Nursing Student

Don't procrastinate. For the love of God. I know. We say we won't but then we do. Just don't. Be proactive. Get ahead.

Personally I liked hand writing my class notes as opposed to typing. I found it was easy to get distracted on my laptop and I can't tell you how many students end up on Facebook or Pinterest.

Get a good agenda & stay faithful to it. Organize yourself & manage your time wisely. I loved color coding my classes and then notes if I got around to rewriting them.

First day of clinical is always scary, but you'll get through it. Be helpful and attentive, not lazy & chatty with friends.

Don't cram.

Study. Study. Study.

Do practice questions. Utilize your textbooks resources & ATI if your school uses it.

Go in confidently and be prepared to soak information up like a sponge and make a change in someone's day.

You have to see yourself as a winner in order to perform as one. Don't be arrogant but trust that you've adequately prepared and know the information on exam days. Do not let yourself drown in doubt. Be positive & be proactive.

Study a little every day to solidify information.

Get a study group of 2-3 like minded individuals who study well together.

Treat every clinical experience as a job interview- nursing is a small world, and the hospital you're doing your clinicals at may be your future employer.

Get plenty of sleep.

Find a good stress relief- working out, reading, walking, whatever. Nursing school is stressful.

As for studying, I liked to plan my time in hours of studying that I thought it would take me to feel comfortable with the material. I did the same things with my assignments- that way I could block out my time. 2 hours to complete this paper, one hour to complete this module, 30 minutes to do this quiz, etc.

Don't buy your books right away. Find out which ones are absolutely needed for the semester. They are ridiculously expensive. For online books, my friends and I would split the cost and access the same book. Way cheaper.

Take advantage of opportunities to amp up your resume. Extra classes, continuing education, volunteering, student nurse association, traveling to other countries for nursing, etc. You have 2 years to build that resume.

I'd recommend a hospital job as well after getting your CNA- really gives you an extra edge in my opinion.