Top 10 tips for nursing school

alovelymother · Aug 3, 2012

I start my program at the end of this month. I've asked my coworkers what they thought was important and this is the jist of it:

1. Stay organized.

2. Always come to class and clinicals prepared.

3. Don't fall behind!

4. Take care of your body.

5. At clinicals show the RN you're working with that you are eager to learn and DO!

6. The night before clinicals familiarize yourself with common drugs and conditions for the floor you will be working.

7. Don't take everything personally.

8. Learn the why.

9. If one type of studying isn't working for you don't be afraid to change it up.

10. Enjoy the ride! You'll never experience anything quite like nursing school.

So hopefully these help.

abiklags · Aug 3, 2012

here are my tips

1-read the book. you bought the book for a reason-to study, not to collect dust

2-if you don't understand a concept, ask someone for help. be it a tutor, the professor, classmate or ever (GASP) google/other reliable source. dont be too proud to ask for help

3-skip the caffeine before high anxiety days like major tests and finals. (anxiety+caffeine=shaky hands for me)

4-stay away from the drama queens and kings

5-find your study method and stick with it. whether its flashcards, retyping notes, listening to lectures or plain reading slides, DO IT and do it constantly

6-review over and over. dont cram before the test. memorizing won't help in the long run

7-know the basics. Labs, common meds, side effects, assessment, the stuff you learned in fundamentals. if you dont know the basics (a&p, patho, etc), then how are you supposed to know the more advanced things built ontop of the foundation?

8-at clinicals, dont be shy. if you have free time, go up to a nurse (doesnt have to be the one you are assigned to) and say "i have some free time, do you need some help" or "i see you are doing XYZ, can I watch?" be eager to learn

9-watch all you can from who ever you can watch. ie, we were not allowed to start IV's so I would ask any PCA/RN etc with an IV kit if I could watch. I've asked Dr's if i can watch dressing changes, assist them in any way (positioning, supplies...), If they can explain the xray on the screen. Dont be afraid to ask

10-if you see you are having a hard time focusing on a subject, get up. move. change where you are. go run some errands. go study a dif unrelated topic. many times when you go back to the first subject, it will be clearer and easier to learn.

good luck!

stefaniekelly · Aug 3, 2012

1. Don't let school consume your life. It's going to take up a lot of your time but make sure you keep in touch with friends and family.

2. Keep study groups small and choose your study buddies wisely.

3. Take time for yourself.

4. Make the most out of your clinicals. You wind up learning more there than you do in any classroom.

5. Memorizing gets you nowhere. Make sure you actually understand the concepts.

6. There's always more than one correct answer but you have to pick the answer that is MOST correct.

7. Stay organized. Use a calendar to mark off important dates (tests, papers, clinicals, etc).

8. Take care of yourself. Try to eat well, get enough sleep, and stay active. You won't learn anything if you're exhausted.

9. Make friends! Your classmates are the only ones who know what you're going through so lean on them.

10. Study, study, study!

I know a lot of people say to watch your caffeine intake but I wouldn't get through clinicals without tons of coffee. 11 hr shifts that start with you waking up at 0445 require lots of energy. Haha!

Good luck!!!

PatchyPu · Aug 3, 2012

I love that you said this. I see so many times where people say you will need to mainline caffeine. Well due to a medical condition I have, I can only do about 1 caffeinated beverage a day, so mainlining it is not an option for me!

TPIElO--:-) -z

Abigail612 · Aug 3, 2012

1. save all you syllabuses may be important later if you go on for more education or for some reason transfer schools

2. pick study groupes carefully (look for older students they have more life experience and are more likely to take studying seriously)

3. If you work and find you need to cut back don't feel guilty because your nursing education is a life long investment and it is worth putting extra time into.

4. buy a planner and USE IT!!! (told my sister this she didn't learn till her secound semester )

5. once classes start read the syllabus, many times I have found that instructors put instructions and dates for assignments in there and they don't always remind you so look out!

6. always read the assigned chapters twice (if you have the time) usually the secound time I read somthing I find alot that I missed from reading it the first time

7. If you have questions about assignments ask the teacher, because if you are confused then chances are other students are confused to and they may not give you the right information.

8. Do not reuse papers or assignments from other classes that is considered self plagerism or "double dipping" and can get you in trouble or even kicked out.

9. if you need help or need a tutor do not feel embarised again your nursing education is a life long investment.

10. and most importantly do not procrastinate (this is one that I am still working on, I will get to eventually lol )

teensmom · Aug 3, 2012

I always went into clinicals telling the nurse that I was their servant and anything they needed me to do-just ask. I really tried to take some of the burden of patient care off the nurse if I could. Cleaning up a patient is not something to avoid, it's something to learn, I found this really helped me and I got thru clinicals with great marks.

Also, I was lucky to have a very organized friend in my class, she would tell me when a paper was coming up or test or care plan. Sometimes she'd tell me super early and I'd get it done way before it was due. It was a great feeling! I am a very disorganized person so this was a huge help. Without her it would have been helpful to set alarms on my phone.

starry01 · Aug 3, 2012

I start nursing school on August 20th and was wondering what are the top 10 tips you would give to a new student to survive nursing school?

