how often do you study?

spuropathy · Oct 18, 2008

I remember my first interview for nursing school. There were about four of us sitting on a table, and one question they asked was "How long do you plan to study for nursing school?"

I honestly did not know what to answer, so I remember what my anatomy class professor told me "3 hours each week". I said "3 hours", and they asked me "a day?".. I said yes lol.

I've always underestimated nursing school, still underestimating it now I guess, but I have gotten a little more serious as we are taking two classes of nursing (Adult Health II and OB/Peds) this semester. Its been horrible, I still dont have a study routine (never works for me), I dont like study groups as that never works for me either, so I study around 2-3 hours each day, and I am currently making B's, which Im happy for.

Find your study routine, and stick to it, that's what I've learned. One time for this PSYC test I studied my ass off, long hours everyday, and I managed to get a 73. Never studied that hard for an exam again, but Im worried this will get me on NCLEX so I have been studying more than usual.

I feel for the other poster here, my classmates are freaking out over this semester, and I feel bad as if to say Im coasting through nursing school. Its horrible to see all your classmates who work much harder than you and have harder lives struggle, but that's what you're there for. When you have a good standing on the class, help the one who's having trouble. Nursing school is a family.

whiteoleander5 · Oct 18, 2008

It varies. For only studying: I try do 3 hours a day, with some mini breaks. More on the weekend (But i feel on the weekends, I want to do less because I'm so drained from the week!).. That doesnt include care plan time, paper time, assignment time, or soap note time. I like to ask myself at the end of the day--Do I feel confident with what I studied/did today?... And if the answer is yes, then I am done for the day. And if not, then I'll open the books for another hour... And if there is a test coming up, I make sure to start reviewing 2 weeks prior, so that the day before the test I'm not a cramming-nervous-wreck. :imbar

I'm a B student, B+ish. I'm happy with that. Im glad that I am able to do that, and still have somewhat of a life--It keeps me sane!

I'm sure that will change once I take Med-Surg though. :eek:

180Chick · Oct 18, 2008

I remember my first interview for nursing school. There were about four of us sitting on a table, and one question they asked was "How long do you plan to study for nursing school?"
I honestly did not know what to answer, so I remember what my anatomy class professor told me "3 hours each week". I said "3 hours", and they asked me "a day?".. I said yes lol.
I've always underestimated nursing school, still underestimating it now I guess, but I have gotten a little more serious as we are taking two classes of nursing (Adult Health II and OB/Peds) this semester. Its been horrible, I still dont have a study routine (never works for me), I dont like study groups as that never works for me either, so I study around 2-3 hours each day, and I am currently making B's, which Im happy for.
Find your study routine, and stick to it, that's what I've learned. One time for this PSYC test I studied my ass off, long hours everyday, and I managed to get a 73. Never studied that hard for an exam again, but Im worried this will get me on NCLEX so I have been studying more than usual.
I feel for the other poster here, my classmates are freaking out over this semester, and I feel bad as if to say Im coasting through nursing school. Its horrible to see all your classmates who work much harder than you and have harder lives struggle, but that's what you're there for. When you have a good standing on the class, help the one who's having trouble. Nursing school is a family.

Yes, it is rough. One of the girls that I studied with (the one that made a C) is actually trying to quit now. You have to have an 80 to pass. I had a friend last semester who failed with a 79.9, which is a little harsh I think. But this friend has an 80.2, so she is still passing. She's just worried that she will accidentally mess up, because she's so close to the borderline. This makes me feel TERRIBLE, because we both studied the same amount of time and the same things. I'm trying to help her and beg her not to quit, but I don't think she's going to listen. It's like she's mad at me and asked if I studied more behind her back. lol I told her (and everyone else) no, but no one believes me. How is OB/Peds, btw? I've heard OB is ROUGH.

180Chick · Oct 18, 2008

I originally was going to attend a cc and got the prereqs done but at galen you get your lpn year one and then year two you do pre reqs if u need to and your rn in year two. so you get it all done in 2 years.

