Okay, so I've been lurking on this site for over a year. Hi!
I've been working on my core classes and with each day now, I question everything.
I wonder if I'm doing the right thing in life?
I am working as a nursing technician (CNA) at a hospital here. I've been doing that since 2010. It's a tough job and I'm ready for a change.
So here I am, almost done with my core classes and thinking of applying for nursing programs and I still need to take that dreaded Teas V exam. Yes, I've purchased a study book to prepare for it. Your input on that is encouraged if you have any!
This semester, I'm taking 4 classes- Micro Lab , Micro Lecture, U.S. History, Art Appreciation.
The latter is the only one I'm taking online and the rest are strictly on campus.
The problem: In the first 3 mention classes, my professors are trying to weed people out it seems. They know the majority of us are there working on our Pre-Nursing classes and they've cracked down on everything. I'm starting to think that people need to stop telling colleges and their professors that they're nursing majors because if they find out, they're already trying to weed people out so most folks don't make it to the nursing program.
There's nothing I can do about that, but a little rant helps!
No matter what I do these days in my classes, all the tests are curbed and nobody seems to be passing. I have a good GPA! I've talked with other students and without me mentioning my grades, they're telling me their grades. Well what do you know? We are all being given the same grade in our classes. It seems they're giving a 57 to everyone in the class. Socialism and grading nursing students is a horrible idea.
I keep questioning everything. Why do I want to be in a program where nursing students aren't welcome? Why do I need to be there?
I would rather be in a program where students are welcome to learn and actually succeed while there.
Could it be just my college? It's pretty bad over here in Georgia. I've heard nothing but horror stories about how Georgia colleges weed the crap out of classes to make people want to drop out of classes and make them want to change their major. They're all for failing people it seems. I am not lazy. I work day and night on my studying and I talk regularly with my professors. I've done research on my professors as well to make sure I didn't sign up to take classes from a neo nazi.
I will be applying to nursing programs here and I am open to applying outside of Georgia. Does anyone know of a good nursing program that actually wants their students to pass and they have a great support system (great learning environment, great professors, etc)?
I know someone who said she can get me into a nursing program at a college she teaches at and she's a nursing clinical instructor. However, I don't want to limit myself to just that college and for all I know, I could be walking into another disaster. I have had my fair share of pain from the college I'm at now. We don't have open labs at all after labs are done. We get 7-10 minutes to perform 2-5 different labs per class and that's it. If we don't finish, we never get the chance to go back and work on it because "the school doesn't allow open labs for micro and they can't afford open labs for micro". Oh, the classes are 1.5 hrs long. Not learning anything!
I do all my reading before classes.
My brain is fried. No support here. The students in my classes are more motivated to pay someone $300 to do their work for them and they want to cheat off the work.
The next college I transfer to, I need a break from all this mess.
Is that even possible or are all/most colleges a power trip?
That fact actually applies to my school and this area. As mentioned, it may not apply to your or someone else's location. A fact is when you actually do the research and talk with the college board and find out what the real truth is. Can't really whip out the Galileo resources and find out that way in this case, ya know?
How do you know that the prereq classes have "cracked down" so much in the past five years? Where are you getting this information from? How do you know college was a cake walk 20 years ago?
Have you thought that maybe the reason you and your acquaintances may be getting the same, average grades is because you guys are... well, average? You don't just decide to be a nurse and you magically make it through the prereq classes. If you think these classes are hard, just wait until you get into a nursing program.
Believe me, I'm in Micro and A&P II right now and I work, and it is definitely a challenge, and I am definitely stressed about my grades. I have a previous Bachelor's degree and these science classes are just as hard or harder than several upper division classes I took to earn my BA. My junior level psych classes were cake in comparison to Micro.
If you can't hack these classes, perhaps you should consider an LPN program. And there is nothing wrong with becoming an LPN first, you're still a nurse and you'll still make a difference in peoples' lives. I really do wish the best for you, but it sounds like you're in the middle of a serious reality check. I have yet to meet a professor that did not want me to succeed in a class. Why would they be motivated to purposefully make classes harder for pre-nursing students? They don't get paid by the number of pre-nursing students they weed out. Try your absolute best in these classes, and if it doesn't work, change your plan. We've been brought up to believe that whatever our dreams are we can achieve them, and this is just not true. Reality usually has a different plan in mind.
You're right and wrong at the same time. I'm sorry, when did you graduate again?
If you didn't graduate nursing school within the last 5 years, I promise you things have changed dramatically. Everything is way more strict and the pre-req's classes for the RN program are usually being weeded out because the professors are trying to give students an idea of what nursing school may be like. So either the students learn to handle the overwhelming load and demands during their science classes, or they'll think twice about that nursing major they had in mind. That is a fact.
