pepperoni

Alright, thank you so much for your replies. Maybe I was misinformed that there was some shortcut for this busy clinical paperwork, but I could have swornnnnnnn they said something about it! Hence my frustration! :)

I have both the 2009 Mosby's Drug Cards and the reference handbook.... neither of which seem to be as helpful as I thought they'd be! I know there are new drugs all the time, but I can only find about 1/3 of what I need in either of these. The companion CDs that come with them aren't very helpful either. I thought there was some way we were able to copy and paste info from the drug cards or reference book from these discs to help cut out this busy work we are doing for clinical paperwork. Am I missing something?? Everything comes up as a PDF document, so I can't copy and paste, so I'm left trying to sift through the really important things and I've been typing out these drugs FOR HOURS! I've even tried doing internet searches for these drugs but even then I can't find a site that has everything I need, so I have to find different websites for different pieces of info. I am really frustrated!!! I am going to fail nursing school if I can't find a good shortcut for this, because all my time will be spent typing up drug info for clinical and I won't have time to study or do anything else for school! Basically what I'm asking is... what is your BEST drug reference for school? Something that I can COPY AND PASTE for this paperwork. I'll invest in it. I'm sooo frustrated and stressed with these stupid drug references that I'm getting acne LOL helppppppppppppppp!!!

I haven't had nightmares about nursing school yet, but I do dream vividly and remember my dreams probably 5 nights of the week on average. But since I started nursing school, that's ALL I dream about! It's like I cannot escape, and I wake up exhausted, because I am dreaming about vitals and clinicals and OMFGwhatisthenextstepinthenursingprocess?? I did have a dream the other night that my average for a class was 74%, and we need a 75% to pass LOL so I guess that could be considered a nightmare!

Hi, can we please discuss something BESIDES NURSING SCHOOL before/between/after classes? (Hahaha, I write this as I'm on a freaking nursing forum... :chuckle)

If I go to the gym at least 3 times a week during school, I feel good about myself. That was my motto during prereqs, and it's my motto in nursing school too! It really does make a difference. Some of my classmates are like, "WHERE do you find the time??" but my gym is about a block away from campus, so I pack my gym bag, and depending on when class gets out, I take a spinning/kickboxing/lift class, or I do 30 minutes on the treadmill and some abs. I'm not going to come out of nursing school looking like a fitness model, but I at least know I'll feel good! Does wonders for those days of pharm overstimulation too! :)

At our orientation, they were telling us how much weight nursing students gain because of the same reasons you just gave. So you are not alone. I will however say, the heavy students are the ones coming back to class from lunch with drinks from fast food places and stuff, where the average sized ones generally bring our lunches. Going out might seem time efficient, but it costs money and is usually heavy on the calories too. Having said that - I think you're taking a good step by changing your snacking and eating habits while you're in school. I bet you'll drop a few pounds by just doing that, if you stick to it. As for time for exercise, maybe you could take a couple brisk walks between classes? I know I get antsy and cranky sitting in chair after chair after chair for lecture after lecture after lecture, and I try to let my body move around as much as I can between classes (especially during lunch). Maybe you could park farther away from class? I know the time crunch is tough, but like I said, your changed eating habits are a good start! Good luck! :)

Also - I love the Prayer for the Nursing Student! :chuckle

I am laughing here reading about all the crying... I will be starting my third week in first semester on Monday, and have been doing really well in lecture and lab, but everytime I get to clinical or simulation lab, I am fighting the tears. Finally, on Friday, I broke down as soon as I got into my car leaving the hospital and bawled the whole way home! I couldn't hold it back anymore. I don't know what it is about clinical (or... maybe it's my clinical instructor? I really don't know...) that chokes me up but I hope I get over it soon! I'm just glad to see I'm not the only one shedding a few tears in first semester! :chuckle

We had a BP lab today, and I was flying through it with no trouble, heard everything perfectly on the manikin, but then I couldn't hear ANYTHING on any of my classmates! NOTHING! It was like my stethoscope was off or something, but it was on! I tried person after person and couldn't hear anything... I was getting so frustrated I almost cried... finally, I heard it! It's so sad too, such a basic, easy skill, and I was stressing like crazy over it because I couldn't HEAR it! Good luck, don't beat yourself up over it! Good luck to both of us on our pass-off! Yikes!

