Taking A&P 1&2 at the same time

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

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I am in a dilemma and I need advice. I am returning back to school after a 7 year break. When I was attending school I was going to school for nursing and taking pre nursing classes. I pretty much played around and stopped going because I wasn't taking school serious. Fast forward to now, I am in my late 20's and wanting to finish where I left off.

My first semester back was this past Spring and I took Microbiology and two online classes. I made a B in Microbiology and a A in the other two classes. I recently went to talk to an advisor who informed me that I only have two classes left that I have to take in order to apply for nursing which is A&P 1 and 2. She said that if I take them both this coming Fall I could possibly be starting nursing school in Spring 2020 if accepted. Taking them both together is usually not an option but her and others submitted an override for me to be able to take them together since they are a repeat.

My question is should I go ahead and take them together this coming Fall to have the opportunity of going into nursing school in the Spring? They would be the only two classes I will be taking but they are both very difficult classes. I will be changing to part time at work if I do take them. I have taken them both before over 7 years ago but because its been over 7 years I have to repeat them. If I don't take them together this coming Fall, I will take A&P 1 in the Fall and A&P 2 in the Spring only one class per semester. This would mean I would have to possibly wait until Fall 2020 to attend nursing school. Please give your honest opinions.

Hello,

I was in a similar situation, except it had been over 10 years since I'd taken A&P (the courses expired). I ended up having to take micro, A&P 1 and A&P 2 all in one semester in order to meet the school's nursing application deadline. I quit working and studied my *** off and made A's in all the classes. It was a HUGE time commitment, but if you're willing to do what it takes then go for it. I had several people tell me that I couldn't do it, but I'm starting nursing school next month. ?

Specializes in ICU, trauma, neuro.

Here's the thing if you need "A's" in both don't even consider it. Also, I wouldn't even attempt it while I was trying to work. If your professor falls toward the "easier" end of the spectrum and you study effectively, and diligently then it can be done. However, if you draw on the harder end of the spectrum then it could be a disaster. My A&P included "lab" portions that required substantial additional study (I would go into the lab several times a week for hours to prepare for the exams). Also, when I was taking classes to prepare for the ASN program at Ivy Tech these classes were used to "weed out" the over 600 applicants for the less than 60 spots. Thus, they were made to be ridiculously difficult, in many cases harder that the Advanced Pathophysiology and Pharmacology that I've had to take in NP school and there was little (if any) opportunity to challenge poor (or even incorrect) questions. I saw many 4.0 students reduced to failing or dropping in those Ivy Tech courses. Only you can know which end of the spectrum your courses may tend to approximate, and how much in the way of study resources you can bring to the table. Also be aware that you might get stuck with "dual exams" in the same week (or even couple of days) which would limit your ability to focus your resources on a specfic exam. This is even more the case in a course which also features lab exams.

Thanks for your reply’s I really do appreciate it! I have really been thinking about this day in and day out. Yesterday my advisor got everything approved and she placed both classes in my schedule. I don’t start school until August 26th so I still do have some time to decide.

So I have been doing a few quizzes on both A&P 1 and 2. A lot of the information I do remember and I knew the answers to. So I guess I have retained more information than I thought I did. I still am very nervous about taking them both together though. Like you some of you said it will be torture. Lol

Specializes in ICU, trauma, neuro.
1 minute ago, LD1289 said:

Thanks for your reply’s I really do appreciate it! I have really been thinking about this day in and day out. Yesterday my advisor got everything approved and she placed both classes in my schedule. I don’t start school until August 26th so I still do have some time to decide.

So I have been doing a few quizzes on both A&P 1 and 2. A lot of the information I do remember and I knew the answers to. So I guess I have retained more information than I thought I did. I still am very nervous about taking them both together though. Like you some of you said it will be torture. Lol

IF, I was going to attempt this I would try to pre read the text as much as possible (and work through the Study Guides). I would also try to do as much of the material on Khanacademy.com related to A&P (some of this will also be found under the Biology and MCAT, and NCLEX prep sections). I would also consider subscribing to something like Lecturio.com and listening to as many lectures (with integrated quizzes) as possible. I would try to put in no less than six to eight hours per day of study on my off days between now and when school started.

