Would you work while taking prenursing courses?

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Specializes in Maternal Child, Home Health, Med/Surg.

Hi guys!

So all I have left to complete for fall 2015 admissions is anatomy and physiology 2, and getting my CNA certification(which I'm doing in the spring since they won't let me do it pregnant). I'm also retaking a couple other classes to try and better myself, gpa-wise, but I'm ending up a tad but more broke than I'm comfortable with. Bills are covered, and everything school-wise is paid for but it's not the best.

Anyways, I was thinking of getting a part time office type position, but I wanted to know how others felt about this who are also going through pre requisites. This fall I'm taking precalculus(online), survey of American constitution(online), English 1(online), and anatomy and physiology 2(only Monday). I'm already 5 chapters ahead in AP2, I'm planning out my papers for English and history already, and precalculus doesn't require anything like that as it is all online.

Does this sound like id be setting up for failure? I'm only looking for 25 hours a week maximum. That way I can still mostly focus on studies.

I know it'll come down to my gut feeling, but I'm just curious how others did this.

Thanks!

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Specializes in L&D, infusion, urology.

If you're trying to boost your GPA, and you can pay your bills, I would say it's not worth the risk. It's too easy to take on too much, and then you screw yourself for trying to get into nursing school when you just CANNOT recover.

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Specializes in Maternal Child, Home Health, Med/Surg.
If you're trying to boost your GPA, and you can pay your bills, I would say it's not worth the risk. It's too easy to take on too much, and then you screw yourself for trying to get into nursing school when you just CANNOT recover.

At this point, I would say I can barely pay my bills and pay for gas to get to school. My credit cards have been maxed out due to some other financial burdens, which is the only reason I've truly thought of working. But I agree, I'm trying not to screw myself. As it stands right now there was a financial aid mishap and my mom is having to cover my school expenses/

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Specializes in L&D, infusion, urology.

What about taking fewer classes so you can focus on what you ARE taking, that way you can work and still up your GPA? You may need to wait another cycle/year to apply to nursing school, but it may increase your odds if you aren't getting lower grades than needed due to working and taking a full load. When I took a full load and was working to boost my GPA, it was hard to work, and those As were essential if I stood a chance of getting into school. You need to figure out what will really work for you. I've made the mistake of trying to work with a big school load, and it bit me in the butt.

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It's certainly not impossible, especially with the prerequisites you listed. My first year of prerequisites were heavy chemistry and biology at a 4 year university, and I survived while working 40 hour work weeks. You just need to know how to manage your time. You may not have much time for sleep, or you'll have to sacrifice most of your social life for sleep. I think you can definitely do it. Just carefully watch how you manage your time. Make little schedules for yourself. What really helped me was carrying around a detailed planner that broke down every hour. Write in your work schedule and class schedule so you can fill the cracks with studying. You'll be surprised at how much time you'll actually have, it's just whether or not you can get yourself to use it wisely.

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Specializes in Pediatrics.

Whether to work during nursing school is a complicated question, but if you're only doing your pre-reqs, there is no reason why you can't work if you're determined and organized. I work 50-60 hours/week and take the maximum courseload (18 credits), and came out with a 4.0 GPA on the other side. You can rock it too, OP.

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Specializes in Hospice, Palliative Care.

Good day, illusion9376:

One of my school friends is a mother of seven children (ages 3 to 14 if my memory is correct), works 3 part time jobs, takes 12 credits per semester (so she can get financial aid), and is a 4.0 student (she should finish up her prerequisites this semester for the RN program at our school). It is doable depending on the circumstances (type of student motivation, time management, discipline, etc.).

Thank you.

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Specializes in Skilled Rehab Nurse.

I worked full time 40 plus hours a week while doing all my pre-reqs. Some weeks I was working 7 days a week and still managed a 4.0 GPA. The key for me was limiting the number of credits I took at a time and effective time management skills.

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I'm maintaining a 4.0 while working full time, but I'm taking one pre requisite at a time. I've seen people do more and stay successful... You've got to make sure you manage your time well.

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I'm going to be taking 13 credits and working 24-36 hours a week. I'm sure it'll be tougher some weeks than others. But it's necessary as I still have mortgage and car payments etc. I think us older students might have to work more whilst at school as we can't move in with our parents etcetera as we have our own homes/families/financial commitments that we can't ignore whilst at school. I think we can do anything we put our minds to if we want. I'm planning on a 4.0 and will do whatever it takes to get it. I've got faith that you'll do your very best too

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I feel like it really depends on you and your personal compacity. Have you tried adding up the hours you'll be in class, studying (recommended 2hrs per 1hr in class or more), sleeping, ect. and see how many hours you have left for a part time job? My pre-nursing friend and I did that the other day and it really shows you how important time management is!

Personally, I feel like if you've never worked part time while attending school, 25 hours per week at a part time job would be too much to start out with.

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Last year, I took on a part-time job while completing my prerequisites for nursing. While it's certainly possible for others to manage both their pre-nursing courses and a part-time job, I was unable to without some consequences. As a result, I had to drop out of Human Anatomy & Physiology, Human Growth & Development, a history course, and English Composition II (combining both semesters from last year). I ended up taking General Biology I and Computer Applications I this summer without taking on a part-time job, which I made an A in both. Now I'm taking Microbiology, Statistics, and a few sociology courses, and I still refuse to take on a part-time job. I'll be able to finish up my prerequisites by July of next year since I have to re-take Human Anatomy & Physiology. I really have to go big this year in hopes that I can pull up my 3.1 grade-point average.

So for me, a part-time job will get in the way of my education. It may or may not work out for you; only you would know your own limits. Unfortunately, there are some pre-nursing students who have no choice but to work part-time (maybe even full-time) while completing their prerequisites, so if you're both motivated and great at time management, it's very possible to do well with balancing work and college.

Best of luck with your studies! Kudos for going for the CNA certification, too.

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