Nursing concurrently with Pre-Med

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DreamerCNM

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Hey,

Has anybody on here taken pre-med classes during a nursing program? I would have to take 1-2 extra courses on top of the regular nursing curriculum. Is it doable or am I crazy for considering this? Also, will medical school adcoms look badly on me for not committing to one profession? Please advise!

Thank you!!

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Hey,

Has anybody on here taken pre-med classes during a nursing program? I would have to take 1-2 extra courses on top of the regular nursing curriculum. Is it doable or am I crazy for considering this? Also, will medical school adcoms look badly on me for not committing to one profession? Please advise!

Thank you!!

That's quite a load. I'd say focus on completing the nursing program first and then work on the prereqs. Worst case, you don't do well in the nursing program, the adcoms will raise an eyebrow as to why you cannot do so well in the nursing program.
 
I have given it some serious thought. My current GPA is 3.75, and I think I can keep it above a 3.68 if I add an extra class every semester.
 
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Pre-requs are tough. Will you also be doing clinicals along with them?
Many of my nursing friends say that clinicals and the charting they have to do takes up a huge chunk of their time.
 
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It's probably not the same everywhere, but I'd think you're being redundant in taking nursing & premed courses at the same time. I know they aren't the same, and it seems like you'd just be wasting money. If you want to be a nurse for a while before trying to get into med school, cool; finish the nursing education first. If you're wanting to apply straight to med school, drop the nursing program and take the premed courses.
 
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It's probably not the same everywhere, but I'd think you're being redundant in taking nursing & premed courses at the same time. I know they aren't the same, and it seems like you'd just be wasting money. If you want to be a nurse for a while before trying to get into med school, cool; finish the nursing education first. If you're wanting to apply straight to med school, drop the nursing program and take the premed courses.
At my school, the nursing department has their own separate chemistry and biology teachers, courses and class codes... they are not even within the natural sciences department. It was also like that at my last school.
How many credits of nursing are you taking a semester? 15?

I do think @Apollo1 gave good advice though. If you want to be a nurse, continue with nursing school. If you want to be a physician, drop nursing now and start jumping through the hoops (GPA, MCAT, shadowing, volunteering, LORs, etc.)
 
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Thanks for pitchin' in everyone. I am quite sure that I want to become a physician. HOWEVER, as you all know, admission to med school is far from guaranteed to even the best students. I simply cannot afford, financially as well as emotionally, to be left with a biology degree after 4 years of hard work. Nursing is simply my backup plan, as bad as it may sound. My passion is medicine and I am determined to be a part of the health care delivery team, preferably as a physician but if that does not pan out, as a nurse.
 
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Thanks for pitchin' in everyone. I am quite sure that I want to become a physician. HOWEVER, as you all know, admission to med school is far from guaranteed to even the best students. I simply cannot afford, financially as well as emotionally, to be left with a biology degree after 4 years of hard work. Nursing is simply my backup plan, as bad as it may sound. My passion is medicine and I am determined to be a part of the health care delivery team, preferably as a physician but if that does not pan out, as a nurse.

You're going to end up with a nursing degree and useless pre-reqs if you don't do well in them. SDN gives you this mindset that you need to be a 4.0/510 MCAT applicant, but that's far from reality. If you're in the middle of the curve with your grades and good extracurriculars, you have a decent shot. I think you're taking the riskier road, even though I don't know you and you might be able to handle it. Either way, you still have the MCAT, extracurriculars/volunteering and shadowing hours to add, and you will have to explain the switch from nursing to medicine to an admission committee. The former stuff is going to take at least a year. Do you plan on working for 1-2 years after nursing school before applying? If you don't, then yes, it'll raise some eyebrows to admission committees.
 
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At my school, the nursing department has their own separate chemistry and biology teachers, courses and class codes... they are not even within the natural sciences department. It was also like that at my last school.
How many credits of nursing are you taking a semester? 15?

