You Don't Really Need Chemistry For Nursing, Do You?

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Hi! I'm a senior in high school in New York. I plan to go to school for pre-nursing in the fall of 2017. I have taken dual enrollment in general biology I and II. I am currently finishing up a dual enrollment General Chemistry I class.

I recently got a bad grade on a test and midterm in my current General Chemistry class. I hoped to have at least an A- in the class, but it doesn't look like it will happen. The test grades will most likely take my grade down to a B+.

I didn't do very well in my previous classes either; the teacher was horrible and screwed us over. Kids in the top 5% of the class were scoring 50s and 60s out of 100 on the finals -- it was that bad. Because of that, I only have B's in both general biology classes.

I'm worried that the B's and B+'s will look bad on transcripts to employers and grad schools. I know they're only general education classes, but Bs are Bs and will also bring my GPA down. Even then, aren't general education courses supposed to be of higher grades since they are considered more accessible? (My college GPA is already at 3.45 because of the two Bs in biology)

Is general chemistry I & II vital for nursing?

Do employers care? Do prestige graduate schools care?

Should I take General Chemistry II even if I risk another B+ or worse?

[roser13, ASN, RN]

It doesn't matter what you do or don't want to do. If chemistry is a prereq to your nursing program, you will take it. Nursing school requirements are requirements, not electives.

[Sour Lemon]

My program only required Intro to Chemistry, but every program is different. I got into my school as an alternate with a 3.7 GPA in hard sciences.

[Boomer MS, RN]

Chemistry is required for an essential reason for nursing school. Life is full of struggles which may entail poor teachers, professors, and exemplary teachers. It's part of life to learn how to jump through hoops for goals and keep trying when we fall short and have failures. Contact a school advisor about specific questions about needing to repeat a course.

[GuineaPigs, BSN, RN]

I sucked at chem in high school but did well when it came to inorganic and organic chem in undergrad. I received As in both. The honest answer to the importance of chem lies within what you want to do. Chemistry is the foundation of pharm, and chem is essential if you wish to pursue anesthesia (crossing your fingers). Chem isn't crucial if you want to remain a bedside RN.

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

I became a nurse without having taken any chemistry coursework. I completed an LPN/LVN program before enrolling in an LPN-to-ASN bridge program at a school that did not require chemistry as a prerequisite or corequisite.

However, to advance my nursing education, I had to take chemistry. The BSN degree program that I completed required one 3-credit biochemistry course.

So, here is my answer. Many nursing programs do not require chemistry. You do not necessarily need chemistry to be a nurse. However, the knowledge you will glean in chemistry coursework will facilitate a better understanding of many concepts that pertain to nursing.

[mmc51264, BSN, MSN, RN]

Yes, Chemistry is usually required, but the reasons I hear as the WHY are bothersome.

Why would a nurse need chemistry? Think about it. Acid/base relationships, Anion gaps? Does anyone have to know what anions and cations are (+ and -) electrolytes? Yes, it doesn't matter if it required basket weaving; you would have to basket weaving to get into school. However, they did not make Chemistry a requirement to annoy nursing students. Same as anatomy, physiology (essential as it relates to physiology), Microbiology, etc. There is important information in Chemistry that you use every day. Same as math.

[ItsThatJenGirl, CNA]

It depends on your program. Mine requires Gen Chem I and II - and I think most advanced degrees do, too.

[Spidey's mom, ADN, BSN, RN]

mmc51264 said:

Yes, Chemistry is usually required, but the reasons I hear as the WHY are bothersome.

Why would a nurse need chemistry? Think about it. Acid/base relationships, Anion gaps? Does anyone have to know what anions and cations are (+ and -) electrolytes? Yes, it doesn't matter if it required basket weaving; you would have to basket weaving to get into school. However, they did not make Chemistry a requirement to annoy nursing students. Same as anatomy, physiology (essential as it relates to physiology), Microbiology, etc. There is important information in Chemistry that you use every day. Same as math.

I agree.

I got my nursing degree 20 years ago from a CC. They took my high school chemistry class as the pre-reg. And that was 15 years prior.

I know things have changed, though.

[Boomer MS, RN]

mmc51264 said:

Yes, Chemistry is usually required, but the reasons I hear as the WHY are bothersome.

Why would a nurse need chemistry? Think about it. Acid/base relationships, Anion gaps? Does anyone have to know what anions and cations are (+ and -) electrolytes? Yes, it doesn't matter if it required basket weaving; you would have to basket weaving to get into school. However, they did not make Chemistry a requirement to annoy nursing students. Same as anatomy, physiology (essential as it relates to physiology), Microbiology, etc. There is important information in Chemistry that you use every day. Same as math.

If only I could "like this" a hundred times. I would not expect a pre-nursing student to appreciate the above as much as a practicing nurse but do think about it. What goes on in the body is all about chemistry. Why is your patient so sick after being exposed to chlorine gas? Why is your patient so ill after ingesting anti-freeze (ethylene glycol)? My program required three semesters of chemistry—two of general chemistry, some organic, and one of biochemistry. I struggled but am grateful. I doubt I would have studied on my own. Anything you get in school is a gift.

[ProperlySeasoned]

Do I calculate moles and convert Celsius to the Kelvin scale? Never. Do I have a Bunsen burner on my desk? No. But you can't understand physiology (normal or pathological) without understanding how matter reacts with another case, the nature of gases, acids/bases. Also, the math you learn in Chemistry (EG - conversions) is set up like dosage calculations. You have to understand relationships and the ability to compare one number to another.

[brownbook]

Yes, yes, yes, any medical professional needs to know chemistry. Why do our heart muscles contract? The sodium-potassium pump (or Na+ /K+-ATPase enzyme). Why do we need oxygen? Study the Krebs (or citric acid or TCA) cycle.

Why does medicine do what it does? Because the evil pharmaceutical companies want to make a lot of money selling us fake drugs? NO. Because scientists, chemists, doctors, and researchers, spend years and years studying chemicals and how and why they interact within the body.

Aren't "organic" drugs or natural cures better than all those "chemicals" the doctor gives me? Will garlic cure my diabetes?

Yes, even a bedside nurse needs to know and believe in what she is doing and what she is giving the patient. You may not remember the details of what you learned in chemistry, but you will understand that what you do is not hocus pocus.