The First Days of Nursing School by the Fall 2009ers!!!

Nursing Students General Students

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Alright well I have been wanting to post this for a very long time! Since I first logged on to allnurses I couldn't wait until it was my turn to say, I am a nursing student!!!

So, technically, yesterday was my first day but I was only there for a couple hours. We went right into lecture about the history of nursing and how it's ever changing. We also learned about the different educational paths a nurse can take, but I already did that research beforehand on allnurses :p

Today was mainly orientation and a welcome to our nursing class. We went more in depth about what to expect and also dissected our huge textbook-like syllabus. I am not joking about the size of that syllabus, it's insane. Since starting I have been reading nonstop. We have already been assigned about five chapters to read from our fundamentals book, which is not the most interesting of reads, but it's doable. I'm just overwhelmed really, probably because they talked a lot about what is to come. Over the next month, three papers are due and at the end of each semester we are taking the ATI tests. If we fail those, well then we have to take the course over.

Today was also one of our lab days. So for lab, we watched two videos about ensuring infection control by washing hands and applying ppe and then of course we had to do it. The basics for right now. Tomorrow is another lab day, bedmaking and body mechanics. So I guess I should get back to reading a couple more chapters and stop playing around on allnurses. I am just so happy to have finally made it. I'm still in a state of shock. Somebody pinch me.

Specializes in Peds, Med-Surg, Disaster Nsg, Parish Nsg.

good luck to each of you as you begin nursing school!!!!

thgoodluck_3.gif

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Specializes in Obstetrics.

Today was my first day of nursing school :]

Honestly, it wasn't at all overwhelming. I just had the lecture today, supposed to have lab tomorrow, but my instructor said no class tomorrow. And I have a little bit of reading to do, but nothing too intense. I'm excited. I'm about to get a BP Cuff tonight & that excites me too haha

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Tomorrow is my first day!! So excited but very nervous too :/

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Specializes in Emergency Dept. Trauma. Pediatrics.

I forgot all about this thread when I made mine, I blame tiredness. I will copy and paste my post from my thread in here as well. I posted this last Th after my first week was almost done.

Well almost, I have one more day. It's funny, in the Pre Nursing Student Section I made a post many months ago for those of us starting now and how excited I was and how I would be here my first day to share it with everyone and so forth and so on.

So here it is Thursday and I am finally finding I have a small ounce of energy to come make my post and only because someone asked me in the other forum or else I would have probably just waited until this weekend.

It has been a good week, I am mainly so tired and stuff because I am a night person and I am adjusting to waking up at 6 a.m. every morning and trying to go to bed early and having class every day all day. That has been by far the biggest struggle. I don't have to be up at 6 every day but I figured it would be better to stick to a routine for me and my youngest kid that just started childcare as well. Anyway, also to get parking you have to get there early and I mean REALLY EARLY, our school had a 31% increase in students and parking is horrific so I get to school early and can study or what not on days my classes don't start first thing.

Monday we had Orientation, we had a drawing thing and I won (along with like 15 other students) and I picked a book called "How to Survive and Maybe Even Love Nursing School, A Guide FOR students BY students."I haven't started reading it yet but it looks good.

We meet our clinical instructors and found out where we will do our Clinicals which first semester will be long term care. My clinical site will be about 10 mins from my house so that is nice. They tried to group people by their home addresses. We have a huge class size, biggest they have ever done and it's 50 students. Thankfully for most labs and math classes we are in 2 groups so only our Fundamentals and Pharmacology lecture classes will have all of us.

We meet all the nursing instructors and they all seem really great, the ones we have had doing Fundamental lectures have just been awesome and so pleasant and seem like they truly want to see us succeed. It's a two person team and both are currently going for their masters right now so they say how they feel what we are going through and it has helped them more. For example, one lady is trying something new and telling us what PAGES and paragraphs to focus our reading on instead of saying just read chapter 1 and 2. She says to just skim the rest and focus on the things she highlights and she is very thorough.

We also have so much free help from our Learning Opportunity Center that they came in and talked to us about that honestly if a student is determined to succeed there is no reason they can't. We have the Math learning lab, we have a Pharm Drop in study thing if you need help with Pharm, we have free tutoring from 5 RN's, free counseling and even couple counseling if you need it, stress management, test anxiety work shops etc. etc. all free so the help is there if you seek it out.

So anyway, so far I don't feel overwhelmed, but it's only the first week. Lecture has been good, the math teacher for Dosage and Calc seems wonderful and she says she has never had a student that was passing her class not pass the Dosage and Calc exam within the 3 tries at the 100% required.

We start Pharm next week and had our first lab today. It was simple stuff, they said today was mainly the stuff you learn in the CNA classes so for the CNA's in our group it would just be review.

