So I just finished my first semester of Nursing School. Got an A in skills, a "well deserved" B in clinicals, and then there is theory. I worked my butt off studing for this class and ended with a 79.4%. I thought surely my teacher would give me the fraction of a point to make a B...but she didn't! I know I know you get what you get but man does it burn!! I am in the same category as those who may have slacked off to earn a C. I don't even get a C+. Bummer. Oh well, at least I passed I guess.
My first semester was definetely an eye opener. If I can give any advice to the newbies coming on board it would be as listed below:
Don't panic! We were given the same old tired speech that nursing school will run your whole life but I am here to tell you it didn't. Now let me clairify, it is what you make of it. If you want to make all A's then yes it might consume your whole life and that is fine. I made a personal choice to not allow this to happen. Which leads me to my next point...
It is possible to have a family while in nursing school! I am a mom to an 18 month old and a wife and I did not lose any time with my family this semester. I made a personal choice to not study at home or on weekends to instead spend it with my family and it worked for me. May that be the reason I got a 79.4? Perhaps, but again it was a personal choice. I only studied at work (because my job allowed it) and did okay.
Find your groove early on in the game. What I mean by that is find the best way for you to study and stick with it. The material goes really fast and you have a lot thrown at you with clinicals, skills, and theory. The faster you get a grip on your learning style the better off you will be.
Be as helpful as possible in clinicals! The more you offer yourself, the more the nurses will offer themselves to you. Don't be afraid to ask questions but make sure they are good ones. If you have the opportunity to look up the answer first do that and if you don't understand ask the nurse. Often times they would answer my questions by asking questions but if I wasn't prepared it made me look bad. :)
That is really all I can think of right now! Good luck everyone, congrats to those graduating, and congrats to those finishing their semesters! One down, 4 more to go!
Specializes in orthopedic/trauma, Informatics, diabetes.
OUr grading scale was 80. A 79.4 was failing and we had several over the 2 years that had quit the program over that grade. I had an 86.4% for a semester-that was a C. insane
When my 'perfect' GPA was 'destroyed' by a 'B', I backed up and said wth am I doing?
It wasn't a pass for myself to just not care or to not take things seriously, but a HUGE weight off my shoulders.
I didn't HAVE to get A's. My report card was not going on my resume.
I could still be a great nurse without a perfect grades.
And my family life, greatly improved because instead of my focus being A's, it was my kids and my family.
I did my best and still did well and when I saw a 'C' on my final grades, it didn't bother me.
I had this same attitude when I got my bachelors in engineering. Those same C's came back to haunt me when applying for nursing school. I plan on furthering my studies after I get my BSN next December, so C's won't cut it for me anymore. Be careful about being lackadaisical about grades because you just might wish you hadn't been later on down the road.
Your children are very important though, not arguing that! :)
I was the same way but with an 89.4 I only missed one day of class and it was because I was in court. When I went to plead my case to the instructor her response "Should have done a little better on the tests/quizzes"
Cant fault her at all for what she said. Your grade is a culmination of the entire semester. Try hard the entire time. You seem like you have your head on your shoulders though so learn from it and kick next semesters butt
I think 2nd,3rd, and 4th semester are harder than the first. You have to learn a lot of material and it's over a short period of time. First semester for us was more the "foundations" whereas.. the other semesters are where you learn the good stuff and apply it. Then of course... when you work as an RN the real education begins.... good luck. Sorry you missed your grade by so little.
Thanks alot for that advise, i will also have the ability to study at work, since i work the night shift. My children are grown, with their own career's, so in that aspect i dont have to worry about small children, just my gran's which will have less quality time with me. I have waited quite a while in life, to finally reach the goal of becoming a nurse, unlike most of you who may be younger than I, so i will have to dedicate every single moment of my life for the next to years in books, and making sure i am achieving the grade required or higher if i can. I understand this is a very challenging journey,but as long as i give it my all, im pretty sure i will be fine. I just got accepted into the nursing program starting this fall..I just hope and pray, that i can get this done, within the next two years, with no complications.
