Listener mail: Should I Take Anatomy During Summer Session?
This is a real email I received and almost missed in my inbox! I want to share it publicly because I know other pre-nursing students will have this same question in the future.
Since this is all my opinion (although I based my answer on reality) I’d love to hear other opinions in the comments.
Hi there,
Ever since I decided to go back to school to pursue nursing I’ve been listening to your podcast and I just want to say thank you for all of the information you share.
I am reaching out because I was hoping for your honest opinion on the course-of action for finishing up my 3 prerequisites-specifically, Anatomy. Because of Covid I find myself with a lot more time and eager to take Anatomy in the summer which means the course will be 6 weeks rather than the usual 16. I already reached out to the professor and requested a syllabus and any advice he has- and pretty much he told me to wait till fall and he forgot to send the syllabus or respond back. To say the least I found the email discouraging and I am second guessing whether or not I should take the course over the summer. I have been studying a little Anatomy on my own each day but I don’t have structure or know what to prioritize.
Do you think i should wait till fall semester as well? I feel like although it is a challenging course it comes down to memorization and studying a lot. In the meantime, is there anything I can begin really studying to prepare?
Thanks in advance for your opinion and thoughts.
Sincerely,
A-
10 Ways to Get Ready for Nursing classes: Prep Tips: the Summer Before Nursing School
My IRL Reply:
Hi A-!
I'm so sorry your message got buried in a cluttered inbox - I didn't mean to leave you hanging. I hope this advice doesn't come too late. First, this is my opinion, and since I don't know you I can't make this decision for you. But I can tell you what I think.
I think that with intense dedication and daily study time, you can pass Anatomy in a summer session. However, I think the trade-off is that you are far less likely to retain this information in a useful way by doing it at high speed.
I am afraid I have to agree with your teacher, though I don't think they needed to be so rude in their interactions with you. They could've explained why they feel this way.
I feel this way because of how deep you need to know this information and how long you need to retain it. You're learning complex body systems and processes that will literally remain relevant through all of nursing school and your career. I was really lucky to have had a fantastic Anatomy professor and he did a lot to enable our success. But I felt like I busted my ass way harder than I had in any science class before. and I had taken a lot of sciences up to that point. I still have to brush up from time to time on my anatomy because of how much it helps me understand what is going on inside my patients' bodies, how medication works, etc.
I don't want to be preachy, but girl, you gonna need this info for. ev. er. I think that if you approach it as memorization, it's going to be gone by the time you take patho courses in nursing school. You need to really understand the flow of systems in the body...and eventually, as a nurse, be able to understand how slight changes affect those systems. 15 of my classmates who didn't really master fluid and electrolytes in pre-reqs got eliminated in our first nursing semester because they tried to learn these systems a few hours a week. I don't want to sound like I'm scaring you, but it takes work and I want you to conquer this shit.
So if you think you can make this your full-time-plus-some this summer, then I say charge full steam ahead. But if you think there might be days where you want to lay in the sun or Netflix and chill, then wait till fall to fully absorb this content.
Whatever you choose, I'd love to hear how it goes.
Thanks for listening to the show, and my rambly advice.
Best,
Adrianne
And, finally, she replied with her decision - one I'm glad to hear.
Hi Adrianne,
I sincerely appreciate your opinion and detailed (not rambly at all!) response. Even though I already made the decision to wait until fall, the information that you typed out is making this whole decision to go back to school very real for me! Which is important because it keeps me honest and realistic about my decision. It is going to take a lot of mental discipline and focus. I am not exactly coming from a hard science background at all so I figured it would be best to set my self up to do the best I can and have more time on my side.
I didn't realize students can get eliminated from nursing school once they're already there. Did they fail the class? [Side note from Adrianne: Every school is different - my school allowed you to retake one failed class before having to wait a year and reapply.]
I really cannot thank you enough for your response. I will be spending a lot of time on your website and catching up on all of your episodes in the coming weeks.
Thanks for all of the information and resources on your website and time.
Sincerely,
A
While I can’t speak for every student, I feel that my advice would ring true for many people. If you have a different point of view, let’s talk about it. I wanna hear about your 6-week Summer Session Successes!
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