Hi, I'm new and I wanted to know if I should take Chm1 & AP1 together...

coffeeaftermidnight · May 8, 2009

Hi Marggie,

Personally, I would take chemistry first and then a&p. Both are tough courses.

College English Comp I and II are also tough courses, as they are Gordon Rule classes (6000 word) and require a considerable amount of time.

Just my .02. :)

tfleuter, BSN, RN · May 8, 2009

No, I would not take those two classes together. Not b/c other's haven't been successful in doing so, but b/c this will be your first year in college and it is a much more challenging atmosphere than highschool. Not to discourage you in any way, but due to the fact that you barely graduated from hs, it would seem that you will need to improve on your study skills in order to do well in your classes from here on out. This is something you will gain in time, but it's best to start off with a light load/easier courses then to try and dive in with a difficult semester.

Here's where I'm coming from: I have 3 cousins who were all excellent students in highschool; all 3 of them recieved scholarships based on their academic performance. All 3 of them took heavy, challenging course loads (chemistry, physics, chinese, 16+ credit hours, ect) their first semesters in college and all 3 of them failed or nearly failed these courses and LOST their scholarships These were 3 very bright students who had taken AP classes in highschool and assumed that they were ready for the courses they had signed up for. But that 1st semester in college can really be the most difficult for a lot of people, there is a lot to adjust too. Not just the actual content in the class, but the additional responsibilites one takes on once s/he is no longer living at home. Plus there is always the temptation of hanging out with friends and enjoying your new found freedom :)

I don't want to discourage you and make you think you won't do well in your classes, you will if you put your mind to it and don't overload yourself!!! I graduated hs with a 2.7 gpa and didn't think I would ever be an A student, but here I am at 26 working to maintain my 3.8, which hasn't been easy, but totally worth it!!

Good luck in your future classes and keep us all posted on your progress! You are so young and have PLENTY of time to get your degree, so don't feel like you need to rush yourself through your pre-reqs to get into nursing school. Better to take your time and get good grades the first time you take the course :up:

on eagles wings, ASN, RN · May 8, 2009

Hello! Thank you so much. Yeah I don't want to put too much on myself either. I haven't even seen an adviser for this so I don't know. I have time to decide, but I do have to consider what you said. :)

on eagles wings, ASN, RN · May 8, 2009

Aw yes, thank you. No of course you haven't discouraged me. You are right! Thank you for your honest reply because that is what I really wanted. I don't want to mess up on this for sure! Haha I guess I feel like I have wasted so much time in the past that I feel like I need to rush but I shouldn't. Thanks!

~Mi Vida Loca~RN, ASN, RN · May 8, 2009

I took them together, both had labs and I didn't think it was not doable. It was challenging for sure, but it's absolutely doable.

daniedi77 · May 8, 2009

My advice would ne no. I took AP1 and other support classes, then I took AP2 and Micro together, them Chem. Don't wasnt to overwhelm yourself. AP1 is alot of info that you need to concentrate on. Good luck

on eagles wings, ASN, RN · May 8, 2009

Thanks you two. :)

on eagles wings, ASN, RN · May 8, 2009

Hmmm So if I were to take both separately, the best thing to do would be to take chem first?

monkeykiss · May 8, 2009

Hi Marggie,

I agree with what the others have said here; since this will be your first semester in college, there will be a lot of adjustments that you are going to go through, so I suggest take the chem first and maybe another easy class.

Lately, on campus, I see a lot of newly hs grad who would take on a full load semester with multiple hard science courses on their schedule thinking that college is just highschool, and then eventually dropping the class or worse getting an F and messing up their GPA.

Good luck.

on eagles wings, ASN, RN · May 8, 2009

Yes, I see. Well now in the summer I am going to take english, speech and psych for effectiveness(we have to take this stuff..) and I couldn't choose any science classes since they were taken(maybe it wasn't a bad thing?). So I think I am just going to figure out how I work under pressure and just work on my time management. I did pick up a few chemistry books at the library though, so I can start getting comfortable with this subject before I get it, since it would possibly come first.

Thank you!

brillohead, ADN, RN · May 9, 2009

Chem first, then A&P.

I just finished Physiology (my community college has Anatomy one semester and Physiology the next instead of A&P1 and A&P2), and the people who struggled in that class for the most part were people who hadn't taken Chem yet.

I believe there is talk of making Chem a pre-req for Physiology, because it's been a recurrent problem; all the programs that require Physiology also require Chem anyway, so it's not like anyone would be taking an additional class -- but it would increase grades / pass-rates for Physiology (our program requires a minimum of a B- in both Anatomy and Physiology in order to apply to the nursing program).

If you were a straight-A student in high school, I'd say it wouldn't be such a big deal. But since you only graduated HS "by a nose hair" and since you want to get the best grades possible, taking Chem before starting A&P is going to be in your best interest.