tara1245

Thank you all so much for the great advice. I was totally freaking out when I posted that but I've talked to my teacher and she's going to adjust my grade. She had two different due dates given for the completion of some of our work. I assumed the first date was correct and didn't see her announcement about the new date. Because she didn't revise the date on the Canvas calender she's going to accept the late turn in. It's an online class so you really have to keep on top of everything.

I've kept up a high gpa average but this year I failed intermediate algebra once and if I don't get an A on the final I'll fail again which will bring my gpa down to a 3.4. I can't believe I've done this after working so hard to pass with almost all As in my other classes. I actually like math and got an A on intro to algebra. The teacher was difficult in that she changed the due dates around for a lot of things with little notice but I knew that, having taking the class first semester. I feel terrible. I just didn't have the time to juggle my classes this semester with work but I really thought I was doing fine until recently. I don't even know if you can take a class again after this or if it would even help. How much weight will they give to these grades? Overall it's still a decent gpa, and I do have A's in Micro, Anatomy, and Chem. I feel like I just ruined my chances of getting in somewhere now.

I'm not a nurse but I have worked the night shift before as a med aide in a assisted living facility. The absolute hardest part for me was the fact that I would switch to a day schedule on my days off. I'm a natural night owl too but even then it was super difficult. Try to totally block all light coming into your bedroom and wear sunglasses on your drive home from work. If your insurance would cover modafinil that might be something to consider trying if you have a hard time staying alert during the adjustment period. (Modafinil - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia) You might want to try a light therapy lamp when you wake up to help reset your circadian rhythms. Avoid blue light from your computer or tablet in the hours before bed. I have a blue blocking screen that I use if I'm going to be using my notebook in the evening. (lowbluelights.com has them) I also like Flux which is a free program (f.lux: software to make your life better) for windows or apple. I find I tend to eat more when I'm sleep deprived and I had to make an extra effort to exercise and eat healthy to avoid gaining weight on that shift.

This is an eye opening thread for me. I'm finishing the pre reqs this semester for nursing school but I'm having second thoughts. The other career I was interested in, medical technology, pays somewhat less and would take longer to finish, but hey, at least I wouldn't have to relocate to find a job. It also seems like a less stressful job. I've worked with nurses and think I'd be a capable nurse but I also know how much responsibility the position comes with. It amazes me how many students think nursing is in demand and all they have to do is get their degree and everything will fall into place. It's quite possible the job market will be better when I graduate but at the same time, it seems like every other person I meet is going into nursing. Any advice would be appreciated. :)

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I took elementary algebra and college algebra as online classes and got A's in both. The classes used an online course, Pearson's Mymathlab. It's a combination of instructional video and math problems you do online. The videos were kind of boring but they did explain the concepts well. Each time you did a math problem you could see if you got the right answer- if not, you could select help me w/this problem and the system would walk you through it. That sort of step by step structure really helped me. I was horrible at math in high school. Also, khan academy online has great free math instruction videos with interactive problems.

What class did you find most difficult? Easiest? I've only taken A&P l and just starting with A&P ll now.

I worked for a very brief time as a cna. The hardest part is just learning how to lift and position people. I really learned that on the job after I took the class. The class and final test -very easy imo. The job itself? In a snf? Omg, that is a hard job. I have so much respect for good cnas.

I use flashcards but put them into an online flashcard site like Quizlet. That way I can take my phone or Kindle Fire and study anywhere. You can find great flashcards that other students have made on these sites and add them to your collection. For A&P some of the anatomy apps that I got on Amazon were really helpful. Some were free and the others were only a few dollars each.

Thanks, I'll look into it further. The pay is really good and it's only an associates. It's in demand here in California too.

I'm not able to live at home either. It's not always possible. I have 2 roommates and am super careful with my finances. We split utilities and the internet and it's so much cheaper than if I had a studio or one bedroom. Working part time, attending a community college, and being frugal has let me get by w/only taking out a few thousand in loans. From reading the other threads here I've learned that a lot of new grads are having trouble getting work. The nursing shortage seems to be a myth, at least at the present time. It does make me nervous even though it should pick up when the economy does. It seems like every other person in my classes is planning on nursing and it's making me consider other career options. I really want a good job right out of school and I'd prefer to not have to relocate.

Thank you. I think the economy has me second guessing every decision I make. Even the small amount I've had to take out in loans makes me nervous-I've never had any sort of debt before. I've also considered physical therapist assistant, ultrasound tech and med tech as careers. The pay seems low for the amount school needed for medical technicians though, and apparently there is a large oversupply of ultrasound techs. PTA appeals to me is some ways but I'm not sure I'd want to work in a long term care facility. No offense to anyone that does. I admire people that do work in them but I don't know if it's for me. I'll ask my counselor about job shadowing.

With A&P l w/lab I took college algebra, eng comp, and nutrition. I got a b in anatomy and a's in everything else. I worked a couple days a week but didn't work the last two weeks before finals. I'm disappointed with the b but I think I'll do better with A&P ll. Even though I'd always put the time in to study I don't think I learned how to study effectively until midway through the course. Nutrition was my easiest class by far.

I think a lot depends on the teacher. I took it online recently (w/a lab component) and it was hard, mostly because it was online and you really had to be motivated. Our teacher did not give us any idea of what we needed to know for our exams so I basically tried to memorize everything, which is impossible. I got a high b and I think I could have gotten an a if I applied myself more but it was so time consuming. This semester I'm taking my second semester A&P at my local community college. Some professors here have a reputation for being extremely difficult, others are lax. So it depends on who you get. Someone told me that one prof gave multiple choice questions with only 2 possible answers to choose from! My exams were fill in the blank or multiple choice but we had like 14 possible answers w/the multiple choice questions. The concepts aren't hard but it's just a lot of information to cover. As long as you put in the time and study you should be fine. My best advice is to get some muscle/skeleton anatomy apps for your phone. (if you have an android, iphone, kindle fire or Ipad there are some good anatomy apps available)

I'm thinking about going for my RN but reading about how difficult it is to get into nursing school is kind of discouraging. It seems like so many people are going into this now and schools are very selective. I took A&P last semester and got a B. I feel like this is almost a bad grade considering how competitive nursing school is. I'm still trying to decide what I want to do. Just looking for any advice. Have any of you considered other health related fields? Is it critical to get As in all your science prereqs?