Should I take ALL gen ed courses before applying to nursing school?

funsizedprenurse · Dec 6, 2013

It's better to finish all your GEDs, but make sure they're the right classes prior to nursing. DO NOT LEAVE ALL YOUR SCIENCE CLASSES AT THE END. That will be a huge load to handle. Take for instance math chem and a speech class. Or make sure you take 2 easy GED classes and one science class each semester. That way it'll be an easier workload for you to study for. I had no one tell me this and I'm here struggling so hard to get a B in anatomy.

pmabraham, BSN, RN · Dec 6, 2013

Good day:

Ditto on the above. Do all your general education courses and prerequisites for the nursing program as early as possible prior to the application. Look to a community college where the cost is extremely economical compared to other venues. Balance your course load as much as possible shooting for "A" in each course especially your hard sciences and any math classes you take.

If your school has a learning center, use it often no matter where you are at with your grade or understanding. https://allnurses.com/pre-nursing-student/how-get-any-846733.html is an excellent resource to review and then follow.

Thank you.

beckyboo80 · Dec 6, 2013

Thanks so much for your responses. What I had originally planned to do was take one science class per semester. However, if I go that route it's going to take me two years just to take A, P, micro, and chem! Do you think english and speech this spring would be good? I have 3 kids so I have to be careful not to take on too much. Also, I'm trying to do as many online as I can until my toddler is in preschool. Obviously no sciences are online. I'm going to community college by the way. :)

pmabraham, BSN, RN · Dec 6, 2013

Good day:

This semester I took two sciences, and next semester I'm taking two sciences. It can be done; but it is hard. A general rule of thumb for time management is to calculate a minimum of two hours of study time per week per credit hour. So a three credit class would be a minimum of six hours per week of study time. I've found for science with lab classes that tend to be four credits, it is best to consider them as six credits for time management purposes. Therefore two four credit science classes would run twelve hours (minimum) of study time per week. The reason for the this is that often times lab study time is the equivalent of a three credit class even though it is counted as one credit.

I'm also going to a community college; so far, I've done a combination of online as well as on campus classes. Each has their pros and cons. What I would share for the online is that it often takes more discipline than on campus. Do read the how to get A's in every class post (the author did an excellent job covering the foundations for dong well).

Thank you.

maddiem · Dec 6, 2013

I would recommend completing all of your gen ed requirements before entering nursing school. You're going to be overwhelmed with all the nursing classes you're going to be taking, and then having to take gen eds on top of that is just going to be so frustrating. You're going to want to give 100% of your attention to your nursing classes. Also, some schools will give priority to people who finish their gen eds before the program. My school does this. We're on a point system and if you complete all the gen eds for the program before applying then you get extra points towards your application.

sharpeimom · Dec 7, 2013

I just asked my college professor husband your question. He suggested that you contact the nursing school you plan to attend and that you request copies of the syllabi the professors plan to use when they teach the classes you plan to take. The reason is that what some schools offer as English Comp. for example, may not include everything that your nursing program wants or the courses may be numbered totally differently.

He suggests that you make an appointment with the admissions department of the nursing school you plan to attend and ask them what they want you to have and how they suggest you schedule the classes.

Compassion_x · Dec 7, 2013

Definitely finish them before nursing school if you can. You'll thank yourself later.

vhiran · Dec 7, 2013

Best bet is to ask your school(s) of choice directly. I found out from mine that I could have gone ahead and applied for Nursing school this semester even though I had a semester's worth of pre-reqs for. MY advisor never told me it was an option, heck I didn't know anything but what to take, so she wasn't much of a help sadly.

akulahawkRN, ADN, RN, EMT-P · Dec 7, 2013

I would also recommend completing as much of your general ed as possible before applying. You should not count on being able to complete the gen ed coursework during Summer Semester. You also want to be certain that you are able to graduate from your program and your school at the same time. It makes a big difference as you won't be able to take the NCLEX if you haven't graduated from the school.

If you want to "risk it," I would suggest getting your sciences out of the way before nursing school begins. You don't want to have a tough academic load and risk having to repeat a course and delay graduation.

rubato, ASN, RN · Dec 7, 2013

Take them ahead. And, you can take some sciences online. I took micro online this summer and it was really easy.

Mandy0728 · Dec 7, 2013

It's always best to get your gen eds done ASAP. I start my BSN program next month and I finished everything this semester, so all I have left are nursing classes. Each semester in the program we have 15 credits, so it's nearly impossible to add anything else!