Well, that sounds really awesome. That's how it was at the cc here. You became an LPN year 1 and an RN year 2. My school just started a medical school, a nurse practitioner program, a nurse anesthetist program (which is why I'm attending this university. that's my ULTIMATE goal), and now they're starting a PA program. they're really moving up, and that's why I chose here instead of the cc.

spuropathy · Oct 18, 2008

Yes, it is rough. One of the girls that I studied with (the one that made a C) is actually trying to quit now. You have to have an 80 to pass. I had a friend last semester who failed with a 79.9, which is a little harsh I think. But this friend has an 80.2, so she is still passing. She's just worried that she will accidentally mess up, because she's so close to the borderline. This makes me feel TERRIBLE, because we both studied the same amount of time and the same things. I'm trying to help her and beg her not to quit, but I don't think she's going to listen. It's like she's mad at me and asked if I studied more behind her back. lol I told her (and everyone else) no, but no one believes me. How is OB/Peds, btw? I've heard OB is ROUGH.

80 passing rate sounds tough.. for us C = RN , you have to have a 75.

That's horrible though, people shouldn't mind if you studied more or not; if they have a problem with that, then they should do the same. Usually, more studying, better chance of passing.

As a male, OB is VERY rough for me haha. But if you are a female, gone through pregnancy and labor, it should be at least easier for you I think it depends on each program. We have had a faculty shortage so the OB/Peds instructor only comes every other Saturday and covers 5-7 chapters of a big OB book (a bad one as well). But the good thing is she can see that we are struggling with all these classes so she makes the tests to where if we know the basics we should be able to pass it. There are just also only a fistful of drugs so that's a plus.

Just got done with OB, now about to get start with Pediatrics, which Im very happy for. Its finally something I think I can understand. :)

I think it is best to tell your friend that Nursing school's always going to be stressful, its ok if you're at the borderline as long as you are passing, you still would be an RN. In nursing school, you put the school first and sadly everything else after, this is what my instructor has told me.

kgh31386, BSN, MSN, RN · Oct 19, 2008

Everyone studies differently. I usually don't study everyday. If we have a test on say the 4th week of the semester. I usually just briefly skim(like 20 minutes) the reading before class. And then about 4 days before the test. I'll skim a section a day(bout 1hour), then the day before the test it's all review for about 2 hours with a couple of people(i like explaining things to ppl from what our lectures are about, it sticks it in my head) and I end up with high B's or A's. while a lot of other ppl in my class are studyin 5+ hours a day and getting in the 50's and 60's

amjowens · Oct 19, 2008

Guys, I am a bit worried here. I want to know if I'm normal or if something's wrong with me. Please don't get angry with me like the rest of my friends and fellow classmates have. I am HONESTLY going to tell you that it's my first semester of nursing school, it's a ROUGH program, we've already had around 10 or so people drop out/get the boot, so I know it must be a bit difficult. I'm really confused about this. All of my friends say they study HOURS every week. I am taking the maximum load a full-time student is allowed to take, AND I'm taking it with Anatomy. I have As in all my classes, including my 6 hour Nursing class. I never study. What is wrong with me?! For example, the last test we took was particularly difficult. I didn't study any until two days before the test. I studied around 2 hours that day and 2 the next, totaling 4 hours of studying for a 100 question test. I studied even less for the test before that. I have made As on them. My classmates are always like, "we don't believe you. we know you must be a closet nerd who sits around doing nothing but studying. you're lying. how long did you seriously study, because WE studied for X amount of hours and only got X grade and barely passed. how are you doing this?" my answer is: I DON'T KNOW. For this last test, I studied with 2 of my best friends from the class. We each studied the same exact amount of time, since we were together for it - 4 hours for the test. I made an A, the other made a B, and the other made a C (which is technically failing in our program). The one that made a B won't speak to me anymore, and I have no idea why, and the one that made a C is thinking of quitting the program all together. I'm trying to encourage them and tell them I'll study with them more, but it's not helping. I'm just worried that next semester will roll around and I'll be used to not studying, which will cause me to fail. It's just like I really understand everything and kinda grasp the material -- like maybe I was born for it. Now I've lost a best friend all because of my test grade.

