Sabotaged by my school

Nursing Students General Students

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Specializes in ortho/neuro, geriatrics, med-surg.

There are many people that failed Adults II this past term... We started out with 138 and 42 of those failed. You have to have a 75% or better and some people failed by 1 point, 2 points (me), some people failed by a fraction!!! The had a 74.49 and they wouldn't round it... Many of us went to the department head with our concerns and she just kept saying don't worry about it.

Let me throw this in there... they made everyone sign an adendium that is to go in our file. The whole class had to sign it. They never explained it, they just told us that we had to sign it or we couldn't move on in the program. The paper stated that if you fail, you have to reapply to the program, and before they accept you, you MUST take ALL finals and make a 75 or better, redo ALL of your skills tests, ALL dosage and solutions test (that one has to score a 90), pay for your own background check and drug test.

I am not working right now because this school is so hard... with this being my second time around, if I fail, I can't go back. I will have to apply to the LPN program and then go from there. I have lost ALL of my funding... my PELL grant, my scholarships, my student loans... my mother had to pay for this term. I am on an appeal and because I failed, I lost everything.

Now... this is my problem... The department head opened a class just for those of us who failed. There was enough of us to make 2 classes. There were a few in the class behind us that was able to move forward to graduate early just to fill the classes. This first time I went through this class it was easier. You would think that it would be easier the second time around.

My grades were better last time... these tests are on a master's level, and the material that is being presented in class doesn't match up with what is on the test. The insructor is pulling information out of books that we don't have and that are not required by the college. Now, I am not saying that EVERY question is like that... There are just enough on there to make sure that everyone fails.

Our class average for ALL tests have NEVER been over a 70%. Now we have one more test and the final... I personally have to make a 90% on the next test to walk into the final with a 75 and then make a 75 on the test to pass the class.

EVERYONE is freaking out about this. If I don't pass this, I can't sit for my LPN boards, and the last 2 1/2 years of my life have been a total waste of time. All the sacrifices have been for nothing.

There are some students that are getting together and they are going to write the accredation board and tell them what is going on so that they can investigate. The department head won't do anything about it, and we are at a point where we are just desperate. I don't know what else to do!

The grades are NOT reflecting the dedication of the students. I personally spend anywhere from 40-60 hours a week studying, but to look at my grades, you would think that I am a slacker.

I just don't know what to do... Does anyone have any other suggestions???

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Don't take this reply as rude, but my school is the same way. However we started first semster with 54 (we only admit once per yr.) now, going into 3rd semester we are down to around 30. I helped many people figure their grade b/c they make it near impossible to figure yourseld. I know many who failed my 10th of a pt. My school isn't budging!!!!!! If you didn't get the 75 you don't pass. Our test are the same way- you have to read between the lines of some material somewhere to find the answer. Sorry I couldn't be of more help- I couldn't imagine being in your situation- GOOK LUCK!!!

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I hear ya about having a hard time with tests. My school requires an 80% average in order to pass. (I would be ecstatic if we were allowed to drop to 75%!) We started with 120, now I think we're down to 65 or 70 people. I am especially stressed out because we are taking a summer Med Surg class now, one week left to go. This whole semester is based on two tests. It's harsh. Everyone is scared.

I don't have any words of wisdom for you. Just wanted to let you know that you are not alone in this.

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I'm not trying to be mean, but I don't think your school is trying to sabotage you.

You say 42 failed, but 96 also found a way to pass...that means, to me, that the class was passable if you applied the required effort.

We have students in our class that are smart, but have failed. However, these are the same people that when you ask them what they did over the weekend (when we would have a HUGE exam on Monday), "Oh, I went and spent the day at the mall" or "My boyfriend and I went out of town", etc.

Then, these same people are flipping out a month before the semester ends and wanting extra credit, etc.

I honestly, don't see how you know that questions are on a Master's level if you have never been to graduate school. If the questions are pulled from other textbooks and not from what you are required to study, then you should have been working on that at the beginning of the semester.

The same thing happens at our school...but it's never enough questions to cause you to fail or even get a bad grade on an exam. It's a "onesy" twosy" type thing.

My goal? I study for EVERY exam as if it's the only grade I'll ever get.

The exams at the first of the semester are always easier...so you need to get the highest grade possible on these to offset the difficult exams.

