Fall Semester

[Marysan767]

Okay so this is my last semester before I apply to nursing schools this upcoming winter and ironically all the harder classes are saved for last. I've taken all my general Ed's including nutrition and have predominately B's in all my classes with 2 A's and one C in micro which I accept, because I hated that class with a passion. I am however nervous this semester because I'm taking heavy classes which are A&P, Chemistry, Stats, and Math 141. I also work full time. I know i can work under pressure because I typically take up to 5 classes each semester while working full time to pay for them. I'm 20 years old btw. and have managed to maintain A's throughout, and usually end up with a B because I suck on finals.

So the question is what are some tips that I can obtain to get at least B's in all my classes this fall. I also possibly will be volunteering 4 hours a week at the hospital next to my community college.

[Simplistic]

So you are planning on taking 2 science classes and 2 math classes in 1 semester? O.o AND you are planning on working? That is a recipe for disaster. You should be aiming for A's, and not B's. I highly advise AGAINST taking that course load.

[ItsThatJenGirl, CNA]

I concur with the above. I did full loads every semester, and while I did take two sciences at once, I took two other easier classes with them. I also volunteered and while I didn't work, I homeschool my kids.

If you want to remain competitive, you really should be aiming for A's and not settling for B's. Can you take A&P, Chemistry and Math, then Stats in the summer?

That's not to say it can't be done - just that IMO it's not worth the risk.

Good luck.

[confettireads, BSN, RN]

I agree with Simplistic. I'm more of a humanities gal, so in my opinion two science AND math classes will be rough! Grades are a big part of nursing school admissions, so you want to aim for all A's in the next semester(s)!

I would advise you either decrease the workload and work full-time (splitting current workload and applying for a later semester... don't worry, it won't kill ya! I had to do this...), OR you can work part-time or PRN for now while tackling this upcoming semester head-on! Just find a balance. You'll have time to really focus on what you are studying so that finals won't be so hard!

Good luck! :)

[Marysan767]

Thank You so much for responding,I'll most likely be decreasing the work load for this semester to focus more on school. I know myself and can definitely work under pressure.

[ayuhime, BSN]

I hate micro with a passion too! Are you seriously planning on taking that many classes in one semester? That is major overload. If you are able to get all A's then go for it. You said that you work well under pressure, but your grades prove otherwise. Nursing schools will accept B's, but like everyone else said, an A is better. How competitive is this school? What is the AVERAGE GPA that the school accepts. You should also look at how many people applied compared to how many people got accepted. These are all things to consider and then evaluate how hard you need to do to push yourself while taking these prerequsites. It's okay to get a few B's, but getting all B's is is not the best nor the greatest either.

You said that you have a C in micro. A lot of schools would not accept C's. I know for the sciences, most schools only accept B's. From now on, I would recommend for you to get all A's for the rest of the prerequsites and you should be fine. My advice to you is to have effective time management. Which means focusing on what you need to study. I did pretty well on my prerequsites and I only focused on what I needed to know. I never even opened my textbook and I only focused on the powerpoints and whatever was discussed in lecture. Taking good notes and reviewing the notes/powerpoints after class is very important.

[Marysan767]

Thanks for responding, I'm not trying to be an under achiever but I'm almost certain with A's and B's whether predominantly B's, along with volunteer hours, I'll be able to get into nursing school because there are people with far worse who have gotten in. I currently only have one C and that honestly had to do more with the teacher than the students as a majority of the students had c's and below. Worst teacher I've ever encountered. I've looked up all my teachers along with their reviews and I have fairly really good teachers and or teachers I've already worked with before. I've bought study tools, cliff notes for anatomy I'm fairly prepared. I've also narrowed down 10 schools I'll be applying to and have looked at their acceptance rates along with GPA's and they are pretty decent.