Psychology

[Ashkins529]

I am so frustrated with my school right now. I am taking classes towards a nursing degree, just not the nursing classes yet.

When I go to my schools nursing website it has all the classes listed and the recommend order to take them.

Developmental and Abnormal Psychology are listed in 1st and 2nd semester, then in the 3rd semester there is a social science elective. Over the summer I talked to an advisor and was told typically for students working towards nursing or in the nursing program General Psychology is exempted.

Tuesday I went to my advisor (Individual studies at this time) and was told General Psychology is a prereq for developmental and abnormal. This means they are requiring me to take it. The lady says "You can use it for your social science elective." I was so mad when I left her office. She wouldn't listen to me at all when I explained I already have all my electives. They are transfers from another college.

Has anyone else come across this? Were you exempted or required to take general psychology?

I am sure I am blowing all this out of proportion but.. in the end it costs money to take a class that is not 'needed'.

[redsoxgirl78]

I am taking it now, my school has it as a required pre-req for the program. I learned to always double check after meeting with the advisors after they ill-advised me on the order of the tests that have to be completed. It's frustrating but hang in there. If its required, it is what it is. Just know your on your way.

[Sugars]

It can certainly be frustrating. The excitement of getting through those classes is hard to control, but like the above user said, It is always good to check before you make any steps towards advancing in your education. Always remember to ask lots of questions and write them down so you won't forget them, and remember, psychology and all those courses are going to be helpful and will be a foundation of knowledge when you hit your Psychology rotation. Good luck, and make sure it is a requirement and explain as thoroughly as you can what you have taken, and make sure they know why you are confused and frustrated, because communication is key in these situations. Good luck :)

[CourtneyLR]

Some "advisors" don't have a clue. Do the course descriptions for either class mention this as a pre-req? The advisor could be wrong. For example, I've heard of advisors telling students at my school that they need to take Biology & Chemistry before taking A&P 1, but this just isn't true. I'm sure it would help some people be more successful in the class, but it's not required.

If this isn't mentioned in the course description, I would say you are free & clear. FWIW, General Psych (or Introductory) is not a pre-req at my school for those classes, so it's not unheard of. If you see that it is mentioned in the course description as a pre-req, you could contact the instructor to get permission to take the courses without the pre-req. I would NOT mention that you don't want to take it because you already have your electives; instead, give them a valid academic reason they should allow you in the class. For example, tell them about your GPA, course load and any previous experience studying Psychology.

If all else fails and it is a pre-req, I think there is a CLEP test.

Good luck! :)

Courtney

[willowita, ADN, RN]

General Psych is a mandatory pre-requisite in my area for all nursing programs. So I already took it. If you need it as a pre-req for another class that is required, then all you can do is take it unless the abnormal psych professor tells you it's okay to add the class without having taken general psych.

I had to take other classes like bio and chem that weren't required for nursing but were required to take physiology and microbio. So sometimes we have to take classes that aren't part of the core curriculum. Plus, general psych is easy so an extra A isn't bad for your GPA.

[DFWgal]

Has anyone else come across this? Were you exempted or required to take general psychology?

I need Intro and Dev as separate pre-reqs for Nursing, but Intro is not a pre-req for Dev at my college (Actually I'm taking them together). However, one of my Micro classmates is a Psyc mayor and his university does require Intro as a pre-req for Dev, so it depends on every school.