We have 2 chances to get a 90%. I am better at math than I think I am, but it still makes me nervous, and I'm afraid I'm going to freeze up and do something silly and fail.

I was alternate.... but I got my letter on Friday.... I'M IN!!!!

What a bummer!! I encountered this VERY SAME THING last week. It really, really ruined a few days for me, because I have no drama in my life and I like it that way. So when something sneaks in, I want it gone and try to squash it right away. Well, when I went up (very nicely I might add) and tried to find out what was going on, I was TOTALLY ganged up on by women in their 40's... and it turned out they were mad at me for something that had NEVER even happened. It was so wrong, they were sooo out of line. It made me sad because I make a concious effort not to **** people off, and here they hated me for something they have made up out of the blue. I am going to be in the program with these women, so I really wanted to get to the bottom of it, but they weren't having it. Girls are hard to get along with anyway, but this was the first time I've ever had a group of females as old as my MOM hate me for no reason. I was so upset that I had to leave class early... you know when you feel yourself start to crack and there's no stopping it? It wasn't just me, either, because the next class day, 2 people that I don't know came up and apologized for what had happened and asked if I was alright... the other ladies were just downright mean... I shook it off though, I mean, what more can you do with people like that? I tried... and then moved swiftly on to Plan B which was: Forget you crazy people then! I hope there are a nice group of people I can form a study group with come January.... :nuke:

Hey! I start my RN program in January and want to try and get a bit of a head start on my math calculations for those infamous tests! Math is not my strong suit (though I've surprised myself a few times... I'm better at it than I think I am!) so I want to feel confident in my skills going into the program... I know there is enough stress the first semester without worrying about math! I've read a few suggestions about the Math for Meds for nurses book by Anna Curren. I know things change all the time in medicine, but I was wondering if anybody had any input on if an older edition of Math for Meds would still be very helpful? Or should I empty my wallet for the latest (read: more expensive haha) edition? Thank you so much ahead of time!!

Wow... that's crazy! Isn't there a limit on how many times you can take that stupid test? At my school, we get 2 chances only.

I have to reply to this.... I took my Bio189 at CSN and it was THE HARDEST CLASS I have EVER taken. There were 45 people on the first day of class, not even enough desks for everybody, and on the day of the final... I was 1 OF 8 students remaining! I don't think this thread is talking about my teacher cause everyone is saying "he", and my professor was female. I studied my BUTT off and squeaked by with a C. No joke. I studied and studied and studied and when the test came, I felt like I was on another planet reading a foreign language... she literally encouraged students to drop, and was out to put a C on your transcript no matter what. I could not, for the life of me, score higher than a 67% on the exams... every exam... 67, 67, 67... if I hadn't had lab (25% of your overall grade) with another instructor, I would have failed for sure. I would go to her office for questions on my exams, and she would only say, "Well you should have known that." It was awful...

When I was at the community college, they told us that in classes like biology (where you get 2 or 3 chances to take and re-take it, depending), that a W COUNTED as one of those chances to take the class. I am not a quitter, and my anatomy prereq was so difficult that it was unfair... I am not joking, the professor ENCOURAGED students to drop, and I was one of eight remaining on the day of the final. And I wound up with a C -- hardest C I ever earned! It was ridiculous. Then I transferred to a state school, and the advisor saw that C and told me that I "should have just been responsible and withdrawn"... which totally baffled me. Point being, it probably depends on how your school views W's... as "being responsible" or as a point against you (in a way). Good luck! :)

My biggest issue with chemistry is that I just don't care about it... :chuckle The work itself isn't actually that difficult, it just doesn't intrigue me, I don't see the point, I don't care about valence electrons, I don't care how the pH has changed to this beaker of water when we add 5 drops of the solution, I don't care about chromatography or precipitate... I just don't care... which makes it a little hard to sit focused through the class!

