Hi everyone, so I was a medical student and now in the transitioning state to becoming a nursing student. I've looked around for forums about this topic, but not much is seen, except for the transition from nurse to doctor. I've completed my HESI and TEAS V exams a couple of weeks ago and have applied to a few schools. Currently, I'm at a community college finishing up pre-reqs for the schools. I was just wondering if there is any former medical student that made the transition to nursing, if they would like to share their experience and to give any pointers about anything.
Are you kidding, zzbxdo? You do realize medical students take anatomy and physiology as well. What makes you think it's any different? Medical students have to take additional prerequisites (physics, calculus, etc).
Medical students study anatomy and physiology in medical school. They are not required to take undergraduate anatomy and physiology as prerequisite courses to medical school. The prerequisite courses for medical school, generally speaking, are:
-General Biology I and II
-General Chemistry I and II
-Organic Chemistry I and II
-Physics I and II
-a year of English
-a semester to a year of math (usually Calculus I or higher)
In contrast, for students transferring to the nursing courses in a BSN program, the prerequisites, generally speaking, are:
-Anatomy and Physiology I and II
-Microbiology
-General Psychology
-Lifespan Psychology/Human Growth and Development
-Statistics and/or Algebra and Trigonometry
-Chemistry for Health Professionals (usually a semester to a year of chemistry specific to nursing and other health professional programs, and not the majors chemistry courses required for pre-med and science majors)
So yes, in general, a pre-med student switching to nursing will have to take nursing specific prerequisite courses. If the OP actually is a medical student switching to nursing (odd...I've heard of PharmD, DPT, OT, Psychology, etc students switching to nursing, but never someone in medical school), then he will most likely have to complete Anatomy and Physiology I and II if he didn't complete them as electives for the pre-med program, since again, they are not required. If he already took General Chemistry I and II, he wouldn't have to take the nursing chemistry course(s), since schools generally accept higher level courses in place of those requirements (I did Gen Chem I and II, Organic I and Analytical Chem (As in all of them), and definitely did not have to do the lower level chemistry for nursing).
Interesting how the OP comes to this site to ask some advice on the transition he is making (whether it is Med or Pre-Med, who cares?) and everyone gets stuck on what classes he must have or must have not taken. Given the context of his post, I suspect a debate about his course history was not the point...Does anyone have any useful advice to give him?
Are you kidding, zzbxdo? You do realize medical students take anatomy and physiology as well. What makes you think it's any different? Medical students have to take additional prerequisites (physics, calculus, etc).
Lol? When did you ever see an actual med/premed student take a/p classes at an undergraduate level? Never, unless they somehow have the time on top of actual premed courses..yes ochem, Chem bio Calc etc. You would have to appeal if you took med level a/p if you were to try to transfer to nursing.
Anyways op, let's just say you did finish premed requirements, you'll find that bsn requirements are a piece of cake in comparison, anatomy and physiology I mean. Just a caseload of strait memorization. If you took a shot at them in med school already I'd consider appealing, though the letter grade value is emphasized quite a bit. I'm sure your sciences wouldn't be an issue to appeal, but you should consider your GPA. It's an opportunity for a clean slate if your grades weren't hot previously, but you would likely do well.
OP I think you are going to do great in nursing school since you are probably used to reading lots of material in a very short period of time since you already are a medical student. I am sure you must have a very good knowledge about diseases and their symptoms etc.. Good luck with your new career path!
If I had stayed exclusively pre-med I would be taking pre-reqs when I transitioned to nursing, too so I do imagine that's what the OP meant. Obviously he was preparing to become a med student but now would like help preparing to transition to becoming a nursing student. I think?
Anyway, I did the same thing as you and I'm sure that your TEAS V score is very competetive as will be your micro and A&P grades. You should be fine. Good luck!
Most people have come to expect doctors to be studious and generally do well on standardized exams. They've taken the hard courses to make the cut. Most people outside of medicine view physicians as having completed a certain marathon, if you will, and at times can't fathom that said physician could be the most miserable professional in his/her chose profession. As is evidenced on this particular thread and the forums at large, the consensus is that physicians in relation to nursing, are perhaps too smart for their own good to possibly 'downgrade'.
As a former pharmacy student I've taken some very rigorous courses (including physics/calculus based, obviously organic/medicinal chemistry, genetics) and none were any different than the courses actual premed students take. Nursing students even take the very same courses as pharmacy and medical students. The difference is the depth.
