MathHatingNurse

Your grades only suffer if you do not study right. I work 55 hours a week on a slow week and my grades have not suffered as a result.

My dad was 51 when he got his GED and went to college. He didn't go to nursing school, but he had to take some chemistry classes and stuff and he did very well. I have some older classmates in nursing school that are kicking butt. We are all graduating in two weeks!

Never memorize. Now, what worked for me may not work for everyone, but I found it a good way to condense information to make reviewing for exams easier. My method: read all of the chapters and take detailed notes. Take detailed notes in class. Take notecards and only put the important info (like stuff that is unique to the condition, procedure, etc.). Read these at least once a day. 48 hours before an exam, read through the chapters again (just read because you already took notes) and read your detailed notes. Then, the morning of the test, just look at your note cards. This sounds like a lot, but I promise it really isn't when you put it into practice. I work full-time, am raising my teen cousin and am providing full care for my gram. I also go to nursing schools full-time. This method has helped me to shave some time off while still getting all of the info and retaining it. I am not a straight-A student, but I am getting As and high Bs.

I want to say that you can be young and have a career. I have one and I am just 29 and have been going strong for nearly eight years. I am a journalist and web developer. It is my business that I created around the time the economy started to turn. I also hold two Bachelor's degrees (my nursing degree will be my third degree). I don't have a mortgage because I paid it off and own my home. However, a mortgage and rent is like apples and oranges. A mortgage is 10 times the responsibility because you just do not pay a mortgage. I have rented too, so I can compare the two. With a mortgage, everything is on you and you are not getting out of a mortgage for a fee like you can get out of a renter's agreement. Your mortgage is your mortgage unless you can sell and pay it off with the housing sale price. And, in today's economy, good luck with finding a buyer in a timely manner. I also pay cash and have zero student loans. As for what I bring to nursing, I bring work ethic and a proven track record of it. I bring leadership skills and the ability to communicate with all types of people (remember that we learned in Fundamentals that communication is key in nursing and previous careers generally build this skill quite a bit). I also bring time management, organization, etc. These are things that all career folks develop as they make their way up the ladder in their chosen profession. These things cannot be taught and, in my opinion, are built solely due to experience. This first paragraph is not to brag (though I am pretty darn proud of myself), but to show that age has no factor on lifestyle. I know tons of folks my age living as I do. I know tons of older folks living as I do. I also know lazy young folks with no direction and lazy older folks with no direction. I personally judge a person based on his or her own merits and I try (I say try because I am human) not to make assumptions. When it comes to who gets the job, this is something we only have partial control over. It is really up to the hiring manager. For example, you could be a rockstar, but if your personality does not click with your interviewer, there is a chance that you will not get a phone call inviting you for a second interview.

I agree completely!

I have to work at least 50 hours a week and will graduate from an accelerated program in 10 weeks. It's not easy, but if you organize your time well it is very possible.

We have one at the beginning of every semester and they get progressively harder. If you do not get at least a 90 percent, you fail the entire class. Nerve-wracking since I hate math, but I passed them all and graduate in about two months. Just keep current with the math by looking at it once a week for a few minutes and you will be good to go.

I think I will talk to my doctor. Years ago back in my early 20s, I did quit using Welbutrin and nicotine-free cigarettes. Since I cannot find that kind of cigarette anymore, I am thinking just some Chantix right after graduation. Again, big congrats!!! That is a huge accomplishment.

I think your best bet is to check hospital websites. You can go to the education section and get internship information, or at least contact information that you can call/email to inquire about internships. My school requires an internship so they help us find placement, thankfully.

Congrats!!!! Quitting smoking is incredibly difficult, so you should definitely be proud. I quit during Med Surg 1 and did well. I started again during the semester break because my job requires long hours, it is from home and smoking kept me awake. I know that is a really lame excuse. I am currently down to half a pack a day from a full pack and hope to quit completely by the time I graduate in August.

I have bought every single book from Amazon. Saved a ton and the shipping is fast and free. I tend to buy new because I feel I would be distracted by someone else's highlighting. School bookstores are just too expensive.

I have gone full-time and worked more than full-time throughout the entire program. I will graduate in August, so I have been doing this for two years now. It is not easy, but you can work and do classes.

I don't think so. I took Patho, Micro, A&P 2 and Nursing Fundamentals in a single semester while working 60 hour weeks. I was exhausted, but got it done.

Fiction. Once you start school, textbooks will be the only books you have time for, so read a few fun books you have been meaning to read :) And, as others have stated, just get things in order. Take a little time to relax a bit before your classes start.

I'm not sure about specific brands, but I found a really lightweight pair that had good support. The arch on my left foot is collapsing, so I needed something that would get me through those 13-hour clinicals. I found a pair of Nikes for $40 that fit just what I needed. I found the best thing you can do is go to the store and try them on. I probably tried on 20 different shoes the day I bought these and of the 20, this was the only one that really "felt right" to me.