Making Headway

Published Jul 2, 2014

17 Posts

Wow! What a summer I am having. I decided to take the plunge into a new career in nursing. Subsequently, I signed up for a full load of class and hit the books. The goal was to live off of financial aid so I could devote large chunks of time and energy to knocking out classes quickly and efficiently. However, financial aid came in lower than estimated and the Spring 2015 classes filled before I met the minimum requirements to hold a seat in a very competitive program.

To compensate for the changes in plans, I enrolled into CNA night courses so I could get a job as a PCT and work while going to school to supplement the shortage in financial aid. The downside is I now attend college classes from 8am to 3:15pm Monday through Thursday and then go to night classes for CNA certification from 6pm to 10pm Monday through Thursday. And if that wasn't enough I also signed up for the PAX-RN exam so I could hold my place in the program before finishing my pre-requisite courses to avoid any future unavailability in classes.

After 4 weeks, I realized I might have bitten off more than I could chew. I started getting really unorganized and falling behind, but I kept pushing and I'm so glad I did! Today I took my PAX-RN and finished in the 94th percentile (the requirement was 60th, so I scored really well). I just passed the written part of my CNA class test and am waiting to finish my clinical rotations to be able to sit for the state exam. And I have somehow gotten caught up and ahead on my college school work and am maintaining A's and B's in all of my subjects.

So to any other nursing students out there with a more than full plate, juggling plans and responsibilities... HANG IN THERE! You can do it! This website has been a huge source of encouragement and a wealth of information and insight. Thank you to everyone who participates! I am really excited about the future and just wanted to pass along and pay forward some of the encouragement I have received.

If anyone else is going through anything similar, I'd love to hear your story.

Have a happy 4th of July this week!