What type of student were you before nursing school?

Trauma Columnist · Apr 5, 2009

I went into nursing school right out of high school (1977) and did 3 of four semesters (ADN program). Then, one day, out of the blue, I decided I didn't know if I wanted to be a nurse, so I joined the Navy, left the next day, never dropped the classes, just took "F's" in all 19 hours!!!!

Talk about stupid! So...fast forward to 1990 when I decide yep, I wanna be a nurse. Now I've been married for 10 years at this point and have a 10 and 5 y/o. Well, would you believe, that few schools were interested in a student with a 0.7 GPA!!??

So....in the beginning I was young and stupid and now I'm a bit smarter.

midnight*sky · Apr 5, 2009

I've always been a good student - I'm just one of those freaks that love school, lol. I graduated second in my class in HS (salutatorian) with a 4.1 GPA (due to AP classes being worth more). HOWEVER, I was completely direction-less and had NO idea what I really wanted to do after HS. I went through the motions undeclared in college and ended up graduating with a BS in Healthcare Administration. I had an interest in nursing, but never followed through until my twins were born extremely premature and now have numerous special needs....They were my inspiration to finally go for it and pursue NS. Now in NS, I am doing well but I have my issues with time management in caring for the twins and their special needs and going to classes, studying, etc. So far I have a 3.9 GPA, but we'll see after this semester ends, lol...I have a few more B's than usual

ProudRN2B · Apr 5, 2009

I was a lot like you in highschool. I didn't spend any time studying but got by, mostly B's, some C's. 10 years later decided to finally go to college. I was worried since I never was a great student in highschool but being older and knowing what your ultimate goal is is enough motivation. I learned that I had it all along, I just needed to apply myself. I did great in my pre-req's but I have to say nursing school is a whole new experience. It's A LOT of information! It just takes more dedication and lots of discpline to study. It's still doable. I'm getting along. It's stressful and takes all of my time but in the end it will be worth it.

tbell2 · Apr 5, 2009

I was above average in my classes and pre-reqs. In NS I am average.

jackson145 · Apr 5, 2009

I rarely showed up for class in HS & I never took a book with me when I did go. My grades were mostly D's. I had more than one teacher ask me to drop their class because I was snoring so loud it disturbed the other students. Senior year, after I got pregnant, the prinicipal called me in & said they were abbreviating my schedule. I only had to show up for 2 classes a day to graduate.

I make mostly A's in NS, although I really don't study much. I usually just review the nite before exams. I show up to class & clinicals, but at the beginning of the semester I figure out how many hours I can miss & still pass, and I make sure & use up all of those hours.

I guess I really haven't changed that much, have I? I think my grades are good now versus my HS grades because I enjoy & actually "get" the material I'm working with.

HyperSaurus, RN, BSN · Apr 6, 2009

I did the minimum to get by--but for me that usually resulted in A's and B's. When I got to college, I was able to do that the first year, but during the second, my gpa dropped a full point (3.5 to 2.5). I had to completely revamp everything in order to pull up my gpa and to be sufficiently prepared for nursing school. I start NS this fall.

That Guy, BSN, RN, EMT-B · Apr 6, 2009

I almost failed out of HS due to a lack of interest and not being challenged. We finally found something that fit my senior year and got straight A's. Got my EMT then went for a BS degree. Stopped caring again then got into nursing and pre reqs for that and A/B student again.

Nepenthe Sea · Apr 6, 2009

Let's see..in high school, I never studied, and didn't really care about my grades. I was going to be an artist, so who cares? Still made National Honor Society, Gifted and Talented, yada yada. Went to college, studied a little more, but hung out with friends and boyfriend too much and procrastinated like crazy. GPA not too good, but not failing or anything either. Fast forward 12 years to last year when I started school again, this time to be a nurse. Now I care about my grades, and study all the time. Hardly see friends, family, and boyfriend because I study all the time. I've had a 4.0 ever since. Maybe not after this first semester of NS, but it's still going to be good. I was just inducted into Phi Theta Kappa, which is an honor society for two-year colleges, and I've been on the honor roll. But now, I am a single parent of two three-year-olds, and not getting alot of help from family. I want to kick myself when I think of all the free time I had back when I first went to college, and how well I could have done then, and back in high school. But I had no interest at all in NS back then, and feel certain I would have really screwed things up if I had gone into it like my dad wanted me to. I am so glad I waited. I want my little girls to grow up knowing that I raised them mostly by myself and still did really good in school. I am not strong in the sciences and math, which is basically all I have taken since I started back, but I just really work hard at it.

Nepenthe Sea · Apr 6, 2009

I had an interest in nursing, but never followed through until my twins were born extremely premature and now have numerous special needs....They were my inspiration to finally go for it and pursue NS. Now in NS, I am doing well but I have my issues with time management in caring for the twins and their special needs and going to classes, studying, etc. So far I have a 3.9 GPA, but we'll see after this semester ends, lol...I have a few more B's than usual

My premature twins are EXACTLY the reason I became interested in nursing, too! I have been facsinated by preemies ever since.

krltdy · Apr 6, 2009

midnight sky: i had an interest in nursing, but never followed through until my twins were born extremely premature and now have numerous special needs....they were my inspiration to finally go for it and pursue ns. now in ns, i am doing well but i have my issues with time management in caring for the twins and their special needs and going to classes, studying, etc. so far i have a 3.9 gpa, but we'll see after this semester ends, lol...i have a few more b's than usual

nepenthe sea: my premature twins are exactly the reason i became interested in nursing, too! i have been facsinated by preemies ever since.

this is precisely why i have become so interested in nursing:redbeathe. my daughter is a former 24 weeker. she weighed 1lb., 1oz., and was 11"long! now that's she's turning 2 in just a few days, so it's time to start pursuing school. hope your little ones are doing well now!:)

missjennmb · Apr 6, 2009

I have always been able to glide by without trying in school prior to nursing school. I never did homework in high school, never EVER studied anything. I am quite positive I never read a single assigned reading in high school. I got C's and B's mostly. I should have flunked out, but I am luckily able to absorb (usually) with minimal effort. I went to college pretty much continuously off and on for the next 15 years, worked on 3 degrees (accounting/billing, software programming, and AA) and got either straight A's (if I cared) and D's (when I didn't). I still never had to try very hard, but when I wasn't letting life get in the way I did really great. In my math class last summer, I got a 97 or a 98 with very little effort for the semester when the entire class was scraping by and only passing due to extra credit and last minute "freebie" points (the kind the teacher awards so that half his class does not fail out and make him look bad).

I really thought I would skate through NS with just a slight increase in effort (if that). What a laugh. I don't know what the problem is, but I just cannot seem to get out of the gray area (that grade average area where one bad test would do you in). If anything, I really feel like any amount of studying I do does nothing to impact my grades. I *ALWAYS* miss some super crazily important details, or i read the material and dont interpret it the way the teacher thinks I should have or whatever. I just can't get ahead. I have been analyzing it until I am blue in the face. I study for 20+ hours for a test and get an 83. I study for 3-4 hrs for a test AND GET AN 83!!

Sorry lol just venting. Nursing school is a whole 'nother animal and so so much depends on your teachers and their ability or inability to narrow down 10-13 chapters of information into something more manageable.