Cali2015

I'm 54, graduated from nursing school at age 53, and work in primary care. Many of our patients are on Medicare and they seem to appreciate my maturity. The doctors in our practice have been great to work with and the MAs defer to me for clinical help even though many of them have been working with patients years more than I have. There is definitely a niche for an older nurse.

I don't know of anyone personally but I know several people who have applied.

I lost 50 pounds before nursing school and gained 30 of it back during my two year ADN program. I was training for a half-marathon before school and virtually stopped exercising for the two years. I eat very healthy. In fact, my classmates used to comment on my light and healthy meals. 30 pounds nevertheless. One of my teachers said it's very very common to gain weight during nursing school and stress combined with the hours of sitting studying are part of the problem. I'm also going to put lack of sleep partially to blame. She said there is a definite link between the stress hormone Cortisol and weight gain.

I have Amazon Prime and buy most of my scrubs and other supplies from them. Shipping is free. Returns are very easy if something doesn't fit or you don't like it.

I have the same problem. I am short in the torso and longer in the inseam. I've been wearing Cherokee and really like the fabric on the pro flex and the luxe but I have to wear the pants a little lower than intended so they clear my nursing shoes. I have been going to websites and looking at the inseam length. Most of them are 30 to 31 for regular. I'd love to find one that is 31 1/2 or 32. If I find something, I'll post it here.

I'm in Hawaii and we were all able to see results on the weekends. Good luck!

We did skills labs in our first and second semesters where we were graded and had to pass or not be able to continue in school. Then in our last semester we had a skills lab for putting in an airway, administering blood products, trauma triage, and IV starts but we were not graded on those labs. We also had a lab available for us to practice anything we felt we were weak in.

I graduated from nursing school at age 53 and understand what you are saying. I was a good student but I just don't have the stamina and energy of my younger cohorts. I used my strengths such as life experience and understanding of the health issues of my patients and I was aware of my shortcomings such as not being able to pull an all-night study session and being absolutely exhausted after a 12 hour shift with a preceptor. But my age had advantages as well. I connected nicely with my teachers and with many of the seasoned nurses at the hospital. I was appreciated for my maturity and my sense of responsibility. All in all, I got through nursing school and have been working as an RN at our campus health center since I graduated in May. I wish you all the best. As one of my friends told me repeatedly through school, keep your eye on the prize and enjoy the ride!

Started my program at 50 years old, graduated and passed boards at 53 and I couldn't be happier! All the best to you in your journey. As one of my friends has said to me as I went through nursing school - keep your eye on the prize! It's only 5 semesters!

Breathe that sigh of relief!! And congratulations. I found the La Charity book helpful as well. Bet you're glad this is now all behind you!

I'm the only RN in a college health center with one APRN and I really like it. We're in the middle of flu shot season so she and I are going out into the community several times a week. Our clinic is one that does a lot of women's health and birth control so we're busy with Nexplanon and IUD insertions as well as women's health exams. We get the occasional breathing treatment, Flu and Strep test, minor wound care and UTI. I don't make much money right now because it's a small state college with a small budget but I was hired 2 days out of nursing school as an RN so I feel pretty lucky to have this job. I plan to stay in ambulatory care in the future.

I might first try to pinpoint what it actual is about the CNA work that you don't like. I would also want to know if the fear is just due to the unknown or something else. If you are in a bridge program, you'll complete your LPN/LVN year first with the NCLEX exam. You could then decide if you want to continue on to RN or if you prefer to switch gears and do something else. If you want to stay in the health care field, you'll already have your science pre-reqs finished and changing majors might be easier.

After reading your post I asked myself what I would do if this was my situation. Since there is a time lapse since graduation and NCLEX, I would get the most current study materials available; Kaplan, NCSBN, La Charity, Exam Cram, Saunders, Hurst......Whatever appeals the most to my individual learning style. I would take as many practice questions as possible as the previous post suggested. I would spend a significant amount of study time reading through all of the rationales whether I answered the question right or wrong. I would get myself as comfortable as I could answering NCLEX style questions - and answering a lot of them in one sitting. Then on test day, I would feel prepared for whatever questions come my way and as many questions as that computer dishes out. Most importantly, take a deep breath, allow yourself time to heal and get strong, and best of luck to you as you work toward passing that exam and moving on with your career.