Happened to me in a class where getting an A got me 2 points on my nursing school application. Professor replases a grade of "0" with the final, but doesn't drop the lowest score if you don't miss any exams. I ended up with an 89.4, and I got a B. I figure its just good "practice" for nursing school.
I would think that your second semester will require more study time though, wouldn't you?
When my 'perfect' GPA was 'destroyed' by a 'B', I backed up and said wth am I doing?
It wasn't a pass for myself to just not care or to not take things seriously, but a HUGE weight off my shoulders.
I didn't HAVE to get A's. My report card was not going on my resume.
I could still be a great nurse without a perfect grades.
And my family life, greatly improved because instead of my focus being A's, it was my kids and my family.
I did my best and still did well and when I saw a 'C' on my final grades, it didn't bother me.
C's may get undergraduate degrees, but not advanced degrees. You may wish to go to grad school one day....I'd hate for you to not get into the school of your choice because of the decisions you make now. Family is important, and you should definitely make time for them. However, nursing school is not forever and some sacrifice could help secure you a spot in the future in grad school'
C's may get undergraduate degrees, but not advanced degrees. You may wish to go to grad school one day....I'd hate for you to not get into the school of your choice because of the decisions you make now. Family is important, and you should definitely make time for them. However, nursing school is not forever and some sacrifice could help secure you a spot in the future in grad school'
Agree, and as other posters observed, the work gets more challenging with each semester. Be flexible, because it doesn't get any easier from here on out. I don't mean to devalue family time...I'm a single mom of four...but there were definitely times when I had to be creative in making time to study.
Specializes in Leadership, Psych, HomeCare, Amb. Care.
I have waited quite a while in life, to finally reach the goal of becoming a nurse, unlike most of you who may be younger than I, so i will have to dedicate every single moment of my life for the next to years in books, and making sure i am achieving the grade required or higher if i can.
I understand this is a very challenging journey,but as long as i give it my all, im pretty sure i will be fine. I just got accepted into the nursing program starting this fall..I just hope and pray, that i can get this done, within the next two years, with no complications.
I applaud your dedication, and am sure you'll do well.
however, everyone needs balance in their life. Set your goals, study hard, achieve your success, but leave a little time for yourself.
Taking an an occasional break, movie, night out, etc will help you to recharge your batteries and will help you to go even further.
Specializes in Home Health, Geriatrics, Women's Health, Addiction.
Ms.futureRN,
You will do just fine. Mentally understanding how much you will need to dedicate to nursing school is half the battle. I thought I would be the oldest in my class but I actually fell in the middle and I am over 35. There were several in their 40s and one who had been an LPN for 40 years! In nursing school age is just a number. It's about how bad you want it. Good luck.
Thanks alot for that advise, i will also have the ability to study at work, since i work the night shift. My children are grown, with their own career's, so in that aspect i dont have to worry about small children, just my gran's which will have less quality time with me. I have waited quite a while in life, to finally reach the goal of becoming a nurse, unlike most of you who may be younger than I, so i will have to dedicate every single moment of my life for the next to years in books, and making sure i am achieving the grade required or higher if i can. I understand this is a very challenging journey,but as long as i give it my all, im pretty sure i will be fine. I just got accepted into the nursing program starting this fall..I just hope and pray, that i can get this done, within the next two years, with no complications.
Sassy5d
558 Posts
C's get degrees!
When my 'perfect' GPA was 'destroyed' by a 'B', I backed up and said wth am I doing?
It wasn't a pass for myself to just not care or to not take things seriously, but a HUGE weight off my shoulders.
I didn't HAVE to get A's. My report card was not going on my resume.
I could still be a great nurse without a perfect grades.
And my family life, greatly improved because instead of my focus being A's, it was my kids and my family.
I did my best and still did well and when I saw a 'C' on my final grades, it didn't bother me.