Med Surg....UGH

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How do you study? I don't have time to read all the chapters they assign (no one does) and they don't pull q's from the book hardly anyway. Questions don't come from our powerpoints nor do they get them from any of the study books with practice q's that I bought (yes, the nclex one included). They pull them outta their you-know-wheres and act all ***** when half the class fails.

Is it just me or do they really not give a flip if we do well? My instructur told me I need to calm down and accept that I wouldn't get an A in class working full-time hours. I'm sorry but I think that's BS. I may want to go on to NP or CRNA or medical school one day and I need a *******' awesome GPA if so and it aint gonna happen by getting B's and C's in nursing school. So frustrated.

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Specializes in Hopefully ICU one of these days..

Ciale,

I am in the same boat. I was a 4.0 Biology major before nursing school back in the day. I took the MCAT and got a competitive score. I was in the 99th percentile on my TEAS V test and I score level 3 on every ATI exam we have and somehow the best grades I ever get in nursing school are 91% which is a B+ in our program. Incidentally I always range from a 91-89% and while I have only finished one class it was with a 91.9% which is a B since "we don't round in nursing." I seem to be on track to be in the same situation this semester. I was told in orientation that the instructors and director do not want to hear all of 4.0 students "whining and crying about getting less than As because As are unattainable." I plan to continue on to critical care hopefully right out of school if possible and will be applying for some very competitive ICU internships this summer. I would also like to continue on to CRNA school after having worked in the ICU for a while (assuming I don't fall in love with the ICU and decide to go CCNP). I feel like being unable to earn As puts me at a huge disadvantage compared to students from the multiple other nursing schools in my area. I would like to know how much GPA factors in to the admission process for CRNA or NP school since they have to know that there are nursing schools out there that just don't give As on some sort of misguided principal. I also would like to know if RN-BSN programs will carry over your GPA from your ADN or do you start over once you are in a BSN program like you generally do when going from a 2 to a 4 year school? Anyway, just wanted to let you know that I know EXACTLY how you feel, and apparently tell everyone my life story hahaha.

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Obviously I can't comment on your school specifically but based on what you said I can definitely understand your frustration.

I read the "important" sections that are relevant to the nursing process and then follow up with supplemental materials -- Saunders NCLEX Review, Medical-Surgical Nursing Made Incredibly Easy, and Prentice-Hall Medical Surgical Reviews & Rationales. You are reading the same information over and over again, but seeing it presented in different ways may help with your understanding. Additionally, I find that these types of books are better at "cutting out the fluff" and outlining exactly what it is you need to know as a nurse.

This is what I do, as an example.... Look for the things you need to know as an RN and focus on those sections. In MedSurg, we learn about diseases & disorders that disrupt homeostasis. If you're reading about Diverticular disease, as a nurse you need to know:

1. What the disease is (Definition)

2. What causes it? (Etiology)

3. How does it alter homeostasis? (Patho)

4. What should you look for? (Signs & Symptoms)

5. What do the tests tell you? (Labs, Diagnostics, etc.)

6. How is it treated? (Surgery, Meds, lifestyle modifications)

7. What to do? (Interventions you the nurse should implement when caring for someone w/ this condition)

8. What is important to teach the patient about their condition? Prevention? Management? Medications? Nutrition? How to perform a certain skill after discharge? (i.e. self injections of insulin, dressing changes, etc.)

If you get A's then that's great, but you are putting too much pressure on yourself. There is nothing wrong with getting a B or a C in nursing school. As you have discovered, nursing is a completely different ballgame than taking Sociology 101 or whatever. I got all A's & B's in my gen ed classes (including Bio, Chem, and College Algebra), but I am a B & C nursing student. C is the minimum passing requirement for a reason. Nursing school is hard! And it should be! But don't beat yourself up over it.

I don't think most NP programs will mind that you didn't have straight A's in nursing school. I would also like to become an NP and I have already looked into the BSN-MSN programs in my city. They will care much more about who you are, your experience, clinical knowledge, and how you operate as a nurse.

