Okay, first things first. Nursing school is no joke.
I am in a two-year nursing program, and I am about to go into my fourth and final semester! (Woohoo!) Looking back now, time seriously flies! I feel like I just started yesterday, and yet the end is so close.
It is waaaaay harder than I could have imagined, it takes dedication, time, and serious passion… If you only halfheartedly want to be a nurse, maybe re-think your options.
So here is goes, some things I wish I was told, up front, before starting nursing school.
5. Use a Planner
Yes, it seems basic, but a planner is so important.
The due dates, projects, clinicals, skills labs, simulations, study groups, exams, homework due dates… And never ending list of things to get done, is seriously overwhelming! I am normally a pretty organized and cool-headed person, and I about lost my mind the first few months of nursing school. It is a lot, it is very overwhelming, and it seems like it is never ending. I wasn’t expecting to feel like a failure everyday, like I was constantly lost, but it happened. And it only got better when I took it one step at a time, planned out each week with every detail. You can do it!
Take it one week at a time, and plan plan plan. Write down each detail of every week, to see what it’s going look like. This does take some time, so get it done early on, it is so worth it!
4. Prepare to Read
Holyyyyyy heck, nursing school has sooo much reading!
This is my second time around in college, I already have a bachelors degree, so I thought I had college down pat. Like it would be no worries, I should know what to expect if I have already done this whole college thing before… Wrong!
To be a nurse you have to know sooo soo soo much information, and the only way to learn all of that information is to read, read more, and keep on reading, while of course then being lectured on that information you were supposed to have read.
In the beginning I was drowning, I felt like there was no possible way I could read all of those assigned readings. And you most likely won’t be able to read every little thing, it’s seriously way too much.
As time went on I finally realized you have to prioritize reading. Look at the assigned lecture material, and align it with the reading. You read about the lecture ahead of time – and the main concepts, and then you go to lecture and re-learn everything you have just read about. Violá. The material will then start to click, and be reinforced in your brain.
3. Exams are Different
Memorization is all good, but that is short-term, and it most likely won’t get you too far in nursing school – or nursing in general. You have to really understand and know the information to be able to do well on the exams, and to be a good nurse for that matter.
This happens by reading, just do it. Schedule time to read the information before class. Also, it is all about focusing on comprehension. You have to understand what you are reading and learning about in theory. (If you aren’t, please, ask for help early on!) Skating by is not a thing here.
Exams are about comprehension, it’s learning the material and then being able to apply it to a scenario. So, memorization isn’t going to help all that much, especially when you then have to apply it to the real world during clinicals.
2. Math is a Thing in Nursing (an important thing!)
When I took the entrance exam to get into nursing school, there was math, basic math I had totally forgotten how to do. So, I bought a little study book off of Amazon, and I memorized how to do ratio to proportions, and some other basic math, and this got me by….
Until the math came full force in the actually nursing program. I had to totally re-learn math! (I mean it had been eight or so years since I took a math class in college – but dang.) And this math is important, this is how you keep your patients safe, this is how you know for sure you are giving the correct dose of medication. And let’s be real, nurses give a lot of medications.
So what do you do when you feel like your math skills are lacking? STUDY. ASK FOR HELP. GET A TUTOR. WATCH YOUTUBE VIDEOS. All legitimate things to do when you’re feeling stuck and lost. You have to be proactive and want to help yourself, because no one is going to do it for you!
I also wish someone would have sat me down and shown me this cool equation that works for dosage calculations. You just have to know the formula, and know how to plug in the variables, and boom, you have yourself the correct answer.
You plug in the provided information from the problem…
The doctor orders 2000mg of Ibuprofen, the Ibuprofen available is 500mg per tablet. How many tablets should the nurse give?
This is a pretty basic example, however the equation also works for more complex, non whole numbers too. Just remember that the dosage has to be in the same units (mg/mg, g/g, mL/mL…) so you need to do any conversions first, and then plug it in.
So, 2000/500= 4
and 4 x 1tab = 4 Tablets, so the nurse would give 4 tablets to fulfill the doctor’s order of administering 2000mg.
I can’t stress the importance of math enough. Every time we start a new semester, we have a math exam on the very first day, and it’s pass or fail, 100% or you’re out of the program. You must know how to do math, and do it well. Practice, use your resources, and ask for help – the math only gets more complex and harder as time goes on!
1. Study Groups aren’t Everything
Sorry to burst the bubble – and I actually do feel kind of bad saying it!
I felt like during my first semester, all anyone was talking about was making study groups, and who so and so was studying with, and studying in a group was the best and only way to succeed. Yuck!
Since I am an extroverted introvert, I did not like studying in groups. I much prefer to be alone, at home, with my animals, getting stufffff done! Especially with all that reading to do!
I feel like when I did try the who study group thing at first, a lot of the time was wasted by gossiping, small talk, and getting distracted. Though for some people, study groups seem to work for them. So don’t let the whole ” to be successful you must study in groups ” thing scare you away. I made it this far, and I haven’t studied in a group since the first week of my first semester.
But on the other hand, I will say, it is so so important to find your tribe, find people you click with (this doesn’t mean be click-y and exclusive) so when things get hard, and you are unsure of something, or you need help, or clarification, you have others who can relate and help you get through.
I can’t stress enough, it’s important to have a support system, and hopefully even someone else who is a little ahead of you in the nursing program, who can answer all of those questions about the unknown scary things you think of!
Here’s to nursing school, it’s possible, it’s hard, and it’s so rewarding!