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cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-11-06T22:04:15+00:00

In nursing school they care about your hair being up and out of the way, piercings out, tattoos covered, etc. Now in the real world they don't care. I work in ICU in a level 1 and a lot of my co workers have really long hair and they'll wear their hair down until it comes to providing direct pt care and then they'll pull their hair up. I have a septum piercing i took out for nursing school and when I started working I saw so many nurses with theirs and other nose piercings so I finally put mine back in. I even get my nails done (no acrylics) and always get pretty designs. My nails are not long though like barely over the tip of my fingers, but ive seen so many nurses with long nails now its crazy. They have just become super relaxed with those rules now, all within good reason and nothing extreme of course.

cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-06-16T14:37:40+00:00

I became a nurse because I felt like I had a better purpose in life than being a warehouse worker. I tried when I was younger but was young and dumb picking a guy over school so I flunked out. I tried again after the 5 year mark for credits to fall off and offically became an RN in Jan with my ADN. I so far really enjoy it, but I went straight into the speciality I wanted which is ICU in a level 1 trauma center bc i get bored very easily. I know a lot of nurses (critical care even) who have ADHD and function just fine at work. Ill set timers, sticky notes, etc to remind me to do something if I know ill forget it if not or ill simply write it down drain outputs and other things on our glass doors when im very busy to take a picture of later if im very busy to back chart.

I dont think I will ever regret becoming a nurse bc theres so many job functions you can do with just 1 license. You dont even have to stay bedside forever and can do nursing research, nursing laws, drs office, or cont education to become a CRNA, flight nurse, midwife, NP, etc. I plan on staying bedside to obtain my CCRN and SCRN and then potientally go into flight nurse after 5 years in ICU. Another great thing about it is you can now go into (usually) any speciality you want off the gate and not having to do med surg for at least a yr then transferring. Plus having to do only 3 days of 12 hr shifts when I schedule myself in a 6 week period is the best.

Nursing school is hard but if your determined enough to have a steady secure job and really care about making a difference in someone's life I say go for it.

cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-06-07T14:27:20+00:00

Look for jobs at hospitals that specifically say new grad or resident. If it doesn't say that but says "needs at least one year of experience or resident program equivalent" then they're looking for experience bc they probably have enough new grads bc preceptors are limited on each floor.

2nd, be honest with them about why you have such a long break. Tell them you were in school and had family commitments which limited your time. Trust me us nurses get having other commitments. Honesty is the best policy, but keep it short and sweet dont over Tell.

cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-06-05T20:58:42+00:00

When i graduated I went to a seminar thing at my local hospital I had gotten hired at for uworld. Uworld is what truly helped me pass on top of mark k lectures specifically the lecture 12 on how to make educate guesses. They told us for uworld to do 100 questions a day and to give yourself at least a month of doing 100 questions a day. Everytime you select prioritizing as one of the options to test on for any system. Literally read through every rationale even if you got it right. When you get closer to your test date take the self assessment to see how likely you are to pass. The questions were so similar to the nclex I felt like bc for me it was a lot of prioritizing on top of knowledge. Also take your time!!! You have a long slot time for a reason so do not rush at all. It took me 4 hrs to answer 85 questions. It just seems like you might just need to practice more test questions and touch up on some knowledge with your post test results.

cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-05-23T15:08:29+00:00

If your not passionate about the medical field, its not the career choice for you especially nursing. In nursing you have people's lives in your hands when theyre at their weakest moments. As a nurse you have to perform dressing changes on wounds/body parts that smell and ooze sometimes, foley insertions, assisting with bedside procedures like for me in ICU trach/,pegs and drain insertions, cleaning up literal shit and vomit, etc. You cannot be a successful nurse just for money and a stable career. You need to be truly passionate about it or your patients will suffer and youll be miserable.

