Is it still possible to get into nursing school if i fail a class?

AccelCNL, MSN, RN · Sep 23, 2013

I'm currently taking A&P I at my community college in hopes of transferring to a school with an ADN program. However, i am not doing well in the class at all. I'm really not sure if i will be able to pass. I already know i'm going to retake it no matter what because i want at least an A or B. But if i fail this class the first time will i have any chance at all at getting into the ADN program?

That really depends on the program that you planning to apply to and their requirements. My alma mater allowed you to retake prereqs once however they then averaged the grades together. Some prrograms only look at the highest grade and other average the grades together. So if you were to fail and get a D or F and then you took it again and received an A, but if the grades were averaged then you would really only have a B-/C.

Look at the requirements that the nursing department has for repeating and class. If the class is really at a point where you cannot salvage a good grade you should drop it before they last withdrawal date. That way you won't get a W.

ScientistSalarian · Sep 23, 2013

Agree with the above poster, if it's going that poorly it would probably be better to drop - even a W on your transcript is going to look better than a D or F. We can't tell you what your chances are without knowing which school you're applying to but nursing programs are generally so saturated with qualified applicants at the moment that a low grade in such an important prerequisite probably isn't going to bode well. Check your school's specific repeat policy (Do they have a cap on the number of times you can take the class? Do they drop the lower grade or average them together? Is there a point deduction for needing more than one try to pass?), check with a counselor if you're unsure of what to do and in the meantime figure out what you can do the next time around to get that A. Good luck!

coolinbysound · Sep 23, 2013

If you school replaces your bad grade with a CR (course repeat) and doesn't factor in the bad grade into your GPA, then I would stick through the whole class, see what you get and if you don't like it repeat it. This way you can cover your bad grade instead of having a W on your transcript forever. My school allowed me to do this.

Most schools only allow 1 retake. So if you do retake that class, make sure you do super well.

suzw · Sep 24, 2013

I was assuming it is too late to drop the class, but if it's not, you should do that if you think getting a D or F is inevitable. Check with your advisor.

akulahawkRN, ADN, RN, EMT-P · Sep 24, 2013

At my current program, the college district will NOT allow you to retake a prerequisite course at any of their campuses for a better grade IF you passed the course... However, they will accept a course from another district that they accept as equivalent, and they'll use that grade instead of your "poor" grade when calculating your prerequisite GPA. Other programs that I've looked at will average the repeat courses together, and yet others will assign some negative points value if there's a re-attempt within 5 years or something like that.

Just know the policies of all the programs you intend to apply to and follow them, as well as the drop dates. Remember, many times colleges will have drop dates where the course will NOT show up on your transcript... it'll be as if you never enrolled, and usually there's a drop date where the course is on record, but you withdrew, therefore it doesn't count for or against you in GPA calculations... but they can see you did enroll at some point in the class.

Know the policies and keep current on them. It's up to you to ensure you're qualified to apply to every program you want to apply to!