What do you wish you were told on the first day?

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What do you wish you were told on the first day? My students have already been through orientation, but I would love to find some great ways to break the ice and to encourage them. I want them to know that if they work hard, they can succeed. What have you been told that was helpful/encouraging? What do you wish you had been told?

Wow it is much easier here in Australia. I got distinctions in both my beginning exams and the teachers treat us really well. Of course I am 44 and already an AIN. Yes there are the newbies from school and you wonder how they will get on but we all learn. If you put in the effort you will succeed.

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I honestly don't think anything could have prepared me for nursing school. They said alot of these things to us at orientation, but there is no way to know what you are in for.

PS- I am done in 4 days!!!!!!!! I cannot believe it!!

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1) you need to study earlier than 3 days prior to an exam.

2) your patient may be an ass, but you still need to smile.

3) critical thinking is not optional

4) you need to expect anything and everything on the test

5) the grading scale is jacked up. Deal with it.

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#9 is also VERY true and people need to understand that your life will from now on revolve around nursing school, nursing school WILL NOT revolve around your life. that means you need a plan b babysitter, and a plan c, and plan d, and so on. you cant expect the instructors to hold your hand and think its ok that you miss clinical because your babysitter cancelled. (this bothers me especially because i am one out of only a few that do not have children in my class. i get it that the kids and family come first, but YOU signed yourself up for nursing school, didnt you? so figure out YOUR problems yourself.)

I don't understand his line of thinking. I'm a parent who thankfully has an unusually situation where my husband works a weekend night shift, so worrying about babysitters is not something I have to deal with. I'm confused at the anger and sort of venom I see coming forth on these boards when another person's issues are being discussed. Who cares? Why does it make you so angry? Just deal with yourself and don't worry about it. I can't understand it.

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I haven't started class yet. So take what I have to say how you'd like.:) In regards to school--You may cry, and it's okay to cry--it doesn't mean you should quit!

In regards to school and LIFE--my special needs son has taught me many things--most importantly is that we need to be challeneged in order to grow!

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i was asked to write this at the end of my first semester in nursing school because many of the same negative actions portrayed above were somewhat prevalent in my class. this letter is being used as part of the welcome package for the next semester's incoming students. hopefully, it'll help you as well!

welcome,

first of all, congratulations on making your way into one of the best nursing programs in the state of ... as well as taking the initial steps to a very rewarding career. however, you are not done yet! i am writing this little introductory letter in hopes that you will realize what exactly you have gotten yourself into.

yes that was a little bit of foreshadowing, i know, but it is also the truth. before i started my first semester i was told not to expect to have much of a social life in nursing school. believe it! according to the general rule of thumb, every credit hour correlates to approximately three to four hours of study time. now using dimensional analysis (don't worry you'll learn it soon enough) that's roughly 30-40 hours per week. that's very nearly a full time job. thankfully, i was able to work about 25 hours a week, most of which came on the weekends, but my wife didn't hesitate to let me know that i wasn't spending enough time with her even then. granted some people really strive under that kind of pressure and some don't, so know your limits. i'm really not telling you this to scare you i promise, it's just that you will need to be able to manage your time efficiently in order to take full advantage of this learning experience.

managing your time efficiently means being able to listen to your powerpoint lectures, finish your reading (skimming...), and formulate your questions before you go to class for each particular subject. please trust me when i tell you that those lectures are meant to build upon what you have absorbed from the online lecture, the reading, and yes, even your clinical experience. i cannot even count how many times i was able to see something in clinicals or on tv that i recognized and related to what i've been learning. of course that has its own drawback because even with only one semester under my belt house is no longer as fascinating. yet, that is the core of how this program is set up, to relate your learning to real-world nursing. remember that!

couple of other bits of wisdom i wish to pass on to you; you are paying to be taught by some of the best teachers in the business so take advantage of that and trust in your classmates because they will help to facilitate your learning. in essence, your teachers want you to succeed so show them the effort that got you into this program and they will show you just as much effort in their teaching. you will also benefit from your classmates as they will benefit from you, so endeavor to learn, laugh, and grow together.

finally, remember to have fun and enjoy this experience because before you realize it the semester will be over. go out of your way to experience as much as possible in your clinical site and don't worry you will have help if you need it. plus, locate those extra study materials and resources that will enable you to learn the material better. most of all though, be confident and take pride in yourself, after all you made it into nursing at ... . congratulations!

class president 1st semester

spring 2010

[color=#333333]never regard your study as a duty, but as the enviable opportunity to learn to know the liberating influence of beauty in the realm of spirit for your own personal joy and to the profit of the community to which your later work belongs.

- a. einstein

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I honestly don't think anything could have prepared me for nursing school. They said alot of these things to us at orientation, but there is no way to know what you are in for.

PS- I am done in 4 days!!!!!!!! I cannot believe it!!