I do think @Apollo1 gave good advice though. If you want to be a nurse, continue with nursing school. If you want to be a physician, drop nursing now and start jumping through the hoops (GPA, MCAT, shadowing, volunteering, LORs, etc.)

This is another drawback especially for non-trads. OP, while you'll be doing clinicals and taking nursing courses and preparing for your NCLEX, your biology counterpart has taken several upper level biology/chem classes that will help with the MCAT. If nursing is a backup plan for you, then there are so many bachelor's -> RN programs.
 
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Depending on the course load in a particular semester, I did at least 1 but usually 2, Med school prerequisites/gen Ed requirements per term of my ASN program. And I got straight As, in nursing and the extras. It was difficult, but I did it. Also, I was not trying to get them all done by the end of my nursing program, just get the ball moving and get some momentum. Now I'm at a university finishing the rest and working on a BS in psych degree.

Edit: the "extras" weren't all heavy sciences (but some were). They included med school prerequisites sciences (ex gen Chem, biology), pre-reqs to the sciences (ex precalc, trig), and gen ed requirements to earn the AA transfer that weren't parent of the ASN gen Ed requirements (ex English comp 2, humanities)
 
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How are you doing guys? I feel like nursing school is crushing my dream and crippling my future. I have always dreamed to become a physician. My aspiration to become a physician dates back to when I was in elementary school. I am originally from Ethiopia. When I moved to the States, I started taking classes at Community college and decided to major in Biology/ Pre-med. During second semester in community college, I switched my major to nursing and decided to use nursing as a stepping stone to get into med school. Many people said that's a crazy idea. Then after I finished taking my pre-requisites at community college, I applied for the program and got accepted into one of the best nursing schools in my State. But ever since I started taking class at my new school, I have been struggling big time. My Cimulative GPA at community college was 3.825. But nursing school is not really fun. I got 2.3 GPA during first semester and I'm currently second semester student and nothing has changed yet. I feel like my dream to go to med school is over! I was thinking to quit nursing school and switch my major back to biology but I have only two more semesters to graduate because I am doing an accelerated program. My parents think I will still be able to go to med school. They are devoted Christians who believe that God will make the impossible possible! But I don't have that kind of faith and I feel like my dream is over. It's very hard to keep a high GPA in nursing school especially when you are doing an accelerated program. I regret switching my major to nursing. I have some friends who were nurses and now in medical school. They have a pretty low MCAT score but they all have a good GPA. Any tips on how to improve my GPA? Do I still have chance of going to med school? Any advice/tips will be greatly appreciated!
 
How are you doing guys? I feel like nursing school is crushing my dream and crippling my future. I have always dreamed to become a physician. My aspiration to become a physician dates back to when I was in elementary school. I am originally from Ethiopia. When I moved to the States, I started taking classes at Community college and decided to major in Biology/ Pre-med. During second semester in community college, I switched my major to nursing and decided to use nursing as a stepping stone to get into med school. Many people said that's a crazy idea. Then after I finished taking my pre-requisites at community college, I applied for the program and got accepted into one of the best nursing schools in my State. But ever since I started taking class at my new school, I have been struggling big time. My Cimulative GPA at community college was 3.825. But nursing school is not really fun. I got 2.3 GPA during first semester and I'm currently second semester student and nothing has changed yet. I feel like my dream to go to med school is over! I was thinking to quit nursing school and switch my major back to biology but I have only two more semesters to graduate because I am doing an accelerated program. My parents think I will still be able to go to med school. They are devoted Christians who believe that God will make the impossible possible! But I don't have that kind of faith and I feel like my dream is over. It's very hard to keep a high GPA in nursing school especially when you are doing an accelerated program. I regret switching my major to nursing. I have some friends who were nurses and now in medical school. They have a pretty low MCAT score but they all have a good GPA. Any tips on how to improve my GPA? Do I still have chance of going to med school? Any advice/tips will be greatly appreciated!

