IanTeig1982

I don't have any specific examples. I will say when I've taken more "official" tests, HESI, etc. I do far better in regards to rationale. Let me say too, I really love my facility/instructors; but I'm not entirely sure where they are getting their questions. I'm not sure if they are formulating the questions themselves? It just doesn't seem the are obtaining them from a standardize repository. I'm fairly well versed with testing formats and question styles, I guess I've noticed questions where the wording/stem doesn't match the possible options. I've worked full time as a Defect Prevention Specialist, where my job was to find the subtle defects/issues that most people miss; I think that's probably the root of my problem, I have a hard time turning off analyzing EVERYTHING. I'll spare my full speech regarding Internet anonymity; I believe in being transparent, at the same time putting your true self out there. If you conduct yourself with professionalism and integrity, there is little to fear. There will always be people who judge you and certainly you put yourself at some risk. I choose to be bold. I do appreciate the advice. :)

Again, I can't express enough my appreciation to all of you who responded. It most certainly helped ease my anxiety and doubts. UPDATE: It is possible! I've been working 36-40 hours a week and doing okay. Very true, that between work and school there is not much room for anything else, but it can be done. If anyone is interested, I posted my latest nursing school struggle: https://allnurses.com/nursing-student-assistance/nursing-student-struggles-916106.html. If anyone has some helpful advice, I'm all ears! Again, thank you.

Hey everyone, Need to vent a little and I need some advice. I'm currently a 1st semester nursing student. I'm very intelligent. I have background in the mental health field and IT defect prevention. I have very strong analytic & critical thinking skills. Additionally, I am understanding the material very easily; and I do enjoy learning about this stuff. However, I'm just making the grade so to speak; barely passed Fundamentals/Concepts. What I'm really getting frustrated about is the subjective nature of these questions. The vast majority of questions that I end up getting wrong are questions that I just happen to analyze differently; the other component is that my instructors acknowledge my answer & analysis are not wrong, but they rarely can tell me why their answer is better. No amount of extra studying would have necessarily changed my mind to my thought process. I understand this notion to be one of the major frustrations of nursing school: here's 4 right answers, which one is best? But I'm really getting my ass kicked with these questions. I've also noticed these types of questions get posted around nursing website and forums, and rarely is there a consensus; usually an argument/discussion over the top 2 choices. I'm really worried that I'm not going to be able to pass these courses, even though I feel like I have the ability, skill set, compassion, and attitude to be a good nurse. Please, any advice how I can get better at this or tips how to get into my instructor's heads to figure out what they are looking for, would be more appreciated. Thank you and regards, Ian aka Mr. Free-Time

I can't express enough my appreciation to all the posts! Thank you, everyone! Definitely feeling better about this upcoming adventure. Seems like I'm taking the right steps and doing the right things to set myself up for success. Again, thank you so much!

I have been accepted in my nursing program that I've been working towards for a couple years. I currently work full-time and unfortunately this cannot change, as I am my family's only income/health insurance. I would said my non-healthcare employer is being very supportive with letting me set my own schedule to fit work around school. I have gladly accepted the fact that I will not have time for anything else besides school and work; my wife is coming to terms with this fact as well. My few close friends and family know that I will taking a long hiatus for the next few years. Lately, everyone I speak to about this issue (school vs. work) is consistently telling me it's virtually impossible and that most students working more than 8-10 hrs/week tend to fail or drop out. I'm getting really tired of hearing this. I'm confident I can do it. I'm a decent student and strong test taker. I certainly acknowledge it's going to be tough, but I know people have been able to do this. Overall, I'm looking for people who have been able to manage both nursing school and full-time work. What did it take? Tips? Do's? Do not's? I'll take ANYTHING at this point. Help set me (and other students in this situation) up for success. Thank you for your time and attention! -ICT