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Don't let this stress you out. Nursing school, alone, is enough to be stressed out over! Practice also makes perfect. Good job on making it to a nursing program, by the way. I should also be attending a nursing school by that time should everything work out. For now, work on improving your coordination. A clumsy individual is pretty adorable, but when that clumsy individual becomes a nurse; it can be a scary situation. Research activities that you could do during this waiting period that could help improve your coordination, and I'm sure you'll do just fine. As for being nervous when people watch you, do you have an idea as of why? From what I've read, it seems like a lack of self-confidence to some degree. Don't beat yourself up so much about mastering the skills; those clinical runs are there to help you improve. With that CNA certification, you should of already had some great exposure into the medical field. Just remember to engage in the classroom, during clinical runs, and practice a whole ton. If you have to, read up on the syllabus and review some of the material before hand; watch some videos on certain procedures and techniques. You have roughly a year, don't let yourself stress out so early. You snagged a spot into a nursing program; that alone should be enough to celebrate. We aren't born with a mastery of the skills that it takes to become a nurse; we go to a nursing school to learn and master those skills with the guidance of an instructor. Good luck to you! Catch up on as much sleep as you can, you'll need it! Edit: Yes, I've also felt very nervous when other people oversaw my performance. To be honest, most of it was just mental; I would be afraid of thinking that I was going to do something incorrectly while, in actuality, I was doing just fine. I also found that meditation came in handy for a good relaxation technique. I still get a little nervous if I'm doing a lab in class and my professor watches over me (he's pretty strict about aseptic techniques), but I manage to keep my cool and focus on the goal of whatever procedure I'm performing.

The science professors at my college really love to use application-based questions more than anything; that's what has been really helping me retain most of the information I'm learning from their lectures. I've had a few friends break into their respective nursing programs, and from what I hear, the professors do give little "crash courses" into topics that were originally covered while taking prerequisites. So yeah, I wouldn't stress too hard about not retaining most of the information that you're learning right now. As long as you can maintain a good foundation and a general understanding, I'm sure you'll do just fine. I also wouldn't worry at all about forgetting much of anything once you start working as an actual nurse. I'm sure the nursing school you'll attend will drill all the information into your head, so to say, that it'll all be second nature to you by the time you graduate and enter the workforce. Best of luck to you!