If you want to be a physician, don't like nursing, and it's slaughtering your GPA then switch majors. It may extend your time in undergrad a little bit, but that GPA and your sanity are both crucial. A biology degree with upper level sciences will also prepare you better for the MCAT than nursing courses (in most programs).

You say you're in an accelerated nursing program. Do you already have a bachelor's in something else?
 
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Went to nursing school with someone who was also taking medical school pre-reqs. She is now an OMS-3. She actually failed out of the nursing program, which didn't seem to harm her chances at medical school matriculation. The nursing program was an accelerated second bachelor's degree with 15-18 credits a semester. It's doable, but both sides of the spectrum suffer. Who's to say she wouldn't have gotten into a better medical school if she had just focused on that? They are competing focuses, makes sense to pursue one or the other.
 
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If you want to be a physician, don't like nursing, and it's slaughtering your GPA then switch majors. It may extend your time in undergrad a little bit, but that GPA and your sanity are both crucial. A biology degree with upper level sciences will also prepare you better for the MCAT than nursing courses (in most programs).

You say you're in an accelerated nursing program. Do you already have a bachelor's in something else?
No I don't have a bachelor's degree. Most of my classmates already have a bachelor's degree but I only took my prequisites and got accepted. I'm torn between quitting nursing school and staying. I have only two more semesters to graduate. My school has a 16 months accelerated program(Fall, spring, summer, and Fall). If I don't repeat any class, I'll be graduating in December, 2016. It's very hard to Keep a high GPA in nursing school, but I still have 2 and 1/2 semesters to pull up my GPA.
 
No I don't have a bachelor's degree. Most of my classmates already have a bachelor's degree but I only took my prequisites and got accepted. I'm torn between quitting nursing school and staying. I have only two more semesters to graduate. My school has a 16 months accelerated program(Fall, spring, summer, and Fall). If I don't repeat any class, I'll be graduating in December, 2016. It's very hard to Keep a high GPA in nursing school, but I still have 2 and 1/2 semesters to pull up my GPA.

A 2.3 is not a high GPA (and I am an RN myself, so I do know how brutal it can get). GPA damage is quite tough to overcome...not so much one semester, but multiple semesters will hamper you and may up with you needing to do a post-bacc. Does your nursing program involve medical school pre-requisite courses (Bio I and II with lab, Chem I and II with lab, Organic Chem with lab, Physics I and II with lab, Biochem, Psych, and Sociology)? If not, you're going to be taking extra time after school to get these anyhow.
 
Went to nursing school with someone who was also taking medical school pre-reqs. She is now an OMS-3. She actually failed out of the nursing program, which didn't seem to harm her chances at medical school matriculation. The nursing program was an accelerated second bachelor's degree with 15-18 credits a semester. It's doable, but both sides of the spectrum suffer. Who's to say she wouldn't have gotten into a better medical school if she had just focused on that? They are competing focuses, makes sense to pursue one or the other.
What do you recommend me to do then? I'm really confused. I am planning to take my pre-med courses after I graduate from nursing school. But my first semester GPA was only 2.3 and I'm currently second semester nursing student. I already took second semester, first round exams and I got B in all of them. During my first semester, there was one course called Adult II that had 6 credit hours and I ended up getting C in that class. That brought down my GPA. I told my parents about quitting nursing school and they didn't support my idea. By the way my parents want me to go to med school. My father warned me when I switched my my major from biology to nursing. I wish I listened to his advice.
 
A 2.3 is not a high GPA (and I am an RN myself, so I do know how brutal it can get). GPA damage is quite tough to overcome...not so much one semester, but multiple semesters will hamper you and may up with you needing to do a post-bacc. Does your nursing program involve medical school pre-requisite courses (Bio I and II with lab, Chem I and II with lab, Organic Chem with lab, Physics I and II with lab, Biochem, Psych, and Sociology)? If not, you're going to be taking extra time after school to get these anyhow.
Actually I haven't taken any of my pre-med course yet. For now I'm just focusing on nursing. I'm planning to take my pre-med courses after I graduate. I hope that will help me raise my GPA.
 