I am halfway done with my program and I think I have a big part of it down:

In the classroom:

1. Set expectations with your study group. Keep it at 5 people max. It's also okay for a study group to not work out- the people you socially connect with may not be the people you study best with.

2. You are not going to have time to read everything. If you do not understand a concept in the lecture then visit the book for clarification.

3. Pay attention and note topics the professor stresses during lecture. It will show up on the test.

4. Review your lecture notes after you get home from class while the new material is relatively fresh. It's a good means for repetition.

5. Start studying for an exam at least 2 weeks before.

Networking:

6. Talk to a member of the class ahead of your own. They have walked through where you find yourself and can answer anything from how to handle an instructor's personality to clinical expectations.

Clinicals:

*7. Do not show that you are nervous by any means. Clinical instructors feed off your fears and will make your life miserable. You need to play the part.

8. Review your skills book the night before. Chances are you will visit the hospital the day before clinicals to choose your patients. Review what you need to know about your patients- meds, procedures, disease process, lab values.

9. Always complete a dosage calculation before your instructor asks you to. This shows you're on top of your game.

10. Teaching- you should have an idea of what your client needs to learn. Be prepared to answer this question from your instructor as well.

Pick01 · Aug 3, 2012

My :twocents: is

1. If you can do a study group-limit it to 4 people, and it is to study, not socialize.

2. Buy the book "Electrolytes made Incredibly easy"- you'll love this book, and you need to know the information forever.

3. Go to clinicals prepared.

4. be organized.

5. Study completely, know your material, tape lectures to relisten to.

6. If you have questions-and you should- ask them.

Good Luck!

hgrimmett · Aug 3, 2012

Lots of good advice so far. I would add: Get a copy of Saunders Review for the NCLEX ASAP and start reading it whenever you have time in between your other assignments. Yeah, at first it's not going to make sense if you don't know the vocabulary or whatever.. but you need to be familiar with NCLEX style test questions and reviewing the questions & rationales related to whatever you are studying (e.g. if you are studying the integumentary system look at chapters 43, Integumentary Disorders and Ch 50 Integumentary System) will help more than you think.

AMRC6713 · Aug 3, 2012

1. Figure out a healthy menu for yourself--healthy grab n go snacks in particular. You'll end up at the vending machines more than you'd like or fast food snacks on the way to class.

2. Use your labs to make mistakes. Don't sit and hope not to get called to demonstrate to everyone else--get in there and do it, don't be afraid.

3. Don't be afraid! You're gonna make mistakes, you're gonna feel stupid. Hopefully more in lab than in clinicals. But it will happen--learn to accept criticism and be able to say "I don't know" without fear. You have to, this is people's lives we're talking about here.

4. Never pretend you know what you're doing.

5. If your clinical experience isn't teaching you much, speak with your instructor to get a better experience. This is your education, you're paying a lot of money to learn, be in charge of it because nobody else will be.

6. Read, read, READ. The reading is long, yes, but if you skip an assignment you're going skip others. And pretty soon you're not reading at all. Bad news.

7. Keep yourself up on what you've learned over breaks. YouTube has some great videos you can watch on patient care, IV set up, everything.

8. Take time for yourself--you've got to have some mental down time...maybe an hour or so at the end of every day to exercise, see your family/friends..,whatever. And for Christs sake SLEEP!! You need good sleep!

9. Realize NS will mostly take hostage of your life. You get your life back on winter break, spring break and summer break if you get one.

10. Enjoy it, hard as that may sound. Take the time to see how far you've come and to realize how important your new role is.

I'm loving every second of NS but I'm not gonna lie--it's not easy at all. Well worth it though. Good luck!!

LP777 · Aug 3, 2012

Nursing school is not impossible! The key to it all is to stay organized! Spend 5 hours with the syllabus and a planner within the first week of school. I literally make copies of my syllabus and cut and paste them into my planner. Nothing gets lost in translation.

Also - figure out the study partner situation. I HATE group work, but took the advice of one of my professors. You need to find someone you think is super smart who can give you a different perspective on things. I am a C.N.A., and my partner is a physical trainer. Make sure they take good notes in class too, and then meet once a week - even if you don't have a test. You'll be amazed at what they hear in class vs what you hear in class.

Before tests, put your headphones on and don't listen to other students who are freaking out. And don't go to happy hour with people who complain about instructors, clinicals, etc... You're not in school to be BFF's with everyone. Keep calm and carry on. You can do this.

maggie2092 · Aug 7, 2012

I haven't started my program yet (August 27!) but I will share a piece of advice from one of my best friends, who just graduated from an RN program. She says this is one of the most important things to know:
If your uniform consists of white scrub pants, ALWAYS wear skin-colored underpants.

A few girls in my clinical learned this the hard way.. Instructor awkwardly brought it up on the fourth day of clinical! Oooops!