futurepractitioner1

Hey all, I am a 2nd year nursing student, and I was recently hired by a hospital to work a mix of night, day and evening shifts at a hospital right near my home.... a little stressed because I am still in school, (In my 2nd/3rd year of a BSN program). Has anyone done this while in a nursing program, and if so, is it really possible to study/function where two days per week you've only been able to sleep for 3-4 hours? When push comes to shove, I'll make it work...and as not to burn myself out- if it is just too much to do nights, I'll have to cut back to days/eves..... Words of wisdom, words of warning....words of advice (other than telling me that I'm out of my mind for doing this). Thanks!!

Which classes are you taking? Are you going to be in NB or NWK? I'm a NB student, but I'm taking my Spring semester in NWK because it's closer to my home. I'll be in clinicals as of next Fall, so if you're in NB, we might be in class together...

I had been accepted as a sophomore. I don't know the situation with bringing in students as juniors. All of the students who I know that have been accepted are in the class of 2014, as it's rare that a student would have taken every lower level nursing course before transferring from another Rutgers school. Are you a current Rutgers student?

What a horrible feeling... and then on top of it, there is anxiety about having the anxiety! I had this issue in my first college Chem class...it's a frightening and debilitating feeling. You might be shifting too much performance pressure on yourself as you're wanting to do well, and at the same time...that pressure is killin ya. You've got the rest of your nursing career ahead of you, and I think it's important not to lose sight that each test is only one of a million chances that us future nurses will have to prove what we know and how we are able to communicate out knowledge. Make sure you have some fun in your life and shift some of your focus onto enjoying your experience in school!...this works for me.

I visited the school a couple of years ago and wasn't impressed. I took an "entrance exam" so that they could assess my basic skills...the test was ridiculous! They charge a lot for tuition, and the admissions person who I spoke with didn't know the difference between LPN and an APN. After I left, they called me bi-weekly to try and get me to enroll.......even after I told them that I was not interested. Have you visited the "Campus"? It's a small building on the Highway, that could easily be mistaken for a Taco Bell. Eeeeeehhhhhhh not so much.

A friend of mine with a sick sense of humor went in for a physical, during which the doctor examined his prostate. After the exam, my buddy says to the doctor, (to my disgust, disbelief, but entertainment): "If I give you a dollar will you do it again?!" --- I can't imagine what the doctor's face looked like after that! "

I was in this exact position last year--it's awful!--so sorry to hear your predicament. Are there no evening nursing programs in your area?-- That would be an amazing option to start with. I can just tell you from personal experience that even if your job is absolute torture during the day, and you are taking nursing courses that you love at night-- you will most likely be at peace until you transition towards a new job--which is what I did... As soon as I had begun school in the evenings after working all day in a job that I was miserable doing. I was not planning on an exit, but rather trying to find a way to create a balance between Nursing and what I was doing, as I was too making a decent living. Unfortunately, the company that I was working for had closed. Now two years later, I am now enrolled full-time in one of the country's top Nursing Colleges completing my BSN and moving on to obtain my FNP degree. While I'm happy that I'm finally on my way towards doing something that I have passion for, I haven't been working since I lost my job, and things have been very stressful financially. I know how hard it is to juggle school with work and most importantly- family. If it's the time constraint of dealing with everything at once, and you really feel the need to make a better work-environment for yourself, then it's important to do it. I just urge you to be as conservative about how you do it as possible, so as not to create even more stress for yourself. In other words-- Don't quit until you know exactly how you will somewhat comfortably take care of your finances. It would be awful if you made a huge transition, and then had to put the brakes on your endeavors because you couldn't support yourself in that lifestyle. I would urge you to cover your bases financially by either pushing towards an evening job, even if it's another CNA job temporarily until you get established in school, unless you have another means to bring in some income to cover essentials. If it's at all possible, you should really seek some council so that you have a professional to communicate with. This helped me so much that I can't even tell you! It's amazing what focus you gain just hearing yourself speak outloud about your anxieties and concerns about major decisions like this. Best of luck my friend-- (oh, and PS....28 is soooooooooooooooo young--please don't feel like your "running out of time" lol :)-- you've got the rest of your life to find happiness...and you seem to have begun on the journey towards making it happen.

Hmmm....I wonder if they're worried that us nurses will try to skip out on paying our hospital cafeteria bill lol!

I'm a Psych minor...great compliment to Nursing, especially if you take some of the physiologically-related courses like Neuropsychology and Physiopsychology. So many of our patients will have the need for us to tend to problems due to stroke. It has also done a great deal for me in helping people cope with emotional issues. I'm an EMT...and I can say that on the field..having a Psych background has done wonders for me. For me it was easy to complete the Psych minor because I was aiming to graduate as a Psych major and then apply to accelerated programs, but I transfered into my University's traditional program as a Nursing major with a Psych minor completed. I might double major in Psych and Nursing if my school lets me... Best of luck!! ... minor if your schedule allows and if you think you'll enjoy and benefit from a subject.

It's his fault for dishing out the rolls before serving the weiners... She probably wanted the Sweet Italian Sausage over the Knockwurst that was on the buffet line.

Organic Biochemistry was awful for me... not really that hard to wrap my head around if I organized my time and memorized things within an inch of my life, but it took me a good month of the semester to find my groove and figure out how to take the exams for my Chem professor. Also, my professor also only gave us a max of 30 questions per exam, so it was pretty easy to get a low grade if you didn't perform well on a particular test. A&P was so interesting that I didn't mind the insane amount of reading and lab-work involved. Microbiology was kind of cool because I like to look under the microscope...and I loved playing with the idea of adding different types of bacteria to the different mediums. (I loved the lavender color of the Litmus milk after it reacted lol!). Sociology, Psychology, English and Math were a lot of work as well...but I loved Developmental Psychology-- it involved writing about 5 papers, but all-in-all I really got a lot out of it.

I don't think it's a bad idea to tell her the exact truth... I'm in a traditional track program, but my best friend is in an ADN and I barely get to see her anymore, which I understood would be the case when she began. You should let your friend know how you feel and also that this lack of availability is all temporary. The lack of money to fly part is also huge, but probably secondary to the time-factor. It's not only up to us nursing students to try and make time when it's reasonable or necessary to do so, but having the understanding of our loved ones is just as important, at least I feel. My opinion...hope this helps at least reaffirm things a bit. I'm sure that you are an amazing friend...or why would you be so consumed with this situation.

Hi MC, Helena really explained that well, and not much more to add than you should visit the different websites for each school and see what each one requires as prerequisites. I was in exactly the same boat as you! So sorry to hear that you are going through this!! I ended up taking one year of general nursing courses at community college, then spent the following year towards finishing a Psych minor at Rutgers, New Brunswick. Recently I enrolled at the Rutgers College of Nursing's BSN program to which I put in a transfer. (My plan was to graduate with my Psych BA and apply to accelerated nursing programs...but the regular track BSN felt more right for me and was more well-suited to my learning style). Good luck and let us all know what you decide to do. There are really only a few options which Helena explained... you just need to figure out which option feels right for you. Best of luck!

I like this site because it allows me to communicate and exchange stories with peers. peace!

This thread is a little creepy I must agree. But...whatever.....just sayin.