What do you wish you had known?

Nursing Students General Students

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I am about to start my 1st year of a BSN program. Any advice? What do you wish you had known when you first started nursing school?

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Keep your personal life to yourself as much as possible. Don't talk about having a job, at ALL. Don't talk about any kind of a personal problem or the potential for a problem. In those little 'get togethers' at the first clinical group meeting, when the instructor asks the people to talk about themselves, say as little as possible. It is no one's business, particularly when an instructor is looking for a ready excuse to place blame if you don't meet expectations. I say all of this from personal experience as well as observations concerning how others were treated along the way.

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So is Calliotter3's experience generally reflective of most nursing programs? I am about to start (just had orientation), and this site has scared me way more than anything the school could put forward. I think I am more terrified of the program itself and accidentally saying the wrong thing than I am of the classes, labs, or clinicals.

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Thanks for the replies! I'm curious like the previous poster as to wether or not Caliotter3s experiences is a general occurrence at all schools?

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Specializes in Adult Primary Care.
Keep your personal life to yourself as much as possible. Don't talk about having a job, at ALL. Don't talk about any kind of a personal problem or the potential for a problem. In those little 'get togethers' at the first clinical group meeting, when the instructor asks the people to talk about themselves, say as little as possible. It is no one's business, particularly when an instructor is looking for a ready excuse to place blame if you don't meet expectations. I say all of this from personal experience as well as observations concerning how others were treated along the way.

Absolutely this!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Specializes in ED.
Thanks for the replies! I'm curious like the previous poster as to wether or not Caliotter3s experiences is a general occurrence at all schools?

Their statement is in NO WAY generalization to my program. There is no one out to get me, and no one is looking for excuses to fail me. Unfortunately, I think my supportive nursing program may be an oddity.

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Their statement is in NO WAY generalization to my program. There is no one out to get me, and no one is looking for excuses to fail me. Unfortunately, I think my supportive nursing program may be an oddity.

Agreed. This has absolutely not been my experience. All of my clinical instructors have seemed to genuinely care about what is going on in our lives outside of school, and they use that information to better support us. I am one year in, and I can honestly say that I have not encountered an instructor that I felt was out to fail me. Maybe our programs are not the norm?

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Stop worrying about everyone else's progress in the course and just focus on yourself. Because I would constantly compare my test grades to my classmates which would just make me feel down about myself. Though there is no need as I still personally consider myself a good student at the end of the day.

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Stop worrying about everyone else's progress in the course and just focus on yourself. Because I would constantly compare my test grades to my classmates which would just make me feel down about myself. Though there is no need as I still personally consider myself a good student at the end of the day.

100%. Nursing school attracts a lot of competitive people. You will encounter classmates who brag about their grades and repeatedly ask you to share yours. I've had people actually become frustrated with me for saying "I did fine" when they asked what percentage I received on an exam. You aren't obligated to share this information with anyone. The only person that you need to compete against is yourself.

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Thanks for the replies! I'm curious like the previous poster as to wether or not Caliotter3s experiences is a general occurrence at all schools?

Nope, not mine. I'm at a CSU and feel very supported by faculty as well as fellow students.

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I wish I would have relaxed more...and I was able to, sometimes. All that stress in nursing school is temporary. Keep your eyes on the prize, which is just to get through each semester and graduate. You don't need to get all A's. Just pass. If you get a poor grade it is not the end of the world. If you fail out of a program, it's not the end of the world. Things happen. Other opportunities come along. My personal life was a complete mess during nursing school, but all I did was focus on getting through. I failed my first semester. It did feel like the end of the world to me. After a few months of drowning in self pity, I was able to take my remedial course, I waited ever so patiently, and got back into my program.

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I wish I knew how to make study groups (and studying, honestly) effective from the get-go. To me, study groups should basically just be a SMALL (4 people max, in my opinion) group of people going over an outline, main concepts, and working some case studies. I also stressed way too much in the first semester.. thousands of students have done it before, and you can make it through as well. Don't be afraid to utilize sources other than your text book. Last semester I utilized a lot of Youtube videos and learned/performed leaps and bounds better than previously. Khan Academy, Registered Nurse RN, and USMLE prep videos (these were my favorite, because I like to know nitty-gritty details), were the most helpful that I found.

Last but not least: take at least 1 day for yourself each week and do something you love. For me, that's hiking, and it is one of the most important parts of my school routine. It will keep you from burning out too early in the semester.

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