So that was about it, I get home and I am so tired that my kids are freaked out that mom is ready for bed before them, especially since I was always going to bed around 3 in the morning. With my kids starting school last week this week was also back to school night at 2 schools and at my sons middle school it lasted until 9:30 and had first foot ball games and so on, so yea I will use this weekend to recharge and hopefully my body gets more accustomed and the new sleep cycle gets easier as the weeks go on.

Oh we also have a nursing club for the National Student Nurses Association. I am joining that, it looks like a lot of fun and support and a good foot in, our school is trying to start the club up this semester so hopefully there is enough interest to keep a local chapter but NSNA (hope I got that right) will be having a convention in Co Springs in Oct. and I am hoping to go.

So that was my first week as a nursing student, minus tomorrow. but tomorrow is a pretty lite day, after I am going to the spa and getting a facial LOL

Sorry for any major typos and stuff I am beat.

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I just had my first day of nursing school. It really wasn't that bad. In my program, we take six classes the first semester. We had two today. The first 8AM lecture involved all the students in our program (about 70). It was the fundamentals lecture. Then I had a break in which I had to run around doing errands and stuff on campus, and grab a quick lunch.

Next I had a five hour lecture/lab class for health assessment across the lifespan. My teacher was really funny in that class, and said she makes it possible for everyone to do well. She seemed really encouraging, which is nice because she is also my Pharm professsor, which I have Wednesday afternoon.

Then I came home and tried to study, but didn't really have much direction to do so. I am hoping I will figure out what to do. I also started working on a project for my health assessment class, and will probably do some reading for another class in a bit after my shower.

Anyway, I hope everyone's first day went well! If I have time later this week, I will keep updating!!

It is very stressful and they bombard you with information, but I have found that making lists and writing all the dates down on a calendar is really helping! :)

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Specializes in ER, MedSurg/Tele, ICU.

I am new to the site and so far I am loving it! I have read all of the posts on this thread over the last few days (while taking breaks from studying) and decided to join. So, I am currently in my 3rd week of my Nursing Program.:yeah:My first week was nothing but orientation from 8 in the morning til 4 in the afternoon - they referred to it as "Nursing Boot Camp". I have read 19 chapters of information since then...luckily we only meet once a week for classes (8-4:30), however the rest of the week is spent in labs or doing online portions of the program. There are 75 students in my program and all seem supre supportive which is great!. I, unlike some of you, have to have an 80% or better on all exams to stay in the program (there is no C=RN for me). Med Math is different too - 90% on exam or you get booted from the program. Good luck to all of us!! Hope to talk to you some more later if we get the time.:D

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Orientation was today!! It was great to see so many different people and all the various backgrounds. I was surprised by the number of people who really seemed unprepared. We have been given warning for pretty much every thing we have to do and some just didnt seem to be in a rush. I did luck out thou. We have a zillion things to print out and bring to class and because I took a summer class and its still summer semester I was able to print under my summer limit(500) and once class starts I will be able to print 500 more for free. :)

Next week starts classes and I am sooooooo excited and terrified LOL

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Wow...They make you start school BEFORE school starts? Crazy! Sounds like a tough school. I'd be interested in hearing how it's been going so far.

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Specializes in FNP-BC, RNC-OB.

orientation is more like an introduction to the programs and courses that you will have. i think its good to have orientation because you definitely dont want to come into school/class and not know what the heck is going on .. lol. my orientation was one day, but the next day i knew where to go/what to do/etc as well as have a general idea of how the semester will run. we did have sort of an intro to one of the courses, which was okay ..

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Specializes in Med-Surg.

So our last skills eval is tuesday, and the next day we start clinicals. We have done soooo much. We're learning the nursing process and putting diagnoses to different cases. We already had our first exam last week which everyone did pretty well on. That's the lecture part. For lab we are going to be tested on all the vital signs, moving and positioning, transfers, ambulation, and enemas. I know I will be hypertensive that day and also have a pulse rate through the roof. lol

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Congratulations, fellow nursing students on getting into the program!!:yeah: I am a junior and had my first day yesterday. Although I am a hop, skip, and a jump away from finishing the BSN program, I still get butterflies in my stomach every semester! Good luck to all!

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OMG I never thought that I would finally be in nursing school. For awhile I was thinking that it just wasn't going to be in my future LOL. I signed up for the Maricopa Community College Nursing Program in July and was put on the waiting list, I was around number 2020-2024, yeah! This is finally after I passed my NET on the 4th try. I also applied to the local Banner Hospital Program that works with the community college except they pay for it and I sign a contract to work for them for 3 years. I had my interview on Monday and Tuesday I got the congradulations email. I was in shock. If I didn't get into that program I would have had to be on the wait list for at least 3 semesters. So I start mid October at Estrella Mountain Community College :). I already feel stressed trying to get things together and I don't even have my welcome pack yet. ---Kelli

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