Starting Nursing School in 2 months !! Tips?!

**NICU Guy, BSN, RN** · Nov 10, 2020

1. Will being a male student nurse negatively affect my experiences during school?

Excluding Maternity clinicals, there should be minimal differences between male and female students' experiences.

2. What should I brush up on before nursing school? (Anatomy, physio, micro, etc..)

There will be plenty of studying once you get into the nursing classes. Don't worry about brushing up.

3. What are some resources I can use to essentially get a jump start to 1st-semester material? (I have no social life right now due to covid in my area D:)

4. How will clinicals be for someone who never had them? (CNA program was mainly sims due to covid). I had clinicals BC (before Covid). Clinicals were completely different in 2020 and will vary from school to school and state to state.

5. How is CSULB's nursing program/job outlook for grads?

Don't know anything about CSULB, but California is pretty rough for a new grad.

WbeRNGOAL · Nov 10, 2020

6 minutes ago, NICU Guy said:

1. Will being a male student nurse negatively affect my experiences during school?

Excluding Maternity clinicals, there should be minimal differences between male and female students' experiences.

2. What should I brush up on before nursing school? (Anatomy, physio, micro, etc..)

There will be plenty of studying once you get into the nursing classes. Don't worry about brushing up.

3. What are some resources I can use to essentially get a jump start to 1st-semester material? (I have no social life right now due to covid in my area D:)

4. How will clinicals be for someone who never had them? (CNA program was mainly sims due to covid). I had clinicals BC (before Covid). Clinicals were completely different in 2020 and will vary from school to school and state to state.

5. How is CSULB's nursing program/job outlook for grads?

Don't know anything about CSULB, but California is pretty rough for a new grad.

Thanks for the advice! If I can't find a job after graduation, I will most definitely look for a job in Texas or Washington.

cameron5575, BSN, RN · Nov 10, 2020

Congratulations on getting accepted - that's so exciting! I can't answer question 5 since I don't go there but here are my answers to the first 4:

1. Will being a male student nurse negatively affect my experiences during school?

-I'm not male so I can't really say for certain that it won't. But, in my experience at my school, it seems that nursing instructors are really kind to male students mostly because they are a minority within this profession and they want to make them feel appreciated. As for clinicals, there may be some female patients who prefer not to have a male take care of them but your instructors will still make sure that you have someone to care for. You won't be put at a disadvantage just because one patient said no - there are always others.

2. What should I brush up on before nursing school? (Anatomy, physio, micro, etc..)

-Have you taken prerequisite courses already? Because, at my program, we spent the first year taking things like Chemistry, A&P, Microbiology, etc. If you have already taken these courses in the past, I would definitely say to brush up on A&P (e.g., blood flow through the heart, GI system, lungs, etc.). So far, I haven't encountered anything that I learned from my Chemistry class in nursing so I would say just no the basics and move on (no need to memorize the periodic table or how to balance equations).

-Definitely brush up on basic math. The math in nursing is by no means advanced but the expectation is that you will be able to score at least 80% (but ideally 100%) of the medication math questions correct all of the time. After all, in real life nursing, this is a life and death matter - making an error in med math could end a person's life. So reviewing videos on med math could be helpful if math is not your strong suit.

3. What are some resources I can use to essentially get a jump start to 1st-semester material? (I have no social life right now due to covid in my area D:)

-Use RegisteredNurseRN on Youtube. She has, hands down, the best and most helpful video series for nursing students. I have been using her since day one. Since you'll start off with fundamentals of nursing and probably physical assessment, begin with these videos. They are extremely helpful.

4. How will clinicals be for someone who never had them? (CNA program was mainly sims due to covid)

-The most important part of clinicals is experiencing as much as possible. You're most likely going to begin your first clinical with taking assessments and performing CNA work. Get comfortable with your assessments and get into the habit of completing them as thoroughly as possible to help develop these skills.

-Also, always volunteer for things. Of course, if you haven't been taught a skill, don't pretend like you know how to do it. Just explain that you've never done this or that you want practice (or maybe even simply to observe) and ask for opportunities. Clinical is all about experience.

Over all, just enjoy your experience, stay focused, and remember the end goal. It can be easy to get bogged down with the immense amount of assignments, reading, and studying given to students. Remember your resources, go to your teachers and advisor for help, and lean on others students. And don't forget about self-care!

You'll do great!

WbeRNGOAL · Nov 10, 2020

WOW, I really appreciate your answer and advice. I will take every tip to heart as I prepare for school. Thanks!

nursenate5 · Nov 10, 2020

Congratulations on your acceptance!! That's such an exciting step in your journey. It will fly by, so try to enjoy it and also remember that nursing school is tough but only temporary.

1. Will being a male student nurse negatively affect my experiences during school?

As a male in nursing, I didn't have a negative experience in clinical or in school. Sure, I was the minority with about 4 other males in my class of 24, but I wasn't treated any differently because of it. Most patients don't care at all to have male nursing students either. I witnessed several live births and a C-section and only once did I have a patient request a female for help with perineal care.