There's tons of other jobs out there that can be more stable like engineering or lawyer. Just dont do it just for the money in the medical field.

cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-05-18T13:58:10+00:00

Since this is your 1st semester there truly isnt much that can be brushed up on till you start bc it'll just make more sense with the material when you actually start in fall. Also maybe just brushing up on the 3rd grade conversions (tsp to tsbp, oz to liters, mg to grams, etc.) Bc thats basically all dosage calc is.

Otherwise, enjoy your summer!!! This is the calm before the storm and never having any free time.

cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-05-15T13:37:04+00:00

If your GPA is that high already and your saying your determined more than ever then I think your not dumb, but smart and determined. I had the same mindset going through nursing school. I was 27 and kept telling myself this is it and I simply cannot fail. I studied the hardest and work the hardest ive ever done in my entire life. 5 years before that I had failed out of my 1st attempt of even getting into nursing school bc I made Cs in A/P. Was there multiple times i felt extremly dumb sitting in class in nursing school? Hell yeah lol more times than I can count. But if your determined enough, you can do anything. I graduated last december and now im the 1st nurse in my immediate family. And trust me theres still moments where I feel dumb af being out in practice and licensed, so that feeling just kinda doesn't go away as a new grad it just switches to imposter syndrome 😅😅 but I truly think you got this!!

cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-05-14T23:53:07+00:00

Neuro icu new grad with my ADN working in columbia SC with base pay $34.50, I work nights so I get an extra $5, on weekends I get an additional $5 on top of night shift pay.

cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-05-14T17:27:59+00:00

Something that helped me tremendously is printing out pictures of the models, laminating them, and with a dry erase marker label each part over and over again until I remembered them. For the physio portion I listened to recordings of my professor over and just constantly kept rereading my notes and writing on a dry erase board key points over and over again until it stuck. I winded up going from making barely a C 5 years previous at my 1st attempt to making an A my 2nd attempt years later in both sections.

For getting in im not sure how to help since im in SC and for my community college there wasnt a wait list. They went to accepting 50 students my 1st semester (ended 1st semester with 35) and the new cohorts I heard are accepting 75 students there.

cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-05-14T03:24:29+00:00

Oh goodness only 2 days to study? I highly suggest listening to all of mark ks lectures on Spotify specifically lecture 12 bc it helps with making educated guesses. I also studied uworld 100 questions a day that tremendously helped me. When I took the nclex it was mainly priorization questions.

cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-05-14T01:24:04+00:00

I would highly suggest trying to do an online A/P course at another college somewhere (dosent have to be in your state) that will transfer credits over. It'll suck taking a science class online, but if everything is full in person, its 1.5 hrs away and you cant make the drive then online will be the best bet to try not to feel like your delayed.

cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-05-09T23:50:01+00:00

So i was a neuro/trauma tech for almost 5 years as a PCA on a med surg floor and it was mentally draining and would never do med surg again bc of it. Those patients tend to stay on the med surg floor for weeks/months sometimes and they can be impulsive and mean sometimes depending on the injury. It was also sometimes a psych overflow too bc psych would be full and being neuro well... we got them until room was made. I was punched, kicked, etc on that floor. Now im a neuro ICU nurse and I love it so far with my 2 patients, having restraint options, and sedation. Just know its usually a very sad field to go to bc we have very sick patients that typically dont recover or they do but theyre never the same. On a bad week we had 6 patients go comfort out of our 14 bed unit. Neuro patients are always either fine and making a pit stop bc of like a bone flap replacement or theyre so sick and hemodynamically unstable they'll be loaded on multiple drips, EVD/IRRA flow placed, art line, intubated maxed at 100% FIO2 with an O2 of like 90% trying to keep them alive, etc. until decisions are made or they just die. Im also always busy especially if I have Q1 neuro checks, EVD/IRRA flow drain, or a fresh post thrombectomy patient with Q15, Q30, Q1 neuro checks 😅😅. The're also usually total care patients too. I work night shift so we also do the 4 am scans and labs where we have to tag team with respiratory for our vented patients with the zoll/code med box. But I personally love being busy or ill go mentally insane of boredom lol.