We had students in my class that on every exam, all they said when they got the BARE MINIMUM passing score, "I passed!".

Then when they failed the final by 1 or 2 points...there was no room for error, so they started screaming, "I only failed by a couple of points!!!! Can't you do something for me!!!!"

It's STRATEGY and be very, very honest...did you utilize every possible second of study time like you should have? Did you wait until the last minute on major exams? Did you read and prepare....or just think you did?"

Most exams that I fail, if I was very, very honest...I always know where I screwed up.

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I'm not trying to be mean, but I don't think your school is trying to sabotage you.

You say 42 failed, but 96 also found a way to pass...that means, to me, that the class was passable if you applied the required effort.

We have students in our class that are smart, but have failed. However, these are the same people that when you ask them what they did over the weekend (when we would have a HUGE exam on Monday), "Oh, I went and spent the day at the mall" or "My boyfriend and I went out of town", etc.

Then, these same people are flipping out a month before the semester ends and wanting extra credit, etc.

I honestly, don't see how you know that questions are on a Master's level if you have never been to graduate school. If the questions are pulled from other textbooks and not from what you are required to study, then you should have been working on that at the beginning of the semester.

The same thing happens at our school...but it's never enough questions to cause you to fail or even get a bad grade on an exam. It's a "onesy" twosy" type thing.

My goal? I study for EVERY exam as if it's the only grade I'll ever get.

The exams at the first of the semester are always easier...so you need to get the highest grade possible on these to offset the difficult exams.

We had students in my class that on every exam, all they said when they got the BARE MINIMUM passing score, "I passed!".

Then when they failed the final by 1 or 2 points...there was no room for error, so they started screaming, "I only failed by a couple of points!!!! Can't you do something for me!!!!"

It's STRATEGY and be very, very honest...did you utilize every possible second of study time like you should have? Did you wait until the last minute on major exams? Did you read and prepare....or just think you did?"

Most exams that I fail, if I was very, very honest...I always know where I screwed up.

Great post, the thread should be locked here.

OP, why did you sign something you did not understand? No one can MAKE you sign anything.

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Specializes in ICCU - cardiac.

Nursing school is hard and for so many reasons but ultimately you have to be able to care for sick people and make critical thinking decisions on your own. You won't have a teacher to summon when your patient goes downhill, you will have to rely on your own nursing judgment. Not every student is cut out to be a nurse and NS has a way of weeding those students out. It seems harsh and unfair when it is you under the gun but blaming the school and it's administration for failing isn't the answer. There are no free points given in NS, you have to earn every last one.

My passing score is 80%, I would love to have a 75%! And there is no way they pulled questions from material not required. Can they pull some tricky stuff, some line out of a paragraph you skimmed over - absolutely!

They give a syllabus the first day detailing the expectations and require-

ments to pass. And staff has office hours and other resources to help all students. In the end, you have to be accountable for your grade. And it does suck when it's over a few points or less. I missed 2 A's by a half point but my teachers weren't budging. Did you review every test? Use office hours? Do you understand the nurse's role and responsibilities?

I'm sorry, I know I may sound rude but I tire of reading about students blaming everyone and everything else for their failure. That is not the attitude to have in the profession of nursing; you have to be accountable for your actions - you are making decisions about a person's care and you have the patient, the family and other staff to answer to. You cannot jettison the blame onto someone else.:twocents:

Good luck, I wish you the best! Don't give up!

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Specializes in ortho/neuro, geriatrics, med-surg.
I'm not trying to be mean, but I don't think your school is trying to sabotage you.

You say 42 failed, but 96 also found a way to pass...that means, to me, that the class was passable if you applied the required effort.

We have students in our class that are smart, but have failed. However, these are the same people that when you ask them what they did over the weekend (when we would have a HUGE exam on Monday), "Oh, I went and spent the day at the mall" or "My boyfriend and I went out of town", etc.

Then, these same people are flipping out a month before the semester ends and wanting extra credit, etc.

I honestly, don't see how you know that questions are on a Master's level if you have never been to graduate school. If the questions are pulled from other textbooks and not from what you are required to study, then you should have been working on that at the beginning of the semester.

The same thing happens at our school...but it's never enough questions to cause you to fail or even get a bad grade on an exam. It's a "onesy" twosy" type thing.

