Older students biased against younger students?

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First let me say that I'm not trying to start an argument on this thread, but I want to bring to everyone's attention a situation I was in yesterday.

Soo, yesterday morning I went to register for summer courses and I was standing in line between two very nice women who were in their early 30s (I am 20). We were all talking about the nursing program etc and both women started talking about how this was a second career for them and they feel that older people should receive spots in programs over people straight out of high school because they are wiser and have more life experiance. Usually I would just brush comments like these off (even though I am not just out of high school, I have been taking pre-reqs since I graduated in 2007 and have been accepted into a program for Fall 2009), but they would not stop going on and on about teenagers and even people in their early 20s not knowing what they want to do with their lives. I really take offense to this because I'm working very hard to achieve my goal of becoming a RN, does anyone else come in contact with people that have this same mindset?

In my class, it was the younger "traditional" students that laughed and talked through lecture, skipped classes, failed tests and blamed everyone but themselves, showed up to clinicals unprepared, and were an all around pain in the butt. They were still in the high school mindset and it ticked off the rest of us. I'm sure they thought us older students (and I'm not that much older than them) were total losers and way too uptight. But we were the ones that were taking nursing school seriously. Some of them passed, although I'm not sure how. But a lot of them dropped out or failed. I have a hard time feeling bad for them.

And to the person that was mad about the 62 year old saying he was going to retire in two years, it doesn't matter how long someone plans to be in a profession. If they want to take the time, effort, and money to get a nursing degree, who are you to say he shouldn't? There are plenty of people that go into nursing, work for two years and decide it isn't for them. Someone could argue the other way that older students should have preference over the younger because the younger ones have more time to pursue their degree.

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Specializes in Psychiatry.
Uggh, thats the reason I hate non-trads right there. They think they are entitled to more because they are "old wiser blah blah". I find that the non trads are the ones that are having more diffiuclt in the skills area[/i] and the theory area because, well at least ours, think they know eveything already. Oh well. Brush it off and get myself through.

I take serious offense to your post.

BTW, I'm 38 and graduating THIS month, in the top third of my class.

Your comments are unfounded and biased. And very offensive to me.

Ridiculous post! Grow up.

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Specializes in Psychiatry.
. It makes me wish that sometimes they would place the accelerated students (fast track program for students with a degree already) in their own classes..

Brilliant. I love your idea of segregation for us "non-traditional" students. Then we wouldn't bother you younger ones, eh?

Where do I sign up? I'm dying to know....:banghead::banghead::banghead::banghead:

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Specializes in Case management, occupational health.

I am 36, this is my second career. I have to admit I do get very frustrated with a lot of the young nursing students. Some are wonderful, take school seriously and I have learned from those students.

However the majority of the younger students in my program spend most of their time whining and complaining that the test questions are not fair, mad that the instructors did not tell them question by question what was going to be on the test. They ask stupid questions because they were not listening, they talk and gossip throughout lecture and then ask the very same question someone else asked 10 minutes prior. They want the instructors to hold their hands through everything, not taking responsability for their education. They skip class, or spend the entire class texting back and forth to each other.

My biggest frustration is having to listen them complain over and over how they just don't have time to study- they live on campus,are single, no children and do not work. The older students have familes and jobs and we find time to study. I am a single mother, working full time and going to school full time and I make the time to study,and up until this semester I have maintained a 4.0GPA, (I currently have a B in Med/surg so this may be the end of the 4.0)

The attitude of these students makes me think that if they do manage to pass NCLEX that they are going to be horrible coworkers, blaming others for their mistakes, and laughing at patients with problems in the groin area.

