Things you should know about nursing programs
Nursing programs are difficult to accomplish, and you should be ready to give your 100% from day one in order to make through the semesters. Scheduling and priorities will be your biggest challenge since nursing programs have a rigorous training and academic approach which will not allow you time for other activities.
If you can manage to get a quick shower in and change your clothes, you are doing just fine since the curriculum will need you to put in as much time as possible in understanding the concepts and familiarizing yourself with the basics.
Here are a few things you should know before your first semester of nursing program.
Approach : Depending on where you plan to pursue a nursing program, the approach will be set. For example, some nursing programs will have you participating in clinical rotations form the first day itself, while at other places you might not be introduced to clinical rotations before the second semester. The institution will have designed their specific approach when it comes to nursing programs.
Workload : The day you decided to take up a career as a nurse and pursue any nursing program, is the day you had to acknowledge the fact that you will be putting in long hours and all your efforts to make it work. The only way to handle all the workload, especially after your clinical rotations being will be to prioritize. Make a list of what has to be done and how it has to be done, give up any habits that may be time-consuming, and most importantly be open to learning.
Academic preparation : Clinical rotations and workload management are just the smaller aspects of nursing programs, keeping in mind how many hours you will have to put in for studying and preparation. Be ready to be buried under books, for the lack of a better explanation. The library and study groups will become a major part of your life for the rest of the semesters, till you graduate.
The key to managing all of this is being organized. Organizing your schedule, workload, preparation, amongst others will help you immensely during the nursing program.