4.0 in nursing school?

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I was just wondering if it's possible to complete nursing school with a 4.0. Has anyone done it? I've read many times that in nursing school you usually drop a grade level... A students become B students.

I'm pretty worried about this. I'm disappointed with any grade less than 100. I know it sounds crazy, but it's not something I can control. I know I would be devastated if I made a B. So far throughout my prereqs I've been able to keep a 4.0 and many of my final grades have been 100. (not just the easy classes) I have to study ALL the time though.

So is there anyone else out there like me? Did you make it though nursing school without having a breakdown?:nailbiting:

Specializes in ICU / PCU / Telemetry / Oncology.

I hate to break this to you, but your patients couldn't care less what your GPA was in nursing school. At the end of the day, the 4.0 student and the 3.0 student are both the same exact thing after NCLEX ... They are registered nurses! That's it!

Sent from my iPad using allnurses

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Specializes in Acute care, Community Med, SANE, ASC.

Definitely doable. I graduated with a 4.0 while working full-time. I did not, however, get 100 on every test nor would I ever spend the time necessary to do so. In my opinion life is far too short to waste valuable time studying more than necessary.

When I started nursing school I had applied for a special program through my employer to be paid full time wages while only working 16 hours a week while attending school. I was so sure I would be chosen for this program and was DEVASTATED when I was not because I knew working full-time and school full-time was really going to suck, and it did. My worst fear was that I would get run over by a bus the day after I graduated and would have spent the last few years of my life being miserable studying and working all the time.

I had also heard that you should expect to drop a grade level in nursing school because it's that much harder. Like Music in my heart I did not find the work to be any more difficult than any other course work although I should say that I had medical background from various other jobs and also had a paramedic license which familiarized me with the style of testing that nursing school uses. You may notice in another recent post that I said working and school together was very difficult--like Music in my heart I agree that it was the volume of work (a lot of busy work) that made it difficult rather than the material. My BSN completion program, quite frankly, was ridiculously easy.

I admire your thoughtful responses to the comments you've received. Good luck.

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Specializes in None yet..

hannahlee, I may have a slightly different take on this.

First off, I totally identify with your drive to achieve. I always, always want to strive for the best I can do. I hope you don't give that up.

That said... it's all just a question of balance. I'm a career changer from a profession where it's a big deal to be in the top 10% of your graduating class. At the end of my first (of three) years, I was there. I decided I wanted other things in my life in addition to academic distinction. And I graduated in the top quarter of my class, without the bells and whistles and special certificate but still good enough to get an amazing first job out of school.

So my thought is, put your past aside, do the best you can and then access along the way. You may find you're not cut out for academic success in nursing. (So what? There are other roads to success as many of my classmates proved.) You may find that you can achieve your goal but in the Big Picture, it's not worth it to you. (Hello, soulmate!) You may discover that in nursing you are judged by qualities in addition to your grades that make a Four Oh not so relevant. (I'm hoping.) And you may want it with all your heart and not get it and discover an wonderful life and career anyway.

Be gentle with yourself. Have preferences, not expectations, and you'll have an easier passage, I bet.

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Specializes in None yet..
Definitely doable. I graduated with a 4.0 while working full-time. I did not, however, get 100 on every test nor would I ever spend the time necessary to do so. In my opinion life is far too short to waste valuable time studying more than necessary.

When I started nursing school I had applied for a special program through my employer to be paid full time wages while only working 16 hours a week while attending school. I was so sure I would be chosen for this program and was DEVASTATED when I was not because I knew working full-time and school full-time was really going to suck, and it did. My worst fear was that I would get run over by a bus the day after I graduated and would have spent the last few years of my life being miserable studying and working all the time.

I had also heard that you should expect to drop a grade level in nursing school because it's that much harder. Like Music in my heart I did not find the work to be any more difficult than any other course work although I should say that I had medical background from various other jobs and also had a paramedic license which familiarized me with the style of testing that nursing school uses. You may notice in another recent post that I said working and school together was very difficult--like Music in my heart I agree that it was the volume of work (a lot of busy work) that made it difficult rather than the material. My BSN completion program, quite frankly, was ridiculously easy.

I admire your thoughtful responses to the comments you've received. Good luck.

WootWoot! We must have been typing at the same time.

Like newohiorn says, DEVASTATED does not mean defeated. Also a good point that you don't need to be perfect to get a 4.0.

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Aww! You guys are the best! :) This was my first time starting a topic so I was kinda nervous! I'm so glad I did. This site is such a wonderful tool. I'm definitely going to keep doing my best but I am going to relax a little. I have a three tests this week and I'm going to do my best and move on! :up: Now for some last minute studying! :geek:

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Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.

On the idea of needing to be perfect. Making mistakes is how you learn. A favorite quote of mine is "Good judgment comes from experience. Experience comes from bad judgment."