My goal? I study for EVERY exam as if it's the only grade I'll ever get.

The exams at the first of the semester are always easier...so you need to get the highest grade possible on these to offset the difficult exams.

We had students in my class that on every exam, all they said when they got the BARE MINIMUM passing score, "I passed!".

Then when they failed the final by 1 or 2 points...there was no room for error, so they started screaming, "I only failed by a couple of points!!!! Can't you do something for me!!!!"

It's STRATEGY and be very, very honest...did you utilize every possible second of study time like you should have? Did you wait until the last minute on major exams? Did you read and prepare....or just think you did?"

Most exams that I fail, if I was very, very honest...I always know where I screwed up.

I utilize every spare minute that I have. I don't spend time with my family at all anymore. Every night when I come home, I cook dinner, get the kids in bed, and I am back on the books. It's not because I am not putting enough effort into it. I have no life anymore. I don't socialize, I study. I don't party and I don't do anything unless it has to do with a study group or nursing school. I quit everything when I started this program. Even my job. I don't wait til the last minute to study for anything. I can sit here and rattle off stuff that we have went over, and even my instructors know that I know this stuff... as far as the master's level testing. I know because I have found websites that have games and quizes and such that are on that level. I have talked to nurses that have masters degrees and I will tell them what kind of questions that are on these tests and they agree that the testing level is very unreasonable for a 2 year degree. I cound understand if I WAS a slacker... I would deserve everything that has come to me... BUT, such is not the case. My grades DO NOT reflect the dedication that I have put into this. This is the ONLY class that I have had a problem with. All the other classes up to this point have been A's and B's. I had a 3.8 GPA before all this happened. Not to mention... how do you explain a 90% failure rate for the total class. At this rate, there will only be about 4, maybe 5 people that actually pass this by the skin in their teeth...
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Specializes in ortho/neuro, geriatrics, med-surg.
Great post, the thread should be locked here.

OP, why did you sign something you did not understand? No one can MAKE you sign anything.

I went to the department head along with 15 other students and had it explained to us. We had no choice but to sign it. But I also wrote on the paper that I didn't agree with what I was signing and under college policy, this should not apply to us. Yes... they MADE ALL the students sign it. They told us that if we didn't then we were not going to be able to go any further in the program. They didn't leave us a choice.

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Specializes in ortho/neuro, geriatrics, med-surg.
Nursing school is hard and for so many reasons but ultimately you have to be able to care for sick people and make critical thinking decisions on your own. You won't have a teacher to summon when your patient goes downhill, you will have to rely on your own nursing judgment. Not every student is cut out to be a nurse and NS has a way of weeding those students out. It seems harsh and unfair when it is you under the gun but blaming the school and it's administration for failing isn't the answer. There are no free points given in NS, you have to earn every last one.

My passing score is 80%, I would love to have a 75%! And there is no way they pulled questions from material not required. Can they pull some tricky stuff, some line out of a paragraph you skimmed over - absolutely!

They give a syllabus the first day detailing the expectations and require-

ments to pass. And staff has office hours and other resources to help all students. In the end, you have to be accountable for your grade. And it does suck when it's over a few points or less. I missed 2 A's by a half point but my teachers weren't budging. Did you review every test? Use office hours? Do you understand the nurse's role and responsibilities?

I'm sorry, I know I may sound rude but I tire of reading about students blaming everyone and everything else for their failure. That is not the attitude to have in the profession of nursing; you have to be accountable for your actions - you are making decisions about a person's care and you have the patient, the family and other staff to answer to. You cannot jettison the blame onto someone else.:twocents:

Good luck, I wish you the best! Don't give up!

I have been to the instructors... I have used outside tutoring... The syllabus is a joke. The don't stick to it. I read the material, I study, I do extra things like games, worksheets, I even have a study guide for our book that we are using and do those questions.

As far as the clinical, I know what I am doing. Since I have started this program I have always excelled at that part of the program. I have been offered a job on every floor that I have worked at so far. I have no problem with anyone prompting me when I am in the clinical setting. I have caught errors that would have put patients lives in danger... there is no problem there. If I could pass soley on that, I would be acing this thing. It's the tests. They don't match up with what is being taught in the classroom. In the handbook it clearly states that ALL material that is presented in class and in the required reading is what you will be tested on. This is not the problem. The problem is this... they are testing on material that in not covered in the reading. There are just enough questions that is causes you to fail, unless you get lucky and just happen to "guess" the right one.

