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...it was repetitive, i seen the same illness everyday, so now Im in the hospital on a Pediatric unit and Im learning alot more. there are a variety of illness we treat and I wish I had done this first before going to a private clinic.... That is one thing that worries me. I am afraid of losing certain skills because in the private setting there is not a need to practice them. I do agree working the hospital should come first because of the experience that is gained with that type of setting. What if I am not able to offer much in the private setting because even though I would be an RN I would have no experience just textbook stuff?

There weren't many numbers that I knew of because the program was still in its infancy. But, the first graduating class which consisted of about 10, had about 8 students that passed on their first attempt on NCLEX. When I began my first semester the current dean at the time resigned without much warning and a new person took her place. Not saying that caused the school to go downhill but its as if everyone is still trying to make the program organized and function well and I was just caught in the cross fire.

Today I had my midterm for my Comprehensive course. It covered the function of the reproductive system, complications that could occur, assessments, interventions, and evaluations of those complications. The textbook that the reading came from is not a very good one, according to multiple instructors at the school but they continue to use it because they already told everyone to purchase it and made their lesson plans from it. They are in transition to changing to a new textbook and are implementing this change with the upcoming semesters. Now the exam was difficult....very difficult. I did my best and was able to work through about 70% of the questions. However, there were many questions that included terminology, procedures, interventions to implement, medications, and other things that I cannot remember, that I do not remember reading in the textbook. I even referred to my textbook (which I had brought with me....I know insane because its like 1000 lbs!) as soon as i came out of the exam to see if I missed reading it in the textbook but i still couldn't find it in the textbook. Example: One question asked, "What sign would indicate to the nurse that cervical cancer has metastasized in a patient? Choices: Amenorrhea, swollen leg, breast tenderness, and another choice i can't remember. I honestly did not know what to choose and guessed amenorrhea because it was closely related to the reproductive system. I tried looking in the textbook for the answer but it never even mentioned what to look for to assess if/when cervical cancer metastasizes. Of-course many people were outraged at the exam, stating it was unfair. I appreciated the difficulty of the exam but was upset at how unprepared I felt. Multiple people expressed their anger to the instructor regarding the exam and stated that there was content on it that was never covered. Instead of being angry at the instructor I was hard on myself for not doing everything needed to be prepared for the exam. I asked the professor if there were any other resources that should have been used in order to prepare for the midterm. I assume she was already flustered and she thought I was ready to blame her for my possible failure and became very defensive stating that everything on the exam came out of the textbook we were asked to read and that if we were unfamiliar with anything its because we didn't read and didn't take the exam seriously. Still trying to explain what I meant using the example of the cervical cancer question, she raised her voice and stated, "I'm not discussing the exam!" I don't expect to be spoon fed information and know that there is a lot of reading that goes along with these courses. However, if what I am asked to read does not include certain things than how am I supposed to know them. Should I automatically use multiple resources when preparing for exams even though professors haven't stated to use anything else? Was the question I brought up earlier something that needed more critical thinking than I thought and was not supposed to be clearly stated in the textbook? I feel as if the instructor may be also using the "new" textbook that the school will be transitioning too but she denies using any other textbook or resource. Any advice given will be well received and appreciated. Sorry for my long story.

Is there a difference between a Littman and no name brand stethoscope when it comes to auscultating? Could you hear more/better with a Littman?

Thanks everyone for the comments. The school I go to has very low pass rates for the NCLEX so i guess that's why I posed the question because it is only a 2 year program. The school lacks structure and organization and I am aware that most of the studying is done independently but it alarms me that so few graduates have actually passed the NCLEX. But, I am aware that it depends on how well the school prepares you and how much effort you put it in.

Is there a difference in how prepared you are when you take the NCLEX after only 2 years of nursing school (Associate) vs. 4 years of nursing school (Bachelor)?

Congratulations! Its awesome of you to put in the work, pass the exam and then come back and share your experience, and tips with those of us who will be taking the exam in the near future. Best of luck on your future endeavors!!

Haha! This made me laugh, I love the sense of humor. Grey's Anatomy has been my FAVORITE TV series. I know its not nursing necessarily that the show is about but the moral and friendship between the workers is something I hope to have with the fellow nurses I eventually work with.

Thank you for your thoughts. I will keep them in my mind when I have to make my decision.

I have been working at a pediatric office for over 4 years. I started as a receptionist and went to nursing school in the interim. Now that I am graduating in 2 months my job wants to me to stay at the practice as a pediatric RN. I am really excited that they want me here but I think that there is a difference in working at a private office as an RN instead of a hospital. The practice I work for has never had a Peds nurse, only medical assistants. I would be the first and only one which puts a lot of pressure on me. I have no children of my own and I am afraid that certain skills and knowledge will start to become a distant memory since there are limited things to do at a pediatric practice. Any suggestions?

Thank you so much for sharing this video with me. I appreciate the response and will definitely keep everything you wrote in mind.

So encouraging to read the stories of those who passed NCLEX, are studying for NCLEX, or did not do well at first but will not let that stop them. Good luck to all of you!! I am in my last semester of Nursing school However, I do not feel as if I am at the level I should be at in order to take my exam in October. My school is still making improvements in the program and the organization isn't quite there. I am taking 2 Comprehensive Nursing Courses for my last semester which includes a mixture of Endocrinology, Cancer, AIDS, hematology, Reproductive System and other things. My school has us enrolled in the online Kaplan program which allows us to go through practice questions and gives us access to other resources. I am not sure I am up to par with the knowledge I should have by now. Has this ever happened to anyone? Is this normal?

Hope you had a great first day. I start my program July 15th in NYC

I was in an RN program and that used the ATI program and it was so helpful. Now I'm in a school where they use the Kaplan program and Im not sure if it would be just as good as ATI.

OMG! (Total jaw drop) So I live in NYC and I will be attending the LPN program beginning July 15th. Guess what the cost of the LPN program there is... Total Cost>>>>>> 25,000 (yes, total jaw drop) The schools you guys are attending are so much cheaper I wish my program was like that. Length of program: 18 months Lecture Hours: Monday- Friday 5:30-10pm