If you’re planning on becoming a nurse, it’s important to know how to prepare for nursing school. Some of the top nursing school tips include understanding the format of the nursing program, improving your time management skills, brushing up on your study habits, and practicing self-care.
If you’re considering pursuing your Bachelor of Science (BS) in Nursing at the University of Mount Saint Vincent, you need to prepare for everything you’ll undergo during your time in the Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing (ABSN) program.
Nursing school represents a major transition in your life as you work toward a new career. While exciting, it also has its challenges. You’ll need to learn a great deal of information and develop new clinical skills in a short amount of time.
An ABSN program presents another potential challenge because it’s designed to allow for graduation on an expedited timeline. In Mount Saint Vincent’s ABSN, you can graduate in as few as 16 months. Because of this, it’s important to do your due diligence and prepare thoroughly for the experience so you can excel as a nursing student. Here, you can learn how to prepare for nursing school using these top nursing school tips for success.
1. Develop Effective Study Habits
If you’ve been out of school for a while, you may find it difficult to return to an academic routine. To help adjust, familiarize yourself with effective study techniques ahead of time so that you can make the best use of each study session.
In addition to reviewing lectures and reading through learning materials, try incorporating active study techniques during your study sessions. That is, instead of simply rereading your notes, try these strategies:
- Formulate questions as you read the material and try to answer them.
- Use active recall. After reviewing a section, look away from it and quiz yourself on the material.
- Participate in study group discussions.
- Rephrase nursing concepts in your own words. Try to explain these concepts so that someone without a medical background can understand them.
If you feel you need more support and resources to aid in your studies, Mount Saint Vincent is pleased to offer Academic Success Coaches to our students. You can meet with a coach to discuss techniques if you are unsure of how to start studying for nursing school.
So, how does an ABSN program work? Read more to learn what to expect and the many benefits.
2. Create a Structured and Realistic Routine
The next tip on how to prepare for nursing school is to implement a routine. It’s important to begin developing healthy habits and incorporating systems that support efficiency from the very start of your nursing education.
Here are some nursing school tips for developing a consistent, structured routine:
- Set a consistent wake-up time and bedtime each day.
- Schedule time to complete online coursework.
- Instead of cramming, study frequently throughout the week.
- Schedule extra study time on weekends.
- Consistently set aside time for exercise during the week.
- Consider your strengths while scheduling study time. For instance, if you concentrate better at night, plan an evening study schedule.
- Arrange non-school activities so they don't conflict with your study or class schedule.
3. Organize Your Study Space and Learning Materials
In our ABSN program, you’ll work through nursing coursework, hands-on labs, and clinical rotations at local healthcare facilities. You will have plenty of homework, quizzes, due dates, and expectations to meet, so organization is key to keeping track of everything.
Using a planner, online spreadsheet, or app can help you manage your schedule and track all assignments, study periods, and deadlines.
4. Strengthen Your Time Management Skills
The Mount’s ABSN curriculum is rigorous and requires the same time commitment as a full-time job. It’s common for nursing students to put in more than 40 hours a week on their studies and assignments.
As such, we do not recommend working full-time while pursuing your nursing degree. Keep your eye on the prize, and stay committed to learning. This will help you get the most out of your education and finish the program on an accelerated timeline.
As you prepare to enter nursing school, you’ll need to let your current employer know about your plans. Although freeing up enough time for school is an important aspect of time management, so is making the best use of the time you have. If you tend to procrastinate, consider utilizing the Pomodoro method. Here’s how it works:
- Set a timer for 25 minutes.
- Commit to staying focused and working through the entire 25 minutes without distractions.
- Take a five-minute break after 25 minutes.
- Set the time for 25 minutes again and repeat.
- Take a 15- to 30-minute break after every four work intervals.
5. Utilize Resources for Nursing School Success
One of the most useful nursing school tips is to take advantage of the many resources that are available to you. Connecting with our staff is a great way to discover what you need to know about nursing school. They’ll help quell any anxiety you may be feeling about starting this new chapter of your life. In short, they can help you learn how to prepare for nursing school.
At the Mount, our admission counselors will guide you through the admission process, helping you understand how to submit your application, explain the requirements and prerequisites you’ll need to complete, and answer any questions you have about the ABSN program.
Once you’re working through the program, you can tap into additional school resources. All of our instructors are highly supportive, accessible and happy to answer questions or provide clarification. In addition, you can practice your new nursing skills in the labs as many times as needed to master them. Furthermore, our Academic Success Coaches are always here to help you with virtually anything, from study techniques to time management and beyond.
6. Practice Self-Care and Stress Management
Because the Mount Saint Vincent ABSN program operates on an accelerated timeline, you’ll need to understand a lot of new information in a short amount of time.
Your first day will be busy. It might even be overwhelming to see all the assignments, quizzes, lab work, and clinicals you’ll complete over the next 16 months. Try to remember that you can do this one day at a time, and although it will be challenging, you can succeed.
As busy as you’ll be, it’s important to practice self-care. Use the stress management techniques that work best for you (e.g., deep breathing, yoga, or meditation). You should also set aside time each week to do something you find enjoyable and to connect with friends and family. Additionally, be sure to receive adequate sleep each night so your brain can function properly.