It's a given that nursing students need to understand basic physiology, pharmacology, and basic pharmaceutical calculations to complement hands-on training. Likewise, pharmacy student know these too but we go deeper in the physiology... for example during the cardiac cycle I know what happens during phase 4 in the SA node: it is -60mV, depolarization will occur when positive cations (specifically calcium) enter the cell via the leaky channels... inside the cell becomes less negative and the slope becomes more upward (triggering depolarization). Or in the ventricular muscle cell, we are taught about the L-type Ca++ channels, Kdr channels, K to channels and that for ventricular cells it is Na+ not calcium that excites them to depolarize (propagate electrical signal). I can go on and on and any little concept or fact are fair game for exams! Clearly, nursing schools don't need to go this deep (except perhaps in graduate school). And here, the chemistry courses (medicinal chemistry in particular and tracing electron flow and remembering specific nucleotides (subunits of nucleic acids) and doing brute calculations involving Henderson-Hasselbalch equations to determine acidity can be intimidating.
Actual medical students, at least at my last research university, do something different than chemistry in school. Like all med students they learn to diagnose, work with cadavers to learn a bunch of details for anatomy, they study histology and a host of things that do seem dizzying. Yes, we study the same clinical biochemistry but here, but here it is used for differential diagnosis to cement what is learned in other courses. And when they specialize, they go even deeper. And years are training is expected.
The point is, nursing through medicine is difficult. I'm of the opinion that nursing is probably harder than pharmacy school because one must apply so much of what is learned in school and when one is directly caring for patients, I think the stress is clear. For me, there were circumstances that necessitate I withdraw and not get deeper in debt. And if I could no longer be a clinical pharmacist, then I din't need to be in the pharmacy profession where, in the opinion of most, one doesn't apply much of what is learned in school.
I'm curious to know of the OP's story as well and while I'm also considering nursing as a second career, I think if I specialize it will fulfill my career goals and intellectual stimulation I seek in a career.
Long reply, but good luck with your career choice.
Hi everyone again. I wasn't expecting this many responses. I was actually in my second year of medical school in the Caribbeans and just couldn't cut it. The class that got me was Pathology, a 14 hour class, and just a killer of a class. When it came down to it, it was either attempt to pass a class or fail and never get into anywhere else.
The reason I'm taking pre-reqs at a community college is because there are a few classes that are required for the nursing pre-reqs that I didn't take as an undergrad like sociology, psychology, development and ethics. Unfortunately, I've had classes pertaining to theses in med school, but the process to transfer the credits was going to take money and time, so I figure why not just take it and make an easy A. I have a B.S. in biology and a minor in chemistry and graduated with 3.8 overall GPA in undergrad.
So end the end, the main goal is to still be able to help people. I've talked to a few people about nursing and most seem to love their job.
So back to the main question: Is there any advice from anyone that was a former medical student that transitioned to nursing?
I had a friend who went to that medical school. Isn't that an "easy" one to get into? Just curious because that's what I "heard." She had a bad MCAT score and got rejected at other places but into that one fairly easy.
.thumb.gif.9c97ffa9443a5f22ff38e1eac832292c.gif){kind=avatar}
MurseJJ
2 Articles; 466 Posts
Medical students study anatomy and physiology in medical school. They are not required to take undergraduate anatomy and physiology as prerequisite courses to medical school. The prerequisite courses for medical school, generally speaking, are:
-General Biology I and II
-General Chemistry I and II
-Organic Chemistry I and II
-Physics I and II
-a year of English
-a semester to a year of math (usually Calculus I or higher)
In contrast, for students transferring to the nursing courses in a BSN program, the prerequisites, generally speaking, are:
-Anatomy and Physiology I and II
-Microbiology
-General Psychology
-Lifespan Psychology/Human Growth and Development
-Statistics and/or Algebra and Trigonometry
-Chemistry for Health Professionals (usually a semester to a year of chemistry specific to nursing and other health professional programs, and not the majors chemistry courses required for pre-med and science majors)
So yes, in general, a pre-med student switching to nursing will have to take nursing specific prerequisite courses. If the OP actually is a medical student switching to nursing (odd...I've heard of PharmD, DPT, OT, Psychology, etc students switching to nursing, but never someone in medical school), then he will most likely have to complete Anatomy and Physiology I and II if he didn't complete them as electives for the pre-med program, since again, they are not required. If he already took General Chemistry I and II, he wouldn't have to take the nursing chemistry course(s), since schools generally accept higher level courses in place of those requirements (I did Gen Chem I and II, Organic I and Analytical Chem (As in all of them), and definitely did not have to do the lower level chemistry for nursing).