yoshi2560

I don't know what kind of textbook you're using in your course, but a lot of nursing textbooks have study guides that are also available for purchase. My text had a study guide and an online resource tool that helped me pass my Med-Surg I course. Going through the practice questions and reading the rationales really helped me understand the concepts and test-taking strategies. Also, if it's the test-taking that's got you down, I would recommend changing your testing strategy. In my Med-Surg course, our exams were modeled after NCLEX-style questions, and I realized that in order to convince myself of the right answer I had to go through all the potential answers and write down why I thought they were right or wrong. That made me focus on the details of the answers and identify key words that made the answer right or wrong. Good luck! It sounds like you're doing what you can to put yourself in a better position and that's all you can do. With that attitude I'm sure you'll do well next time!

Thank you all for this advice, these are great tips!

If it means enough to you to stay friends with her and interact with her in classes or whatnot, I honestly would just tell her how you feel. You're both in nursing school and will need to communicate about things that are hard to talk about. You'll need to know how to approach the topic and explain your concerns and she'll need to know how to take constructive criticism (assuming you approach the conversation respectfully). A similar situation happened to me within my clinical group. We are 6 people together for the length of our program, which is great but obviously causes tension sometimes. The only way we're able to get through it is talking to each other about what bothers us. Good luck!

My clinical group and I are going into our first ever clinical rotation next week onto the Med/Surg unit. I'm super excited but I'm also VERY nervous, mostly because I don't know what to expect, how to act, what to do/what not to do, etc. What do you wish you knew going into your first clinical? What advice do you have for us going into our first rotation? What worked for you or didn't work for you? Any tips or advice are greatly appreciated!

I dress up! Look good, feel good, do well. At least that's the hope!

I know it would be a bummer to not get a job with a certificate you earned, but you could always look outside of a CNA job. There are a lot of PRN Medical Scribes, Unit Secretaries, Medical Receptionists, or other entry-level hospital positions like that. I got a job on my medical campus as a student assistant, just doing filing and other office tasks, but they are super flexible with my hours. It seems weird, but definitely check out Craigslist too. There's often a lot of part time jobs for smaller offices and practices, and they usually have more flexible hours than big hospitals do. Good luck! Definitely let us know if you find something.

I have a friend who was in a similar problem as you are, and while I was waiting for my admissions I was juggling my decisions the same way you are. What I think is best is to go for a CNA certificate, for multiple reasons. CNA is the most related to nursing, and will give you an understanding and respect for what different levels of nurses do. Also, there are MANY flexible jobs that will allow you to work while going to school as a CNA, if that's something you want to do. Other jobs are not as flexible, many of the people I'm in school with now are CNAs and have schedules that are very lenient and flexible (which helps with the craziness of clinical schedules). Also, in Colorado (where I am), there are a lot of 2-3 week power courses for CNA certification, instead of a full semester at a community college. You could try to look into that and see if there are any in Texas that do something similar. Having your CNA license definitely opens up a lot of options for you and gets your foot in the door knowing people that may help you out getting a job in the future. And also don't give up. If nursing is something you really want to do, you'll find a way to get there :)

I took Clinical Nutrition for my first degree before I went to nursing school. In the course I was in, it didn't require any math or anything like that, and it really solidified thinking of the different systems and how they work together. I don't think any other class prepared me for nursing school like my nutrition class did, but I do know that my instructor structured her class differently than a normal "nutrition" class. My nursing program did not require that I take it, but I'm very glad that I did.