RN dreams gone for now

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I remember being so excited, while doing my prerequ for a Nursing program. I finally completed all of them with a GPA of 3.1 got accepted in a Nursing program and just dont know what happened to my dream of becoming a Nurse. I tried so hard gave it my all, sacrifised my evenings and mornings, working nights and going to school in the a.m. and it all fell apart. I just couldnt keep up,everything was just caving in on me. I only had 1 clinical skills to complete, i did the rotation at the hospital, wasnt to fond of my clinical instructor. Test and quizzes where insane, it was so difficult just trying to get a 75%. I dont know if it was the instructor or was it me. She did not really teach everything was based on power points and her recommendations as for studying for the test or Quiz, was always remember this, study that and focus on this and that what ever the topic was. I dont know if this was what everyone is suppose to get out of Nursing school, but i was so disappointed, i just woke up one day and said, "I can't anymore, i have tried every study technique, index cards, rewriting notes, rereading chapter and her test and quizzes were crazy. first test class average was 86, second test was 76% class average, and 3rd test was 72%class average along with quiz 4 72% average, everyones average was just dropping, mine was crazy, made me feel like a total dummy. I just need to know was this the professors teaching, or should i just give it another shot somewhere else. This has been the most craziest experience of my life. Halfs of the classes average has fallen below the 75% needed to get to Nur102, and all they have to say is the powerpoints are your notes, REALLY!!! what ever happened to breaking things down, giving various examples, we know we have to critical think on our own, but you have to give some sort of examples so we can learn how to critically think.

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Most teach from PowerPoints to hit the high points of the topic, what they think is the most important information and you really have to fill in the blanks yourself. Do you have a Fundamentals success or NCLEX review book? Does your textbook have any additional resources? Are you doing questions and reading rationales? Have you tried talking to this instructor? Does your program have someone you can go to (counselor, navigator) if you're having trouble?

DON'T give up on nursing if it's your dream. Nursing school is HARD, point blank period, and it's hard for a reason. I'm a first semester student too, I truly feel your pain. Your instructors are not going to spoon feed you the information, nor can they give you a bunch of examples on how to critically think. Critical thinking is a skill that must be developed and nurtured over time. You've got to learn how to think like a nurse and it does NOT happen overnight.

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Specializes in L&D, infusion, urology.
Most teach from PowerPoints to hit the high points of the topic, what they think is the most important information and you really have to fill in the blanks yourself. Do you have a Fundamentals success or NCLEX review book? Does your textbook have any additional resources? Are you doing questions and reading rationales? Have you tried talking to this instructor? Does your program have someone you can go to (counselor, navigator) if you're having trouble?

DON'T give up on nursing if it's your dream. Nursing school is HARD, point blank period, and it's hard for a reason. I'm a first semester student too, I truly feel your pain. Your instructors are not going to spoon feed you the information, nor can they give you a bunch of examples on how to critically think. Critical thinking is a skill that must be developed and nurtured over time. You've got to learn how to think like a nurse and it does NOT happen overnight.

I agree with this. The first semester is a big shock, no matter how prepared you think you are. As mississippikid stated, a lot of teachers teach from the PowerPoints, and the rest is up to you. There's a lot of independent learning that has to happen. This is why nursing school is SO time-consuming.

What has worked for you in the past? Have you considered tutoring? Is there a learning center on-campus? Can you see if there's an upperclassman that would help tutor you?

Learning how to take NCLEX-style exams will help you a lot. This is a hard thing in the first semester, because the exams are SO different than anything you've ever seen.

Does your instructor do case studies? A lot of them do this, which you may find helpful.

Study groups might be helpful, but if it tends to drift off-topic often, it might not be the best use of your time.

Don't give up! :)

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Specializes in ICU.

First semester weeds out a lot of people. My instructors also teach from power points. They put in the power points stuff from the book to know so I tab those pages. When the instructor says know this, I highlight and star it so I know to study it. We also have ATI supplemental books as a resource to do on our own. I do those before each test to get me in the mindset of the kind of questions that will be on the test. Good Luck with whatever you choose to do.

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Like some of the previous posters commented, the first semester is pretty rough. Not so much because of the content they are teaching, but because that as a student its your first time being exposed to the content. Everyone has their own system that works for them, I do the reading once, only highlighting as I go, then I do review questions on the material, and if I'm not clear on anything I go back and re read the material. There are a lot of great resources online, and the Success Series has really helped me out in the past! Try Fundamentals for Success, it really helped me!

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When the instructor does not make things clear to you during class, then go to her office hours and get one on one help. Have questions ready for her so she does not get the impression that you want her to spoon feed you. When you push her to provide you what you need to succeed, there should come a time when the instructor realizes that maybe she should clarify her lectures for everyone. Encourage your classmates to do the same.

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Thanks all for your advise, you guys sound very careing. The school has a support module class, but they dont seem to give you questions to study. We did try to explain to the instructor of ways she can help us with understanding the questions, but for some reason when its time for a test most of the questions or senerials where not spoken about during lecture. We also have the test for success book i dont know its just not working out. Today was the last test before the final and everyone was overwhelmed, they feel as they did not do well, most of them studied all week. I know this may seem as i gave up, but i decided to withdraw and try it later on sometime. It was to overwhelming for me, maybe try to read the nursing books i have right now and apply later on at another school. I think i will practice some questions and give myself a head start for the next round.

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Specializes in CICU.

HANG IN THERE! when I started nursing school I had 5 years of experience as a Certified Medical Assistant (CMA) in out patient surgical practices. I also came from a huge physics and biochm background. I was on fire in clinical & lab, yet I almost flunked my first semester of nursing school due to lecture! No matter what I tried for studying I just couldn't get a handle on the NCLEX style questions. It came down to the final for me to sink or swim. I don't know how I did it, but I reached down super far and FORCED myself to pass that final. Grp studies for finals work really well. Everyone pick their strong area and teach it to the other students. You would be amazed what you wrote down and your friend missed during lecture or vice versa. Set a timer when you study. 1 hr on this, 15 min break, 1 hr on that so you're not getting mentally fatigued or spending too much time getting wrapped up in the details of one topic. Do not getting wrapped up in what's already happened, your grades are your grades and there is no changing that now. Your job now is to keep moving towards that final. YOU CAN DO IT!

I would HIGHLY suggest getting ATI & Silvestri NCLEX-RN Examination books. I also would STRONGLY suggest that if you have a test review session after you take exams, that you pay close attention to the rationale as to why you got your answer(s) wrong. I found that when I would make a quick note on my exam indicating my rationale, I could compare it to my prof's rationale & see if we were thinking the same thing. If not, then I learned why I was wrong. If that's not something your program offers, I would ask if your prof would do a 1:1 exam review with you to go over your rationales.

Keep digging! The first semester is the hardest by far, but you can do it.

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