bigboy18

Congrats! I Graduate on may 14th!! :)!

Were you expecting nursing school to be easy?... You really should have done more research and understand what you got yourself into before getting paying 30k. It's your fault for not getting all the info you needed before paying..so I wouldn't put all the blame on the school. (Most private colleges that offer the 1 year LVN program don't care about you, they just want your $$) I'm 19 years old and I have no prior medical experience or work experience for that matter. I went into the program when I was 18 right out of high school. Math is not my best subject, in fact I needed a tutor just to understand basic arithmetic which cost me $300. My tuition was $22k and I did the 1 year program as well. With that said, there are plenty of students in my class who struggled; me being one of them. But, if you put 20k or 30k into something you've been wanting to do, than you do whatever it takes to pass. I studied my butt off and so did the rest of my classmates. All but 2 out of 30 failed within the first semester. The rest of us passed and I am now in my last practicum/preceptorship. (I graduate in 2 months) If you are struggling in the first semester, I suggest you talk with your instructors or school advisers and see if you can work something out. Do not give up. I know a handful of classmates of mine that have been out of school for many years, have a family and some even have jobs and they all made it. So to answer your question, it IS possible to graduate from the LVN program without prior medical experience or no schooling in years. And no, coming straight out of high school hasn't helped me in this program. Your instructor will be your best friend in this program. They are there to guide you if you are struggling in understanding something. USE THEM! Best of luck :)

19 yrs old here.. Entered my LPN program at 18... graduating this year May 14. I could've worked as a nurses aid (RCA) when I was younger..but I really had no ambition to do anything back then...

i'm in LPN school..and my tuition cost me $22,000. I used a loan from the government and only have to pay the remaining $8000 which I'm almost closed to finishing. To all the people saying don't be an LPN/LVN because places aren't hiring or it's a waste of time, well IT ALL DEPENDS ON WHERE YOU LIVE. I live in BC Canada and hospitals are hiring and so are LTC facilities. I'll be making roughly $24/hr once I graduate along with benefits if I go fulltime. Besides, I would have been on the waiting list for 1-3 years (For RN) since classes get filled up so fast here. The private college I applied for had no waiting list and it's only a 1 year program. Do some more research. Good luck

Congrats!!! :) I graduate on May 14.

I'm on a medical floor basically. My instructor will be sending 2 of us slowly to med-surg floor and having us experience that. Everything's going fine with my acute clinical and our instructor is making sure we are not making any mistakes by having us go slow. As for preceptorship, thank you for the advice. Hopefully I get acute again, but I wouldn't mind giving Long term care a shot. I already only have 4 more weeks left of acute (It's going by so fast) and than I go straight to preceptorship. I'm excited and nervous at the same time.

Hi all, I'm an Student Practical Nurse and I was just wondering if any of you have any tips on working in these settings. I have 2 more months to go before I graduate. 5 weeks for acute and 5 weeks preceptorship (My school instructors decide where I'll be placed either LTC or acute). Somewhat nervous but I feel I can make it. The acute hospital I'm at has A LOT of elderly patients. I felt like I was back to geriatrics..but this is only because of the location the hospital is in (A lot of retired old folks live in this area where the hospital is in) Today was my 2nd day there and it was boring. A girl from a different class got sent home today cause she screwed up on her charting and flow sheet record. She also misspelled a lot of things and didn't have some of her prerequisites completed (she seemed a little too hyper..so I'm glad she's gone) and she tried blaming the clinical instructor by telling the director of the school that she didn't need to check the charts so it was okay for her to chart. The setting felt really.. laid back and it was not what I was expecting for an acute hospital. I was expecting something more like the TV shows you see on TV (ER, House, greys etc) But nonetheless, I have to pass it.. and I can't fail!!! I MUST pass...last semester's clinical, I made a huge med error which almost set me back another semester but luckily with a lot of convincing, they passed me. So far so good. I haven't made any errors nor have I shown any nervousness. So any tips would be appreciated!