I do get angry when I feel like these younger students are intefering with my ability to learn, their actions are distracting to other students as well as the instructors. I have sacrificed a lot to go to nursing school and I expect to get the education I deserve and these immature brats take away from that. I actually almost got into an argument yesterday at the library. We have a quiet floor of the library, it is supposed to be a total silence floor, there are signs every 5 feet,descrptions of the floor on the elevator etc. I was studying for a big test and a fellow nursing student kept texting with it ding-donging every time she got a text, then she procedeed to make a phone call, loudly laughing for over 20 minutes when I finally went over and said something to her, and she was mad that I said something. Common curtousey seems to be totally lost with young college students. Even the ones that I think are working hard and taking the program seriously, still rudely text during class or talk loudly on their cellphones in study areas,and even in the clinical setting. Today in post confrence one girl was texting her boyfriend the entire time, by the end the instructor was so mad she banned all cellphones and PDA's from clinical. Now those of us who had our Drug book and other medical programs downloaded to our PDA/smartphones can no longer use them in clinicals.

Our program is starting to give preferential admittance to those with prior degrees, and I am sure past experience with young students is one of the main reasons for this change

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Specializes in Psych..

I see the usual annoying behaviors we all observe and complain about that happen in lecture and clinical, but it comes from both the younger and older students in my class. I don't think "annoying and entitled" has any age restrictions.

And I also have fellow students, both younger and older than me, that I respect and admire.

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Specializes in ortho, hospice volunteer, psych,.

BTW, I'm 38 and graduating THIS month, in the top third of my class.

Just blow her comments off.

:balloons::balloons::balloons::balloons::balloons::ancong!::yeah::yeah::yeah:Finally... you're a :nurse: at last! Enjoy!!

sharpeimom:paw::paw:

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Specializes in Psychiatry.
Just blow her comments off.

:balloons::balloons::balloons::balloons::balloons::ancong!::yeah::yeah::yeah:Finally... you're a :nurse: at last! Enjoy!!

sharpeimom:paw::paw:

Thank you, I really appreciate that :grad:

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I am one of the "older" ones, at age 46, and my current lab partner is in her early 20's. I have been a nurse longer than she, but I value her insight and her thoughts. She's a smart gal, and I appreciate her!

We work well together as a team. I have the experience and knowledge of long term care situations, and she brings to the table, the knowledge of a hospital float nurse.

I don't think age matters in many situations, it's what you make of it. If you go to college determined that you are going to be upset and angry cause the older students don't treat you with the respect you deserve, or that the younger students are all just there to goof off, then that's exactly what you're going to get... a bitter, lacking experience that leaves YOU lacking.. as a nurse.

I am in school AGAIN.... some of you know my story, most of you probably don't, but I refuse to allow my chance at MY dream to be disrupted by bias and attitude.

I'm in school for me....and I want it to be a wonderufl time in my life, not one I remember with bitterness.

Enjoy yourself, and don't worry about what others do or say!

~Blessings!~

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Specializes in ortho, hospice volunteer, psych,.

Glad to help. Nursing was a second career for me and I remember how hard the math and some of the sciences seemed. I survived but for someone with degrees in creative writing, that level of math especially, was a shock to my system! Good luck to you both -- Diane and Julie. :icon_hug:

Hugs,

Kathy

sharpeimom:paw::paw:

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Thank you for your opinions. I just want to clarify that I used the term "older" simply because they are significantly older than I am. I have been in classes with fellow 20 year olds as well as 60 year olds and I really do feel like it's all about the individual, not the age. This is why it just erked me with what these women were saying, and for some of you posters... this wasn't a thread for you guys to vent about the younger people in your programs, you cannot group people together because of age because clearly not every traditional student is like that, the same way I am saying that not every non trad has the viewpoints shown on this thread.

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Specializes in NICU.

I'm 20 and I typically hang around the 'non-traditionals' as someone referred to them. They've got great stories, and we have a tendency to be smart-mouths (to each other, never to the profs).

Anyways,there are people from all ages and walks of life who don't seem to take it seriously or need spoon-feeding...the comments from the two women was rather ridiculous.

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Im 18 and hear that stuff alll the time. Dont worry about it dear theyre just jealous that we found out what we wanted to do early in life. Good luck with everything :]

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