1 hour ago, tamerea said:

Hello,

I was in a similar situation, except it had been over 10 years since I'd taken A&P (the courses expired). I ended up having to take micro, A&P 1 and A&P 2 all in one semester in order to meet the school's nursing application deadline. I quit working and studied my *** off and made A's in all the classes. It was a HUGE time commitment, but if you're willing to do what it takes then go for it. I had several people tell me that I couldn't do it, but I'm starting nursing school next month. ?

Omg I couldn’t imagine taking all three in one semester plus the labs. That’s amazing!! Congratulations!!

I know I can do it and I know I’m going to have to work hard for it. It’s not going to be easy and it’s going to be time consuming from all the studying. My downfall is that I do have to work. I wouldn’t be able to quit my job. I would have to to go down to part time and work my days around.

31 minutes ago, myoglobin said:

Here's the thing if you need "A's" in both don't even consider it. Also, I wouldn't even attempt it while I was trying to work. If your professor falls toward the "easier" end of the spectrum and you study effectively, and diligently then it can be done. However, if you draw on the harder end of the spectrum then it could be a disaster. My A&P included "lab" portions that required substantial additional study (I would go into the lab several times a week for hours to prepare for the exams). Also, when I was taking classes to prepare for the ASN program at Ivy Tech these classes were used to "weed out" the over 600 applicants for the less than 60 spots. Thus, they were made to be ridiculously difficult, in many cases harder that the Advanced Pathophysiology and Pharmacology that I've had to take in NP school and there was little (if any) opportunity to challenge poor (or even incorrect) questions. I saw many 4.0 students reduced to failing or dropping in those Ivy Tech courses. Only you can know which end of the spectrum your courses may tend to approximate, and how much in the way of study resources you can bring to the table. Also be aware that you might get stuck with "dual exams" in the same week (or even couple of days) which would limit your ability to focus your resources on a specfic exam. This is even more the case in a course which also features lab exams.

Thanks for your reply! My downfall is that I do have to work. I wouldn’t continue full time but I would go down to part time.

I don’t know who my professors will be for labs but I do know the professors names for lecture. Just going by ratemyprofessors, the A&P 2 is a little difficult. Some of the comments said that she is a great teacher but it’s not an easy A.

The minimum grade I can receive would be a B. I do want to shoot for an A though.

I know it’s going to be difficult.

Specializes in Cardicac Neuro Telemetry.

Do not take these two classes together. You are setting yourself up to be overwhelmed and to fail.

On 7/9/2019 at 12:12 PM, LD1289 said:

Omg I couldn’t imagine taking all three in one semester plus the labs. That’s amazing!! Congratulations!!

I know I can do it and I know I’m going to have to work hard for it. It’s not going to be easy and it’s going to be time consuming from all the studying. My downfall is that I do have to work. I wouldn’t be able to quit my job. I would have to to go down to part time and work my days around.

I know a lot of people will tell you not to do it - a lot of people told me the same. Ultimately, you are the one who knows what you're capable of and all of the commitments you have to juggle. I just wanted to let you know that it IS possible! Best of luck with whatever you decide!

1 Votes

How much time do you have before classes would start? If you have a few weeks to self-study before classes start, that would help. Like the last poster said, only you know what you are capable of when you put your mind to it. I know it can be done, but the difficulty will depend on your study/test skills and how much time you will have to commit to studying.

If I were in your shoes, I'd probably bite the bullet and do them at the same time. But only you know you, if that makes sense. ?

Thanks guys!! I feel a lot better now. I am leaning more towards taking them together now. I know I can do it! I’m just going to start studying the material way before the semester starts and getting in touch with students who have taken those professors. ?

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