Actually I haven't taken any of my pre-med course yet. For now I'm just focusing on nursing. I'm planning to take my pre-med courses after I graduate. I hope that will help me raise my GPA.

Oookay. But why not switch back to Bio, which will encompass all the classes you need? You expressed concern about graduating more slowly, but having to go back after nursing school and do all those classes will take time anyway. You might as well switch and concentrate on Bio with minimal GPA damage from the nursing than go through a major you hate for a field you don't want to be in that's costing you both time and GPA.
 
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Oookay. But why not switch back to Bio, which will encompass all the classes you need? You expressed concern about graduating more slowly, but having to go back after nursing school and do all those classes will take time anyway. You might as well switch and concentrate on Bio with minimal GPA damage from the nursing than go through a major you hate for a field you don't want to be in that's costing you both time and GPA.
I already took $10k student loans and I only have two more semesters to graduate. My parents strongly oppose the idea of quitting nursing school too. I have three more semesters to pull up my GPA. So I will do whatever it takes to graduate with 3.0 and above. I am studying for my pharmacology exam right now. I came to the library at 10 am and I'll probably stay here until midnight...lol I'm working my butt off this semester.
 
Hey,

Has anybody on here taken pre-med classes during a nursing program? I would have to take 1-2 extra courses on top of the regular nursing curriculum. Is it doable or am I crazy for considering this? Also, will medical school adcoms look badly on me for not committing to one profession? Please advise!

Thank you!!
I feel like I am in the same boat as you! Email me at [email protected] pls.
 
I feel like I am in the same boat as you! Email me at [email protected] pls.
Ha, I didn't even remember posting this back in August. I've actually decided to go ahead and finish my BSN program. I decided this for several reasons- I don't want to show adcoms that I can't commit to something, I can work as nurse while taking prereqs and during first and second year of med school, and most importantly, I need to have a backup plan in case med school doesn't work out. I worked out my schedule that I can apply to medical school 1 year after graduating nursing school. Even though it's an extra year, it's worth it for me, both financially and for my peace of mind. My plan as of now is like this-

Spring 2016- now-
Nursing classes at my university + general chemistry 1 in my local community college.

Summer 2016- General biology 1+2 at community college.

Fall 2016-
Just nursing classes.

Spring 2017-
Just nursing classes+ study for NCLEX

Summer 2017-
Take NCLEX+ General chemistry 2 at community college

Fall 2017-
Orgo 1+ physics 1 at my university

Spring 2018-
Biochemistry+study for and take MCAT.

Summer 2018-
Apply to med schools+ take organic chem 2

Fall 2018-
physics 2+ psychology

As I said, it'll take me a year longer, but I get to have- 1. A great backup career. I know people don't like to hear this, but I simply can't afford to end up with a biology degree. 2. Less classes at a time, so I can actually learn and retain the information at peace.

I think you should finish with your nursing program, or else you might end up with a bio degree in hand and no career.






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Ha, I didn't even remember posting this back in August. I've actually decided to go ahead and finish my BSN program. I decided this for several reasons- I don't want to show adcoms that I can't commit to something, I can work as nurse while taking prereqs and during first and second year of med school, and most importantly, I need to have a backup plan in case med school doesn't work out. I worked out my schedule that I can apply to medical school 1 year after graduating nursing school. Even though it's an extra year, it's worth it for me, both financially and for my peace of mind. My plan as of now is like this-

Spring 2016- now-
Nursing classes at my university + general chemistry 1 in my local community college.

Summer 2016- General biology 1+2 at community college.

Fall 2016-
Just nursing classes.