2. What should I brush up on before nursing school? (Anatomy, physio, micro, etc..)

Try to relax!! Most of your nursing courses will review relevant A&P as you're going through the courses. They'll ensure you get a review of the stuff that's most important and relevant to the content you're learning.

3. What are some resources I can use to essentially get a jump start to 1st-semester material? (I have no social life right now due to covid in my area D:)

Depending on how quickly your nursing program progresses, I would suggest maybe getting a jump start on some fundamental nursing topics. My program had an intense 4 weeks of labs and class before we were put in clinical. This is a pretty short time span, and I remember how flustered I felt talking all that knowledge in with no prior healthcare experience. Simple things like how to transfer a patient safely from a bed to a wheelchair, using a gait belt, assisting with activities of daily living, etc. will make you feel more comfortable when you do start clinical.

4. How will clinicals be for someone who never had them? (CNA program was mainly sims due to covid)

I think this depends a lot on your social skills. You'll mostly be doing basic tasks like I mentioned above at first, and you'll probably feel really awkward and uncomfortable. Just jump in there, be confident, use your clinical instructor as a resource, and use your best judgment. Don't forget to practice your assessment skills too! Be really thorough and learn to feel the differences between +1 and +2 pulses, be able to find pedal and radial pulses, learn your different lung sounds, be able to determine types of edema. These are all things that take time to refine but come in handy the more you go through clinical.

Finally, try to have fun with learning everything and always ask to observe if it's something you've never seen before. Doctors, nurses, CNAs, and almost everyone on the healthcare team will be happy to teach and show you new things!

5. How is CSULB's nursing program/job outlook for grads?

I can't speak to this specifically since I'm unfamiliar with the program or the job outlook for new grads in your area. But you can generally get a good sense of the market by looking at job postings from nearby hospitals. Do they all require 6 months of experience, or none? Are there dozens of positions open or just a handful? Also, don't forget about nursing residency programs, which are typically designed just for new grads!

Best of luck to you!

Kangoshi, BSN, RN · Nov 10, 2020

19 hours ago, WbeRNGOAL said:

1. Will being a male student nurse negatively affect my experiences during school?

I can't speak from personal experience, but the 7 males in my 60 person cohort have so far not had any major complaints related to their gender. If anything, male nurses on the floors of our clinical and the male instructors welcome them and are willing to offer that extra bit of help. Some of the female patients have expressed not wanting a male nursing student in their room, but I've also had male patients ask that a female student nurse not perform their catheterization so it goes both ways.

2. What should I brush up on before nursing school? (Anatomy, physio, micro, etc..)

A&P is by far the best thing I'm glad I brushed up on before starting my program. Micro and chem were exactly what nurses at my hospital said, courses that were used to weed out students but didn't really have any basis on what you needed to focus on in nursing school. Look up Registered Nurse RN videos on specific topics that are usually covered in the first semester. Things like pharmacology, lab values, and disease processes on topics like diabetes and chron's will go a long way.

3. What are some resources I can use to essentially get a jump start to 1st-semester material? (I have no social life right now due to covid in my area D:)

Registered Nurse RN is a wonderful resource who is no doubt part of why I haven't gotten below an A on any of my theory courses. If you prefer podcasts, HelixTalk - Rosalind Franklin University's College of Pharmacy Podcast is great for pharmacology. LevelUp RN is also good if your program utilizes ATI, but I know that some of the more recent students have moved away from that program. If someone is selling their ATI books, the med-surg and pharm ones are the most helpful imo.

4. How will clinicals be for someone who never had them? (CNA program was mainly sims due to covid)

For my 1st semester I was placed in an acute care rehabilitation facility where we learned the basics (proper moving/ambulating w/patients, oral and sub-q meds, head to toe assessments, etc) with the expectation that we would complete 1 care plan on a patient we were assigned. Entering my final semester, I basically follow around 1 nurse and all her patients are mine, we are on a med-surg and tele floor where the ratio can be 6:1 depending on the day. As you build skills you are expected to perform them on patients, think IVs, foleys, wound care, etc. Masks are worn at all times, we are never given COVID patients, and the debrief session at the end goes over what you learned, what you did that was new, and the disease your selected patient had. Overall, it's the best part of nursing school because you actually feel like you're helping people and it ties together everything you've learned in theory.

5. How is CSULB's nursing program/job outlook for grads?

Can't answer this question since I'm based out of Texas, but I plan on applying to every residency in my preferred specialty throughout the country. I'm lucky in that I don't have kids or family based in this state, but I've heard CA in general is hard for new grads. If you find a specialty you really are interested in, try not to limit yourself on location if you can.

WbeRNGOAL · Nov 11, 2020

Thanks for your advice! I'll definitely look into Registered Nurse RN for a jump start.