I hope I helped at least a little. Good luck! :)

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Can I hug you guys?!!?! This made me feel better. Cupcake, very helpful. I'm printing your post so I can remind myself what I need to do. I think I just got flustered this semester because it's been the first class that has actually challenged me in school. Was a bit jarring. Etiology, homeostasis, S&S, labs, interventions. DUH!!!! Why didn't I think of that. Wow.

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Specializes in Critical Care, Emergency Medicine, Flight.

i honestlly have probably read my med surg book once or twice the entire semester. it does nothing for me my nclex book has been amazing and really gets down the the meat of what you need to know.

as for your instructors pulling stuff outta their assetts... all you really can do is know the material. if they are doing a unit on nutrition and diabetes. read up where ever you can about it and know it like the back of your hand. your not going to have a multiple choice patient when ur working as an RN, you need to know what is going on and how to apply it.

ya it sucks getting B's and C's but sometimes you have to deal with it ya know .

i hate jerk teachers too. but they happen LOL

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Specializes in LTC.

Agree with the above. Focus on nursing interventions. The nclex exam wants to know what the nurse is going to do in any given situation...

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Once you understand how to study for med surg, it really is not that bad. Along with Saunders, I would also recommend The Manual of Medical Surgical Nursing. Its a fantastic little book that really condenses everything including nursing interventions. Gets to the meat of the matter in a few pages. I also like the Success Series.

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Specializes in Hospital Education Coordinator.

you are learning a different language and culture. This takes time and practice. Endurance is the name of the game but you can undermine your activities by negative emotions and stress of life, not to mention not enough time to focus on the task at hand. Nursing school is not like high school. You really have to apply yourself because you will be working independently once licensed.

As for the GPA question, the BSN program will give credit for hours learned in ADN and if in the same state, 100% may be credited. If you change states there may be different requirements. Best to talk to an advisor at the BSN school and bring your transcript or degree plan.

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Specializes in Emergency; med-surg; mat-child.

"we don't round in nursing."

Psht. Tell that to my dosage calc test EVERY SEMESTER.

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How do you study? I don't have time to read all the chapters they assign (no one does) and they don't pull q's from the book hardly anyway. Questions don't come from our powerpoints nor do they get them from any of the study books with practice q's that I bought (yes, the nclex one included). They pull them outta their you-know-wheres and act all ***** when half the class fails.

Is it just me or do they really not give a flip if we do well? My instructur told me I need to calm down and accept that I wouldn't get an A in class working full-time hours. I'm sorry but I think that's BS. I may want to go on to NP or CRNA or medical school one day and I need a *******' awesome GPA if so and it aint gonna happen by getting B's and C's in nursing school. So frustrated.

Nursing school is it's own unique beast. Having come from a background with a 3.8 in education, a 3.0 MS biology, and a 3.7 in electronics engineering, I'm thankful for each and every day that my nursing school gpa is a 2.7. Nursing school in at least my setting does NOT give out A's except to 1 or 2 students per year, and the odds of any student getting more than 2 A's in the program seem infinitely small. Simply put, nursing embodies every aspect of learning, every aspect of teaching, and every aspect of doing. Very few people out there are the michael jordan's of Basketball, the Michaelangelo's of painting, and the Mike the super nerd of test taking.

You may, sadly like me, have to be willing to tack on extra years of schooling, to help offset your grades in nursing. It's not medical school, and there's never a single right answer (okay, maybe that could rub an instructor or two the wrong way) but you have to keep an open mind and realize the human body, people, everything, is so complex that the best you can do is work on bed side manners and study daily for a few hours until you either quit or die while doing nursing. To disclaim i've yet to get a single A in nursing school but i'm just about done, and I've managed to get 4 b's.

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Focus on the the pathophys & manifestations - that should help clue you into the interventions. The Davis Success Series is awesome.

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This spiel again. You're NOT going to make As in nursing school. May BE you'll get one or two As but definitely not straight As. If there is a program out there where students routinely make As, it's a bad program.

That's just the way it is. It's kind of a culture shock for some, but you'll just have to get used to it.

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