ugh. school advice please?

[tacohuman]

a bit of background:

i'm in a program working toward nursing school. at least that's what i thought. i've completed all my gen ed requirements and have now come up against a wall. i've also been in school continuously for almost 7 years since i've only been going part time, and i. am. tired. of. it.

the problem:

that wall is chemistry. i have no issue with sciences, except for chemistry. for some reason i just can't seem to grasp it. i study every spare minute of every day, i take advantage of tutoring available, i do everything i can think of, but i've already failed it once, and i'm currently retaking it. this class is the last class i need to start the last of my science sequence before i can apply to nursing school (which should have been next spring). it's the prerequisite for all other science classes i have left. the problem is that i have just gotten grades back for my most recent test, and it's not so good. i have to get at least a 95 on my final in order to get the necessary grade to move on. i just don't know if i can do it.

as i see it, i have a few options:

1. continue on and hope i get the necessary grade. if so, then all is good. if not, then
2. i retake the class in the fall and push everything off by a year, because at least one of the classes i have to take is only offered in fall, with the following class in the sequence offered only in spring.
3. i drop the class now in order to protect my gpa and retake in the fall. see option 2.
4. i drop the class and accept that i may not be cut out for this program. my university offers an interdisciplinary studies degree that i would be able to graduate with in about 3 more semesters. i even know which studies i would minor in to finish it. then i move on with my life.
5. see option 4, except once i have my degree i apply for a fast-track nursing program at a local medical school, which accepts students who have degrees in any field, provided that the sciences are complete (and i could work on sciences in the meantime).

i'm really at a crossroads here. i feel like i've disappointed myself and my family, and i'm stressing myself out to the point of making myself sick about this. i just don't know what to do anymore.

[technical.angel]

Firstly, DEEP BREATH!!!

Before you do anything, talk to your advisor. He or she might be able to work things around or at least give you an educated guess on your options.

When I was in college, I kept failing Algebra. I talked to my advisor, and found out that if I switched majors from CS to MIS, I would just have to pass that class and I wouldn't have to take any more math. I JUMPED at the chance. It was all the same classes, anyways.

So, talk to your advisor. He or she can give you the best suggestions. And just stay calm. No one will die if you don't pass this class.

[trailerparkmedic]

Is there another nursing school in the area you could try? Most ADN programs don't require chem. If it's a prereq to micro, is there another school that doesn't require chem that you could take micro at? My micro class was a joke, so I don't know how much chem you'd normally encounter in one. Amina is a nurse and can tell you if you actually use chem in the "real world." There's a nursing instructor on here too, though I can't remember her name.

Is this the first time you've tried taking chem? Is it a 5 week summer course or a longer one? Don't give up on yourself if you're trying chem for the first time in a 5 week course. Are you in chem for majors? I've seen lots of community colleges offer an intro to chem for non majors, which might be a good place to start.

I'd drop the class to protect your GPA. Nursing school acceptance is hard enough.

I'd be a bit wary of an accelerated program (BSN in 1 year). They are FAST. I've talked to some of the people who started the accelerated program at my school in June and they're already feeling overwhelmed, with 10 more months to go. You really need to be in a position where you are able to sleep, eat and breath school for that year.

[Amina516]

I second the advisor bit..if just to have a sounding board. However, it sounds like you have laid out your options as you see them.

You HAVE to eventually, no matter what take chemistry it sounds like (to get into the program). Take it again in the fall, if you fail this go round. You never know, you may pass next time and then your worries are moot. If you fail, you wouldn't be the first person in the world to. I personally know people who have taken years and years with their prereqs b/c they were willing to do whatever it took to be a nurse. Youre in the same boat. Only you know what level of dedication youre willing to offer at this point.

If you REALLY wanna be nurse, dont let the chemistry stop you. However, if your amenable to another career, there is nothing wrong with changing your mind and majoring in something else. You never know, you may still pursue nursing in the future. Its not like this'll be a once and done deal. You can always go back to school and the important part is that you are trying.

And no, Chemistry is not used [in the real world] though i would imagine itd be helpful at times, but not necessary to be successful. I did not have to take it as part of my ADN program.

I am however, taking it in the Fall in preparation for my BSN,

And Panacea is the instructor on these boards.

[tacohuman]

And no, Chemistry is not used [in the real world] though i would imagine itd be helpful at times, but not necessary to be successful. I did not have to take it as part of my ADN program.

I am however, taking it in the Fall in preparation for my BSN,

see, that's what i'm trying for, going straight for the bsn, as most hospitals in this area are requiring it now. chem is required to get into not only chem2, which is also required, but also a&p, which is the prereq for micro and pharmacology.

[Amina516]

I think its good and bad that hospitals are requiring BSNs. At this point, IN THE ECONOMY (i hate saying that), theyre able to be picky about who they hire b/c they have an influx of applicants who are pretty much desperate for a job.

The bachelors program Im in only requires a Principles of Chemistry class..no Chem 2, thankfully. Youll find that a ton of ASN-BSN programs are writing intensive and soft on the sciences. Since science if your weakness, if you're able, if you just want to get your foot in the door, you can go to an ASN program. Jobs should be on the upswing by the time you graduate and hopefully placing yourself somewhere wont be an issue. After that a BSN bridge program would be extremely doable, even while you work a full time job.

[Greenday]

And no, Chemistry is not used [in the real world]

It certainly does when your job is to test horse urine and blood for drugs and steroids! Seriously, horse urine smells sooooooooo bad when the AC isn't working.