7. Understand What an Accelerated Nursing Program Is Like
While learning how to prepare for nursing school, it’s important that you know what to expect from the program. At the Mount, our ABSN program combines nursing coursework with in-person labs and clinicals.
Your coursework will introduce core nursing and science concepts that are expanded upon during skills and simulation labs. These labs occur in an advanced simulated laboratory made to resemble a real-world hospital, where you will practice the fundamental nursing sills and clinical decision-making you’ll need as a working nurse.
You will also complete a series of clinical rotations, during which you will work in healthcare facilities throughout New York City. You’ll start by performing basic tasks, like preparing rooms for new patients, and gradually move on to providing direct patient care under supervision.
Understand that you are likely entering a completely new educational experience that will take time to adjust. While earning your previous degree may have come with some wiggle room, the accelerated path toward nursing does not. Even missing just one class can set you back. If you absolutely have to miss a class or lab period because you’re ill, make sure to communicate with your professor and obtain notes from a classmate.
8. Lean on Your Support System
You will need a strong support system to succeed in accelerated nursing school. Loved ones are often unabashedly encouraging in difficult times, and this might be what you need to keep going. Open up to them and keep them involved in your day-to-day life.
Allow your support system to keep you grounded. Asking about your loved one’s lives and activities, and speaking about anything other than pharmacology and IV line placement will help remind you that there’s a whole world outside of school. If you have children at home, they can also be great at grounding and encouraging you.
9. Become Familiar With Medical Terminology, Licensure, and the NCLEX
It’s vital that you enter nursing school understanding that you will sit for the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX-RN®) after graduating. Passing the NCLEX is necessary for earning your license to practice as a registered nurse. The exam can pose anywhere from 85 to 150 questions and last up to five hours.
Although your nursing school coursework will help prepare you for the NCLEX, it’s recommended you start studying for the exam as early as the first semester of nursing school. Even before you start nursing school, you can start preparing by learning nursing terminology through online resources like tutorials and educational videos.
How long does it take to become an RN? Read more to learn what it takes.
10. Remember Why You Want to Be a Nurse
The best way to reach your goal of becoming a nurse is to remain passionate about helping others in your career. Nursing school will challenge you in ways you’ve never experienced, but remembering why you want to be a nurse makes the hard work worth it.
Before you start school, take some time to envision your future. Nurses can work in many different specialties (e.g., pediatrics, acute care, or oncology) and in a wide range of settings, including nursing homes, private homes, and schools. Where would you like your nursing career to take you?
11. Prepare Financially for Nursing School
You must create a financial plan to pay for tuition and other school-related expenses. Filling out the FAFSA to apply for federal financial aid is the first step. Remember, you will need to submit the FAFSA for each year you are enrolled in school.
It’s also necessary to determine how to pay for your living expenses while in school. Again, it’s not advisable to try to work your way through nursing school, as school itself will be more than a full-time job. Other financial aid options include grants, scholarships, and private loans. There are also financial aid options for U.S. military service members.
12. Connect With Current Nursing Students or Alumni
Sometimes, the best way to learn how to prepare for nursing school is to speak to others who have been there before. You could ask your admission counselor if there are any online groups that can connect you to current nursing students or school alumni who would be willing to talk to you and answer a few questions. They may be able to provide invaluable insight into how you can best prepare.
13. Make Sure Your Vaccinations Are Up to Date
Nursing students (and nurses) are required to be up to date on all recommended vaccinations. Review your immunization record and ask the admission counselor which vaccines are required. Make an appointment to receive any needed vaccines before your target start date.
14. Know What Coursework to Expect
Before you can enter nursing school, you might need to complete prerequisite courses. These prerequisites are necessary to ensure you’re starting the program with the right academic foundation for nursing success. At the Mount, we require prerequisites such as general chemistry, microbiology, college-level mathematics, and psychology across the lifespan.
Your prior non-nursing college coursework may already fulfill some of these course requirements. Your admission counselor will help you identify which credits transfer and help you enroll in the remaining prerequisite courses.
It’s also helpful to know what coursework you’ll work on once you enter the ABSN program. You’ll work through courses on pathophysiology, health assessment, care of the aging adult, nursing research, and much more.
If you’re worried about keeping up with the curriculum, you may want to start studying ahead of your start date. Look for online nursing tutorials on topics like the circulatory system, pulmonary and renal systems, and endocrine system. You might also study dimensional analysis, which you’ll use to convert a unit into another type of unit (e.g., mL/hour into L/day).
While nursing school can be challenging, it is not impossible. With the right mindset and armed with study, time-management, and self-care tools, you will be prepared to meet any challenge and thrive.
Apply These Nursing School Tips at Mount Saint Vincent
Now that you know how to prepare for nursing school, it’s time to take the first steps toward a nursing career. At Mount Saint Vincent, you can leverage your previous education to earn a BS in Nursing in as few as 16 months. Our rigorous curriculum is designed to challenge students to become leaders in the modern healthcare scene while supporting them to achieve academic success.
Contact our admission team to find out if you are eligible for the ABSN program. With three start dates per year at our New York City ABSN sites, you could get started sooner than you’d think.