Want to be a nurse, past in school not great

shock-me-sane · Jul 25, 2007

yes, you have a shot. I partied my second year of college, essentially lived in the dorms and never went to class or withdrew. So those incompletes turned into F's. I starting working and was terrified about going back to school because I didn't know how to fix what I did. So I didn't go back until I was 24. I retook some of the F classes making use of the delete/repeat policy.

I took my pre-req classes and did rather well. I applied to a school that only looked at the pre-req gpa and not cumulative. My cumulative was below a 3.0 when I applied, but pre-req was a 3.7. I got in and will be finished with a double major in nursing and psychology in the spring with kick ass gpas in each concentration. And I have gotten my cumulative gpa up to a 3.4 (with 3 Fs I couldn't get off my transcript).

So yes! You can do it. Make wise choices and kick ass in the pre-reqs. All the best to you.

Jilaweez, BSN, MSN, RN · Jul 25, 2007

I agree...when I started back to college my gpa was very low, now it is much higher and I got into both schools to which I applied on the first try. There are many others who have posted similar experiences. You can do it, find out what needs to be done and go for it!!

bethin · Jul 25, 2007

Yes, you have a shot.

I was in a similar situation: went to college, partied way too much, then woke up one day seriously sick and unable to finish the semester but I never quit. After I felt better I went to a community college and received a 3.5GPA in my pre reqs. Since getting in to the program at this school is incredibly tough - 500 applicants for 30 spots I applied to a private college. I wrote a letter to admissions stating what had caused my previous failure. I highly recommend writing a letter and be honest. I admitted I partied, didn't attend class regularly and was not ready to be on my own. I also mentioned my medical problems. I was admitted without restrictions! I know it's scary to admit you failed but you have to do it to move on. Everyone screws up at some point in their lives and being honest is a plus. Admissions will look at you as a strong person who is mature enough to admit she failed.

Wish you boat loads of luck! And I've learned here that there are many members who flunked out of college and went on to become RN's. Now, get over your fears and get out there and apply!

coolpeach · Jul 25, 2007

Any CC will take you. You will just need to retake all classes with F's and turn them into passing grades. Any science classes over 5 years old will also need to be retaken. Basically starting over, but thats not a bad thing. You can do it if you want to.

LMRN10 · Jul 25, 2007

Of course you do. I wasn't the greatest high school student, but I think being 27 when I started back to school made a huge difference in my focus. Doing much better now than I ever did in high school!! I am sure you will make it and I don't see why you won't be accepted. Go talk to a counselor at the school your looking at and see what they suggest.

Best of luck to you!

Beggar♂ · Jul 25, 2007

Like the others, I agree you can do it. Like several others, I too have some lousy grades on my early record.

Colleges at all levels understand that early performance is not a predictor of later success. In fact, in my case my early failures have made me a better student because it's made me more motivated to do well now.

Take your pre-reqs and do as well as you can. I wouldn't worry so much about trying to repeat every class that you failed but rather focus on the courses that you need in order to get into the specific program(s) in which you're interested.

To be frank: The C that you earned in A&P2 is probably of more concern than anything in your earlier record. You can still do it but make sure you really give it your best. A string of C's in your science prerequisites would be problematic. The local community colleges in my area will not admit you with less than a B in the core classes.

You CAN do it but you might need to work harder at it than do some other folks. Keep your eye on your goal and keep your actions consistent with those goals.

If you need encouragement or guidance, you've come to the right place.

serendipity123 · Jul 25, 2007

Hi all,
I'm new to the forum and wanted to opinions. I am 26 and have been out of highschool for about 9 years. I was a great student in highschool, honor roll etc. I went into college after highschool and partied and failed classes. I left the school I was in and later returned to college and did well but then went through some personal problems and again did bad in school, when I say bad basically what happened is I left the school didn't withdraw properly from the semester and received all Fs which is why my gpa is at 1.85. Within this time I have had two children a five year old and one year old. I always new I wanted to get into nursing, I love the medical field but just thought it was impossible for me to do. Which such a bad gpa/history is it impossible to get into a school? I have taken some pre reqs such as AP I and II, I got an A- and a C. I also took Developmental Psy I got and A, Enlish B and Sociology A. I'm stuck i guess because I wanna try but Im scared no one will take me. Plus I need an evening program because I have to work. I am nerve wrecked about the NLNs they seem a little difficult because I have been out of highschool so long. Do I stand a chance?

Thank you so much for asking this! I just finished high school and did well in all my college level classes that I took in high school except freshman english! My teacher was a nightmare! I talked to her about the fact that the workload she was giving was INSANE, especially considering that I was taking other college-level courses in addition to hers and she just didn't care! So needless to say I ended up with a D in the class. I could have retaken the class at the local community college over summer to get a higher grade, but the university I am attending sent me a letter saying I don't need to take that class because my SAT verbal score was so high that I qualified for a higher English! So now that D is stuck on my transcripts and has been freaking me out ever since! I'm so glad for all the encouragement you've gotten in this thread because it has reassured me that I can do this with a lot of hard work! Good luck with getting into nursing and bringing up that GPA! I know you can do it!

strtbkgrl · Jul 25, 2007

I am in the same predicament myself, but my local cc offers an "Academic Fresh Start." This is a program for people who have been separated from a college or university for 4 or more years......when you enroll and complete 15 credit hours with the required GPA (my cc requires 2.0) then they will wipe your past mistakes off your record and your future GPA will solely be based on you grades from the time of your Fresh Start and forward....you may wnat to check and see if your cc has this program and also in Tennessee we have many colleges and universities involved in what we call the "Tennessee Board of Regents" and all the schools in this program recognize the Academic Fresh Start, so when I get my pre-reqs out of the way at my cc, I can then transfer to a TBR school to finish my BSN.....good luck, I am sure you will do fine!

Trauma Columnist · Jul 25, 2007

I was in the same boat as many young people: I went to college straight from HS, partied very hard, then just decided that I didn't want to be there, quit going to classses and joined the Navy. When I wanted to go back to school 10 years later, well, lets just say that a 0.7gpa student is not exactly at the top of the admissions heap - lol! However, went back to school and did fine and didn't have problems getting back in either.

Good luck. Thankfully some of the things we did when we were young and dumb aren't held against us!