You may not have to know tons of really specific chemistry details for nursing, but I'm pretty sure you learn stuff from it that you use, or so I'm told from nurse friends.

What part of gen chem are you finding hard? Doing the actual math? Figuring out which equations? Memorizing stuff? (If you answer memorizing stuff, you are SOL cause I sucked at that, even in chemistry). For the most part, gen chem is basically just looking at what numbers it gives you, figuring out what you are solving for, then picking a formula that only has those variables and plugging the numbers in. A lot of people make it out to be a lot more complex than it really is and as a result, confuse themselves and/or frustrate themselves more than necessary.

Don't get too down about it. I've met a lot of people who failed gen chem the first time around. It's the summer, the course is probably very short, and as a result it's going to be tougher. Who is it tutoring? Non-students? Try to see if there is a chemistry club or something that offers tutoring instead. They've had the classes more recently and probably have seen the way the teacher teaches.

[trailerparkmedic]

In my area, with its zillion and ten hospitals and good economy, BSNs are required for some prestigous new grad programs (along with stupid good grades and test scores), and preferred but not required for most hospital jobs. Once you get out of the hospital and into things like long term care and corrections, they don't care too much, especially if you're willing to work outside the main medical district. My area also has more BSN new grads than ADN new grads, so I think that allows the hospitals to be pickier about BSNs.

Even if you were to stop everything right now and start at a community college you have 3? 4? years until you graduate. I left my crystal ball at home but I imagine once the economy has picked up in a few years, a lot of areas will look like mine. My parents say Maryland (which is also doing okish economy wise) looks like this too.

Basically what I'm trying to say is that if chem turns into a huge obstacle for you, I don't believe that an ADN will render you unemployable. You might have to be more flexible with your first job, but even with BSNs preferred, those who go to the good community college in my area get hospital jobs.

Also, please don't interpret this as me pushing you into nursing. If you don't want to be a nurse, that's fine too. Go for what makes you happy.

Now, if you live in California, ignore everything I said. I've heard nothing but bad stories about trying to get into college or getting a job there (at least in the metro areas).

Also, I wanted to add that your school is lame for making chem a pre-req for A&P and making A&P a pre-req for micro. All you need to know about chem for A&P is the stuff you learn in the first few weeks, like how stuff bonds together. You really don't need to know ideal gas laws or which reactions create precipitates in those classes.

When you tackle chem again, let me know. I was majoring in chemical engineering and took quite a few chemistry classes, so maybe I can help with any questions you have.

[Treasure]

Do you bake?

I know this sounds off the wall - but the reason i ask, is baking is a series of chemical reactions.

I did OK in chem (in HS - not a req. for my History major) but my equations always balanced, Now, i may not be able to sing the table of elements to you, or even tell you the atomic weights etc for any given chemical, but i can probably tell you what not to mix together....

but seriously, bake something - from scratch, no boxed mixes, start with a basic pancake recipie:
1 Cup flour
1 Cup Milk
1 Egg
2 Tablespoons Veg. Oil
2 Tablespoons Sugar
2 Tablespoons Baking Powder (not soda - clabber girl, not arm&hammer)

mix in large liquid measuring glass, using a fork, til just blended (do not over mix)
pour on hot buttered pan/griddle - flip when edge looks firm all the way around. Makes about 8-12 three inch pancakes

after getting this down, you can start playing with the Flour and Baking Powder amounts.

[Seshat]

Professor Julius Sumner-Miller and his wife used to do a chemistry-in-shopping-malls thing, to try to encourage people into the sciences. His patter started with "Come and see the old lady bake a cake!"

Go to your local bookstore, and ask for a 'kitchen chemistry for children' book. I'm serious. My brother and I, and now my niece and nephew, started our chemistry studies without even knowing we were doing chemistry. (My mother is subtle when she wants to be.)

Vinegar and lemon juice are acids. Baking soda (Carb soda, bicarbonate of soda) is a base. Salt is - tadaa! - a salt.

Put baking soda on a plate. Add vinegar or lemon juice. Watch the reaction. See what results. This will make it more real - some people can't handle 'chemistry' when it's done on paper because it just isn't 'real'.
Then you can sit down on the kitchen stool with some paper and a book, look up the formulae for vinegar and baking soda, and figure out WHICH salt the pair combine to make.

Fiddling with the molar values and calculating the purity of your vinegar and baking soda, you can then calculate what amounts of each should totally cancel each other out - and experiment to find out if you're right.
(Do be aware that kitchen-grade, supermarket vinegar and baking soda may not be as precisely correct as hospital grade or laboratory grade stuff.)

Learn the science behind marinades. Learn why we usually put a fruit juice into a marinade. (Hint: it has to do with the protein chains in the meat.)

Go through other experiments in kitchen-chemistry books for teenagers. Or garden-chemistry, for that matter. PH values of soil. Identification of which minerals are in your particular soil. Experiments with flowers and food colouring in their water.

If you've tried all the academic-type ways to get it into your brain, try Prof. Sumner-Miller's way. Work it back into your everyday life.

[Whiskey]

Science cooking is the best cooking. I advise watching Good Eats (food network, hosted by alton brown). Once you get your brain in science-based mode EVERYTHING IS AMAZING.



Good luck TPM, you'll get through chem! I take bio next semester and im scared

[Seshat]

Whiskey:

Same advice. Just get a biology book instead. And do garden biology. if you don't have a garden, do potplant biology. And get organ meats from your local butcher and do kitchen dissections.

You'll be fine.