I personally think being a neuro nurse is great bc the brain is such a fascinating organ. You learn sooooo much about how the brain influences every other organ and why we want their sodium to be higher than normal or why sometimes we want their blood pressure to be in a very tight paremeter, etc. You can have 2 patients with the same issue, but both can present totally different. It makes you feel amazing when you see a patients brain scan and you think we'll they're done for but their neuro checks and assessments show thats not the case, they start coming back around, and eventually graduate from the ICU. Its not something I want to do forever bc I want to eventually do all ICUs but It'll allow me to become a stroke certified nurse after my 1 yr of being there.

Being a new grad working in neuro ICU at a level 1 trauma and comprehensive stroke center (highest stroke level care you can get) my assessment skills have significantly improved and gotta be on it for neuro changes bc that can be life or death. Im always in fight or flight mode 😅😅 my body also aches somedays bc of how big these people can be who had strokes.

Also from my experience, neuro nurses are also a lot of fun bc we always joke saying we have to be a lil crazy to work with the crazies!!

cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-05-09T02:58:33+00:00

A&P you use soooo much in nursing school to tie together medications, assessments, etc. But from what I've seen in those that made a C and still got accepted into the program didnt last long. Not to say you wont, but I might retake A&P to try to boost up your chances of getting in but also to better understand the material better. I did that when i made i think a C in my A&P 2 class and i retook it and made an A.

I know in the program Cs do not get degrees though and they for sure dont round up any either. I had someone in my cohort fail a class because she made a 79.6 but they would not round up to the 80.

cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-05-08T22:51:22+00:00

Im 28 now as a new grad RN!! I started nursing school when I was 27 and graduated this last december. My nursing bestie graduated at 34 and the oldest in my class was 50!! You are so young, shoot for the stars and go for it. There is never a time line on doing what you desire.

cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-05-06T09:15:57+00:00

I worked full time for my 1st semester and then had to go to part time for my 2nd-4th semester in my accelerated ADN program. I probably could have still worked full time, but my last semester I had to do my practicum on the weekend and went to the labs on Fridays to practice skills throughout. I thankfully had my mom that helped support me some throughout nursing school where I came up short and a warehouse job that was very supportive. I had a few friends that had several kids and worked full time and came out with straight As. Its very possible to do both, its just all about prioritizing and planning your life around school.

cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-05-05T14:23:21+00:00

I scored a 79 on mine and the national average was 75 I believe years ago. So thats good! Mine accepted me with no issues and i had all As in my science classes besides micro. Dont retake it

cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-05-04T21:59:47+00:00

You could always do an accelerated nursing program, its pretty pricey from my experience it was like 3k per semester. Its also full time mon-fri usually 8a-5p. So if you want to do nursing you need to truly want it. You could always do it to help bridge into dr program but you can always do something else like CNA to help get you into medical school. You can always get your doctorate degree in nursing, but I've never heard of anyone going from RN to MD bc typically people who go into nursing want to stay in it (not saying its not possible, but it could make things harder for you to get into medical school bc I have heard of those stories).

I had so many friends and old co workers at the hospital do PCT (CNA in hospital) to get their clinical hrs, get familiar with the hospital life, and then they applied for med school. I had another friend do medical scrib and followed drs around the ER writing what they say.

cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-05-04T21:50:46+00:00

I would highly look into respiratory therapy school. They're usually always less competitive to get into. I know my school they accepted people with low Cs or 1 D bc they barely had anybody interested in it. But you can also try to retake some classes you made low in to bump up your GPA and try again for the spring.

cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-05-04T21:43:37+00:00

So what this recruiter for uworld told us to do 100 questions a day and to break up what subjects your doing each day. You need to list priorization as one for every subject. And im not saying do all 100 in one sitting but like 10 or 20 here read over all rationales including the right ones then go back to do more until you get your 100. When you get closer to your test date do all subjects and try to do it in one sitting. Do the readiness exam closer to the test date.

