Hello all! If you clicked on this post, you may be a pre-nursing student. If so congratulations, before you know it you will be a nurse. I feel like just yesterday I was a pre-nursing student… You can actually find some pre nursing content on my blog if you look back in my “college” tagged posts. I wanted to share my top three tips for pre-nursing students. Keep reading for more!

This post is simply for educational purposes. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

1. BUILD YOUR FOUNDATION.

Remember, your prerequisite courses are building your foundational knowledge to critically think as a nurse. Granted, there are some courses you take that are honestly unnecessary; however, there are a few I would say you should make an effort to not mearely pass but understand the content. For me these were: Anatomy/Physiology I & II, Microbiology and Pathophysiology. Even once I became a nurse, everything seems to go back to these four courses.

2. GET INVOLVED.

I do have a biased belief that every student should be involved in philanthropy. I have been volunteering since middle school and continued throughout nursing school. Volunteering opened up many doors for me from jobs to externships, internships and scholarships. Your commitment could simply be once a month. Remember every hour adds up!

Aside from volunteering I also recommend joining at least one student organization. Not only will this allow you to network as well, but will also look great on your nursing school resume. Don’t stress over finding something healthcare related, if you are passionate about a different organization, join it! Trust me you can relate almost anything to healthcare and what is important is that you are involved.

3. TIME MANAGEMENT.

Time management is a term you will hear a lot in nursing school and once you become a nurse. However, I believe prerequsites is the perfect time to start managing your time efficiently. Time is valuable as a student. Not only are you a student, you may have other responsibilities like family, work, etc.

I know the previous tip was to get involved, but remember that anything you join/decide to be involved in should complement your schedule as a student. If you are able, try to obtain a job that won’t interview with your class schedule, but gives you time to study during the week. Don’t join so many student organizations, stick to one if you are busy. Also, take time for yourself. At least an hour… When I was a student my mental break would be about forty five minutes in the gym. Please do not sit and study all day. Take time for your hobbies and spend time with your loved ones. I would highly recommend a planner. Balance is key!

Those are my top three tips for the pre-nursing students out there! What would be your piece of advice for pre-nursing students?