Great thread! I am an alternate for Spring, but I'm trying to think like I'm already accepted.... just in case.. Once this Fall semester is over, during Winter break I'm planning on brushing up on my dimensional analysis. One of my friends in the program told me the other day, that a month into school you're given a math test, converting medications, and if you get less than a 90%, you fail. You only get 2 chances to pass, or you're out of the program, no questions asked. So I'm going to make sure I've got that done pat, because I know there will be other things to worry about once the time comes!

Ugh! That's what everyone is telling me... but thanks for the support! What sucks is, if the deadline had been 2 weeks later, I would have had my second session summer school grades in (3 classes!) and my GPA would have been a whole point higher... 3.21 to a 3.31! And I heard today the lowest they accepted was a 3.3! Which makes it even MORE frustrating! :angthts: One of my Mom's friends told me yesterday that her niece applied to law school and didn't get in, wasn't even an alternate, and she wrote the school a letter professing her love and passion for it and they accepted her that same semester.... so I'm going to try that, and point out that my GPA is a 3.31 NOW. I don't know how well it will work, but it's worth a shot! I really thought I was going to get in, I even bought the ultimate cliche... a sexy nurse costume for Halloween! LOL now what?!

Also, I heard that NSC's NCLEX pass rates are up in the 80's for regular track now, and that they need something like 3 consecutive graduating classes to pass with 80% or higher to get their full accredidation. Something like that. I really don't see them not fulfilling their accredidation requirements, there is too much on the line, don't you think? With the nursing shortage and state funding and all of that... I'll bet they get themselves together and pull through for full accredidation.

yeah, i got my letter today, and i applied with a 3.21 (if the deadline had been a few weeks later, i would have gotten my second summer school grades in, and applied with a 3.31... dang!) but anyway, i didn't make it in, but i am ranked #3 on the alternate list. but i agree, it is getting tougher, i realized that today. like i said about them accepting to a 3.2, and then i was denied, proves that they are getting tougher. that's not necessarily a bad thing for the school, i really want them to have full accredidation by the time i graduate, so i can go anywhere! :) in the meantime, fingers crossed that 3 people deny admission between now and january 1...

I applied for Spring 09 and got my letter today. I didn't get in, but I am ranked third on the alternate list. On one hand, third sounds great because it's only two spots away from 1! But on the other hand, that means THREE PEOPLE have to deny acceptance for whatever reason, and that seems like A LOT to me.... So... I guess right now I am an alternate hopeful LOL / Fall 09 hopeful. :stone

Thanks for the encouragement! Our program is nowhere near to accepting over 100 people... there are 40 spots but the last few semesters they've only been taking about 30ish people. One of my friends told me today though, that last semester 2 people they knew of got the alternate letter and got in. So fingers crossed! Thank you again! :)

Hi everybody... I got my letter today and I wasn't accepted but I am ranked third on the alternate list. I didn't post this in the Pre-Nursing forum because, well... I figured people actually in the programs would be a bigger help. :) I was just wondering if anybody knows a rough amount of how many people decline their offer or choose not accept for whatever reason? I'm sure this varies, but, I feel like being third on the alternate list is good, cause it seems close to the top, but... on the other hand, I keep thinking that that means THREE PEOPLE need to decline for whatever reason, and that to me seems like a lot! So frustrating. Thanks for your help! :redbeathe

There are so many different things floating around about this! I keep hearing that the last semester, they accepted about 20 people, and the lowest GPA was a 3.2. The advisor said they chose not to accept 40 students because a few semesters back, they were accepting all the way to a 3.0, and like half of the students had failed out of the program!! So this past semester they only went to a 3.2 and only 1 person failed out that semester. Makes sense to me...