I will also add that while they were telling us these things (the graduating class officers came to speak to us) I was thinking something along the lines of "What a bunch of drama queens! Can't handle a little school.... Wimps!!" I had no idea!!!!

PS- Now I am done in 3 days!!!

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Specializes in I/DD.

I would definitely say that it is important to give new students a realistic view of nursing school without using "scare" tactics, or being unreasonable. At the end of my sophomore year one of my professors told us that there was no way we would be able to work at all. There was no way I (or most of the people in my class) could not work during the school year, so her telling me this only made me angry because what else was I supposed to do? An instructor should tell students that it is best if they can cut back on their hours if they must work, and definitely get a job in healthcare if possible.

Also learning smart study habits is crucial. Yes, in a perfect world I would have the time to read every page of the two-volume med-surg textbook that I spent $375 on. But I really don't. Instead you need to learn how to skim, focus on the important components of a disease and the nursing care involved. I still struggle with filtering what is important and what is not, but it is good practice for when you become a nurse because you will need to be able to discern minor patient complaints from early signs of serious complications.

As far as study groups go it is totally dependent on your study style and the people you pick as study partners. At school we have study rooms and I always liked having nursing students in rooms next to mine (not hard the night before an exam), because studying with them was distracting and many people in my class were alarmists, making me study topics that I did not previously think were very important...and usually weren't. When they are next door if I had a question I could always run over and ask, but in general it was good to know I wasn't alone. I also liked studying with people who weren't in nursing school, preferably science majors or a friend who was a PA student at a nearby school. Again it helped me focus without increasing my test anxiety.

Hope these tips help future nursing students! Good luck!

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Specializes in nursing assistant.

I have to disagree with this. I am going to a community college and my instructors have been nothing but wonderful. The instructors are more than willing to put in extra time with a struggling student. They are constantly giving us positive reinforcement and telling us that we will be successful.

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I would not forget to stress - big-time - that patients NEVER, EVER read the textbooks and therefore have no earthly idea how they are supposed to present with S/S when they are sick, just to match what you learned in the classroom. because you learned to do something a particular way. They will not fit into any box, not be "average" and "normal" is just on your dryer. You will NEVER, EVER have the same type of patient twice. And it's not one-size-fits all.

A nurse MUST see each and every patient as a unique individual and assess that person as one of a kind. Nursing is never black and white, where just because a pt last week had the same admitting dx, it will have all the variations possible because this new pt is an individual. So many factors come into real life once out of the textbook. An exam question may have "best" right answer, or you can choose between A, B, C, D, or all of the above. You will quickly learn all the other letters of the alphabet as possible solutions to a question.

Nursing is never boring if you can look at it this way.

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Specializes in IMCU.

Not just what I have learned persoanlly but what I have observed others doing/learning.

  1. Get your reading done before class.
  2. Get your assignments completed before they are due (stuff happens and if you leave it til the last minute stuff will ALWAYS happen).
  3. Don't let the jerks in the class use up all the oxygen in the room.
  4. If people are talking about someone in your class...ask them to change the subject or walk away (even if you don't like that person too).
  5. If you mess up don't make excuses. Apologize, make sure you learn what to do next time, and don't fret about it for days.
  6. Be civil to everyone in your class -- 1) it is the right thing to do 2) they may be in a position to help you get a job some day.
  7. Don't complain about instructors to everyone especially other instructors (this should be obvious but hey).
  8. Do not share your personal medical history
  9. Do not share your family's medical history (this is NOT your information to share -- treat it like patient info -- confidentially)
  10. Do not share stories about "at my hospital we do it this way" (we don't really care -- well maybe if you say this once a semester but not EVERY class).
  11. If you have a problem with someone be direct and say "when you do this _______" but don't sit and roll your eyes and make harrumphing/deep sighs when they are speaking. If you can't be direct stop being passive aggressive -- it is an ugly trait.
  12. If persons A and B say the same thing/both ask questions but it annoys you when person B says it -- it is your problem. Get over it. (this is a bit like when you best friend can say "have you gained weight" but if your mother says it you go ape).

Those highlighted three should be written in stone. I know far too much about people in my classes and their family. If I meet their husbands/brothers/wives I may never be able to look them in the eye knowing what I know.

As for the passive aggression -- that is unreal. One woman used to get her panties in a bunch when people asked questions (she always wanted to leave early). So she would sit at the far back of the class and sigh, tap fingers, roll eyes, make pinched facial expressions -- she is over 40 and seemed unable to managed herself like an adult. Very aggressive behavior. So it made me check myself to make sure I did not do the same things.

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Specializes in IMCU.
Work your butt off in school, study from an NCLEX book for exams and start networking early to find a job at graduation.

OMG YES YES and YES.

People, everyone including your classmates are part of your network. Treat everyone like you may need their help someday (even the idiots because for some reason they often have the ear of useful people).

Now is the time to start being a nurse amongst nurses.

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