While it's nice to see how other people reach their goals, we are each individual. We are given gifts in some areas, and have challenges in others. You sound so negative and concerned about an apparent gift-you sound to possibly learn information quickly. Perhaps you're an auditory learner and learn what you need from class. Appreciate this! You can focus on what YOU need to work on-some people need to study for hours to get good grades. They might have strengths where you have weaknesses, though. This is the kind of stuff that makes us interesting and unique. BE HAPPY :wink2: about your strengths!

I have all As so far. I study about 5 hours a day, but since studying for an exit exam, have added time on the weekends. I like learning, and actually enjoy studying. I think it's quality over quantity, though. For an hour to be an hour, it must be an hour spent focusing, for ex.

BTW, I absolutely keep my grades to myself. I'm almost certain I'm the top of my class, but that's just that. In the end, we're all nurses, and while I feel so much happiness about my grades, it's my business only. It will help me get into schools to reach my personal goals, but that's about it.

180Chick · Oct 19, 2008

80 passing rate sounds tough.. for us C = RN , you have to have a 75.
That's horrible though, people shouldn't mind if you studied more or not; if they have a problem with that, then they should do the same. Usually, more studying, better chance of passing.
As a male, OB is VERY rough for me haha. But if you are a female, gone through pregnancy and labor, it should be at least easier for you I think it depends on each program. We have had a faculty shortage so the OB/Peds instructor only comes every other Saturday and covers 5-7 chapters of a big OB book (a bad one as well). But the good thing is she can see that we are struggling with all these classes so she makes the tests to where if we know the basics we should be able to pass it. There are just also only a fistful of drugs so that's a plus.
Just got done with OB, now about to get start with Pediatrics, which Im very happy for. Its finally something I think I can understand. :)
I think it is best to tell your friend that Nursing school's always going to be stressful, its ok if you're at the borderline as long as you are passing, you still would be an RN. In nursing school, you put the school first and sadly everything else after, this is what my instructor has told me.

Thank you, James! :)

Yes, I told her that as long as we continued to study and try to do our best she would make it, but I think she has her mind made up. It is pretty rough having to have an 80 and getting failed if it's a 79.9. I told her that if she quit, I won't have many friends in it anymore. Maybe that'll make her stay, haha. We started out with 40 people, but we're only at midterms and have lost 10 or so. It's looking like they want to cut half of us out down to around 20. That's amazing that you guys get to have the 75! I wish! lol I am not a mother and have never been pregnant, so I don't know how OB will go for me. I'm an EMT, but school is so stressful that I'm not currently working at it. Before school, I worked at an ambulance service, but not right now. Too much stress! lol I had to study OB to pass the NREMT portion, and it was pretty rough. I would say with nursing, you'll definitely go way more in-depth with it than just the emergency aspect. Thanks for the encouragement and good luck to you in Peds. I can't wait to do that rotation.

180Chick · Oct 19, 2008

While it's nice to see how other people reach their goals, we are each individual. We are given gifts in some areas, and have challenges in others. You sound so negative and concerned about an apparent gift-you sound to possibly learn information quickly. Perhaps you're an auditory learner and learn what you need from class. Appreciate this! You can focus on what YOU need to work on-some people need to study for hours to get good grades. They might have strengths where you have weaknesses, though. This is the kind of stuff that makes us interesting and unique. BE HAPPY :wink2: about your strengths!
I have all As so far. I study about 5 hours a day, but since studying for an exit exam, have added time on the weekends. I like learning, and actually enjoy studying. I think it's quality over quantity, though. For an hour to be an hour, it must be an hour spent focusing, for ex.
BTW, I absolutely keep my grades to myself. I'm almost certain I'm the top of my class, but that's just that. In the end, we're all nurses, and while I feel so much happiness about my grades, it's my business only. It will help me get into schools to reach my personal goals, but that's about it.

