Should I give up?

Shagce1 · Mar 18, 2016

Are there any other schools in your area? Maybe you could apply to a different school. Unfortunately you will have to pass anatomy no matter what. Maybe give up on applying until you have satisfied all of the pre req requirements.

mcmullenbrooke · Mar 18, 2016

theres a couple others but i applied to late for that one and it would be about 5,000$ more then the one I keep applying for. It just seems that nothing is working for me with it.

Zyprexa_Ho · Mar 18, 2016

This may seem harsh, but you're not even talking about getting a bad grade in Anatomy, you're talking about failing the course three or four times. Many say that the sciences are nothing in comparison to nursing school, so if you can't pass this class, what does that say about your ability to finish nursing school?

If you can't find a career that interests you, I would suggest trying to learn about more career options.

Here.I.Stand, BSN, RN · Mar 18, 2016

If your school is like most, you need a GPA of at least 3.5 to be competitive. You need to be making As and Bs, not retaking classes multiple times just to pass. A&P is the easiest of the science classes, to say nothing of the actual nursing classes. I'm sorry.

wildling · Mar 18, 2016

I think you're going to have a very difficult time in nursing school if youre finding human anatomy hard to pass. Nursing school is basically human anatomy and physiology on steroids. Those that got As in basic human anatomy are getting lower Bs/upper Cs in class. There are many other careers that work with patients (social services, physical therapy, occupational therapy, ultrasound). That's not to say you can never be a nurse. There are so many people that go into nursing as their second or third career. I'm not saying you should "give up" but I think you're at the point where you should probably explore other options similar to your interests and see if anything stands out to you.

NurseGirl525, ASN, RN · Mar 19, 2016

A&P is the foundation of nursing. How does any school allow you to take it 4 times?

WishfulThinkingRN · Mar 19, 2016

I definitely won't tell you to give up, but you might need to defer your dream for the time-being. To paraphrase Einstein, doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results is the very definition of insanity. The fact that you've taken some of these courses multiple times and are still not able to pass tells me there's an underlying issue you need to address before you apply to nursing school again.

I'm really curious to know what specifically you're struggling with in these classes. Is it the memorization (goodness knows there's tons of it in anatomy), is it the tests, is it the science or the math? Have you tried to go back and identify what the common denominator between these classes is? I would take a hard look at how you're managing your time, especially since you're working full-time. You said you're studying hard, which I absolutely believe, but there's a difference between studying hard and studying smart. If you're studying and are unable to retain the information you're studying, there's a problem with your method that needs to be addressed. What is your study schedule like? What have you changed each time you retake a class? Does your school offer academic counseling and/or tutoring? What are your academic strengths and weaknesses? What classes do you excel in?

Before you make a decision as to whether or not you want to continue to try for your RN, or try for another degree, you need to figure out what's holding you back.

belljar1995, PhD, RN · Mar 19, 2016

Hmm.....what about trying an LPN program ? If you can be successful there, it may boost your confidence along with your ability to tackle some of these prereqs. In addition, you can get some work in the field, make some money, and then consider bridging to your BSN.

la_chica_suerte85, BSN, RN · Mar 20, 2016

This won't be ideal because it's one of the more expensive options but when I was looking for a faster way into nursing school, I very briefly considered the entry-level BSN-to-MSN RN routes. I would have, in a very accelerated fashion, gotten my BSN and then gone immediately on (while working as a very new grad) to my MSN. Though the schooling would have been faster, the tuition was SOOOOOOOOO much more (and once you contact them for information, they continue to hound you to apply because generally for-profit schools do this kind of thing). So, I decided to wait until it was time to apply to the school I graduated from as a post-bacc (even though that meant waiting another year).

In your situation, you can pursue maybe an allied health kind of degree and then apply to one of these schools after you graduate (they only want you to have a Bachelor's degree in any field).

There are a few caveats to doing it this way, though. It's an accelerated program and accelerated programs are a whole different kind of beast. If you can't get it together enough for an anatomy course, this might be too intense for you. Most students find the accelerated track extremely stressful and too fast-paced. They come out on the other side feeling like they literally know nothing (and most of the nurses who work with them have made the same comments to me). Also, if you need to work, this will no longer be possible because of the time commitment a program like this requires. It goes by fast but it's really hard.

So, first I would figure out why you've failed anatomy so many times and then go from there. But for now, I would really reconsider pursuing nursing in the immediate future.

LadyFree28, BSN, LPN, RN · Mar 20, 2016

If you want to be a nurse, and based on your repetition of courses, I would suggest a practical nurse program with one caveat; you are going to learn a lot in a compact amount of time and you may find yourself in the same predicament-before doing anything else, you need to learn your learning style and your test taking style; whether you have test anxiety or not, and then position yourself to learn the material.

Once you figure out your learning and test taking style, you can go forward with your studies, whether you choose nursing or otherwise.

Best wishes.

Leonardsmom,LPN · Mar 20, 2016

My honest opinion is that before you look at other options of nursing programs to apply for, you first need to figure out why you have had difficulties in your prerequisites. Classes like anatomy and physiology are your foundation to what you learn in nursing school. While you might have an instructor review some of the basics, the focus will be learning new information based upon what you are already expected to know. Nursing school is much more difficult than any of the prereqs that you take, and the rate at which you are expected to learn and understand the information is more intense. Use the resources available at your school, tutors, supplemental instruction, and make sure you are meeting with your instructors.

From the problems that it sounds like you have had so far with your classes, if you do get into a nursing program and continue the study habits that you have been using more than likely you will have difficulties in a nursing program.