4.0 in nursing school?

MissCris · Sep 13, 2014

Oh man, and I thought I was a perfectionist! I'm usually disappointed in anything under a 92 or so but now that I'm in the program I'm trying to lower my expectations. Disappointed with anything less than 100? You are expecting yourself to be LITERALLY perfect. I'm not going to say it's impossible to have a 4.0, but it is dependent on a lot of factors. Do you have a spouse or a significant other? Children? Do you work? If not and you have all day every day to focus on studying, it's probably doable. I think it depends heavily on the program you're in as well. No one has managed in to get and A in Nursing 101 in my program since 2004 (so I've heard anyway) but I am sure there are programs where an A is quite common.

As a piece of advice though, I would try to lower my standards a little bit if I were you, if only for your own sanity. Nursing school is very VERY different than any other education I have ever experienced and although I'm only a couple of weeks into it, adjusting to the new way of thinking (and the whole 'every answer is right but which one is more right' thing) is already more difficult than I thought it would be. Based on the practice tests I've been taking, I would be thrilled to have an 80 or above on my first test! You'll either adjust your expectations or you won't, but the important thing is recognizing when you're putting too much pressure on yourself and need to relax a little bit. If you can't do that you'll drive yourself to the point of insanity (or heavy drinking)

RubySlippers:) · Sep 13, 2014

Thank you for the feedback! I don't have children and my husband supports us so I can dedicate all of my time to school. I know I have ridiculous expectations. I figured I would have to change that in nursing school. I really don't understand why it's set up that way though. Not one A in nursing 101 in 10 years! THAT's ridiculous. It's like these schools are trying to mess with our self esteem! One could argue that they're trying to make us feel inferior... hmmm.

Sun0408, ASN, RN · Sep 13, 2014

There is more to life and nursing school than just books. Making a 100 on every test is highly unlikely and unhealthy to put that much pressure on yourself. I agree with above poster. Nursing school is different than any other class you've taken. It's not learn/ memorize them regurgitate. Best of luck to you.

duskyjewel · Sep 13, 2014

I'm disappointed with any grade less than 100... I know I would be devastated if I made a B.

This is completely unhealthy. Where did you learn this?

Navigating real life requires accepting that less than perfect is still good. Success in life requires flexibility. As you go through nursing school, navigate your marriage, have children, and start your career, you are going to have to learn to accept less than perfect.

duskyjewel · Sep 13, 2014

It's like these schools are trying to mess with our self esteem! One could argue that they're trying to make us feel inferior... hmmm.

Your self worth needs to be tied to more than your grades.

RubySlippers:) · Sep 13, 2014

I'm really not sure where my mentality regarding grades came from. I was never pushed to be perfect or anything else for that matter. Life has been really hard the past few years. My home was broken into and we lost EVERYTHING. Before that we lost all of our money opening a restaurant so we didn't have homeowners insurance. Long story short the last few years have been a struggle and I guess I see school as an opportunity to fix things. I want desperately to be out of the situation I'm in. I guess that's where it comes from... I know it's not healthy.

RubySlippers:) · Sep 13, 2014

Thanks for the feedback. I see I'm going to need to do some soul searching before starting nursing school.

duskyjewel · Sep 13, 2014

Sounds like you've got some anxiety from the trauma of a break in and the failure of your business. Possibly you see perfection in school as insurance against further adverse events. Since you view becoming a nurse as a way out of your current difficulties, that may reinforce your need to get perfect grades.

Please know I'm a total amateur, but this just seems to make sense to me.

I hope you can find a way to make peace with less than perfect grades. Just remember that success isn't the same thing as perfect. You can totally have one without the other. Most people do.

RubySlippers:) · Sep 13, 2014

Sounds like you've got some anxiety from the trauma of a break in and the failure of business. Possibly you see perfection in school as insurance against further adverse events. Since you view becoming a nurse as a way out of your current difficulties, that may reinforce your need to get perfect grades.
Please know I'm a total amateur, but this just seems to make sense to me.
I hope you can find a way to make peace with less than perfect grades. Just remember that success isn't the same thing as perfect. You can totally have one without the other. Most people do.

Makes sense to me :) I appreciate your kind words. I will definitely start telling myself that!

GingerRN17 · Sep 13, 2014

Most of the amazing nurses that I know where straight A students, until Nursing school. Then they were just trying to make a high C to pass! Nursing school it about a LOT more then just the grade!

caliotter3 · Sep 13, 2014

I would seriously consider seeing a counselor for your over the top perfectionism. You might be able to make some personal changes that will improve your life immensely over the years. And good luck with maintaining good grades in nursing school!