I am just at the end of my rope. I don't know what else to do. My career is hanging on these next 2 tests and I just don't know if I can deal with all this anymore. I dont' want to quit, but I look at some of these other students and just wonder how they made it. I want to be a nurse because I love to help people. It's not about the money... it's about helping others. That is what I have been wanting to do. I am tired of being a CNA... I have been a CNA for almost 18 years now. I want to do more for my patients. I am just tired...:crying2:

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While it is not good to look at things in a negative light, I think, from reading your posts, that you should start preparing to find a new RN program or an LPN program to enter. It appears that the faculty is doing their best to have grounds to dismiss the majority of you, if not all of you, in the special group. Realistically speaking, it seems quite likely that you won't be able to succeed under these circumstances, so you should channel your energy into what you can do, not dwell on the inequity you think you are experiencing.

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Specializes in Family Nurse Practitioner.

Is there a student who is successful in this class that you could ask for pointers on which study materials they are using? Our classes pulled information from whever they wanted to also and while it didn't thrill me for each exam I studied from several different sources. Sheesh I've even scaned the book shelves in my professor's office to see what they have there and bought them to study from. What units are you doing now? Maybe someone here could send you some links to extra things to study. Studying is a strategy, imo, and I did everything in my power to be prepared for whatever they might throw my way. I'm not the smartest person in the world but I figured out how to take NCLEX style tests and also studied every single night. My lowest final grade in LPN and RN school was an 87%.

The bottom line is that unless every single person fails you won't have any recourse so spending time complaining about it and blaming your school is taking valuable time away from coming up with a solid study plan. Like someone else said if there are people passing they are doing something right and I'm pretty sure guessing isn't it. I'm also not trying to be harsh but with two exams left there is still hope if you get on the right track now. You have worked too hard for too long not to get through this. Hang in there, Jules

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Specializes in med/surg, telemetry, IV therapy, mgmt.

some public supported schools have mission statements that require them to make certain allowances in giving equal opportunities to the population of the area they serve. getting into the school of nursing is one thing. the school also has an obligation to its constituency to prepare them to pass the nclex and give back to the community. what good would it be for all the students to pass the nursing classes only to flunk the nclex? when would you want to find out that that you don't cut the mustard? after a term in school? or after the third time you flunked the nclex and can't get a license to practice?

my grades were better last time... these tests are on a master's level, and the material that is being presented in class doesn't match up with what is on the test. the insructor is pulling information out of books that we don't have and that are not required by the college. now, i am not saying that every question is like that... there are just enough on there to make sure that everyone fails.

i was very bothered by this statement. first of all, how would you know what a test on a master's level was like? do you have a master's degree? also, most master's degree classes, while there are some tests, require a lot of research papers and usually a thesis or research project for the major part of the grade.

can you
prove
that the instructor is pulling information from books not required by the college? i'm willing to bet that the instructor can show that the information came from your textbooks, lectures and supplemental materials that they have recommended you read or watch. there is very little nursing information that isn't included in nursing textbooks somewhere between the covers!

there are some students that are getting together and they are going to write the accredation board and tell them what is going on so that they can investigate. the department head won't do anything about it, and we are at a point where we are just desperate. i don't know what else to do!

the state board of nursing is who licenses your school. in order for your school to operate they had to file a detailed description of their curriculum with the state board. it is very unlikely that your complaints are going to go anywhere. why? as long as the school is teaching what is on the curriculum, the state board is not going to interfere in a squabble where students are upset with the way the tests are being written and/or graded. you have a problem with the tests, go to the bosses of the instructors. work up the chain of command just like you would at any job.

does anyone have any other suggestions???

focus your energy on figuring out where you are continually failing to improve your test scores and why. what about the test questions is it that results in your choosing the wrong answers? it is something about your way of thinking that you need to gain insight to and change. school is not only about learning, but also about changing ourselves. forgive me if this sounds harsh, it is not meant that way, but you don't sound as if you are ready to make any kind of change at all. instead, you and everyone else in your class want the school to change to accommodate each of you. that is impossible.

test taking is a skill that improves with time and experience.

read the information on these websites:

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