y/o male who is starting RN school in August '13. I tried to get into nursing school 13 years ago and my life took a different path when I was not accepted. I've wanted to do this for a long time and now I finally have my chance. I know its going to be a little different doing it at 33 instead of 20. I really don't no what to expect so I'm a little nervous. So, if you could change one thing about your time in nursing school, what would it be? Hopefully I can learn from some of you who have already been there.

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I would have learned quicker that NCLEX questions are a beast of their own and would have made better attempt, early on, to understand how they work.

Not quite grasping this, I failed and had to repeat.

Once I really understood it, I had no further problems passing my exams and went on to pass my NCLEX, first try... and found the NCLEX quite easy.

Start understanding how they want you to think and study for every exam using NCLEX style questions.

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Specializes in Medical Surgical.

I have completed one semester of nursing school with clinical rotations and have also volunteered as a student nurse at a local ED. Here are a few things that I have realized:

1) Do not be scared of all the things you are learning. Your nervousness and fear will hurt you more than it will help you.

2) Some nurses and medical personnel are grumpy. Don't let that hurt your feelings or hinder your desire to learn.

3) I agree with HygieneQueen, my NCLEX test is at least a year and a half away and I am already studying.

4) For me, reading chapter after chapter after chapter while trying to do all of my 5 million assignments did not allow me to retain any of the information. Go to class, study relevant information according to your syllabus, and don't over-stress yourself. Being 24 with chest pain r/t stress scared me so i had to lay off forcing myself to read all night every night. I also have kids with special needs that need me to be there for them.

Good luck!

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I would practice all the "select all that apply" questions that I can. - this may not mean anything to you yet... but it will:banghead:

I would cover more pharmacology on my own than that was covered in class. I felt my class went really quick and I have been playing catch up ever since. I got an A in the class, but still feel behind.

First semester I looked at care plans as "stupid paperwork", second semester I realized they were changing the way I thought about subjects. Embrace them!

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Specializes in Pediatrics.

When I transferred, I wish I had picked a different school. I went with cheap and convenient despite knowing the reputation of the school as a whole. I have several private schools within 45 minutes with great reputations and great clinical sites and I chose the public program 5 minutes from my house. It's been very much a "you get what you pay for" experience (or lack thereof). I am VERY grateful to be in nursing school but I cannot wait to be done in May.

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@ebailey1218.. hmm I should look over my care plans..:sorry:

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I would have reconsidered working as much as I did. Money is nice, but it makes it a lot harder.

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Specializes in Oncology/hematology.

Yep, those care plans are real. Nurses may not write out an actual care plan, but they do have a list of the three priorities and they focus on interventions to help their patients reach those goals. It's truly the way a nurse thinks. I stopped complaining about care plans when I noticed that it was on the charting system at 3 of my clinical sites.

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Specializes in Oncology.

LEARN! NOT memorize!!! It seems like its not a big deal at the time but oh....it is. Learn it right the first time and you save yourself a lot of headache and time.

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Really buckled down, applied, studied & buckled down in RN school 2 years ago! BUUUUUTT its all good becuse in about 3 weeks i'll BE FINISHED W/LPN SCHOOL!!!!!!!! I got my act together right after that! 3.83 gpa & i cant be thankful enough for that eye opener/failure! It was all worth it!

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Float Pool, MICU, CTICU.

Do every and all extra credit offered!

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Specializes in Home Health.

Congratulations on getting into the program! What a fun two years you will have. :D

The one thing I would have done differently would have been to jump on every opportunity to try something new, or find that opportunity. Don't worry about whether or not you know what you're doing, as long as you have a nurse or clinical instructor there to assist you go for it! That's why you're there, to learn everything that you can.

Oh man, the care plans! I used to think they were horrible busywork, implemented by the evil clinical instructors who were determined to make our lives as nursing students a living hell. Then I learned that they were actually pretty awesome. They help you understand disease processes and how the patient's symptoms relate to them, and they help you understand nursing diagnoses and why you do what you do as a nurse. Don't overlook their greatness! :p

Good luck to you, future nurse!

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