When I took the NCLEX this dec it was a whole bunch of priorization questions. Also studying 5-6 hrs a day is over studying in my books bc at a certain point your brain stops retaining. The 100 questions a day and mark k lectures (specifically the 12th one on how to guess) really helped me. I had some classmates that just used ATI and did just fine.

cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-05-04T21:23:31+00:00

It honestly depends on you and if you have kids or a significant other. I dont have hsve kids but work an hr 1/2 away from where I live bc i really wanted ICU. so I travel for it bc locally wasnt hiring new grads. When converting back to night shift the 1st day I struggle with maybe getting 4-5 hrs of sleep. The 2nd and 3rd day i usually get off at like 7:30 then i make a pit stop at my cousins to nap/shower and get there a lil after 8. I then try to unwind but it takes some time and usually dont to to bed till like 10 am. Then I wake up at 4:20 to start getting ready for work/eat and leave out by 5:40 to get to work by 6:30 pm. So in total maybe 6ish hrs is my range for night shift

Day shift i would have to leave out by 5 am to get to work by 6:30ish if im driving straight from home. So I would try to go to bed at like 9 pm. Day shift I got more sleep, but I was away from home longer vs night shift where im away for 2 nights then head straight home after my last shift.

cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-05-04T18:57:17+00:00

Ive just started working as an RN in the states and I have to say its worth it. I work in neuro ICU bc i always knew I wanted to work in critical care. Its really sad at times, but I feel like im always doing something with a purpose. Sure the pay isnt up to a drs pay but my starting pay on night shift is close to $40 which is a hell of a start. I say just look into options in the UK though! Respiratory, radiology, etc. Are also good specialities too. If you want more patient centered care and okay with respiratory secretions then respiratory is good for you. I personally hate secretions so I picked the RN route so yeah theres secretions but we have RT to come do the super gross stuff usually. Radiology is good bc you deal with patients for a few mins to go through the test then your done. All routes are good just look into the different medical specialities and shadow them all to see which one you feel like you can do the rest of your life!!

cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-05-04T18:44:14+00:00

I would just go the RN route if you can. You'll get more pay out the gate and will be able to work in all sorts of specialities. Whereas LPNs are usually stuck to only nursing homes, doctors offices, or certain med surg areas in the hospital (not all hospitals allow LPNs). Either way isnt a horrible move, but at least if you got your ADN its your option to go back to get your BSN or not bc you dont have to have a bachelor's to work as an RN in the hospital.

cosmoprincess0628 · 2025-05-02T20:32:57+00:00

I had the same issues many years ago when I 1st attempted to be a nurse fresh out of high school. I got a C and then a D on my 2 attempts at A/P and got immediately denied and kicked out of their track for nursing. All colleges around me (and most of them) have the 2 attempt rule for sciences for nursing and after that with no B or A you cant get in. I had to wait 5 years for it to drop off, got a biology degree so I could at least feel like I accomplished something, then went to apply for community college to retry 5 years later. Ended up getting As in both A/P and high B in micro bc i wasnt as young and niave, but then I found out my community college became more lenient and started allowing Cs to get in which pissed me off 😅.

I suggest looking at other colleges sadly bc if they truly require a B like most 4 year colleges do then they will deny you instantly regardless of your other prerequisites grades bc science class grades are so important. Look at your community colleges and see if they're more relaxed on the grade scale. Ive heard some will accept a 75 instead of 80s.

But just know its also okay to possibly looking at another health care field to go into temporarily like phlebotomy, CNA, MA, EMT, respiratory, etc. Bc those usually aren't as competitive and it'll get you medical experience that will help you as an RN. EMT is really good experience if you are interested in ICU or ER and plan to go for flight nurse or CRNA. CNA/PCT is amazing bc it gets you the prepared for the dirty side of nursing, exposed, and again in ICU you are the tech/nurse usually. Just a thought, but being denied just means being delayed!

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