Those weren't even my words. Maybe it's a different scenario in your area, but here in GA they have cracked down on the classes. That doesn't mean I'm lazy or discouraged.
I do know people that do "weed themselves out" of those classes, but I'm not one of them.
Congrats on having a master's degree, but I can assure you things have changed within the last few years in colleges and it isn't a cake walk like it used to be 20 years ago.
I've shared my homework info with my RN and Doctor colleagues at work and even they're shocked about what hoops I jump through these days for my core classes. I wanted to know how school was for them "way back when". Sure enough, they all had it easy.
So before you start pointing fingers, you need to realize that colleges have severely cracked-down on classes these days because of there's a high demand for nursing school and anything medical field related.
I'm in the process of finishing up my prerequisites, and I've had professors say that this class is a built in weeder, but not because they purposefully make it so. The material is difficult and a lot of people cannot meet the demands. It is what it is. I grinned and took it because otherwise I can't apply. Now, it seems that you are being very defensive. Yes, you can share how you're feeling on this site. You cannot, however, be upset if people do not necessarily agree with your experience. I wish you luck.
Micro has always been a class that people struggled with.... you sound like you are not taking responsibility for your own performance.......
There is no conspiracy.... I doubt the instructors even know your majors. Seriously, they really don't care.... Take some ownership ...... It only gets tougher
Hi, I understand where you're coming from but the reason why my school has cracked down is because some time ago they lost their accreditation. I guess it scared them so bad, they refuse to make that mistake again which I don't blame them. The reason they have made the core classes harder is because they're trying to get everyone to realize that Nursing school in Georgia isn't an average college class. I know it's hard! They make the core classes much harder just so students adapt before trying to get into nursing school. Oh, and if they don't adapt and they get into the school's RN program and fail the NCLEX-RN test afterwards, apparently it hurts the school's accreditation over a period of time. Apparently if a lot of people fail the NCLEX-RN exam, that can cause the school to lose accreditation. So I understand why they've gone all hard core with their core classes. I actually appreciate the fact that they're forcing me to adapt and they're making me stronger. Without them, I wouldn't have figured out more ways to study or write notes, etc.
But yes, that is the reality here in my area. They are fighting to make sure that people are more than serious about getting into the RN program and they better pass that NCLEX-RN exam. I had no idea this can affect their accreditation.
Rest assured, I am serious about the program. I work, too. I love what I do as a CNA. Congrats on your bachelor's degree. I had no idea what I wanted to be for a while there, so I didn't rush things which is why I am working on my degree now. Everyone's journey is different.
In my area, an LPN can't really get a job. I am looking to work in a hospital setting or doctor's office, not assisted living or nursing homes. Everyone has something they like. I'll get that RN degree. I am not scared or discouraged at all. The whole point of this thread was to talk about what's going on.
I live in Georgia. And I have taken those classes you speak of within the last 5 years. So please don't tell me to chill. And I passed. Got into nursing school.
The colleges are not intentionally trying to weed you out. You are giving the schools fast too much credit. They want you to pass. There is a standard set and if you don't pass, you are 'weeded out' by circumstances. And before you insult people that come before you, It's easier to get A's now than ever before. It's A Whole Lot Easier To Get An 'A' In College Now Than It Was 50 Years Ago - Business Insider. Granted. Nursing schools are more competitive than they used to be.
But how do you know that they are weeding the students out at the prereq level? Again, what motivations would prereq professors have to weed out students when they have nothing to do with the nursing program and its accreditation? Most programs weed people out with higher entry requirements or with exams you must pass at the end of every semester in nursing school. It sounds like you're just connecting dots between the nursing program and the prereqs without any actual evidence.
That probably would have been beneficial information to include in your original post. The reason people think you've pulled this out of nowhere is because you didn't mention it.
For me weeding out began in bio 1. I had just recovered from a lung abscess. I finished with a 91.7%, and recieved a B, an A was 92. I WAS TOED! I got over it. It just means I have to study my proffesors more. My proffesor for bio1 had terrible ratings, and by the end of the class more than half the class had dropped, or failed.
One of the students who failed took the course again, and received an A. So a lesson i learned the hard way is research your profs ahead of time. I put in meticulous research int my profs, I wanted talented, and fair professors. I got them. I have a feeling one of my profs doesn't like me, but maybe he is just stoic by nature. Even if he doesn't he doesn't let it interfer with his fairness, so either way I am grateful to have him.
SabineEffect
9 Posts
That fact actually applies to my school and this area. As mentioned, it may not apply to your or someone else's location. A fact is when you actually do the research and talk with the college board and find out what the real truth is. Can't really whip out the Galileo resources and find out that way in this case, ya know?