To pass or To be the highest?

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are you the kind of person that is satisfied already in passing the exam or on the other side in which you are satisfied because you got the highest grade? i am the kind of person which is not satisfied on just passing my exams, i always aim to be the one who will get the highest grade in our exams in major subjects. i get sad and depressed when i am not the highest which is not a good thing. there are already several times that i got the highest grade especially when we were in third year and the last time i got the highest grade is on our preliminary examination on Nursing management and leadership. i was not expecting it actually but thank God i was able to do it. because of this attitude, my friends would tell me that i should be happy because i passed compared to our other classmates who really failed in the exam. i am still trying avoid that kind of attitude even though there are only 2 months before our graduation. for you, what do you want, to pass or to be the highest?:yeah:

Specializes in Psych ICU, addictions.

I am seeing both sides of it and pointing out to those who only see one side that your GPA doesn't necessarily dictate what kind of nurse you will be.

True: there's hundreds of threads here at this forum that can attest to that.

i think we are in agreement with the fact that we should not be judging people based on what their grades are. I hope that you have read through this whole thread because what I was trying to do was to defend the "less than perfect GPA" students from those who were implying that only the 4.0s work hard and the C students accept their mediocrity..

There's no shame in any grade as long as you're working as hard as you can and putting your best effort into it. I would not consider mediocre those students that are giving NS their all and coming up with a C.

Those who aim only for doing the minimum possible to pass, on the other hand...

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I have a child, a job (freelance), am married (but since it's to a military servicemember, more often than not I'm a single parent), don't live with my parents and so have to pay a mortgage, and pay every single penny of my tuition because despite my grades I make enough income to miss qualifying for almost all need-based scholarships. Most often the only study time I when the child goes to bed, which is after 9-10pm. And I maintain a 4.0. It's taken sacrifices and I've learn to make every minute with those books count, but it's possible.

And lest you think I'm an anomaly: of the top students in my class, almost all of them are parents (not all of them married), on limited to no financial aid, and who are also working. And no, none of us are arrogant about it. In fact, we're spending what little extra time we have helping our classmates do better too. I'm sorry you have to deal with an arrogant classmate, but not all of us who have high GPAs are like that, really! :)

Seriously, it's not how much time you have, but what you make of the time you DO have. That is what makes the difference. You can have all the time in the world and it won't mean jack if you use it poorly. Use 2-3 hours efficently, and one can accomplish much more than you think.

I realized after I posted that when I had the 2.0 the first time around, I was that person your described: single, no job, living with the 'rents who were paying the tuition...so theoretically I should have been a 4.0 student because all I had to worry about was studying. Didn't work out that way because I didn't understand the importance of using my time wisely. I know better now ;)

I most certainly do not believe that all A students are arrogant. I am very sorry that I have obviously been misunderstood here.

Like i said, I can spit out my life story and the hardships I have had to deal with before and during nursing school, but I wont because its not the point. I only pointed out that A student, that one particular person to show our fellow nursing students that we cant get so involved with our GPA that we lose sight of the fact that this is a tough program and most of us all work hard. I know students who dont get all As and work just as hard and make great nurses, they just have a hard time taking tests..we are not all the same.

I too, have done much better in school the second time around. The 1st time was much like yours..this time around I am managing much more and doing better. It is true that you can have all the time in the world and its about how you utilize it. I see it the same way you do. I also pointed it out because she does utilize her time well, she is studying her butt off and getting As..I am studying my butt of and I dont always get As..if I had the time she had, I would get As all the time too..but I dont. Not everyone is born a genius and not everyone can absorb the material as easy as others do. I like to consider my self an intelligent person, but nursing hasn't come as easily for my as my pre reqs were. I only have so much time in every day to get it done. Its the way it is.

So, it is what you do with the time you have, but time is definitely also a factor. I use what Ive got, but if I had more it would be all the better. Getting a 4.0 is accomplished differently by different people. How we learn, how we manage time, how much time we have varies for all of us. some people catch on quickly, some take a little more time.

i think that if you knew more about me you would find out that my story is similar to yours.

Anyway..like I said before..aiming high and reaching further than you have ever reached is a good thing, it is what I do..but its also about not beating yourself up when you cant always be the 4.0..there really is more to life than that.

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Specializes in Cardiac Care.

I just want to pass but I want to do it with an A... however, it doesn't matter if it is with the highest grade in the class, it just needs to be wayyyyy over the class average for me.

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Specializes in critical care, PACU.

Trepin,

sorry, it's just a sore subject for me because people I know have tried to say that I have no life or that it's easy for me because of my circumstance which isnt true

and youre right, everyone has their own story and things theyve gone through and we all have that common link of nursing school being hard.

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Trepin,

sorry, it's just a sore subject for me because people I know have tried to say that I have no life or that it's easy for me because of my circumstance which isnt true

and youre right, everyone has their own story and things theyve gone through and we all have that common link of nursing school being hard.

Agreed. I don't like people assuming anything about me either. Nursing school is not easy. I cant wait until its over and we are all working and GPAs wont matter anymore!! :redpinkhe

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Are there any C students here to defend themselves?

A lot of the forums I read, everyone claims to be a supermom with an A+ average, yet no one wants to admit to being a B/C student which is much more realistic IMO.

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Specializes in Emergency/Cath Lab.

B student here. Grades have never been important to me, heck I applied to our program with a 2.54. Now that im in thought I have a 3.0. There is only one person in our entire program who is an A student and she is the most annoying person I have ever met both in and out of class.

Grades do not show everything. Just remember that.

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Specializes in Triage, MedSurg, MomBaby, Peds, HH.

I always aim for 100%. This is for my own knowledge and increased confidence level as a future nurse, not to compete with any other student. For the record, the 100%'s are few and far between :)

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Specializes in SNU/SNF/MedSurg, SPCU Ortho/Neuro/Spine.

i just want to make through it!

was a straigh A

now i want to understand the info and pass!

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Specializes in Psych ICU, addictions.
Are there any C students here to defend themselves?

A lot of the forums I read, everyone claims to be a supermom with an A+ average, yet no one wants to admit to being a B/C student which is much more realistic IMO.

Supermoms don't exist--if they did, all children would be completely potty-trained and loving broccoli by the time they turn 1. Mine isn't doing either, and he's going on 4 :banghead:

Seriously, I'm guessing that a lot of parents that do well in NS are (just like other posters here have mentioned) tired of hearing the assumption that if one is an A student one must have neither a life nor responsibilities. Truth is that our grades are more realistic than one may think. And you can't blame some of us for wanting to set the record straight, any more than you can blame C students for wanting to set the record straight about their own efforts.

I certainly don't consider myself superior to anyone (or my being a supermom :p) because I happen to be a parent with a a high GPA. I'm just me, complete with my own strengths and shortcomings. What type of nurse that will make me...well, I will find that out the hard way when I start working.

I am studying my butt of and I dont always get As..

If I could tell you exactly how I do it, I would. Heck, I'd put it up here and have everyone get As too. I do know that I did a lot better in NS once I started really knowing the pathophysiology of diseases, because now I understand why certain interventions do/don't work.

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Specializes in Psychiatry.
I I also would have no way of really knowing what the "highest score" was on an exam either.

That's a good point.

To the OP: How would you know IF you had the highest test score/grade in the class?

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Specializes in ED, Geriatrics/Alzheimers, Peds.

I was once one who wanted the highest grade, as were many of the other students in my nursing class. Once third semester hit, I was just grateful for passing after so many students had failed out. I have learned that I am better hands on, and my grades have no effect on me as a nurse.

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