Changing your Major

[Nikki]

Have any of you done this?

There are MANY areas that I'd like to go into. Currently my major is Nursing (RN). But....I've become really interested in Respiratory Therapy and Cardiovascular Sonography/Adult Echocardiography. I don't know WHAT to do! As of now, I'm flunking A&P rally bad and will probably be dropping it in April so I can get a "W" instead of a failing grade. I'll just take it over. I hate the thought of doing that, but I think it's the best thing for me to do right now.


But, I'd like to be able to make up my mind because if I decide to go into RT, there are things that I need to do in order to get in the pool.

How do you figure out exactly WHAT it is you want to do? I'm so confused!

 

[KnarfKS]

If you are having problems with prerequisites for nursing, then RT will not be any better.

Pray of course, then try to shadow someone at each job and see which one suits you best. Don't let prerequisite classes decide your future career, bad idea to go into something you won't like for the rest of you life because of 1 semester of a horrible class. You will get through, just keep at it. :D

 

[Nikki]

No matter WHAT I decide to do, I'll still have to have this Anatomy class. That's a given. I HAVE to and WILL get through it....eventually. :
I'm not as upset about the A&P anymore. Even the instructors and counselors have told us that it's ok to take it over. Sometimes it's actually good to take it over since it's such a hard class. Trust me...I'm still working hard to get my grade up, but I'm not sure if it will happen.

I'm just saying that I don't know WHAT I want to do. I would love to do them all, but can't do that.

You've had your A&P already, right? How did you get through it? I've been told it's all memorization. I am struggling with that though. I can't point out any of the Skull bones when it's in inferior view. Anterior, Lateral, Posterior, Superior....I can do that. It's the darn inferior bones that I can't do!!!!! Our test is in like 2 weeks and I'm STILL struggling with the skull. The test is skeletal AND muscular. UGH! What am I doing wrong? I study for 5 hours and feel like I've learned nothing new.

OK....this wasn't supposed to be a venting post, but it ended up that way. Sorry :-?

 

[KnarfKS]

I took the classes seperately. It was much easier that way, and I learned more.

Do you have the Anatomy Coloring Book, this is a real book and extremely good. It was better than my textbook and only cost like $15.

My best advice is to study, but not worry about it. Most people study and know the information, but freeze at the test. Or study so long that they can't retain any information. Relax

Another tool is acronyms for things. Thats how I got through it.
Like "AS IS"
Anterior Superior Iliac Spine

 

[Nikki]

Our A&P is combined. It's just one class.

Acronyms helped me easily remember all the systems. I used "Medicul Sr Rn" because it was medical sounding. Muscular, Endocrine, Digestive, Integumentary, Circulatory, Urinary, Lymphatic, Skeletal, Respiratory, Reproductive, Nervous.

I just feel so stupid. I had an appt Thursday with my advisor to complain about the teacher and find out her credentials, but she never showed up. I left her a note and she called me back later that day and said she would meet with me that afternoon. Guess what? Another no show.

 

[KnarfKS]

This is a hard subject, I wouldn't question the instructor unless they were just giving the wrong information. There is little an instructor can do to make you remember this material, it is just sitting down to memorize it.

Keep at it, you will probably do better than you think. For physiology I was about to drop the class for fear of flunking it, by the end of the semester I came out with an A.

 

[Nikki]

Oooohhh...you must not have read my posts about my instructor. She's a MATH teacher. Even the people in the Learning Center are shocked that she's teaching A&P. They keep telling my to get in touch with the BOE. She can't spell the terms and she tells us the wrong stuff all the time. She and I got into an argument the other day in class because she kept spelling something wrong. Finally she looked in the book and realized that I was right. Then she couldn't figure out how to work the powerpoint show on the computer and I kept telling her how to get it started. She got all mad and said "forget it". I'm telling you....it's like a circus in class. There were people playing connect four, checkers, looking at apartment books, talking, etc. I told her that I couldn't hear (hoping that the classmates would take a hint also) and she wouldn't do anything.

I'm just so sick of it all. And anytime I go to talk to someone about the situation, they are no-shows or won't return my calls.

I'm sorry to keep complaining, but I'm not going to school to play around. I'm going to fulfill my dream. I think that I deserve to have a teacher that knows what the heck she's doing though. I don't think that's too much to ask.

 

[KnarfKS]

If you don't want that never go to the university of Kansas. :D :D :D
It has the highest TA and GTA to professor ratio in the nation. One of my college algebra teachers was a german grad student, the other one was a sophmore in college...BTW I had them both in the same semester, they kept quitting. And there were 40 people in my class.

I also had 3 other classes with over a thousand people in them, psychology, biology and sociology. Oh yeah my spanish class had 600.

I dislike KU very much.

 

[Nikki]

If you don't want that never go to the university of Kansas. :D :D :D
It has the highest TA and GTA to professor ratio in the nation. One of my college algebra teachers was a german grad student, the other one was a sophmore in college...BTW I had them both in the same semester, they kept quitting. And there were 40 people in my class.

I also had 3 other classes with over a thousand people in them, psychology, biology and sociology. Oh yeah my spanish class had 600.

I dislike KU very much.

But that's WRONG!!! Don't you see?! Why should we have to put up with that? I got an email today from one of the instructors at the school today and he's going to talk to a few people and email me back with the Chain of Command. He is the one that told me this kind of stuff was going on and it SHOULDN'T. I think he'll be a big help. He can't do it FOR me, but he can lead me the right way.

 

[Nikki]

If you don't want that never go to the university of Kansas. :D :D :D
It has the highest TA and GTA to professor ratio in the nation. One of my college algebra teachers was a german grad student, the other one was a sophmore in college...BTW I had them both in the same semester, they kept quitting. And there were 40 people in my class.

I also had 3 other classes with over a thousand people in them, psychology, biology and sociology. Oh yeah my spanish class had 600.

I dislike KU very much.

But that's WRONG!!! Don't you see?! Why should we have to put up with that? I got an email today from one of the instructors at the school today and he's going to talk to a few people and email me back with the Chain of Command. He is the one that told me this kind of stuff was going on and it SHOULDN'T. I think he'll be a big help. He can't do it FOR me, but he can lead me the right way.

 

[KnarfKS]

Yup, I agree that things like this shouldn't happen. Especially when we are paying large amounts of money for our education and are being taught by people who don't have a clue or don't care.

Thats the main reason I started going to a community college, it is cheaper, half of my instructors have a doctorate and the other half really love teaching, not just something they have to do in between sebatical and research. I have learned far more in a my current school and I think I'm getting a heck of a deal for my education, only $77 a credit hour versus $150 at KU. And my largest class has been 20 people :D

It is all about money at universities, 65% of KU's budget goes to research. KU is about research and grad school not undergrad.

 

[Nikki]

KnarfKS,

Just thought I'd update you. I've spoken with the Head of the Health and Sciences dept and we have an appointment this coming Tuesday morning. I'm kind of nervous. We talked on the phone the other day and some MAJOR changes are about to happen with my class. I filled him in on the instructor and the atmosphere of the class being like a zoo. :

Anyways, not sure exactly what will happen, but he said that nobody would like it. That doesn't worry me since I'm already failing.

I also found out that the instructors at the school have to have a Masters Degree in SOMETHING in order to teach. Also, a certain number of hours. They don't necessarily have to have a masters in that particular subject. That just doesn't seem right.