Spring 2017-
Just nursing classes+ study for NCLEX

Summer 2017-
Take NCLEX+ General chemistry 2 at community college

Fall 2017-
Orgo 1+ physics 1 at my university

Spring 2018-
Biochemistry+study for and take MCAT.

Summer 2018-
Apply to med schools+ take organic chem 2

Fall 2018-
physics 2+ psychology

As I said, it'll take me a year longer, but I get to have- 1. A great backup career. I know people don't like to hear this, but I simply can't afford to end up with a biology degree. 2. Less classes at a time, so I can actually learn and retain the information at peace.

I think you should finish with your nursing program, or else you might end up with a bio degree in hand and no career.






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Read my post please! I already posted about my experience in nursing school. I'm in nursing school too. I'm doing an accelerated program. I will be graduating in December, 2016 but nursing school is killing my GPA. I'm planning to work on weekends and take classes during weekdays after I graduate. But I regret switching my major from biology to nursing because I have many friends who majored in biology and couldn't get into med school and got accepted into nursing school and became a nurse in 16 months.
 
Read my post please! I already posted about my experience in nursing school. I'm in nursing school too. I'm doing an accelerated program. I will be graduating in December, 2016 but nursing school is killing my GPA. I'm planning to work on weekends and take classes during weekdays after I graduate. But I regret switching my major from biology to nursing because I have many friends who majored in biology and couldn't get into med school and got accepted into nursing school and became a nurse in 16 months.
I hear you. If you ask me, I would suggest you finish your BSN, no matter what your GPA is, and then apply to a post-bacc program. My reasoning is this- if you switch out now, your GPA from the nursing classes you've taken will factor in with your overall GPA. If you graduate with your BSN and then do a post-bac, you'll have your (hopefully high) post bac GPA to show med schools that you're capable of a rigorous science curriculum. I've done a lot of research on the subject, and have talked to many med students, residents and attendings about this, and the majority have told me to finish my BSN. Feel free to PM me regarding nursing school work or anything.


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No I don't have a bachelor's degree. Most of my classmates already have a bachelor's degree but I only took my prequisites and got accepted. I'm torn between quitting nursing school and staying. I have only two more semesters to graduate. My school has a 16 months accelerated program(Fall, spring, summer, and Fall). If I don't repeat any class, I'll be graduating in December, 2016. It's very hard to Keep a high GPA in nursing school, but I still have 2 and 1/2 semesters to pull up my GPA.

How do they have an accelerated program if you don't have a bachelor's in something else?

(My stupid opinion:I strongly dislike accelerated programs--no matter what the previous degree. For clinical alone, there should be at least a good solid 3 years. Now we have a bunch of stunods as graduate nurses, who take a much simpler NCLEX, and then they go into advanced practice nursing programs with essentially crap for clinical experience and adapted didactics. No wonder there is so much shaking heads at NPs.)

2 semesters left and still a ton to learn and to actually be responsible for after passing NCLEX. Then depending upon where you work--most acute/critical care centers will require rotation D/N, often every 2 weeks, and you will just love carrying your other pre-med pre-reqs with high grades--if you can manage not to miss classes d/t rotation schedules, and then preparing for MCAT under those circumstances.

I have no idea what to tell you except this. It makes no sense at all to earn a degree in nursing if you have no plans to use in and move from novice to at least highly proficient--the more expert is best--but that takes more years/hours of full-time experience and weird schedules, holidays, nights, weekends, and all the rest.

So I am not clear on your timeline, but working in it full-time for at least ~ 3 years, acute/critical would be most advantageous for you for clinical exposure with regard to your long-terms plans for medicine. If not, you really aren't going to have much of a significant clinical difference from most applicants. Working as a nurse in acute/critical care while taking on the pre-reqs and keeping great grades and doing all the other hoops is a lot. But only you know what you want, can, and are willing to do.

Good luck with whatever you decide.
 
How do they have an accelerated program if you don't have a bachelor's in something else?

