nursing program

happy student · Mar 29, 2008

I am new to the LVN career search for a good school. The entrance exam study help was from the internet/googe just search for CPAT or TEAS, at least that is what I have been told by school advisors. How did you choose a school? I am surprised at the cost of $33,800 for one LVN school while 3 other LVN schools range from $20,600 to $24,125. The 33K school has 75% passing rate on the nclex, while the 24K school has a 74% passing rate while the 20K school has a 100% passing rate.

I asked some current students about the homework load as they said 2-4 hours a night including cramming for tests. So how do you as a student pick a private school to avoid the 2yr waiting lists of public schools (who's passing rates range from 69% to 100%)??

lalunia86 · Mar 30, 2008

It is hard to find the right school; I went to a community college first while I was searching for a nursing school. I decided to stay close to home and that made my choice easier. You should defiantly visit schools and ask about their programs. The schools are expensive but you could always take a loan, people say it is very important to make sure the school has high rating for their program. I picked a catholic university which I scheduled many visits before I made my choice, it will cost me around 60,000 after I finish, I just hope I’ll finish. Good luck………

Pediatric4077 · Mar 30, 2008

To me the hardest thing was learning how to answer NCLEX questions and really getting into the critical thinking of nursing. But it is so amazing when you start to get it and things start to click. The key to getting through a nursing program (in my opinion..) is ability to learn, passion for nursing, and 1,000's of practice questions! Get an NCLEX review book when you start school (one with rationales) and start preparing! Good Luck to you!!

aHolisticStudent · Mar 30, 2008

Most challenging?

Definitely time management. If you are not competent in this area you will have serious difficulties. I've seen a lot of students just get run over by the requirements of nursing school.

For example, while our schedule for lecture classes was known before the semester started, we found out our first week about an additional 4-week "Communications Module" we had to attend. Then we found out about how two of our courses (Health Assessment and Fundamentals) both had lab components in addition to the lecture courses that took up the entire first half of my Wednesdays. Third we found out we had 2 weeks worth of clinicals the first semester. Once you get in you'll probably realize that your lab time isn't extensive enough to allow you to fully "grok" all the intricacies of the skills you've been introduced to, so you then need to schedule more "off time" to go into open labs and practice these skills until you've got them down cold. When I planned out my semester prior to class starting I hadn't expected any of these other requirements.

Finally, most people just don't understand the increased demand due to the type of learning you have to do in NS. Although Pediatric4077 certainly alluded to it with regards to the NCLEX questions, the ability to think through "scenarios" from every possible angle requires a deep understanding of the underlying content and a conceptual grasp that allows you to predict what will happen when you diverge from "normal". Most students in their prerequisites hadn't been challenged to do that before and found themselves spending alot of time revisiting content they should have learned in their prereqs originally. So like I said above, you have to own your time, and be able to manage it effectively or you'll find yourself unable to manage a healthy, balanced life due to the demands of school.

Best of success in NS!

NJNursing, ASN, RN · Mar 30, 2008

Back in school I was overwhelmed with the incessant memorization. You have to learn a lot of information about a lot of areas in a fairly quick time. As quick as you learn something you've got to file it away and then learn more things. I probably spent as much time studying (if not more) as I spent in class, so each class was like twice as long.

Care plans. I hate, hate, hated clare plans and writing them out ad nauseum.

Medications. Learning medications and their uses, pharmacology, multiple names, how they're metabolized, how long they last in the body, the dosages, what they can and can't be given with (some with food, some without, some with dairy some without, etc...). Repitition is key.

We formed a study group of a bunch of us who managed to find humor in studying. It was mostly girls (one guy) and us girls would find a way to associate most anything with sex, lmao. It made it very easy to remember things and sometimes one of us would chuckle during a test if we came across a question that jogged one of those funny moments. 3 years later I still remember some of those things.

Kickinnrs · Mar 30, 2008

I agree with the above post about Medications and memorization. The big panic subject in my class was Fluid and Electrolytes. I found that study groups were a HUGE help. Although I personally study just fine on my own, I also found that in a group, someone may have a way of remembering information that I didn't think of (and, of course, you may have a way that will help someone else).

Good luck in nursing school. If nursing is your passion, you'll never regret it!

happy student · Mar 31, 2008

Hi everyone,

I wanted to know if some LVN/RN schools are considered better than others? Such as, do the instructors help the students at school A, versus school B where the instructors only present the material without explaining or answering questions?

I have heard from graduated RN's that some community/Universtiy colleges have instructors that don't like to be bothered with questions from students - has anyone gone to a Unitek, Western, NCP, or any career college that has experienced this kind of material presentation without answering questions for students?

I'm trying to make an informed decision on where to go for my career training.