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Specializes in hospice.
I like to check AN during study breaks... Awesome site for sure. Anyways, duskyjewel, what gives you hope, one persons relative perspective of nursing school? There is far too many lurking variables to assess based off the response of one poster. More importantly, hope for what, the perfect 4.0. What do you intend to do once you obtain a 4.0, put it on a bumper sticker? You are grossly missing what nursing school is made of, who cares if your grades are 4.0 if you are a 2.0 at building therapeutic relationships with your patients. Please check back when you are in school... I love to motivate, but anyone on this site suggesting your head is in the right place right now is not reading in between the lines. And that is exactly what people who specialize in mental health do. I am not suggesting I am one of those people now, but I hope to be in the future. Regardless, you need to speak with an objective listener.

Phew.....dude, back off a little.

If you go back to the beginning of the thread, I was warning hannahlee off the 100% 4.0 thing. I've been a strong voice against perfectionism in this discussion.

The reason I responded to Music's post as I did is because I was always a very good student, so I'm hoping I can have a similar experience with nursing school. That's all. No need for nasty comments about bumper stickers, or unkind "assessments" of my mental health.

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Specializes in Med-Surg, NICU.

This is going to sound harsh but if you continue on with this mentality, you will not make it. I say this as a senior nursing student (last semester!) who had to retake a class due to anxiety. And really, employers aren't that interested in your gpa. They care about your license, your hospital work experience and your degree being from an accredited institution.

Focus on the big picture: learn the material, graduate, and pass the nclex and get your foot in the door.

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if you continue on with this mentality, you will not make it.
This I challenge.

Once I became a serious student, my goal has always been to earn every point there was, to attain perfect scores, or at least to set the curve in the class.

I've never managed the former but often did the latter... and I did indeed 'make it.'

There's nothing wrong with shooting for perfection. The risk isn't setting one's sights too high and falling short but rather setting one's sights too low and striking the targeted point.

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Specializes in Med-Surg, NICU.

I think you misread my post. I am not saying that shooting for perfection is a bad thing, but being "devastated" by not getting 100s is counterproductive and, in severe cases, could lead to failure.

I've always shot for an A. But you know what? Sometimes I couldn't always get an A, but an A- or *gasps* a B. I didn't melt into a puddle of despair but picked myself back up and kept it moving. The vast majority of nursing students do not earn 4.0s, but still go on to become good, respectable nurses. And at the end of the day, most employers are going to be far more impressed with the 3.5 student who had years of hospital experience as an aide and great references from coworkers than the 4.0 student who sat all day in the library with her nose in a book.

Just sayin'.

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Specializes in Pediatrics, Emergency, Trauma.
As others have said, extreme perfection can be pathological. And focusing too much on your grades can hinder your learning and your clinical performance by stifling your risk-taking and flexibility.

In fact, I know some hiring managers (me included) who hesitate to hire new grads who seem to be obsessed with being perfect all the time. We have learned from experience that such people sometimes have a great deal of difficulty adapting to the real world of professional practice,

I used to be obsessive about grades in high school -- but got over it in college.

THIS.

My "lowly" :sarcastic: 2.89 GPA has gotten me each job I interviewed for; I even had a HR rep pontificate on how "As don't equate to getting to understand the REAL world of nursing; and they don't mean anything if you can't exercise proper nursing judgment."

I overcame a TON of adversity-PTSD being the major hurdle-to complete nursing school and pass the NCLEX the first time.

When I go back to get my Master's I'll need to take GRE to supplement my experience and my GPA...no big deal....I enjoy my career, my life, and above all, my sanity/serenity. *shrugs*

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I think you misread my post. I am not saying that shooting for perfection is a bad thing, but being "devastated" by not getting 100s is counterproductive and, in severe cases, could lead to failure.

I've always shot for an A. But you know what? Sometimes I couldn't always get an A, but an A- or *gasps* a B. I didn't melt into a puddle of despair but picked myself back up and kept it moving. The vast majority of nursing students do not earn 4.0s, but still go on to become good, respectable nurses. And at the end of the day, most employers are going to be far more impressed with the 3.5 student who had years of hospital experience as an aide and great references from coworkers than the 4.0 student who sat all day in the library with her nose in a book.

Just sayin'.

There are few things which I can envision being devastated by... the loss of child, the loss of my independence, and the loss of my economic viability are the only ones that I can think of.

In the standard of my personal performance, though, I consider an A- as acceptable and anything less than that as personal failure. I've never found failure to be devastating, though.

For my first degree, I had an attitude akin to the C=RN mindset... and my grades reflected it with a 3.0. For my second degree, I had the mindset that nothing less than an A was tolerable and, again, my grades reflected it with a 4.0. For my nursing degree, the mindset was again, A's are the goal but not mandatory... hence the 3.97.

One needs to determine his/her goals based on her/his personal situation and resources... and there's nothing inherently wrong with pursuing perfection... and generally speaking, 4.0 students tend to have a better mastery of the material than do 3.0 students.

Just sayin'

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