Question about holidays/breaks during nursing school...

iteachob, MSN, RN · Aug 12, 2009

Hi all, I was wondering if you found that your schools/professors loaded you up with assignments during your school breaks/holidays (i.e. Spring Break) or were you allowed to actually have a break? I'm about to start school and wanted to plan for some family visits, dental surgery, working extra shifts, etc.
Thanks!!!

Be warned, some do (especially Winter break).

I'm a professor, and do not like this practice. Sometimes students end up doing a lot of work over breaks because of their own poor time management (Spring Break in particular), but I don't believe in giving a lot of work over breaks. Some of my co-workers do it as a matter of practice.

Whispera, MSN, RN · Aug 12, 2009

The only break my classes bridge is Spring Break. My students know what all the assignments are, the first day of class, and they know when things are due. It's up to them to figure out when to get them done. The work is quite do-able without using break time, if the student doesn't put things off til then.

llg, PhD, RN · Aug 12, 2009

My class runs on a regular schedule of weekly assignments. If there is a whole week of break (such as Fall Break and Spring Break), there is simply no assignment for that week. However, for a smaller break (such as Labor Day and Thanksgiving), there is the usual assignment for that week. With Thanksgiving though, I usually give a small extension of a day or two to hand it in.

Students are given the assignments and due dates at the start of semester and are expected to plan their time accordingly.

NewTexasRN · Aug 12, 2009

We didn't have assignments, but they always had a test the first day after a break.

NamasteNurse, BSN, RN · Aug 12, 2009

We have a lot of extra work to do over breaks, not the regular assignments the two other posters alluded to. I guess it depends on your teacher. The last day of school in June we were handed a huge packet of work including a term paper, an interview, a major visual aid to go along with it, three chapters to prepare for fall, a movie to watch and write a paper on and 40 large-ish research questions. None of this was announced until the afternoon of the last day of class. Happy summer. We also have 12 hours of community service and CPR/first aid to do but we knew that in january, they recommend doing it on our "time off in he summer". All this in an adult program where we all have families and jobs. Oh well, we signed up to become LPN's in 13 months so....

That said, it's do-able. For me at least. I am disciplined and fast being a former teacher!

breaktime · Aug 12, 2009

We didn't have assignments, but they always had a test the first day after a break.

I absolutely love when this happens! As if having to spend your entire break studying is any less ****** than having to spend it writing a paper or doing other homework...

This happens a lot at my school, in fact, it has happened every break so far with at least one class if not two or three.

Sadly, I think after a while you just get used to having no life during school.

yesdog, BSN, RN · Aug 12, 2009

Other will probably tell you differently, but I had no breaks. Holidays were times for me to get caught up, or get papers done.

MCNS2B · Aug 12, 2009

Before my program even started, we had a paper and 6 chapters worth of reading due. They like to "front load" the semester... meaning we get assigned readings and chapters and homework due on the first day... I heard they give us Winter Break "free" but its a 5 week break and apparently they only give you 1 weeks worth of work ;-)

Free time in nursing school so far has shown to be a myth to me haha