(My stupid opinion:I strongly dislike accelerated programs--no matter what the previous degree. For clinical alone, there should be at least a good solid 3 years. Now we have a bunch of stunods as graduate nurses, who take a much simpler NCLEX, and then they go into advanced practice nursing programs with essentially crap for clinical experience and adapted didactics. No wonder there is so much shaking heads at NPs.)

2 semesters left and still a ton to learn and to actually be responsible for after passing NCLEX. Then depending upon where you work--most acute/critical care centers will require rotation D/N, often every 2 weeks, and you will just love carrying your other pre-med pre-reqs with high grades--if you can manage not to miss classes d/t rotation schedules, and then preparing for MCAT under those circumstances.

I have no idea what to tell you except this. It makes no sense at all to earn a degree in nursing if you have no plans to use in and move from novice to at least highly proficient--the more expert is best--but that takes more years/hours of full-time experience and weird schedules, holidays, nights, weekends, and all the rest.

So I am not clear on your timeline, but working in it full-time for at least ~ 3 years, acute/critical would be most advantageous for you for clinical exposure with regard to your long-terms plans for medicine. If not, you really aren't going to have much of a significant clinical difference from most applicants. Working as a nurse in acute/critical care while taking on the pre-reqs and keeping great grades and doing all the other hoops is a lot. But only you know what you want, can, and are willing to do.

Good luck with whatever you decide.
I'm planning to work as a nurse while I take my pre-med courses. Most of my classmates already have a bachelor's degree but my school also accepts students who don't have a bachelor's degree. It's a 16 months program(Fall, spring, summer, and Fall). The only pre-med course I took is chemistry I and II. I'm gonna take the rest after I graduate from nursing school. I don't know how to pull up my GPA tho! It's really hard to keep a high GPA here! But I keep fighting till the last minute and breath! I never give up on my dream of becoming an MD. Thanks for your tips!
 
Read my post please! I already posted about my experience in nursing school. I'm in nursing school too. I'm doing an accelerated program. I will be graduating in December, 2016 but nursing school is killing my GPA. I'm planning to work on weekends and take classes during weekdays after I graduate. But I regret switching my major from biology to nursing because I have many friends who majored in biology and couldn't get into med school and got accepted into nursing school and became a nurse in 16 months.

If you believe that nursing school is hurting your grades overall, I recommend switching out to a much easier major. I think nursing is probably one of the most "underrated" major and profession out there. I've had many colleagues who have ventured into this field with a high undergrad GPA, only to pass the majority of their nursing classes with "B's" & "C's". The curriculum itself wasn't difficult, but the testing format that was laid out for students was down right brutal. Also if you do plan on working as a nurse while taking your pre-reqs, do note that the job itself can wear you down physically and mentally.
 
I'm planning to work as a nurse while I take my pre-med courses. Most of my classmates already have a bachelor's degree but my school also accepts students who don't have a bachelor's degree. It's a 16 months program(Fall, spring, summer, and Fall). The only pre-med course I took is chemistry I and II. I'm gonna take the rest after I graduate from nursing school. I don't know how to pull up my GPA tho! It's really hard to keep a high GPA here! But I keep fighting till the last minute and breath! I never give up on my dream of becoming an MD. Thanks for your tips!
^ This. It can be difficult because of a number of various reasons, and frankly it's demanding of time and energy. It's the push into synergistic ways of thinking with basic understanding of certain sciences and then application of theory and approach. Research and genomic classes can take some time, and again, the clinical work that is supposed to fuse the sense of application and understanding--which will be needed for NCLEX takes time--not to mention the writing intensive courses. This is what people don't understand about it.

If you have an aptitude for science and can put the work in and kill tests and labs, that's one thing. But it can take more time to merge all the stuff and approaches in nursing education. So if you think you might do better as a pure science major, like bio, then do it. It's such an individual kind of thing. Whatever you do, don't tank your GPA though.
 
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