Thank you, amj! :)

I am very happy about my grades and gift, but it's hard for me to be happy when my friends are starting to hate me and get angry with me. Blah. I try to help them. I am like the other poster that likes to teach others and help them understand what we went over. I gave them a lot of mnemonics for memorizing stuff (like what order you go in to assess each part of the heart - aortic, pulmonic, Erb's point, tricuspid, mitral, which intercostal space each is at, where to listen for murmurs, etc), but nothing is working. I even made flash cards for all of us, and instead of letting them quiz me, I sat and quizzed them. Maybe they'll come around. I have taken those tests, and they all say that I'm a very visual learner. I can look over some material once and know it. Thank you for the encouragement. :)

180Chick · Oct 19, 2008

BTW, I absolutely keep my grades to myself. I'm almost certain I'm the top of my class, but that's just that. In the end, we're all nurses, and while I feel so much happiness about my grades, it's my business only. It will help me get into schools to reach my personal goals, but that's about it.

I didn't see this part of the post, sorry to make so many lol.

Trust me, it has gotten so bad that I TRY so hard to keep my grades to myself. When she hands the tests back, my friends lean way over and look over my shoulder, etc. Our grades for our last test just got posted on the internet Friday morning before class. My friend sends me a text message so early that she woke me up asking me if I'd checked it yet. I get on there and look and saw that I made an A. I didn't want to tell her that. She kept sending me messages asking me what I got. I said, "well, how did you do?" she said, "not so good. what did you get?" i tried to ignore the question by sending, "i can't believe that. we studied together, so i thought we would both do so well." she just kept asking until finally, I just typed 'A.' She said, "you suck! what am i doing wrong? we studied the same amount of time, right?" and i said, "yes. maybe we will just have to study harder. i will keep helping you." then she says, "i HAVE studied hard. you know that. and yet YOU do good." she hasn't talked to me since. this is getting ridiculous. every kid in class is like, "what'd you get? what'd you get?" i don't know what to tell them? should i lie and say a B-, barely passing? should i tell them my real grade? should i just say, "i don't want to tell you."?? that will make me sound like a snot, lol. do you have any experience or advice for this? i feel like people in class are starting to resent me like i'm the big dorky nerd or something. blah. i hate this.

amjowens · Oct 19, 2008

I didn't see this part of the post, sorry to make so many lol.
Trust me, it has gotten so bad that I TRY so hard to keep my grades to myself. When she hands the tests back, my friends lean way over and look over my shoulder, etc. Our grades for our last test just got posted on the internet Friday morning before class. My friend sends me a text message so early that she woke me up asking me if I'd checked it yet. I get on there and look and saw that I made an A. I didn't want to tell her that. She kept sending me messages asking me what I got. I said, "well, how did you do?" she said, "not so good. what did you get?" i tried to ignore the question by sending, "i can't believe that. we studied together, so i thought we would both do so well." she just kept asking until finally, I just typed 'A.' She said, "you suck! what am i doing wrong? we studied the same amount of time, right?" and i said, "yes. maybe we will just have to study harder. i will keep helping you." then she says, "i HAVE studied hard. you know that. and yet YOU do good." she hasn't talked to me since. this is getting ridiculous. every kid in class is like, "what'd you get? what'd you get?" i don't know what to tell them? should i lie and say a B-, barely passing? should i tell them my real grade? should i just say, "i don't want to tell you."?? that will make me sound like a snot, lol. do you have any experience or advice for this? i feel like people in class are starting to resent me like i'm the big dorky nerd or something. blah. i hate this.

I wrote that without apology. It's just a fact of how I handle myself, and it has to do with grades, the topic. You sounded like you were upset about hurting others by your good grades and lack of studying. I feel the same (although I study), as I have become close with a lot of my classmates and care about them vey much. If they felt the need to find out my grades, and so feel bad because they learned I earned an A and they got a C or something, that's their doing. In my experience, though, if I handle a situation from the start, by saying, "yeah, that WAS a difficult test", and find things that unify us, the grade issue doesn't really come up. I in no way implied that you must talk about your grades, as I have the feeling you are implying in the second post related. Since your grades are "out", for whatever reason, I just thought you might appreciate advice, but sorry about that.