damn, this is just unfortunate. that's so weird how you don't have any re-writes like my school. we have 3 "life-lines" and if we use them all up than we have to repeat the semester. but in your case, it was only the first semester.. and i know there was a lot of time, effort and energy spent during those couple of weeks but understand that this ain't the end of the world for you or your career (obviously). i'm 19 years old (with no background knowledge of anything related with nursing) and i was also nervous when it came to quizzes and tests. and in your case, skills testing really got the best of me. i literally begged my instructor to pass me one time and it was no use. they have a cold heart when it comes to finals because you must understand that you are dealing with lives. they want to make sure that you're well prepared before sending you off to clinical. so next time breathe, visualize and ask yourself if you really want this. i did this before all my finals and it calmed me down a fair bit. this was a quote i lived by in nursing school..i'm not sure if it'll help you but i'll share it with you anyways. "to accomplish great things you must not only act but also dream, not only plan but also believe" i wish you the best of luck..don't be so hard on yourself. find another school, do more research and hopefully next time around you'll make it!

Hey chubbs, I have no prior experience with the medical field as welll. I'm only 19 and went straight into nursing school, so I guess you can say we're in the same boat kinda. How long was my program? 12 months (from 730am-1130pm). I had Christmas break... but no summer break lol. What in your opinion was the best part of being a LPN student & what was the worst part? The best part for me was to finally feel like a professional and knowing that I can do it even though it took many sleepless nights and hours studying to get where I am. Also, helping people is really the best feeling in the world! The worst part for me was dealing with a lot of girls that liked to gossip (seriously, there were some 20+ year olds that acted like they were 12) and everyone picking on me because of my age (jokingly) but there were a select few that actually meant to insult me for whatever reason. Another thing that I hated, was dealing with the administration of the private college I went to. They only wanted my $$ and never once did they really acknowledge me after I got into the program. That made me mad. Do I have free time? I tried balancing everything out..but it didn't always work. It's true..you really won't have a social life unless you're really good at management. Personally, I can't do that because I tend to forget things easily and do it last minute (haha, i did this a lot in NS). Just go out on Friday and Saturday. You probably will find it easier in the first semester to go out on weekdays and what not..but 2nd and 3rd? forget about it...then again, it all depends on you. The last thing I'd like to say...know and understand what you're getting yourself into. There were like 3-4 people who dropped out because either the material was too hard, they had a family (kids) to take care of or they just weren't interested. So before you waste your $$ do some research!!! ...in the end it really pays off Best of luck!

No, but I graduate in May! Study hard..it's going to be over before you know it. Best of luck! If you need any advice feel free to message me :)

Im in my last semester..in fact my last final is tomorrow and im completely burnt out..I just want to go on a vacation asap.

I'm in my last semester (LPN) and i'm extremely nervous. we have to remember 3 problems and in each of those problems include: S&S, risk factors, nursing dx, assessment tools, pre/post-op teaching, pre/post-op meds. The three scenarios are: #1. Hip fracture with atrial fib and asthma #2. Hysterectomy with Hx of fibroids, diabetes & obesity #3. Motor Vehicle Accident (Craniotomy) My exam is tomorrow...and we gotta do head to toe assessment, and a bunch of other skills (catheterization, dressing change, IV etc) So nervous..I've come this far and theres no way I CAN FAIL....but i'm having panic attacks..as we speak...So far i've passed every single final i've had..but this one just seems to scare me the most because of all the things I have to remember Any words of encouragement??

Congrats!! But let me get one thing straight..you said you started off with 27 students and only 4 graduated? Glad i'm not going to your school My last final is tomorrow...and I head off to clinical for another 2 months and I graduate! :)

I see... well, it shouldn't be your responsibility to tend to their every need... But as for people calling you "scared"..i find that very silly of them to say.... You always gotta watch your back...in hopes that you don't get sued! Good job for being assertive :) Just keep referring them to their physician or nurse's line !!

I'm in my last semester for LPN..and I learned how to take out stitches lol....