I bought Cherokee nursing shoes and really like them. They come in black and white. I've used cavi wipes on them when I'm in the hospital which works fine to clean them. They are soft and comfortable on my feet but also have good support for all day wear.

Thank you for taking the time to put this together. I have already taken and passed my exam but several in my cohort have not. I will share this link with them. Thanks, again!

I hope no one minds my responding to this post because I am a female RN. I work on a college campus and I am responsible for the health clearances for all of our nursing students so I interact with them directly. We have seen an increase in male nursing students in their 40s 50s and even 60s. They have been a wonderful addition to our nursing program and they've been great in the clinical setting. You already have such a solid foundation of knowledge in your current profession so the transition to nursing would likely feel very natural for you. I started reading this post because of the lead in about age. I started back to college at age 50 and graduated from the nursing program at age 53. Looking back in school I can say that my male colleagues were well received in the hospital and valued members of our nursing cohort.

I held a 4.0 throughout nursing school. The only B I've ever received was in Algebra. At graduation, I have to admit it felt good to wear that honors regalia, especially at age 53. All that being said, while I was in school and studying so intensely to keep those grades high, I often asked myself "what in the world am I doing to myself?" It was pretty stressful. My boss, who has her PhD and is a wonderful APRN to work for, told me she was always a B student. Earning A's was not her priority but performing well in clinicals was her primary focus. Our feelings about our GPA are very personal. Follow your heart and your gut and be whatever type of student works best for you. Best of luck!

The college I graduated from takes 30 nursing students every fall. The applicant pool sometimes can get up to over 100. They select the candidates based on points earned by GPA with a few points given for prior work experience in the health care field. It's very competitive.

The book is a good one all around. Thank you for the congrats!

I used the NCSBN, the 8 week option, and passed the NCLEX RN on the first try. I felt that the study materials were a bit tedious and opted to focus most of my attention on the bank of questions, studying the rationales afterward. I combined the NCSBN with Exam Cram and the La Charity book which I really liked for delegation and management. Even though I studied like crazy, I still went through more than 150 questions before the computer went to the blue screen. I'm sorry you have to take it over again. I have a very good friend and classmate who has failed it twice and we both had a good cry over that second one she had to take.

I haven't heard of anyone having any difficulty in Hawaii after attending WGU.

I took my RN exam on July 23rd. I had a little more than 150 questions. I strongly felt I had failed. I wasn't going to put myself through doing the PVT but, the morning after taking the exam, I couldn't stand it anymore. It took me to the cc page as everyone is describing with the "new" PVT but I stopped there and decided to wait another day instead and pay for the quick results. I passed and the relief I felt was indescribable. I got my letter in the mail from the BON less than a week later but my license did not post to their site for almost a month, which is common in my state. All I can say is, I'm very glad this is behind me. I wish I hadn't gone to the PV site to do the trick, though. It made the stress worse from that moment to the next day when I did the quick results and saw that I had passed.

They just asked me for an additional transcript but it was an oversight on my part. I missed two online psychology classes that were part of the UH system but not within my home campus.

Thank you. I still need to take statistics so I think I'll do it this coming spring. I graduated from UH Maui in May and work full time. I'm still taking classes on campus toward a BSN until I find an online program. I also plan to move back to California next June, hence the thought of doing the BSN at Chico State. They deliver their program online which would allow me to continue working after I move. When I started looking at online schools, there were so many my head was spinning! Thank you for your input and also for narrowing down the cost options on one of your other posts.

My transcripts were all received by WGU just within the last week so I'm curious how it will all transpire. I took a few classes back in the 1990s. Those classes transferred in to my nursing school but I hope they're not too old for WGU and I will have to take them over again. One was Biology and the others were humanities courses. I'm in the process of looking at WGU, Notre Dame online, Chamberlain, and Chico State for a BSN degree. I'm a full time working RN and would like to continue working as many hours as possible while working toward the BSN. So far, WGU seems to be pretty popular with most students.