CaptC

You know people that have taken the nclex 4-7 times before passing? That sounds sort of insane to me? I have never heard of anything like that before. Especially considering first-time pass rate is normally between 90-100% at most schools.

I'm in an ASN program, but my school is going to offer a BSN sometime before I graduate which is convenient. I might be one of the first to receive a BSN from my college which is pretty cool. I hope to have my BSN or close to it by the time I start my first job. Pretty much every nurse I've spoken with has told me it is a must.

This actually makes me feel a bit better. I'm still going into my first semester very cautiously. I could ask a number of questions about specialities, masters degree programs, etc. However, it is probably best if I just take things one step at a time.

Alright, so it's probably normal. That's a relief. I'll still call the Monday morning just in case.

Hey everyone. So I'll be starting nursing school in January. I finished everything in castlebranch. My only concern is that its been 3 weeks since I've completed my fingerprints and it still shows the 3rd step as incomplete. I'm starting to worry that the school didn't receive my fingerprints for whatever reason. I plan on calling the school Monday to make sure everything is as it should be, but I was just curious if anyone else had this same issue in the meantime. Thanks.

I'm starting nursing school in January and I have to admit I'm rather nervous. My fears mostly revolve around the school workload which if it is anything like a&p it will be brute force memorization with very little application which often felt like luck when it came to testing time. It wasn't luck I got A's with hours upon hours of studying, but it felt like it occasionally, because of how much there was to learn and the breadth that could be on the test. I've been told that there is more application and problem solving in the nursing program, but it is a concern or at least something that I'm mentally preparing myself for. I generally enjoy classes where I get to apply rules and knowledge instead of just memorising, but I understand why memorization is critical to healthcare. The second fear is the job itself. I understand nurses have long shifts, and at my current work, as a delivery man, I go to work ready to go and perform very well, but at hour 8 or so I start to go slower and become less attentive. Turn on the wrong street, need to turn around things like that. In nursing, you can't turn on the wrong street because its people lives. If I'm working 12-hour shifts I fear that I won't be able to perform my duties at the quality that they need to be performed. Yes, I do recognise that I'm worried about this rather early, but it is on my mind and thought it couldn't hurt to get other people perspective on these concerns and tips that could help alleviate them. Thank you.

What you consider peanuts might be different from what I consider peanuts. Peanuts and experience is better no peanuts at all.

Yeah, I have no expectations of just rolling into a job. I expect it to take between 8-16 months of hard work to get placed. I also plan on pretty much immediately getting my BSN. It will literally be BSN course work and job searching. My hope is that before I finish my BSN to find something. That way everything will align nicely, but I'll take it as it comes.

I've recently been accepted into nursing school starting January and was wondering how people see the job market being around the time I graduate. Obviously this is a difficult question to answer but I thought some people might have some insider knowledge on some market trends. I'm not exactly concerned about this currently because it is so far ahead, but I'm just curious. I'm flexible and willing to move where work takes me so I'm confident I'll find work within a year, but hopefully sooner. I make no assumptions that I'll immediately find work. Thank you for your responses in advance.

I'll be starting nursing school in the next couple of months. Is there anyone that actually enjoys their job? I'm worried that if all the good people in the profession leave there will be no one left to promote healthy change. I don't know anything about hospital politics so I'm speaking from a place of deep naivete, but if we all stick together maybe we can change things for the better? I'm very new so try not to scoff too hard at my optimism. Note: This is not a judgment at all on the OP's decision to make a career change. I fully respect and understand the complexities of that situation.

If someone said that to me and I was a new nurse I would be very upset. People spend many years and give up many things to become a nurse. It's not as trivial as your last paragraph makes it seem. If an individual starts working and is not given the proper time to take things slow and learn from more experienced nurses, but is instead bullied and yelled at that can often make improvement significantly harder or next to impossible. From personal experience, I can say that what makes a good job environment is co-workers you can trust. Someone you can say, "hey I need help" and not got torn apart for not knowing something. The worst job I've ever had was in a position where people felt it was super cool to tear you apart, for simply asking for help or not knowing something. The only reason I can gather for this was to show superiority in some backwards attempt at promotion, but everyone was trying to do this bs and instead of working together everyone fought each other and nothing was ever done and no one was ever promoted. I can honestly say I would rather be dead then work at that job again. If this individual felt that way about this position and felt that represented all of nursing (often the same position in a different building can have a much better internal culture) I can without question sympathise with how distraught this person would have felt. It is an extremely sad story. Look, someone needs to show that they are dedicated to improvement in their career. However, if you allow people to get bullied in the workplace because they are "a bad nurse" or whatever the case may be, instead of simply trying to help each other then that is bad for everyone. Generally, I think most people can get good at whatever they set their minds too. Being bad at something is a tempory stage due to lack of experience, not something inherent in a person's DNA. Workers need to cultivate a growth mindset and employers and coworkers need do the same. Compassion and empathy are the greatest tools to do this, not anger and judgement. If I notice someone doing something wrong I simply show them the right way to do it. Kindly, and not forcefully. If someone forgets something I simply do it myself, I don't get pleasure in rubbing it in their faces. I'm not a nurse yet, but it seems to me this is the predominating culture that many nurses live in, (not sure about MSN or CRNA's) and it is very dangerous to the profession. The moment people start believing they can do something they can and often do. The moment they stop believing they often can't and don't.

Update: I got an A in physio! Just a nutrition final left to take.

After reading your posts again I think windsurfer was being too harsh. He did that in one of my posts also. Not sure why he feels the need to be so hard all the time. It might discourage excellent nurses from joining the profession. Maybe that is what windsurfer wants I don't know. Anyway, all I was trying to say is that basically nursing isn't an easy school path and it is an even more difficult career so just make sure you know what you are going into and take steps to try and achieve your goals. I'm personally having difficulties with the course work and might have to change career paths or perhaps I might drop out of college entirely if I don't get into a nursing school after a few application cycles. It really is that competitive. Just make sure you know what you are getting into that's all. Keep in close contact with your schools nursing department and even other nurses in the program. I've gotten much more relevant help from people in the program than people outside of it and that includes school advisers. Your millage may vary. Good luck and keep us updated.

^ This x 1 million.

Ok I disagree here. Anatomy and physio in my opinion is harder than any math or science class I've ever taken. I've taken up to calculus 1 and completed chemistry 2. Those classes aren't even close to the level of difficultly of anatomy and physio. This is just my opinion and experiences will differ from school to school, but I don't think nursing pre reqs are easier or harder they are just much different.